Centre for Minorities Research Podcast

How are identity, cultural trauma, and well-being connected? In this episode of the CMR Podcast, Samata Shinde, a PhD researcher in the School of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of St Andrews, introduces her doctoral research exploring these themes within a particular community.Samata discusses the context of her research and the methodology underpinning her study, before examining the relationship between social identity and well-being. Drawing on preliminary findings from her data analysis, she reflects on how identity and experiences of cultural trauma may shape well-being within the community. The episode concludes by considering the future directions of her research and the questions that remain to be explored.

When clinical research, biomedical datasets, and diagnostic tools are built predominantly on the experiences of white, Western populations, what happens to everyone else? In this episode, I examine the deep and persistent underrepresentation of minority ethnic groups in healthcare research, and trace how that absence carries real consequences, from skewed drug trials and missed diagnoses to artificial intelligence systems that simply do not work on the patients who need them most. Drawing on research spanning the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, the episode makes the case that health equity cannot be achieved without first confronting who the healthcare system has historically chosen to study, and who it has chosen to ignore.

In this episode, Luci Portugal speaks with Aleksejs Ivashuk, founder of Apatride Network and a leading advocate on statelessness in Europe, about what it means to live without recognition as a national by any state.Moving beyond statelessness as a technical legal issue, the conversation explores how non-recognition shapes access to rights, mobility, education, work, healthcare, identity, and belonging. Through the lens of critical security studies, Luci and Aleksejs discuss statelessness as a form of human insecurity, asking whose security is protected by the state system and whose insecurity is made ordinary by it. The episode also considers Hannah Arendt’s idea of the “right to have rights,” the role of borders and citizenship deprivation, and why stateless-led advocacy is essential to producing knowledge and change.ResourcesFoster, M., & Lambert, H. (2016). Statelessness as a Human Rights Issue: A Concept Whose Time Has Come. International Journal of Refugee Law, 28(4), 564–584. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijrl/eew044Gheciu, A., & Wohlforth, W. C. (Eds). (2018). The Oxford handbook of international security. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198777854.001.0001Guillaume, X., & Grayson, K. (2023). Security Studies: Critical Perspectives (1st edn). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/hepl/9780198867487.001.0001Hayden, P. (2008). From Exclusion to Containment: Arendt, Sovereign Power, and Statelessness. Societies Without Borders, 3(2), 248–269. https://doi.org/10.1163/187219108X300046Kingston, L. N. (2013). “A Forgotten Human Rights Crisis”: Statelessness and Issue (Non)Emergence. Human Rights Review, 14(2), 73–87. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12142-013-0264-4Rossi, N., & Riemann, M. (Eds). (2024). Security studies: An applied introduction. Sage.Van Waas, L. (2014). ‘Are We There Yet?’ The Emergence of Statelessness on the International Human Rights Agenda. Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights, 32(4), 342–346. https://doi.org/10.1177/016934411403200402Related further reading:Berkeley, B. (2009). Stateless People, Violent States. World Policy Journal, 26(1), 3–15. https://doi.org/10.1162/wopj.2009.26.1.3

How do Indigenous people of Russia respond to the war in Ukraine and the tightening of repressions at home? In this episode, Evgeniya Pakhomova, a social anthropologist specialising in Russian antiwar activism, interviews Lana Pylaeva, an indigenous activist from the republic of Komi and director of regional media Komi.Daily. Evgeniya presents the context for the new wave of Indigenous activism that emerged in response to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while Lana talks about her own activist experience, the international work she does as the newly elected representative of the Russian democratic forces at PACE, and the struggles of antiwar activism today. We conclude on a hopeful note, with Lana reflecting on how, despite the numerous challenges, Indigenous activists have managed to create a space for conversation and solidarity.

