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Testing out a theory

Film student selected for essay award

George Turner, currently studying BA (Hons) Film at the School of Arts, has had his essay, entitled ‘The Spectacle of (In)Justice: The Ethics of the Judicial System in Documentary Cinema’, selected as ‘Highly Commended’ by The Global Undergraduate Awards 2019 in the category Music, Film and Theatre.

The Global Undergraduate Awards is the world’s leading undergraduate awards programme which recognises top undergraduate work, shares this work with a global audience and connects students across cultures and disciplines. George says ‘to be selected was an exciting and humbling surprise’. George’s essay was originally written for the Documentary Cinema module which George took in his second year, and says of his teachers: ‘Dr Maurizio Cinquegrani and Dr Zahra Tavassoli Zea’s inspired teaching helped push me to write the essay the way I did’.

The essay examines how we consume contemporary documentaries. The huge responses to crime/investigation documentaries such as Making a Murderer or Conversations with a Killer raises ethical issues concerning the production and distribution of such films. George’s essay brings these various complications to the fore by examining the styles, subject matters and consequential effects of three documentaries; Capturing the Friedmans (2003, Andrew Jarecki); Titicut Follies (1967, Frederick Wiseman); Sisters In Law (2004, Kim Longinotto).

In addition to winning this award, another of George’s essays, enitlted ‘”Thy Shall Bear Witness!”: A Case for the Continued Admiration of Early Cinema’, has recently been published by independent online film publication Electric Ghost Magazine.

In this essay, George puts forth an argument for the creative virtues of silent cinema and notes ‘silent cinema should not be disregarded as an underdeveloped version of the same cinematic attraction. In contemporary viewing, early silent cinema serves a different purpose; it is not an inferior predecessor to a superior successor, but an alternative form of film altogether’.

George’s essay can be seen in Electric Ghost Magazine.

Professor David Herd wins British Academy research grant

David Herd, Professor of Modern Literature at the School English, has recently been granted £50,000 from the British Academy’s Humanities and Social Sciences’ ‘Tackling the UK’s International Challenges Programme 2019’ to lead the project ‘Hostile Environments: Policies, Stories, Responses’.

The project is for an international network to make a comparative study of the effects of and responses to different hostile environments, and to propose urgently needed changes to national and international asylum practices.

Co-applicants from Kent, including Dr Matt Whittle, from Birmingham, Professor Lyndsey Stonebridge, and from the Refugee Tales project, including Anna Pincus, will collaborate with a team of international academics, activists and people with lived experience of hostile environments. Among the outputs will be briefing papers to the governments of the UK, Italy, Canada and USA, and to international agencies.

You can find out more about the project on the British Academy’s website.

Volunteers wanted for Congregations November 2019

The Corporate Events team is looking for volunteers to help during congregations for Medway and Canterbury – can you help?

MEDWAY (Rochester Cathedral):
Wednesday 20 November (x2 ceremonies), 10.30, 14.30

CANTERBURY (Canterbury Cathedral):
Friday 22 November (x3 ceremonies), 10.30, 14.30, 19.30

This is a special day for all of our graduating students, and a great opportunity to be involved in an important University event.

We have a variety of roles available for volunteers, so whether you would like to be in the Cathedral for the ceremony, helping the graduands check-in, or managing the guest queue, there is something suitable for everyone.

Things to know:

Volunteers working two consecutive ceremonies will be provided with lunch or dinner in between their two shifts
Volunteers can choose any ceremony ‘shifts’ from the above list, and full training will be available for your designated role.
In any role, there will be a member of the Congregations’ team on hand to support you
Different roles will have different start and finish times due to the requirements of that role for the ceremony
It’s a wonderful week and is a great opportunity to see any students that you have supported graduate.

If you would like to get involved in November 2019 Congregations, we would be delighted to have you.

To register your interest or to find out more about the roles available, please email congregations@kent.ac.uk with your preferred ceremony/ies or your query.

Technology and Green Spaces symposium – 29 October

How might technology work together with soil-less food production such as aquaponics/hydroponics?

How are technological innovations such as apps and AI changing our relationship with nature and urban spaces?

These are some of the questions to be discussed at the Technology and Green Spaces Symposium in central London, on 29 October 2019, from 09.00-16.15.

The symposium, organised by our Kent School of Architecture and Planning and the charity Social Farms and Gardens, will explore how technology is transforming our perception of the urban green scene.

Speakers include Michael Hardman from the University of Salford and Kate Hofman, CEO of GrowUp.

Full event fee (including lunch) is £30 and concessions £15 (for students, ECRs and those working with the FEW-meter project).

Places are limited. Please use this Eventbrite link to book your place.

Exhibition on British humour and WW2

Keen ears might have heard some music echoing through the Templeman Gallery lately! To find out more about our latest exhibition, read on…

Keep Smiling Through: British Humour and the Second World War explores the use of humour in cartoons, letters, books, ephemera and artefacts from the First and Second World Wars. This exhibition has been curated to support the symposium of the same title held here at the University of Kent on 12–13 September 2019, with the assistance of Special Collections & Archives’ inaugural exhibition interns.

