| Abstract |
The ESRC funding opens a space for me to actively publicise the central argument of my PhD which is that empathy needs to be understood as affective and embodied for a more ethical, relational understanding of the world. If empathy is achieved, then it extends empathy beyond the human to include other living entities. This is needed because, empathy is on the decline between humans (Global Risk Report, 2019), and yet it is essential for being able to understand differences (of both each other and other living entities), so that collaborative action can be taken effectively towards the climate crisis whilst considering the needs of all living entities and how they all relate. Consequently, I argue that to teach this, usual ways of thinking about education need to be disrupted because typically, curriculum is designed to place humans at the top of the hierarchy of life, which has led to violence towards the planet. Therefore, this funding will offer me the opportunity to create a platform for me to publish papers from my thesis and to collate my research into a pedagogical design which incorporates transdisciplinarity and creativity with teaching tools to create ruptions in education. This can then be used to set up a transdisciplinary community learning garden that offers teaching and learning across generations to prepare for an uncertain future through collaborative and collective action. Furthermore, the fellowship will allow me to remain part of a well-regarded institution that will support me and provide me with a professional platform from which to springboard. Three publications will be produced within the fellowship, one of which will be presented at a conference in Australia that will further establish my work within a field who are equally striving towards socio-economic justice. Alongside this, research will be conducted into designing a new pedagogy and teaching tools that provide the theoretical argument about why empathy should be seen as affective and embodied, gives examples of how to create spaces for affective, embodied empathy to emerge, and offers an argument for working in a transdisciplinary way. Research will also be conducted on the creation of a transdisciplinary learning community garden. The garden will be built in partnership with the local community, community organisations as well as students and teachers from diverse backgrounds who attend these places. The aim is to create vibrant spaces where learning takes place between us as humans and more-than-human, food is grown and eaten, histories are shared, and a deep appreciation of the environment takes place so that an understanding of how all living things are related occurs. My research shows that when this happens, ethical action takes place. The fellowship will offer time to publish, apply for funds to create a learning toolbox for CPD courses to disseminate to new communities, so that this pedagogy reaches further and allows others to create their own gardens and actions. |
