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!

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.

Pronouns: She/her  I am a fourth-year Psychology student at the University of York. My research topic focuses on existential risks and what non-experts (the general public) consider to be the most worrisome, important, neglected, and tangible (the ITN framework).  My hobbies include going on walks and spending time outside, visiting lots of different libraries and doing arts and crafts, like making jewellery, sewing, drawing etc.  I’m excited to connect with new people who share similar interests! 

Hey everyone, I'm Phoebe !  I am an undergrad for Durham in the 2021 cohort.  My field of research is sociology looking at access to higher education programmes and widening participation. 

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.

Hello! My name is Zara Sharif and I am a 2021 Laidlaw Scholar from the University of York, where I study Education! My research topic looks at body hair and racialized bullying of teenage girls in UK secondary schools, and how this interacts with the relationship between misogyny and racism. I chose this research topic because I think we are seeing a cultural shift (in some ways) towards a greater acceptance of body hair, but I've found this shift often leaves out women of colour, and ignores how race and gender can intersect to form teenage girls experiences and their relationships with their body, their sense of self and how they perceive themselves. I also want to see how greater society perceive body hair on women of colour in particular and how social media can influence/shape/change these opinions.

Second year Economics/Philosophy undergraduate at University of York. My Laidlaw project is exploring the ethical and socioeconomic implications of the metaverse. I am working part-time as a Student Ambassador conducting access and outreach programmes for disadvantaged students. I'm seeking summer internships and work experience in HR and applied philosophy sectors.

I am a recent BSc Psychology graduate from the University of Durham, with an interest in cognitive and biological psychology. My research with Laidlaw aims to contribute to the process of diversifying psychological research with the development of a translated visual perception screening test, using data from South-East Asian participants. 

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! My name is Ciara O' Malley and as a Laidlaw Scholar I've been gaining experience in media production. I spent my year 1 project producing a short video series for my university department, which you can watch here, and worked for 6 months at Tortoise Media as part of my Leadership in Action project.  I'm currently a second year undergrad and aim to pursue a career in media after I graduate. Please feel free to send me a message if you have similar interests!

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.

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.

I'm Lorna and I'm currently studying for my MPhil in Multi-disciplinary studies at the University of Cambridge. My research explores the role gender stereotypes play in experiences of mental health symptoms and treatment. Previous to this, I studied Combined Hons in Social Sciences at Durham University. My research typically draws from the anthropological, political and, sociological disciplines with a core interest in gender, emotions and embodiment.  I am devoted to discovering and understanding the structures and relationships that govern our bodily experiences.  My summer research topic explored whether the Covid-19 pandemic has influenced how one views their body and health and whether this influence is gendered. Through questioning people's changing relationships to food, exercise and social media throughout the lockdowns, I aimed to begin to unearth the entanglement of unprecedented social phenomena and body image.  For my LIA I travelled to North Carolina. There, I volunteered with UNC CEED, Duke's Eating Disorder Centre and a local mental health clinic where I explored the use of diagnostic criteria. From this, I created my own informal diagnostic tool to assist clinicians with identifying disordered eating habits catalysed by the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.  I am grateful to all of these establishments for hosting me.

I studied Law with French Law at University College London (UCL) and achieved a dual degree with Université Paris-Panthéon-Assas in Paris.

Hi! I'm an undergraduate scholar from the University of Toronto and am interested in inclusion and mental health. With my research project, I hope to explore how we improve mental health support and treatments to make them more accessible and inclusive of Canadian Muslims. Beyond my research interests, I enjoy connecting with people and learning from people's diverse backgrounds and unique experiences. I'm a keen listener and love learning new things!

I am a First Year in Columbia College interested in majoring in either History or Anthropology—my interests are pretty much exactly in between the two. I am interested in combining my two fields of interest while looking at the legacy of notorious urban planner Robert Moses and his counterpart Jane Jacobs. I am interested no in what Moses built, but looking at myth created around him, and in particular the debates created between him and Jacobs. Through this research, I wants to reexamine how this debate was constructed and how it informs modern day planning discussion.

I am a member of the University of Leeds' 2021 Laidlaw Scholar Cohort. My self-defined project explores the representation of concurrent themes of nature and isolation in 20th century and contemporary literature. I study English and History of Art and have a love of all things books, art and the outdoors! I also run a zine that features contributions from young creatives across the UK.  Please take a look at my blog which delves into my research project a bit deeper here: https://outdoorfiction.blogspot.com/ 

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