Hello! I am a second year student English Literature student and a 2021 Laidlaw scholar at the University of York. My research focuses on young adult and coming-of-age literature and my aim is to design an undergraduate module on this genre that could potentially be taught as part of a literature degree.

I was a History undergraduate at Durham University, where I was part of the 2021-22 Laidlaw Scholars cohort (2020-23). Afterwards, I studied MSt in Global and Imperial University at Oxford University (2023-24) with a specialisation in postcolonial Anglophone African history and English-speaking Caribbean under the British empire. Now, I'm currently working in digital marketing. For my research, I investigated the use of the Crusades within far-right organisations and what it reveals about the readings of crusade history. During my second summer, I was a part of the ThinkPacific Youth and Community project in Fiji from June to July 2022.  If you have any questions about my research, LiA, or history stuff in general, feel free to contact me here! Also, I like music, video production, and photography.

Hello! I was Laidlaw scholar in 2019, and I studied national, regional, and local identity in northern Tajikistan through the lens of women's fashion.  For a year after graduating, I worked for the UN Mine Action Service which removes landmines from conflict and post-conflict regions. I then worked for the Laidlaw Foundation 2021-22 and completed a Master's Degree in Anthropology and Development Management at the London School of Economics. Now I'm working with the UN on innovative finance for biodiversity conservation, focusing on marine ecosystems. Please feel free to reach out on the network, on LinkedIn, or by email. I'm always happy to meet new people and chat.

Hi! I'm Corey, a final-year Digital Media student at the University of Leeds. I am graduating with a First-Class degree in BA (Hons) Digital Media (International). I recently returned from my Year Abroad at the University of Rochester, where I spent the year discovering a passion for Graphic Design, furthering my interest within Media and understanding how design can be used to change the world for good. As part of my Laidlaw Research and Leadership Scholarship, I co-authored a paper discussing the benefits of Transnational Education and Higher Education Institutions globally, in a paper titled "A Global Capstone Experience: Developing and Promoting Cultural Awareness and Educational Opportunities", I also participated in Leadership Development Training and spent Summer 2022 in Viti Levu, Fiji, as part of my Leadership-in-Action project, where I collectively constructed a Community Health Clinic and Facilitated the delivery of Youth Empowerment Workshops.

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.

Hi everyone, I am a third year Laidlaw scholar studying Pharmacology at the University of Leeds. I am currently in the process of completing my placement year as regulatory strategist, developing innovative new therapies to transform the lives of patients with rare conditions at Pfizer. My research project focuses on the UN’s SDGs and the opportunity that students around the world have to collaborate with other universities to implement these goals into their final year capstone projects in attempt to combat educational inequality. I had the opportunity to travel to Fiji for my leadership in action. I stayed in an incredible village called Toga and lived with a family while the team built a health centre for the village and facilitated sessions around the importance of climate change with the Fijian youth. If you would like to hear more about my research, LIA or placement- please drop me a message!

I'm a microbiology graduate interested in healthcare, conservation and medicine. My first year research project looked at soft corals and the shifts in their communities due to climate change across the Indo-Pacific. For my LIA I got to travel to remote Fiji with ThinkPacific were I discovered my love for community engagement and saw an entire new culture. Apart from academic interests I love cooking, going to the gym, doing art and learning :)

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.

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.

I am a fourth year student studying Geography and Sustainable Development at The University of St Andrews. I have a particular interest in reforestation, conservation and climate change mitigation. For the first summer of the Laidlaw Scholars Leadership and Research Programme I produced a research essay and poster titled 'Climate Change Mitigation: Investigating the impact of land use on soil organic matter (SOM)'. My research focuses on measuring and reporting soil organic matter content across different land use types such as cropland and woodland. I explore the climate change mitigation potential of soil and the potential of adding soil organic matter through woodland restoration. For the second summer of the Laidlaw Scholars Leadership and Research Programme I produced a Leadership-in-Action Video about my project on sustainable agricultural practices in Williamsburg, Virginia. My LiA project involved interviewing farmers in and around Williamsburg, academic researchers at the local university, The College of William and Mary and the manager of the Williamsburg Farmers Market. I also produced a reflective essay about my experience over the Laidlaw Scholarship titled 'Learning, Growing and Developing as a Leader'.

Emory Southwick (they/them) is postgraduate researcher at Newcastle University, formally a Laidlaw scholar at Durham University, UK, where they achieved a First Class BA with Honours in Music at George Stephenson College. Emory has a research interest in those underrepresented in music, focusing on marginalised genders and LGBTQ+ people. Currently, they are working with Contemporary Music for All (CoMA) and has also set up their own business as an artist. Currently, they are working to create a queer-focussed sober space in Durham.

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.

I was part of a team of four scholars who are working together with Durham University to research what makes a successful Multi-Academy Trust serving disadvantaged communities. In particular, we focused on the Laidlaw Schools Trust, which comprises seven schools in the North of England that predominantly serve disadvantaged pupils. Overall, this is part of the effort to reduce the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their more affluent peers. After that, I completed my LiA project by volunteering for the Youth & Community Project with Think Pacific in Fiji followed by a year abroad in Singapore. Driven by my passion for travel and cultural exchange, I love trying new foods and enjoy meeting people to share ideas. Feel free to reach out!

Hi there! I'm Oran, a final year student of International History and Politics. With the Laidlaw Foundation, I completed an independent research project on the history of an early international voluntary organisation in the summer of 2021. Also with the programme, I took part in the 'Youth and Community' project with ThinkPacific in the Fiji Islands in the summer of 2022.  All of this has enhanced my capacity for leadership in a globalising world. Please have a look through my profile to learn more about me and my work as a Laidlaw Leadership and Research Scholar. 

Hello! I am a multidisciplinary designer and have been with the Laidlaw Foundation for over five years, working to strengthen our global Scholar community and amplify the impact of our programmes. My work lives somewhere between design, education, and anthropology, usually with sticky notes involved. I studied Human Sciences as an undergrad and am currently doing a Master’s in Anthropology at UCL. Degrees I struggle to explain at parties. Born and raised in Kazakhstan 🇰🇿 Outside of work? Probably in the ceramics studio, wandering aimlessly with a podcast in my ears, attempting a handstand, or watching far too much TV. Big fan of nature and very small bugs.

I am an undergraduate Laidlaw Scholar studying Philosophy and Politics at the University of York. I am very interested in climate education. My project investigates collective responsibility regarding climate change in the primary years of school.

I am aspiring for a career in Clinical Psychology. I am currently a first-year BSc Psychology undergraduate at Durham University. At the forefront of my desire to pursue a career in Clinical Psychology is the want to help those who have not been given their fair chance in society. My range of experiences has enabled me to interact with people of many different backgrounds and allowed me to adapt my view of society, which I hope will aid me in my future career direction. My primary interests in the field lie within the study of eating disorders and the impact of trauma.