Claire Taylor (She/Her)

Undergraduate Research and Leadership Scholar, Laidlaw Foundation
Robyn Willow Smith (she/her)

Student, University of St Andrews

I am currently about to enter my fourth year of my Integrate Masters in Theoretical Physics and Applied Maths. My Laidlaw research project was part of  QuVis ( The Quantum Mechanics Visualisation Project). In particular, I worked on the spin uncertainty stimulation  and then investigated it's effectiveness by conducting student interviews. I have a wide range of interests including Unification theories, sustainable fashion, digital creative advertising , behavioural science and art amongst many more. 
Cath Brislane

2020-2021 Scholar, University of York (Alum)

I am an alumni of the University of York where I received a BA (Hons) degree in English Literature and Linguistics. I was the Arts and Humanities Subject Lead on the Laidlaw Scholar's Network and the 2020-22 Arts and Humanities Undergraduate rep at the University of York.  After graduating from York I went to the University of Oxford to read for an MPhil in Linguistics, Philology, and Phonetics. After 2 years of study at Oxford I work full time in a school and also work on the HEnabled podcast, which aims to showcase the experiences of people with disabilities and long-term health conditions within the British Higher Education system. If you study or have studied at a British University and have a disability or long term-health condition, then I would love to have you on as a guest! Email henabled@gmail.com to get in touch. 
Robyn Adams

Student, University of St Andrews

I'm currently 2/6th of the way to becoming a doctor 👩🏻‍⚕️   Studying medicine at The University of St Andrews means not only a great uni but also beautiful surroundings. I have interests in: lifestyle medicine, psychiatry, infectious diseases and emergency medicine. My dream is to become an expedition medic. Ask me what I'm reading just now I love to wild swim 🏊🏻‍♀️, wanna go?
Lucia Cathers

Student, University of St Andrews

I am a 4th year History student from the University of St Andrews. I spent the past year studying and working abroad in Oslo and in Prague. My research analysed the words and phrases of key documents of 1910s Ireland, and used these to evaluate the wider ideologies of Nationalism and Unionism, particularly concerning individual experiences of the ideologies. My research proved the value of speeches and literature to the historian in uncovering wider society. Determined to build upon this research, I am currently creating a website. This will function as an online archive for speeches and literature and offer my research as an interpretation to aid in understanding. I hope that this will be an accessible and beneficial tool for those interested in Irish history. When I'm not reading, researching and writing about History, I run my own small-business, enjoy traveling, and have a passion for learning languages.  Feel free to connect here!
Maria Rose Elizabeth Yates

Student , University of St. Andrews

Mrinalini Sisodia Wadhwa

2021-22 Laidlaw Scholar, Columbia University

I am an alumna of the 2021-22 Columbia Laidlaw Scholars cohort, and graduated from Columbia (CC'24) with majors in History and Mathematics. My Laidlaw research centered on the women's movement in early twentieth-century British India. My first summer focused on the Indian writer, educator, and activist Mahadevi Varma, and my second summer focused on networks of women from across the British empire attending the Oxford in the 1910s-30s at the Unstable Archives Project.
Pia Tiwari

Student, University of St Andrews

Pronouns: she/her, they/them I am an undergraduate scholar and an International Relations and Social Anthropology student at St Andrews. Growing up in various countries across Asia and Europe, I have become particularly interested in global politics, postcolonialism, and social justice. I am also passionate about languages, and speak Chinese, Persian, Urdu, French, and Spanish to varying degrees, in addition to my native Hindi and English.
Toni Andres

student, University of St Andrews

I am currently in my fourth year of an undergraduate degree in Classics/Comparative Literature at the University of St Andrews and am particularly interested in accessibility within academia through public engagement and community building. In my research project Queer Catullus, Catullan Queers, I looked at the history of queer adaptations of poems by the ancient Roman poet Catullus. Based on this research, I set up the collaborative arts project Catullan Identities which invited people to respond to the ancient poems creatively. During my Leadership-in-Action project I transformed this approach into a series of queer creative workshops which I ran in different parts of Scotland and that aimed at empowering queer communities in the face of rising transphobia and queerphobia across the UK. Please feel free to browse the gallery of Catullan Identities on my website and don’t hesitate to get in touch with any questions.
Joseph Edwards

Student, University of St Andrews

I am currently a fifth year student studying for an MMath Mathematics at the University of St Andrews. During the summer of 2021, I undertook a research project into Algebraic Constraint Geometry and Graph Rigidity. In the summer of 2022, I undertook a Leadership in Action Project in Fiji with Think Pacific. Alongside maths, I also really enjoy playing around with computers! At the moment, I am learning how to use HTML and Ruby so that I can host and maintain my own website. I also hope to take a course on machine learning soon. Outside of academia, I am a big fan of the outdoors. For the past two years I have been learning to kayak and have really enjoyed the opportunity to explore Scotland whilst doing so.
Eirini Vryza

