Early Career Research Colloquium 2024, Learned Society of Wales

Bangor University, June 2024 

This year, Wrexham University was well represented at the ECR Colloquium in June at Bangor University.  

• Dr Tegan Brierley-Sollis from Policing, Criminology, an Trauma Informed approaches hosted a workshop  

• Dr Gwennan Haf Barton, Lecturer in Cognitive Psychology and Dr Sanar Muhyaddin, Lecturer in Business delivered ‘Flash Talks’ 

• Dr Tristian Evans, Postdoc for the Community Open Map Platform and Paula Wood, Postdoc for Civic Mission presented posters  

Here’s what the team said about the day: 

“On 18th June, I was lucky enough to attend the Learned Society of Wales Early Career Researcher Network Colloquium and deliver a workshop titled ‘Nurturing Ethical Engagement: Prioritising Wellbeing in Sensitive Research’. The workshop was focused on applying a trauma-informed lens to research by considering how we keep participants and ourselves safe and well throughout research endeavours.

It was lovely to attend with colleagues from various departments at Wrexham University, hear about their flash talks and see their incredible posters. It is always a joy to attend conferences and hear about all of the interesting research taking place in Wales. The flash talks at the colloquium were themed against The Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 which helped in understanding the ways in which research is a form of implementation. 

The best part of the experience was having researchers reach out to me after the colloquium to make connections about our work and discuss ways of collaborating in the future* – ‘No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it’ ~ H. E. Luccock. 

_{*and the chocolate brownies!”} 

- Tegan 

“The event provided a fantastic, friendly and professional space to share research findings as I was accepted to present a flash talk on our collaborative piece of research ‘Neurodivergent Staff in UK Higher Education’ on behalf of our research team. Presenting the flask talk and having such a welcoming environment most definitely gave me a boost back into face-to-face conference presentations, particularly since finishing my PhD in the era of Covid and changing landscapes of presentations. 

It was wonderful to listen to flash talks from other ECRs (including Dr Sanar Muhyaddin and Engin Ackay) throughout the day that addressed some important topics that celebrated the theme of a connected Wales, ranging from use of game-based learning in Higher Education (Jana Oehlke) to confidence in interracial contact and investigation into improving conversations about race (Dr Caitlin Baker). There were some fantastic poster presentations by fellow colleagues Dr Tristian Evans and Paula Wood! Furthermore, the flash talks and poster presentations created a great atmosphere to network with ECRs, academics, colleagues from the Learned Society and British Academy ECR network. It was great to have representatives there from Healthcare Science Cymru (including Brogan Cabraal) who I was able to connect with and discuss growing development in their sector and some exciting possibilities for collaborative research in the future! 

There were some great workshops throughout the day that discussed some vital areas of research such as prioritising wellbeing in sensitive research by our own Dr Tegan Brierley-Sollis. The afternoon of the colloquium focused on a research grant writing workshop, something that I found very helpful. It was encouraging to hear the positive experiences, challenges, and advice from the panel and audience members, I found the interactive and honest nature of the session very insightful. 

I would like to thank the Learned Society of Wales’ ECR network, diolch yn fawr iawn, for the opportunity to present, their ongoing support, and for creating such a wonderful environment to be part of. 

I would most definitely recommend attending the colloquium in the future to any ECR. There is a range of support for travel and accommodation support for ECRs. It has been an invaluable experience that provided a great sense of support, warmth, renewed sense of inspiration and opportunity to push myself out of my comfort zone with individuals who have a passion for research!” 

- Gwen 

“It was wonderful to attend the Learned Society of Wales’s ECR Network Colloquium at Bangor University with fellow researchers from Wrexham recently. I was delighted to have been able to present a poster on the cultural mapping activities of the Public Map Platform within the context of the colloquium’s theme of ‘A Connected Wales’. This theme resounds strongly with the work currently taking place by our team of bards and researchers at the School of Art as part of the community-based mapping project (collaborating with the universities of Cambridge, Cardiff and Bangor), as we work creatively with children and young people on the Isle of Anglesey, in reflection of the aims of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act.  

Not only did the event provide cross-institutional networking opportunities, but also offered a range of valuable advice – on writing successful grant applications to becoming aware of a trauma-informed approach as researchers. The opportunity to listen to the insights and experiences of academics across Wales, working across all disciplines, was hugely beneficial, and I look forward to participating in the Society’s future events!” 

- Tristian 

“I thoroughly enjoyed the conference and had the opportunity to meet researchers from various business schools. I'm now in touch with them, exploring exciting new research ideas and potential collaborations. It was an enriching and inspiring experience.” 

- Sanar