News and Blog

Exploring a rights-based approach to school exclusion in Wales

At the recent WISERD Annual Conference, I gave a seminar with partners from civil society on school exclusion in Wales. The seminar explored the role of civil society in school exclusion and how families experience it. Below, I have included a summary of each presentation and a key takeaway for improving policy or practice. Excluded…

New WISERD fieldwork explores the contemporary citizenship rights of indigenous people in south India

Professors Paul Chaney (Cardiff University) and Sarbeswar Sahoo (IIT Delhi) (pictured), in association with Dr Reenu Punnoose (IIT Palakkad) and Dr Haneefa Muhammed have been conducting fieldwork examining civil society perspectives on the contemporary citizenship rights of indigenous people in south India. This is part of research funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences. By…

Cultural genocide? Exploring civil society perspectives on the contemporary human rights situation of indigenous people in Bolivia

A new study by Professor Paul Chaney examines civil society perspectives on the contemporary human rights situation of indigenous people in Bolivia. It is part of research funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences undertaken in partnership with Professor Sarbeswar Sahoo (Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi) and Dr Reenu Punnoose (Indian Institute of Technology, Palakkad)….

7th Foundational Economy Conference

The 7th Foundational Economy Conference, entitled ‘Making things work: social innovation for liveability’ was held at sbarcIspark on the 10th and 11th of September 2024. It brought together researchers and practitioners in themed sessions that explored foundational issues and interventions from Wales, the rest of the UK and all across Europe. Our challenge is making…

New online tool matching voters with their ideal political party

During the General Election campaign, there was a deluge of political information, leaving many confused about which best fits their views. To tackle this issue, a project co-led by Swansea University and sponsored by WISERD created a new online voting tool. WhoGetsMyVote allows voters to match their positions on key policy issues to those of…

WISERD Annual Conference 2024

On the 3rd and 4th July, we held our WISERD Annual Conference 2024 at the University of South Wales and welcomed over 140 delegates from across the UK and beyond. Over 100 excellent posters and presentations come together under this year’s theme of ‘Aspiring to achieve a fairer society’. Professor Martin Steggall, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research)…

Reflections on my internship and the importance of accessible research

In October 2023, I started an internship with Victim Support. Part of my role was to conduct a literature review in preparation for the production of an accessible report exploring the experiences of victims of hate crime through recent, pre-existing academic research in the field. The main focus of the internship was to make academic…

GE2024: Do party manifestos reflect ‘supermajority’ civil society demand for better animal protection?

WISERD Co-Director, Paul Chaney, has co-authored a new report in a project led by Dr Steven McCulloch (University of Winchester). The report entitled “Political Animals: The Democratic and Electoral Case for Strong Animal Welfare Policies in UK General Elections”[i] was commissioned as part of a campaign by 23 leading animal welfare NGOs. To locate this…

GE2024: Why party manifestos need to address civil society demands on animal welfare

WISERD Co-Director, Paul Chaney, has co-authored a new report in a project led by Dr Steven McCulloch (University of Winchester). The report entitled “Political Animals: The Democratic and Electoral Case for Strong Animal Welfare Policies in UK General Elections”[i] was commissioned as part of a campaign by 23 leading animal welfare NGOs. To locate this…