Student (English and Philosophy), University of St Andrews

Hi! I am Eirini Vryza (I often go by Irene). I am a student at the University of St Andrews, and I study English and Philosophy! I am particularly interested in ecocriticism as a critical approach to literature, and I love logic and philosophy of language in philosophy. I have also been quite impressed with object-oriented ontology, and I'd say that although my focus is primarily logic and philosophy of language, one of my favorite philosophers is Peter Singer! In my research project I will be looking at local narratives about nature and how anthropocentrism can be excluded from our collective narratives towards nature by exploring modern Greek literature (prose) and using object-oriented ontology, material ecocriticism and blue humanities as theoretical frameworks.  I am very engaged in effective altruism, particularly in the areas of animal welfare and climate change, and I am also part of the amazing organization that is in St Andrews and many other university called One For The World, which promotes effective giving for global health and extreme poverty. 
Sophia Brousset

Student, University of St Andrews

I am an incoming MPhil candidate in Visual, Material and Museum Anthropology at the University of Oxford. My Laidlaw research explores the Incan Empire's positive view of female homosexuality, exploring how their diverse understandings of gender influenced these views on sexuality. It also considered how La Conquista's use of a European lens and translation when documenting Incan civilisation resulted in the erasure of much of the sexual and gender diversity which existed throughout Incan Peru.  Show more
Isabella Redmayne (she/her)

Student, University of St Andrews

I am fascinated by stories. My research project centres on the often uneasy relationship between truth and entertainment in antiquity, a theme I hope will shed some light on modern times.. I am also a keen advocate for the promotion of the humanities in education. The stories we tell ourselves have far-reaching cultural consequences, and as such I believe we all have the right to education in this field. If you’re looking for someone to listen to a story or to tell one, please get in touch!
Marcelina Lekawska

Student, University of St Andrews

Pearls Eddo

Law (Industrial) LLB, University of Leeds

Hi👋🏾 I’m Pearls I am a final year Law student at the University of Leeds. I recently completed a placement year at The Walt Disney Company as a CPGP Contract Management Intern (hence the 'industrial' next to my degree title) My first-year research project looked at the way game-based learning could be incorporated into Multi-Academy Trusts (aka MATs) to improve the academic attainment and classroom engagement of GCSE-year black students. My Leadership-in-Action project was with MakeSense and focused on empowering minority communities within Mexico City.
Shubhecchha Dhaurali

Student, Laidlaw Foundation

Hello all! My name is Shubhecchha Dhaurali (pronounced Sue-betcha Dur-all-e). I am a first-generation student originally from Nepal double-majoring in Community Health and Biology at Tufts University. My research is housed in the Tufts University School of Medicine with Dr. Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha who is an Associate Professor and Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Medical School's Department of Community Health & Medicine. 
Polina Foteva

Third year, BSc Biochemistry, University of St Andrews

Hi, I'm Polina and I'm a Biochemstry student at the University of St Andrews. I am interested in the properties of enzymes and mechanism of biocatalysis. It is really exciting to be part of the Laidlaw Network. I had the most amazing summer in my life last year, doing research in MacNeill Lab, St Andrews. Looking forward to my second summer as a Scholar, which I will spend volunteering in Ghana.
Scott Siegel

Student, Cornell University

Robb Calder

PhD Student, University of Cambridge

I am a 2nd Year PhD student at the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge. I work in Professor Oliver Shorttle's group, studying the atmospheres of hot rocky planets. In our solar system, Venus exemplifies the fate of a planet that orbits too close to its host star: a catastrophic runaway greenhouse effect leading to the loss of all liquid water and hellish surface conditions. Understanding the factors that led to this outcome on Venus helps us identify the conditions necessary for such processes to occur on exoplanets, refining our understanding of the inner edge of the habitable zone. My recent work has focused on ozone production in Venus' upper atmosphere and the potential for ozone to present a false-positive biosignature on Venus-like exoplanets. Currently, I am extending my research on hot rocky exoplanets to include the sub-Neptune regime, particularly focusing on 'Magma Worlds.' There has been recent interest in Hycean worlds—planets with vast liquid oceans and hydrogen-dominated atmospheres—and their potential to support life. However, distinguishing observationally between Hycean worlds and sub-Neptunes with molten surfaces, or 'Magma Worlds,' remains a critical challenge.
Callum

Clarke, St Andrews

I am an undergraduate Economics and Mathematics student in the 2021 Cohort of the University of St Andrews. My research project will be a statistical analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on international voting behaviours, particularly regarding the re-election of political leaders (or lack thereof), but my interests expand to anything Econ. 
Isabel Kestler

Laidlaw Alumna (2021 cohort), University of St Andrews / University of Cambridge

I am a former Laidlaw Scholar (University of St Andrews, 2021 cohort) with a background in Philosophy and Mathematics. My research project focused on the Philosophy of Space Exploration and Exoplanet Science, and for my LiA project, I worked together with Think Pacific on a Youth and Development project in Fiji.  After my undergraduate studies, I went on to do a master’s degree in History and Philosophy of Science at Cambridge (yet another Laidlaw partner university!), building on my previous Laidlaw research.