PhD student Siobhan Maderson was one of twelve finalists in this year’s Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) writing competition, ‘Making Sense of Society’.
Siobhan’s thesis, which is funded by the ESRC and Aberystwyth University as part of the WISERD/Civil Society programme, examines the traditional environmental knowledge of beekeepers, and how this can be better utilised to support environmental sustainability.
The 800 word article Siobhan submitted to the competition, entitled ’Ensuring a sweeter future’, describes her research, why it interests her, and why it is relevant to a wider audience.
Siobhan said: “Being shortlisted in the ESRC’s Making Sense of Society writing competition was a huge honour. Exploring, and ultimately improving communication between academic researchers and the wider community is very important to me. Interdisciplinary research is a key aspect of my PhD, and this also includes working with knowledge outside of traditional academia. Reaching the competition finals is recognition of the importance of this broad outlook. All of the shortlisted entries covered a fascinating breadth of topics, showcasing the range, and value, of social science research to an incredible variety of current societal issues.”
Siobhan’s article, along with the other shortlisted entries, can be read at: http://www.esrc.ac.uk/skills-and-careers/writing-competition/
