Dr Edward Kanterian, Reader in Philosophy for the Department of Philosophy, has published an article in the NZZ.ch, a prestigious Swiss newspaper, on the topic of climate change, and defends climate activist Greta Thunberg after criticism from historian Niall Ferguson (in an article originally published in The Sunday Times).

Edward argues that Greta is in fact right to point out that we are on the brink of disaster, and that we have to listen to the findings and warnings of the climate scientists.

“Man-made climate change is seriously threatening the biological foundations of our existence,” Edward says, “Greta Thunberg is certainly not an alarmist, and even less so ‘a millenarian cult leader’ (as Niall Ferguson suggests). She is right in asking us to listen to the findings and warnings of the climatologists.”

Dr Tamara Rathke, senior lecturer in linguistics for the department of English Language and Linguistics, has given a talk at Macquarie University on language and rhythm titled ‘When language hits the beat: synchronising movement to simple tonal and verbal stimuli’.

Rhythmic perception-action coupling through sensorimotor synchronization has been studied with non-verbal, simple and complex auditory signals like a metronome and music. Applications of the paradigm to language are relatively rare, but could provide a valuable tool for investigating rhythm perception in speech. The aim of the present study is to compare sensorimotor synchronisation with simple non-verbal and verbal stimuli.

Tamara has also recently received a JSPS fellowship that she had applied for her to spend 2 months at NINJAL (National Institution for Japanese Language and Linguistics).

The Centre for the Study of Higher Education (CSHE) Seminar Series for Autumn 2019 is now available.

In this series of public seminars, CSHE spotlights issues related to racial inequality in higher education.  Leading scholars will highlight research that helps to explain attainment gaps, points the way toward more equitable and supportive learning environments for students of colour, and showcases anti-racist methods and theoretical perspectives. The series is timed to follow the launch of the Kaleidoscope Network providing one way for those who would like to build their own ally-ship to actively learn about these matters.

The Very Reverend Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury, invites you to join him in conversation with The Most Reverend Michael B Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church, as they take you on a personal journey of music and faith.

Bishop Curry is well known from his sermon at the Royal Wedding in May 2018. In this special event, which will feature musical interludes, he will answer questions at the end of the evening when there will also be an opportunity to purchase his new book Songs my Grandma Sang

The event takes place in the Cathedral Nave on Wednesday 2 October at 19.00 (doors open from 18.30). Tickets, priced £11 each, are available online at kings-school.co.uk/boxoffice or by phoning 01227 595778 (Monday to Friday).

Colleagues are invited to attend the first E-Learning Forum of 2019-20 on Tuesday 24th September 2019, 12 noon to 1pm in the UELT seminar room, Canterbury Campus.

In this session we will take a closer look at the new Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations and the impact they have upon our use of Moodle. On the 23rd September, all content on our websites and within Moodle will need to be accessible. In this session, we will talk specifically about the challenges this poses and will offer practical tips and suggestions for good accessible content design within Moodle and the documents added to it. 

We will demonstrate work undertaken so far to make Moodle accessible by design, including our use of Blackboard Ally, and will talk in detail how the new regulations impact all content creators in Moodle.

Co-delivered by the E-Learning team and Student Support and Wellbeing, this session may be of interest to academic and professional services staff who create and share any type of content through Moodle and for those interested in digital accessibility and inclusion.

To register for this session please complete the online booking form.

For the full programme of ELFS in 2019-20 please click here.  

A special event on Wednesday 2 October will mark the launch of a new BAME/Staff of Colour Network and the Kaleidoscope Network set up by the Centre for Sexuality, Race & Gender Justice (SeRGJ).

Among the aims of the BAME/Staff of Colour Network are to:

• support the University in meeting its commitment to equality, diversity and inclusivity
• raise awareness of the broad range of knowledge, skills, expertise and contributions of BAME staff/staff of colour
• provide a forum for coaching, mentoring and advocacy for BAME staff/staff of colour
• raise awareness of discrimination, harassment, micro-aggressions, pay and/or promotions gaps and other disadvantage experienced by BAME staff/staff of colour
• work in collaboration with the University to address inequalities.

The Kaleidoscope Network (KN) is a collective of students and staff of colour and ‘allies’ hosted by the Kent Law School Centre for Sexuality, Race & Gender Justice (SeRGJ). The idea to set up the KN originated from students involved in the Decolonising the Curriculum Project led by Dr Suhraiya Jivraj as part of its manifesto which was launched at a University conference earlier this year. The KN is committed to implementing the manifesto at Kent and staff and students are welcome to join by pledging to its principles

The launch event on Wednesday 2 October takes place from 17.00-20.00 in the Moot Chamber, Widoger Building on Canterbury campus. Refreshments will be available from 17.00.

The keynote address will be given by Professor Heidi Safia Mirza, Emeritus Professor in Equalities Studies, UCL Institute of Education and Visiting Professor of Race, Faith and Culture at Goldsmith’s College, University of London. She is known for her pioneering intersectional research on race, gender and identity in education and has an international reputation for championing equality and human rights for Black and Muslim women through educational reform.

The event is open to BAME staff and others interested in becoming members of the Kaleidoscope Network which is open to Kent staff and students. You can book your place via Eventbrite.

We are pleased to announce that following assessments conducted by both the REF 2021 Equality and Diversity Panel (EDAP) and Research England, it has been confirmed that Kent’s Code of Practice meets the published requirements as set out in the REF 2021 COP Guidance (REF 2019/03).

The Code of Practice (COP) is a vital document for the University’s REF 2021 submission and is a document all institutions are required to submit.  It outlines the process of defining researchers, selecting outputs and demonstrating support for equality and diversity in the REF.

Kent’s COP is aligned with our commitment to the creation and support of a balanced, inclusive and diverse academic community, and reflects the four expected principles: transparency, consistency, accountability and inclusivity.

Now Kent’s COP has been approved, we must adhere to the approaches and processes that have been outlined and use it to inform key decisions for our REF2021 submission.

Please visit the REF2021 Code of Practice webpage for full details.

The Kent Sport Physiotherapy Clinic will be running a discount on massages from 23 September to 29 November to help kick-start your academic year!

Massages are being offered at £19 for 30 minutes – and that’s the same great price regardless of whether you’re a Kent Sport member or not. We have two new fully qualified massage therapists who have recently joined us, Millie Knight and Mark Allen! This means we have even more availability!

To book an appointment, please visit the reception desk inside the fitness suite at the sports centre, call the clinic staff on 01227 824375 or email physio@kent.ac.uk.

We look forward to seeing you!

The University is delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Christina Hughes as interim Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education and Student Experience) and Professor Georgina Randsley de Moura as interim Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Strategy, Planning and Performance).

Christina brings extensive leadership experience to the post having spent three years as Provost at Sheffield Hallam University and four years Pro-Vice Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) at the University of Warwick. She is a member of the TEF Subject Panel (Social Sciences) and is Visiting Professor at the University of Coventry’s Centre for Global Learning Equity and Attainment. Christina will be joining the University on 14 October 2019 and will build on the good work already underway thanks to Professor April McMahon who starts her new role at Manchester University in a few weeks’ time.

Georgina has made a significant contribution to the strategic direction of the University, especially in the growth and development of Psychology’s profile and positioning and nationally through leadership roles in the British Psychological Society. Georgina also has extensive cross-institutional experience across a range of projects in education, research, EDI, and organisational change. Georgina will start her new role on 1 October 2019 and interim arrangements will be made to cover her current commitments as Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences.

Both will be members of the University’s Executive Group.