Part of the team at the Organisation for Identity and Cultural Development (OICD). Here I'm currently becoming more adept in the methodology, EMIC, which can help practitioners understand the identity and cultural factors at work in a group or place and leverage them to create positive social change. I'm working on my own pilot project using this method and by testing an in-development tool. The project itself focuses on building local cohesion around an active travel project which has proved rather divisive in the past. The aim is to suggest new ways in which public consultation can be carried out in order to reduce division, delays and costs.
On other days, I'm selling and cataloguing old and rare books at Foster Books, London.
I'm also the researcher in an historical screenplay development team.
Otherwise, trying to run more. Trying to strengthen my sleeping habits.
I'm trying to expand my network and learn from others in the urbanism field.
I live in London, where I was born and raised. I went to school here, where for a reasonable amount of time I thought I wanted to study maths or theoretical physics, despite not being very good at either. When I was rowing a lot (well, coxing), I obviously got really into boats and thought maybe I could be a naval architect. I still kind of wish I was an architect.
I decided to study history, at Leeds University, in the neck of the woods my paternal ancestors have been based in for centuries, ever since they got kicked out of France. I enjoyed my time there, met some great people and continued rowing, 'majoring' in Early Modern European history. It's still a period I'm quite interested in - the exploration and beginnings of colonialism of the 16th century through the Long 18th Century. Aspects of these studies helped me realise I was rather interested in concepts like nationalism, identity and the idea of Europe. I then went on to Trinity College Dublin for a course focusing on European identity and culture. Besides the interesting content, I think the key things I learned from this experience were the value of interdisciplinary thinking and of working within a niche. I had a great time in Dublin, somewhere I had comparably less experience of than the other parts of Ireland I'd been going to since I was born - I'm Irish on my mother's side.
I graduated with an unclear sense of my passions and skills and over the next while tried for roles in a few different fields, predominantly in international affairs, but my lack of a focus didn't help me here. At least alongside this search I was gaining some more experience, starting first at the OICD and then also with the Institute for Continuing History. At the former I have been working with the core team to advance projects, including newsletter and website development and assisting in the running of events. At the latter I conducted archival research into episodes of state-sponsored violence in Southern Africa's recent history. I also spent some time volunteering at my local Oxfam bookshop, which in turn helped me get a job at one of London's best old and rare bookshops (I'm biased, but it's also a great place).
Last Summer I decided to step back and reevaluate where it was I thought I might be going. So came a period of introspection. I let myself wander more and explore interests and piece together the things that really get me fired up (I have a whole Obsidian vault to prove it!). I read lots on the concept of Ikigai, came to the conclusion that we in The West are most definitely corrupting it anyway and mapped out how I saw my purpose, rejigging 'the' Ikigai diagram in the process (if you're interested, my version looks like this).
I learned that concepts I'd been engaging with at university and in my early work such as nationalism remained of interest, though I was struggling with their vast, often abstract nature and, crucially, how I could make a tangible impact at that scale. Over time I discovered that what actually resonated with me on a deeper level was my interest in places. This led me to recognise the local as the most meaningful scale for impact. The places that speak the most to me and dominate my thinking are cities, with their diverse cultures, layered histories and their capacity to be the most socially-resilient places.
I am exploring the relationship between places and their inhabitants, particularly how people understand and experience their connection to where they live. In what ways can these connections be strengthened? What does an enhanced sense of place enable? Research suggests that when people feel this connection to their place, seeing their identity in that place, their commitment to community building efforts and investment in the place's future is strengthened. As cities evolve - especially in response to challenges like climate change - I believe a deeper understanding of how they are experienced by their inhabitants can inform locally relevant development that brings people together to meet these challenges.
Thanks for reading! Head over here if you want to get in touch with me.
