Hey everyone - I'm Gitika, but I go by Aki, and I'm a 2024 Laidlaw Scholar based at the University of St Andrews. I'm originally from California, but moved to Scotland to pursue my undergraduate studies in history and economics. My Laidlaw research focuses on the colonial and postcolonial histories of sexuality and gender in Asia, and particularly how it has impacted the current lives and experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals based in India and Japan.  I'm eager to meet you all, so do reach out if you want to chat about research or just connect over a shared interest! Apart from my work in gender and sexuality history, I'm also keenly interested in archival history, colonial/postcolonial studies, and language / linguistics. Outside of academics, I'm often playing music, walking along the Fife coast with a hot cup of tea, writing, or watching Doctor Who with my friends.

My name is Fiona and I'm a member of the Class of 2026 at Georgetown University in the US. I'm majoring in Culture and Politics with a concentration in International Labor Policy and minoring in English and French. My research focuses on the intersection between artificial intelligence and labor exploitation. I aim to chronicle the ways that the tech industry would not function without the contract labor performed by millions of workers in the Global South, and to analyze new models of tech worker organizing to strengthen their power and autonomy. I also hope to situate this "last mile" of digital automation within historical trends of piecework, mechanization, and labor displacement under capitalism. For my summer 2025 Leadership in Action project, I'm interning at a labor union in the capital of Tunisia.

The intersection of social issues and nature is what inspires me. Throughout my work, my aim is creating a world where people and nature live in a reciprocal and harmonious relationship. I love spending my time getting to know how to best serve the interests of communities.  I want to empower people to create the changes they want to see in their local area, and help communities radically transform local nature and biodiversity around the world.

Laidlaw Scholar Alumni (Durham University Cohort 6, 2022-24) Current Endeavours: I am studying MSc Environmental Economics and Climate Change at the LSE for 2024-25. From September 2025, I will be starting a PhD in Environmental Economics at the University of Basel, Switzerland. --- My time as a Laidlaw Scholar: I graduated with First Class Honours in BA Economics from Durham University. My foremost interests are Development Economics and Environmental Economics. This is reflected in my research project which explored Demographic Economics, titled "The Shifting Distribution of the Global Population in the Twenty-First Century: an Econometric Analysis of the Projected Fortunes of Nigeria and Japan, with Policy Recommendations for Sustainable Development". I have experience working in economic consulting, specialising in competition economics, and am also a Zumba instructor. During my time on the Laidlaw Programme I have also served as a Laidlaw Schools Trust Mentor for Excelsior Academy in Newcastle. In 2023, I completed a six-week international ‘Leadership in Action’ project in partnership with Think Pacific for my Laidlaw Scholarship. For this, I participated in a multi-faceted programme, comprising the building of a health centre, collaborations with Diabetes Fiji and Youth Champs 4 Mental Health, and a Fijian Culture Course. The project ended with a Think Tank where we planned how we would sustain progress. In my sub-group’s case, we are working on a new project to build a multi-purpose building to act as a kindergarten and evacuation centre, for which we are currently fundraising. We have had multiple meetings with the Laidlaw Foundation CEO and the Laidlaw Schools Trust, and we are presenting at the Conversations Conference in Dublin in October 2023. Our project took place in Vunimaqo and Waisava, Dreketi Settlement, Nalawa district, Ra province, Vita Levu island, Fiji. I attended the Impact 2022 conference at the LSE and (virtually, after flight cancellations) the Conversations 2023 conference at Trinity College Dublin.

Hi I'm Peter, I'm a third year engineering student with a passion for electricity and lighting things on fire (with electricity). My research project focuses on using microwaves (The same EM waves that heat your food, yes!) for breast cancer detection. Breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women worldwide, and early detection and diagnosis is highlighted by the World Health Organization as a key priority. Currently the only way to detect and diagnose breast cancer is with X-Ray mammography, which is incredibly costly and isn't suitable for younger women due to high radiation exposure. In contrast, microwave-based breast imaging systems can be operated in local clinics and doctors’ surgeries worldwide, improving access to potentially life-saving breast cancer screening for women of all ages world-wide. I hope to contribute to this area of research by modelling different microwave antenna arrays to find optimum configurations that can provide clinical grade images for doctors to quickly diagnose breast cancer.

Hello, I’m Rachel and I am currently in Trinity College Dublin studying philosophy and religion. When I am not in college you will most likely find me on a basketball court. Playing, refereeing or coaching. I have been involved in sport for the majority of my life, from playing to coaching and refereeing in many different areas, including with the Special Olympics, Nationally and locally.  I am a qualified Healthcare Support Worker and have always had a passion for caring for the elderly in society. I have worked in nursing homes and enjoyed my time with the activities team! Off the court I love to hike and swim. I have walked along the Camino de Santiago over the past years, returning every year to walk more and volunteer in hostels along the way. Meeting incredible people from all over the world was an incredible time in my life learning not only about myself but other cultures as well.

I am a final year Management Science and Information Systems Studies student in Trinity College Dublin.

I am a 4th year medical student passionate about human centred clinical research. For my research I will be exploring the attitudes of potential therapy recipients towards novel therapeutics in Parkinson's Disease to improve cognition.  I have lived in 5 different countries across Asia and Europe so far - your quintessential third culture kid:)) I enjoy listening to Indian classical music, playing football and hiking. 

Adam is a student of Political Science and Geography at Trinity College Dublin and, is a Senior Volunteer with Scouting Ireland.

A fourth-year student of Political Science and Economics at Trinity College Dublin, interested in European affairs, public policy and democratic promotion.  During my first summer with the Laidlaw programme, I completed a research project titled 'The Role of Saliency in Expatriate Voter Mobilisation'. My research  investigated the voting behaviours of expatriate voters in Poland, France and the Czech Republic. During my second summer, I completed a leadership placement with the Jerzy Regulski Foundation in Support of Local Democracy in Warsaw, where I worked in organising the first National Congress of Local Cooperation for civic society organisations and local government representatives.