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Strandlines was designed to create a community, digital and real, for an area of central London (the Strand) where there was none. Using life writing to bring together local residents, workers, students and visitors, Strandlines has provided a website, www.strandlines.org, and activities by which people explore the meaning of place, discover its histories and exchange experiences and impressions locally, nationally and internationally. Strandlines has brought together academics, the homeless, the elderly, low income residents, local people, archivists, writers, artists and the public to foster community through a common interest in their locality, and to understand better its significance for the world.
BEAA's large-scale research designing and testing alternative grazing management systems for the uplands has achieved impact on the environment and economy. Environmental policy and its implementation via agri-environment schemes has been directly and indirectly influenced, with the evidence provided by the research vital to the development of grazing prescriptions and related payment structures by government agencies and conservation bodies. The results have also benefitted the upland farming community by identifying opportunities for improved productivity and hence economic viability; through e.g. more efficient use of pasture resources leading to higher growth rates for forage-based systems and reduced reliance on purchased feed and fertiliser.
Platinum Group Elements (PGE) are critical strategic metals because of their unrivalled applications in catalysts, fuel cells and electronics and cancer therapies. Research and analytical methods developed at Cardiff have impacted on exploration for new PGE deposits, and more efficient processing of PGE ores by international mining companies. A key milestone between 2009 and 2012 was the discovery of a 3 billion year old giant impact crater in West Greenland. This discovery is of major economic significance because all craters previously found in this size class are associated with multi-billion dollar mineral and/or hydrocarbon resources. It led to an intellectual property transaction worth CDN$ 2.1 million and discovery of nickel and PGE deposits in Greenland by North American Nickel Incorporated.
Revision of standard views of Sparta towards a less exceptional, more civic-oriented, society has:
Academic work carried out at the University of Southampton's Parkes Institute has greatly raised public awareness and understanding of the Holocaust. The research has challenged audiences to reflect on the individual consequences of discrimination and urges them to recognise and respond to the continuing contemporary dangers of genocide. Through various projects, the research has impacted upon international audiences: with a website averaging 24,000 hits per month; with museum exhibitions, for close to three million visitors; and with research-based study-days for school and adult learners. Throughout, the work emphasises the devastation wrought by the Holocaust on `ordinary' people, and reflects upon the `ordinariness' of genocide in the twentieth century.
This case study focuses on Angry Planet, an interdisciplinary choral collaboration between Charles Bennett, Associate-Professor in Creative Writing at the University of Northampton (2007 — present) and composer, Bob Chilcott. A blend of lyrics and composition, their investigation into the sounds and rhythms of nature in relation to musical creativity resulted in a performance at the BBC Proms (Angry Planet, The Royal Albert Hall, 5 August 2012), featuring The Bach Choir and its Musical Director, David Hill. The project's innovative methodology included training school children alongside professional singers, contributing to their educational advancement, social and cultural integration and developing their innate creative potential.
The Rylands Cairo Genizah Project has had impact through its conservation, presentation, and interpretation of an internationally important archive of manuscripts which illuminate all aspects of the history, and the religious, social, and commercial life of the Jews in the Levant from the 9th to the 19th centuries. This collection is of deep interest to the Jewish community in the UK and abroad, and forms part of the cultural capital of this country, where the vast bulk of it is now housed. The project has also had an impact on heritage experts, by developing methods which have been applied to recording and disseminating other cultural assets.
Rock researches the comprehensibility and effect on readers and hearers of police language. She has deployed this research in a long-term collaboration with South Wales Police (SWP) and their associated agencies, such as trainers and interpreters. Rock has used her research findings to offer tailor-made solutions to a range of specific problems that SWP have identified in their communications with the public. So as to build capacity rather than creating long-term dependency, she places strong emphasis on acquainting the in-house staff sufficiently with her research to enable them to understand the potential options available, and to contribute to developing the best outcomes. Her interventions focus on written and spoken communications with the public relating to complaints, victim care, interviewing and interpreting. Outcomes have been major revisions to texts and permanent modifications to individual and organisational practices.
The Knights Templar are famous for their involvement in the Medieval crusades but the myths surrounding them and popular representations, as seen in The Da Vinci Code, have created an inaccurate view of the Templars' historical significance. Nicholson's research on (a) the Templars and their estates, (b) her collaborations with museum and heritage organizations, and (c) her advice on Templar properties, has challenged misconceptions about the Templars and informed professional practice in presenting heritage sites, benefiting individuals, authors, archaeologists and museum practitioners. Her research has equipped non-academic audiences with a clearer understanding of the Templars, generating new interpretations and cultural artefacts by diverse groups worldwide.
This case study focuses on the prison writing of Alan Smith, Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing (2005-), at the University of Northampton (UN), about his experiences of teaching philosophy and English at Her Majesty's Prison (HMP) Wellingborough (1998-2012). Beneficiaries have included prisoners and their families, public institutions, charities and media providers. Smith's teaching and research programmes have impacted on individual prisoners' lives and on the general public by informing civic debate and influencing policy makers' thinking. His publications have stimulated an awareness of the importance of education in the prison environment, and encouraged sustained reflection about rehabilitation among prison staff, third sector organisations, and the Ministry of Justice.