Using the British Cartoon Archive’s extensive collection of cartoons, ephemera, letters, and artefacts, this exhibition explores how humour was used throughout the Second World War to discuss politics, military campaigns, and improve morale both on the front line and at home. It also explores how the British press portrayed other theatres of war. The exhibition offers an insight into the reactions of the British public and traces responses to the present day as contemporary cartoonists echo the iconography pioneered by 20th century artists. The archives of Carl Giles and KEM, held here at Kent, are showcased extensively – including films made by Giles for the Ministry of Information during the War.

Entry is (as always) free and the gallery is open during the Templeman Library’s opening hours. The exhibition runs until 25 October. We hope to see you soon!

TESSAs – 2019-20 applications

The Teaching Enhancement Small Support Awards (TESSAs) are small grants introduced during 2017-18, to support colleagues in enhancing teaching, learning and the student experience.

The TESSAs offer funding of between £500 and £3,000 per award, with up to £5,000 for large, high-impact, collaborative awards operating across Schools and ideally in more than one Faculty, or across Schools and PSDs. During our first two years of operation, we have awarded over £76,000 to 46 successful projects. The total funding available across both rounds in 2019-20 is expected to be up to £50,000.

Applications should be submitted by 12 noon on Tuesday 26 November 2019 for projects to start during the Spring or Summer Terms 2019-20 (with notifications of outcomes by Tuesday 10 December). There will be a second round for projects to start during the summer of 2020 or in the Autumn Term 2020-21 (for comparison and planning, the closing date last year was Tuesday 14 May 2019). Your project should not take more than one year in total.

For more information on how to apply, please visit the UELT TESSA webpage.

Electronic sensing with (almost) no batteries

The School of Engineering and Digital Arts is delighted to announce that on Wednesday 20 November from 6 – 7 pm in the Jennison Lecture Theatre, John Batchelor, Professor of Antenna Technology will deliver the annual Jennison Lecture, kindly sponsored by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).

The lecture is entitled “Electronic sensing with (almost) no batteries” and will focus on how a simple RFID (radio frequency identification devices) tag can be converted into a sensing system, and how it can work with (almost) no battery at all.

After the lecture, there will be an opportunity to network, and light refreshments will be served.

All staff and students welcome as well as members of the public and members of the IET.

Kent’s Staff Survey is now open!

Click here to complete the 2019 Staff Survey

Kent’s 2019 staff survey is now live and will be open to everyone for a period of 6 weeks – until 13 November.

Inclusivity and respect are crucial characteristics of our university which should be fostered and sustained more than ever if we are to realise our Kent 2025 ambitions and be true to our values. This is particularly so during this period of organisational change and as the external environment becomes ever more volatile and challenging. Your opinions are really important to us and we want to hear your thoughts.

This survey is an excellent opportunity for you to provide confidential feedback on your perception of Kent as a place to work and help us understand some of the issues that affect your working life – what we do well and what we can do better. We want to know how we measure up against our values and Kent 2025 ambitions during this time of organisational change.

Making significant change is never easy but the benefits to be gained through Organising for Success are real. As we progress through the different stages of the project it is important for us that you understand the changes, feel supported by your manager, have the opportunity to share your views and still believe Kent to be a good place to work.

Be open and honest – your feedback is vital in guiding us on how to make changes to enhance your working life.
The survey is completely anonymous. We are not able to attribute responses to an individual.
It is shorter than the previous survey – It should take you no longer than 10 minutes to complete.

For more information, for more information, please see our Staff Survey webpages.

If your question has not been answered here, please speak to your line manager or email: staffsurvey@kent.ac.uk

Korea Day at Gulbenkian – 4 October

Friday 4 October is Korea Day at Gulbenkian and all staff and students are invited!

In partnership with Korean Cultural Centre UK, we are presenting:

From 5pm – Korean Chef Hyung-Soo Yim will take over our cafe, serving delicious Korean Street Food.

From 6pm – A spectacular display of digital artwork on the outside of the Gulbenkian building by artist Yiyun Kang.

7.30pm – A gig by sensational Korean band Jambinai – who use traditional instruments, but play them in a very contemporary style! They leapt to international recognition playing the closing ceremony of the Olympic winter games in PyeongChang.

The event is free to attend, and tickets for the gig are £10 for Uni Kent Staff & Students.

Medway Learning and Teaching Collaborative Projects Initiative

The Medway Collaborative Projects Initiative provides funding for staff of the three Universities at Medway and their partner colleges to collaborate on projects that will benefit all Medway students.

The funding may be used to:

• Invest in pilot equipment/software

• Invite external speakers or workshop facilitators

• Activities to support collaboration.

The call for applications for funding for 2019-20 is now open. Please see our page.

The submission deadline for applications is Friday 15th November 2019.