The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) have just announced five major new interdisciplinary networks that will be based at universities across the UK using more than £9m from the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF).
The 5 networks will run from October 2017 for up to 4 years, and will showcase the distinctive contribution that arts and humanities research can bring to development in low and middle income countries.
The Rising from the Depths Network has won £2 million for a 4 year project (2017-21) which aims to help East African communities better understand and benefit from marine cultural heritage.
The team, led by Dr Jon Henderson from the University of Nottingham, will conduct research on coastal infrastructure and offshore developments in East Africa, exploring ways in which local communities can engage with heritage for educational, social, and economic development. The interdisciplinary project will last four years and will apply an innovative methodology based on a Theory of Change and grounded on the Human Rights Approach to Development.
The project aims to transform the way people understand, use and perceive marine cultural heritage as well as the way coastal and marine development projects are executed in Africa.
The project, Rising from the Depths: Utilising Marine Cultural Heritage in East Africa to Help Develop Sustainable Social, Economic and Cultural Benefits, is a joint initiative led by the University of Nottingham, in collaboration with the Universities of Roehampton, York, Ulster, Bournemouth, Uppsala (Sweden), and Eduardo Mondlane (Mozambique).
Calls for appointing postdoctoral researchers, PhD student and support staff will be posted on this website soon.
If you are interested in knowing more about the project and getting involved please contact jon.henderson@nottingham.ac.uk.