Promoting Equity and Inclusion in LBU Research Culture – Celebrating Three years of our Equity and Inclusion Research Fund

We are proud to have funded a variety of research initiatives for a third year running with our Equity and Inclusion Fund at LBU. We want to ensure that we are attracting, retaining and promoting a diverse academic and research community, and that everybody feels supported to progress in their careers according to their aspirations.

Our culture is proactively inclusive, which means recognising that some colleagues face more equity, diversity and inclusion-related barriers in their careers, and we are taking action to help remove them.

In the application process, colleagues were asked to demonstrate that their projects will have positive equity, diversity and inclusion benefits including:

• Supporting the promotion of currently under-represented colleagues at senior academic levels (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic and Disabled colleagues);
• Gaining research momentum following a career break (maternity, shared parental or adoption leave, or illness / Disability-related leave);
• Undertaking research activity that will benefit underserved or marginalised individuals or communities.

What are the inequalities that the fund is trying to address?

• Of 23,000 Professors in the UK, only 61 are black women.
• There is a significant degree awarding gap that affects our Black and Global Majority students across the university. Black undergraduate students are the least likely to attain a First or 2:1 classification (64%); and 31% of Black and Global Majority students achieve a lower second-class or third-class honours degree, compared to only 14% of white students.
• Black and Global Majority (home) students are underrepresented in our postgraduate student cohorts - particularly in the research-focussed degrees. We are also below the sector norm for BGM Research and Teaching staff.
• Women and those who are racially minoritised tend to do more of the pastoral ‘house work’ in their departments, as women and Black and Global Majority students identify with them and confide in them/seek support, leading to burnout.
• Women who are parents or carers are more likely to face barriers to career development whilst taking time out of the workforce.

Professor Silke Machold, Pro Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation, said: “Our Equity and Inclusion Research Fund is an incredibly important boost to our research culture at LBU. Strengthening our research culture is a key strategic priority for the University – this includes celebrating and sharing our commitment to inclusive practices and diversity, as well as supporting the wellbeing and career development of our research community. The Fund is a fantastic example of how we are embedding a positive environment for growth, collaboration and equality.

“Our Equity and Inclusion Research Fund is a crucial part of our ongoing commitments to the career development of our researchers – including our HR Excellence in Research Award, Athena Swan gender equality charter award, and our Race Equality Charter award.”

The Equity and Inclusion Fund in numbers – 2021-2024

• Launched for the first time in 2022, we received £150,000 and funded 15 projects across 3 schools.
• In 2023, we received £90,000 and funded 12 projects across 6 schools.
• In 2024, we received £80,000 and funded 16 projects across 6 schools. A further £30,000 was ring-fenced to support EDI-related networks and training.

Dr Mohammad Taleghani

One of this year’s grant recipients was Dr Mohammad Taleghani, Senior Lecturer in Landscape Architecture in the Leeds School of Arts. He used his funding to study the impact of social deprivation on air pollution in Leeds.

Mohammad said: “According to the World Health Organisation, annually, 7 million mortalities are associated with air pollution in the world. In fact, 92% of the world’s population live in places where air pollution exceeds safe limits. In the UK, 36,000 premature deaths (annually) are related to air pollution. It also causes breathing problems like asthma if children are exposed to pollution.

“In my project, I focused on pedestrian exposure to air pollution, so I measured particles (PM2.5) in different neighbourhoods - from a green and wealthy side of the city to a grey and deprived area. My measurements showed that social deprivation does not necessarily lead to exposure to higher air pollution. I observed that the city centre was the most polluted area due to traffic jams (diesel vehicles).”

Dr Kavyta Raghunandan

Dr Kavyta Raghunandan, Senior Lecturer in Race and Education in the Carnegie School of Education, won funding for her project working with Storymakers Press.

Kav said: “I used my Equity and Inclusion funding to work on a small research project focused on understanding how the medium of comics and graphic novels can be used to develop, teach and promote critical thinking around racial literacy. I was also interested in exploring how this medium can be used to support brave spaces and courageous conversations around identity and protected characteristics.

“Together with Storymakers Press, we co-led a series of creative workshops with initial teacher trainees studying at LBU to explore their responses, through an EDI literacy lens, to a selection of graphic novels themed on British colonial history, climate change and Manga Shakespeare. It was widely agreed that the texts provide an effective way for students to connect to impactful content and I believe that educators wishing to engage students in generative forms of education can do so through careful and serious examination of comic books as critical texts - rather than solely as an additional aid.

“I hope that the research will expand into a larger project that I would eventually like to develop for educators in further and higher education, which is an under-researched area in the wider discourse of widening the curriculum. I look forward to publishing my findings in journal form in the next academic year.”

Dr Olayinka Ajala

Dr Olayinka Ajala, Reader in Politics and International Relations in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, won a grant for his project: New dynamics of insurgency in the Sahel: Understanding the link between climate change and neo-pastoralism.

Olayinka said: “Our research aims to explore the extent to which the vagaries of the climate - such as drought and inadequate rainfall - results in competition, transformation of pastoralism and insecurity in Niger.

“Having previously explored neo-pastoralism in Nigeria, we have now extended the research into the Sahel, using Niger as a case study. The research is ongoing, with two teams established in Nigeria and Niger republic. Data collection will soon be completed with analysis to follow immediately. I am also working on an edited book on pastoralism in Africa. The Equality and Inclusion Research funding has enabled us to recruit research assistants for our data collection.”

We would like to extend our congratulations to our colleagues who were successful in their application to this fund, and all of those who applied.

The full list of this year’s successful recipients is:

• Dr Ranis Cheng - Leeds School of Arts
• Dr Marc Fabri – Leeds School of Arts
• Dr Mohammad Taleghani - Leeds School of Arts
• Dr Jimi Adebayo - School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing
• Dr Ash Ahmed - School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing
• Dr Edward Ofoegbu - School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing
• Dr Hajar Fatorachian– Leeds Business School
• Dr Kavyta Kay (Raghunandan) – Carnegie School of Education
• Dr Olayinka Ajala - School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Professor Rachel Julian - School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Dr Jolanta Shields - School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Dr Waqas Tufail - School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Dr John Willott - School of Humanities and Social Sciences (Two projects funded)
• Dr Emek Yuce Zeyrek-Rios - School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Dr Nicola Clarke – Carnegie School of Sport

We are excited to see the research outputs of our Equity and Inclusion funded cohort, share in their learning and support their careers and development going forwards.