PhD researchers from two universities in the Northern Ireland have initiated and run online research presentation series as part of the Student Research Network Summer Seminar Series, conducted as the initiative of Queens University Belfast (QUB) in collaboration with Ulster University (UU).
The sessions run twice a month, every month of summer 2020, amounting to a total of six sessions. Each session consists of presentations of three PhD researchers from QUB and UU and reflections on the presented papers by two discussants from faculty. The PhD researchers chair the sessions, and in the end, there is an opportunity to ask questions. The Summer Seminar Series represent a platform to showcase the research conducted in the Northern Ireland, giving the virtual floor to researchers who receive valuable feedback. The sessions have been popular, with an average of 50 people joining each online presentation as participants.
The organizers of the Summer Seminar Series are PhD researchers from the School of Law at QUB and Transitional Justice Institute. The topics are framed broadly on pressing social and legal issues. The previous sessions were broadly themed around the topics of ‘Technology and Human Rights,’ ‘Transitional Justice,’ ‘Gender,’ and ‘Human Rights.’ The sessions allow the research community across the two universities to stay connected virtually and keep the conversation around pressing issues of societal concern going.
The following members of Ulster University School of Law and Transitional Justice Institute (TJI) participated in the series: Prof. Rory O’Connell, Dr. Catherine O’Rourke, Prof. Cath Collins and Dr. Ciara Fitzpatrick, as discussants. Among the presenters were the PhD researchers: Ana Martin, Linda Odhiambo Hooper, Aaron Weah, Howard Ayo, Nisan Alici and Selbi Durdiyeva. Nisan Alici and Selbi Durdiyeva of TJI are in the organizing committee of the series.