Newsletter 27 June

Dear Reader,

Summer is upon us, but before vacation starts, here's a quick list of highlights from the past semester at the Centre!

We kicked off the year with the first-ever Early Career Writing Workshop, organised by Christina Fogarasi. This event brought Cultminders together to explore different forms of academic and creative writing.

In March, Peter Leese launched his new book, Migrant Emotions - you can check it out here. Professor Susan Grayzel from Utah State University also joined us as a guest researcher. During her stay, she gave a lecture on the term ‘Home Front'.

April took us to Sweden for our annual retreat, where we reflected on the Centre's activities and discussed future directions. We also welcomed Katrina Bugaj, our newest PhD Fellow. 

In May, Lamia Moghnieh and Mike Pettit - our visiting guest researcher from York University - led a thought-provoking workshop on the concept of resilience. 

Ariel Swyer coordinated a new initiative called Writing Day, a dedicated time for us to write together and talk about what we've written.

Hinuga Sandahl and Henriette Laugesen Attardo joined us as post.doc and PhD Fellow respectively through our partner, the Competence Centre for Transcultural Psychiatry.

We also welcomed a new intern, Johanne Sindberg Østergaard and welcomed back Maria Ilia Fotopoulou, who is contributing to our new collaboration with DIGNITY, particularly in archival research.

Throughout the semester, Cultminders actively participated in various conferences, research seminars, and workshops and wrote numerous grant applications.

As for next semester, we can reveal that we will be joined by Ditte Marie Munch-Jurisic, who has received a Sapere Aude grant and will lead an interdisciplinary project that challenges our understanding of emotions and the idea that it is always healthy to be able to put them into words. She will be joined by her PhD Fellow Astrid Fly Oredsson.

Together with the Transcultural Psychiatry Section of the World Psychiatric Association and the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Health Studies at the University of Rijeka, we are co-organising a conference entitled Trauma, politics and survival in Yugoslavia and successor states, 1945 - present and you can submit an abstract until 30 September. 

And finally – we've opened our very first Call for Artists as a part of our new Artists in Residence program in 2026! Are you an artist or know someone who would like to collaborate with us, please send them our way. 

Have a lovely summer!