In this episode of the CMR Podcast, Esther Zitterl, a PhD researcher in Black British literature and the Windrush legacy at the University of St Andrews, speaks with novelist Dr Ashley Hickson-Lovence about his 2026 novella About to Fall Apart (Faber).Told in verse across the span of three days, the novella follows Aidy, a man of mixed Irish-Caribbean heritage living in a village on the Irish border. As he struggles to complete a short story, remain present for his children, and search for a mother he has never known, Aidy’s journey unfolds through fragments of memory, movement, and reflection.Their conversation explores the creative possibilities of writing in verse, the role of rhythm and music in shaping narrative voice, and the emotional textures of migration, identity, and belonging. Moving between Belleek and Grenada, they reflect on the intersections between Black British literature and the landscapes of rural Ireland, tracing how place, history, and form inform both the novel and Hickson-Lovence’s wider work.Thoughtful and wide-ranging, this episode offers insight into contemporary literary practice while opening up broader questions about heritage, storytelling, and the search for connection across borders.

There has been a longstanding belief from both academics and the public that the goal of historical preservation and conservation is to maintain a site’s authenticity. But what happens when that aim comes into direct conflict with the needs of its visitors?In this episode, Boowa Zarcone, Museum and Heritage Studies MLitt candidate, challenges the presumed incompatibility between authenticity and accessibility. Drawing on the work and experiences of disabled advocates—most notably Alexa Vaughn, a deaf urban landscape architect—Boowa opens up new ways of thinking about inclusive design in heritage spaces. This episode invites listeners to consider: What does it really mean to preserve the past for everyone?Further ReadingsAlexa Vaughn. “DeafScape: Applying DeafSpace to Landscape.” GroundUp Journal 7 (2018): web. https://www.designwithdisabledpeoplenow.com/deafscape.American Academy in Rome. “Alexa Vaughn.” Rome Prize Fellows. 2022. https://aarome.org/people/rome-prize-fellows/alexa-vaughn.Accessible practices in museum & heritage settings:Alison F. Eardley & Vanessa E. Jones (editors). The Museum Accessibility Spectrum: Re-imagining Access and Inclusion(1st ed.). 2025. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003382713.Carola Gatto, et al. “Enhancing Accessibility of Cultural Heritage: Extended Reality and Tactile Prints for an Inclusive Experience of the Madonna Dell’Itri Church in Nociglia.” Extended Reality: International Conference 2 (2023): 146-159. https://doi-org.ezproxy.st-andrews.ac.uk/10.1007/978-3-031-43404-4_10.Elina Vikmane, Maija Ņikitina, Laura Brutāne, & Lote Katrīna Cērpa. “Multisensory Approach to Museum Accessibility and Experience Enhancement.” Culture Crossroads 25 (2024): 21–32. https://doi.org/10.55877/cc.vol25.503.Accessible design in urban landscapes:Albertina Pretto. “A study on accessibility in an Old Italian City: when the past is worth more than the present.” Disability & Society 37, vol. 3 (2020): 496-521. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2020.1829552.Emily Yates. “‘People aren’t disabled, their city is’: inside Europe’s most accessible city.” The Guardian. May 28, 2019. https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/may/28/people-arent-disabled-their-city-is-inside-europes-most-accessible-city.Rosemarie Ankre & Sandra Wall-Reinius. “Nature for Everyone? Planning Perspectives on Accessibility, Disability and Participation in the Swedish Outdoors.” Planning Practice & Research 39, vol. 5 (2024): 793–812. https://doi-org.ezproxy.st-andrews.ac.uk/10.1080/02697459.2024.2358281.

