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Research and public engagement activities by researchers at the University of East London (UEL) in the field of DJ music, dance floor culture and its history have developed and popularized new forms of musical expression, contributed to the cultural life and regeneration of East London, influenced the convergence between dance music culture and the art world, shaped media discourse, and created reusable learning and information resources. The impacts of the research have been delivered via contributions to record labels (including Mercury-nominated Hyperdub, Soul Jazz), live music venues (Cafe Oto, Sonar Festival), party spaces (Fabric, Plastic People), and arts institutions (ICA, Southbank Centre, TrouwAmsterdam), as well as through coverage of the research itself and important social issues pertaining to it in national and international media outlets (BBC, Guardian, History Channel, Le Monde, South Bank Show).
The Centre for Sports Engineering Research (CSER) has carried out public engagement activities for many years to create a dialogue around its research with those outside higher education. Specific research is described in tennis, aerodynamics, 3D motion-capture and performance analysis and ways in which findings have been used in public engagement. The impact of the activities is a raised public awareness of sports science and technology from 165 public lectures and workshops; an interactive science exhibition with 390k visitors; an increasingly popular blog with 248k hits; 15 popular science articles with a readership of over 835k; 10 interviews on TV and 46 on Radio; 8 short films with 25k downloads; and 101 articles in the national and international print press with 256 additional articles on their websites across 22 countries.
Arthur Burns' research on the history of the Anglican Church in England and Wales has had an impact on the Church, on its congregations, and on a wider public interested in genealogy and local history. The Building on History Knowledge Transfer Fellowship ensured a particular impact in London, as well as generating wider interest; the Clergy of the Church of England Database is consulted worldwide; his ongoing work on Thaxted already informs an important TV film.
This case study relates to cultural life and education. Kenneth Fincham is an internationally renowned scholar in the field of British Early Modern History, and the impact arose from a major research programme funded by the AHRC to create:
The database is an online resource launched in 2005 and available free to all users. It provides a relational database and supporting website containing key information on clergy, schoolteachers and ecclesiastical patrons which has brought together for the first time a comprehensive range of sources. From the start CCEd was designed to serve constituencies outside as well as within academia, and it has proved an invaluable resource for genealogists across the globe seeking information on clerical ancestors, local historians researching parish histories, independent researchers interested in the clergy, and hard-pressed archivists responsible for managing and interpreting major diocesan collections. It has received in excess of 9.9m hits since 2010 and highly positive feedback from its many different types of user.
Research at the University of Exeter has raised public awareness of early modern Ottoman history and promoted sustainable equestrian tourism by establishing a UNESCO Cultural Route, the Evliya Çelebi Way. In 2009 Professor Gerald MacLean re-enacted the 1671 horseback journey undertaken by the celebrated Ottoman travel-writer Evliya Çelebi, attracting media coverage and building links with local communities. Maclean has since collaborated in developing the Way to promote cultural heritage and stimulate tourism in Turkey. The main impacts of this research have been to:
Through the establishing of a UNESCO Cultural Route, the Evliya Çelebi Way, Donna Landry's research has influenced cultural policymakers in Turkey, created new opportunities for tourism, promoted awareness of Ottoman and equestrian history internationally, and benefitted cultural providers through collaborations. In 2009 Landry and her research team re-enacted for 40 days the 1671 horseback journey undertaken by the celebrated Ottoman travel-writer Evliya Çelebi en route to Mecca. The team attracted media coverage and built links with local communities. Landry has since collaborated in developing the Way and otherwise promoting Ottoman history and horseback travel as resources capable of delivering economic and heritage benefits to Turkey.