How does a group's identity change if it is subject to two vastly different conditions? How has Sahrawi identity developed in exile and under occupation? In this episode, Maarten Weinrich, a postgraduate student in Strategic Studies with a background in conflict transformation and peacekeeping research, explores how decades of conflict, exile, and occupation have led tothe development of two increasingly diverging understandings and expressions of Sahrawi identity, presenting novel challenges to Sahrawi activism. He suggests that while "being Sahrawi" remains a fundamentally political expression in exile, especially in the Tindouf refugee camps, under occupationit has been pushed into a mostly cultural notion, increasingly depoliticized and made compatible with the Moroccan state.Providing a historical overview of the Western Sahara conflict, Maarten first examines how Sahrawi identity and nationalism formed as an inherently political response to socio-economic conditions and colonialism. He then highlights how living as permanent refugees in the Tindouf camps, Sahrawis have emphasized this political character. Drawing from academicliterature and the impressions of Raphael Harnett, who produced the documentary “Undercover in Occupied Western Sahara: Have You Ever Heard of Africa's Last Colony?”, during his travels through the occupied zone, Maarten reflects on how occupation fosters an increasingly depoliticized way of being Sahrawi, and the consequences this has for international activism.References Barreñada, I. (2017). Western Saharan and Southern Moroccan Sahrawis: National identity and mobilization. In R. Ojeda-García, I. Fernández-Molina, & V. Veguilla (Eds.), Global, regional and local dimensions of Western Sahara’s protracted decolonization: When a conflict gets old (pp. 277–304). Palgrave Macmillan US.Chikhi, S. (2017). Non-violence or Violent Extremism: Young Refugees’ Propensities Pending the Resolution of the Conflict in Western Sahara. Journal of Peacebuilding & Development, 12(2), 51- 65. https://doi.org/10.1080/15423166.2017.1338156Farah, R. (2009). Refugee camps in the Palestinian and Sahrawi national liberation movements: A comparative perspective. Journal of Palestine Studies, 38(2), 76-93.Gilkerson, S. (2018). The Conveyor Belt to Nowhere: Identity and resistance at a Western Saharan phosphate mine from 1973-1976. Afrique contemporaine, 265(1), 59-75. https://migrationportal.ucdavis.edu/sites/g/files/dgvnsk911/files/inline-files/paper_gilkerson_conveyor-belt-to-nowhere.pdfHodges, T. (1984). The Western Sahara. The Review-International Commission of Jurists, (32), 25-32.Le Billon, P. (2010). The geopolitical economy of ‘resource wars’. Geopolitics, 9(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.1080/14650040412331307812Martín, C. G. (2012). Gdeim Izik: a change in the struggle strategies of the Sahrawi population. From Social to Political, 62.Mundy, J. (2006). Autonomy & Intifadah: new horizons in Western Saharan nationalism. Review of African political economy, 33(108), 255-267. https://doi.org/10.1080/03056240600842875Shelley, T. (2022). MINURSO between a Rock and a Hard Place. In Besenyö, J., Huddlestone, R.J., Zoubir, Y.H. Conflict and Peace in Western Sahara The Role of UN’S Peacekeeping Mission (MINURSO). (pp. 99-110). RoutledgeSouaré, I. K., El Ouali, A., & Khadad, M. (2008). Western Sahara: understanding the roots of the conflict and suggesting a way out.Vásquez, E. (2015). La badil la badil: The effects of military occupation on gender dynamics in Sahrawi political resistance. Georgetown University.White, N. (2015). Conflict stalemate in Morocco and Western Sahara: Natural resources, legitimacy and political recognition. British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, 42(3), 339-357. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13530194.2014.949220Zunes, S., & Mundy, J. (2022). Western Sahara: War, nationalism, and conflict irresolution. Second Edition. Syracuse University Press.

In this episode, Natalia Hernandez Somarriba, a second-year PhD student in Modern Languages, explores how literature can illuminate the ongoing legacies of coloniality and social inequality in Peru.Natalia brings into dialogue two powerful works by Peruvian authors: Los ríos profundos (1958) by José María Arguedas and Huaco retrato (2021) by Gabriela Wiener. Published more than fifty years apart, these novels offer rich insights into shifting dynamics of mestizo identities, systemic oppression, and social conflict — both within post-colonial Peru and in relation to Europe as a former colonial power.Drawing on decolonial, feminist, and post-humanist theoretical frameworks, Natalia examines how physical and symbolic movement shapes the identities of each novel’s narrator-protagonist, opening paths to empathy, self-understanding, and resistance. She further explores how both characters engage in decolonial practices that defy established power structures and challenge the positioning of White-mestizo subjects within their socieities.Works cited in the episode:Arguedas, José María. 1978. Deep Rivers (University of Texas Press: Austin).Galindo, María. 2021. Feminismo Bastardo (Mujeres creando).Hartman, Saidiya. 2008. 'Venus in Two Acts', Small Axe: A Caribbean Journal of Criticism, 12: 1-14.Lander, Edgardo. 2002. 'Eurocentrism, Modern Knowledges, and the "Natural" Order of Global Capital', Nepantla: Views from South, 3: 245-68.Mignolo, Walter D., and Catherine E.  Walsh. 2018. On Decoloniality: Concepts, Analytics, Praxis (Duke University Press).Miller, Marilyn Grace. 2004. Rise and Fall of the Cosmic Race: The Cult of Mestizaje in Latin America (University of Texas Press: New York, USA).Quijano, Anibal. 1992. 'Colonialidad y modernidad/racionalidad.', Perú Indígena, 13: 11-20.______. 2010. 'Coloniality and Modernity/Rationality.' in Walter D. Mignolo and Arturo Escobar (eds.), Globalization and the Decolonial Option (Routledge).Wiener, Charles, and Edgardo Rivera Martínez. 1993. "Perú y Bolivia. Relato de viaje." In. Lima: Institut français d’études andines.Wiener, Gabriela. 2023. Undiscovered (Puhkin Press: London).Zapata, Milagros, and David Swerdlow. 1998. 'Framing the Peruvian Cholo: Popular Art by Unpopular People.' in Eva P. Bueno and Terry Caesar (eds.), Imagination beyond Nation: Latin American Popular Culture (University of Pittsburgh Press: Pittsburgh, PA).

How can museums, traditionally visual spaces, become more accessible to visually impaired audiences? In this episode, Renato Trotta, a PhD candidate in Museum and Gallery Studies, explores the tensions between ocularcentric institutions and the need for non-visual engagement. He shares insights from his interdisciplinary research, drawing from museology, social sciences, critical disability theory, and psychology.Through thought-provoking discussions and references to his fieldwork, Renato highlights key challenges and possibilities for greater inclusivity in museums. The episode also features reflections on the work of Aldo Grassini, blind museum director of the Tactile Museum of Ancona and a long-time accessibility advocate.ReferencesKlatzky, R.L., Lederman, S.J. & Metzger, V.A. (1985). Identifying objects by touch: An “expert system”. Perception & Psychophysics 37, 299–302  https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03211351Secchi, L. (2004). L’educazione estetica per l’integrazione. Carocci.Reichinger, A., Fuhrmann, A., Maierhofer, S., and Purgathofer, W. (2016). “Gesture-Based Interactive Audio Guide on Tactile Reliefs.” Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, October. https://doi.org/10.1145/2982142.2982176.Suggested readingsCandlin, F. (2010). Art, Museums and Touch. Manchester University Press.Eardley, A., Jones, V., and Zakaria, N. (2025). Unpicking Ableism and Disablism in Museums. Routledge EBooks, January, 11–26. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003382713-3.Fortuna, J., Harrison, C., Eekhoff, A., Marthaler, C., Seromik, M., Ogren, S., and Vandermolen, J. (2023). Identifying Barriers to Accessibility for Museum Visitors Who Are Blind and Visually Impaired. Visitor Studies, February, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2023.2168421.Hetherington, K. (2000). Museums and the Visually Impaired: The Spatial Politics of Access. The Sociological Review 48 (3): 444–63. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-954x.00225.Sandell, R. (2012). Museums, Equality and Social Justice. Routledge.

In this episode of CMR Podcast, Allan Mjomba Majalia, a third-year PhD student in Sustainable Development at the University of St Andrews, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, discusses the Indigenous and local knowledge of fisher folk in Kenya and Ghana. He explores how marine social science (a Western epistemological framework) intersects with African ontologies and epistemologies, offering unique insights from his PhD fieldwork.Allan is interviewed by his colleague and friend, PGT MLitt. G. Connor Salter, as they reflect on the challenges and rewards of conducting research in diverse coastal communities, and the emerging themes from his two field sites.Acknowledgments:Albert Mwamburi (Pwani Tribune)Emmanuel ShambiFerdinand MwashumbeMariam Erestina and the Ghanaian team