News for Staff & Students
63 Research Insights Celebrating Female Philosophers Our Pledge on Plastic July - August 2019
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Dialogue
July - August 2019
Contribute to your magazine
@durhamuniversity
@Durham_Uni
Welcome Welcome to the last issue of Dialogue for this academic year.
@DurhamUniversity
It has been another very successful year for us as a community and our Summer Congregations were, as always, a wonderful climax to our collective efforts. I would like to thank everyone who made the 16 ceremonies so special for our graduating students and their families. Professor Michelle Simmons, Lord (Anthony) Hughes, Jon Boden, Professor Elspeth Garman and Robert Gillespie joined our students to receive honorary degrees – you can read more about this on page 10. I’m pleased to report that we’ve had a number of positive league table announcements recently. We are proud to be ranked 78th in the QS World University Rankings 2020, in the group placed 90-100 in terms of global university reputation (Times Higher Education), and fifth in the UK in the Guardian University Guide. Thank you everyone for making this happen.
@DurhamUniversity
Tell your story Please send your contributions and feedback to dialogue@durham.ac.uk
We are excited to have appointed five new Heads of College and three new Executive Deans, all of whom will join us over the next six months. Four of our new Heads are replacing colleagues who are either retiring or moving to a different role. The fifth Head is to be the founding Principal of our newest college, South College – the first to be added to collegiate Durham for 14 years. The new Executive Deans join Prof Susan Hart, the current lead for the Business School, which will become the Faculty of Business on August 1. They will be key academic leaders for their respective Faculties and integral members of the University’s senior leadership team (UEC). Finally, many congratulations to Durham Student Theatre, who will perform ten of their shows at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe and well done to all our sportsmen and women for yet another superbly successful year. And thank you all for your hard work and continued support in 2018-19. I wish you all a great summer and happy holidays.
Professor Stuart Corbridge Vice-Chancellor and Warden
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Contents issue
63
3
14
July - August 2019
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Editor
11
4 Get social
9
14 Durham at the Edinburgh Fringe 2019
Ulrike Klaerig-Jackson, Communications Co-ordinator
5 Your chance to unearth our shared religious heritage
16 Our pledge on plastics
Contributors
6 Oracle cloud: coming soon
18 Community relations – round up
Daryl Dowding, Museums and Attractions; Claire Hall, Karen Frost, Nicky Sawicki, Mark Tallentire, Danielle Phillips, Paul McQuaid, Izzy Rooke, Marketing & Communications; Sophie Wright, Durham Student Theatre; Lydia Heald, Music Durham; Ellie Rawnsley, Team Durham; Angela Marciano, CIS; Yvonne Flynn, Greenspace; Rachel Ball, Executive Office
7 Music Durham
19 Let there be light Lumiere returns this autumn
Cover Image Painting by @Isobel Rooke isobelrooke.co.uk
8 New College and student facilities taking shape fast
20 Libraries and museums
9 Enjoying our first Community Fun Day
21 Rachel’s Comrades Marathon experience
10 Celebrating student success in the summer sunshine
22 CIS News
11 Team Durham
23 An Insight into 24 What’s on
12 Research Insights – Celebrating female philosophers
CUR/07/19/092 Durham University and Durham University logo are registered Trade Marks of the University of Durham. Unless otherwise stated, all material in this publication is copyright of the University of Durham. The University makes every effort to ensure that the information contained here is accurate. Please note that the University’s website is the most up to date source of information and we strongly recommend that you always visit the website before making any commitments.
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July - August 2019
Social Our favourite posts, tweets and videos over the past two months to show you what's been happening around the University!
Top 3
tweets We’re celebrating another great league table result! We’ve been ranked 78th in the world in the latest @worlduniranking – that’s in the top eight per cent of universities worldwide! Find out more here: fal. cn/sAZ3 #worldtop100 #QSWUR #proud We’re making major investments to ensure our student experience is second to none. See how our new facilities at #MountOswald are taking shape, and how they’ll look when they open in 2020 fal.cn/s2QL #DUinspire @IRVconstruction @JohnSnowCollege @durhamalumn
Congratulations to @DULOGTheatre overall winners in the InterUniversity Musical Theatre Festival, judged by industry professionals, as well as bagging 3 out of 5 song categories. Well done to the team, on stage and off
Photo
of the month
Has anyone seen the rainbow of umbrellas @princebishops? They’re adding a vibrant pop of colour to the city centre and we love them!
Video
of the month from YouTube youtube.com/watch?v=BoCsR-emzlw
REDUCING THE PLASTIC MOUNTAIN Every single minute, a truck load of plastic ends up in our oceans, killing millions of animals every year. Three PhD students decide to do something about it.
@durhamuniversity
@Durham_Uni
@DurhamUniversity
@DurhamUniversity
Dialogue An archaeological excavation of Roman baths at Binchester
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Belief in the North East is a fantastic opportunity to get involved in real research that has the potential to expand our understanding of our own history, as well as pick up advanced skills. Some of the training on offer to volunteers will be of undergraduate standard, delivered by expert colleagues who, like me, are passionate about sharing their knowledge with our local communities. Dr David Petts, Associate Professor, Archaeology
Your chance to unearth our shared religious heritage
When and where?
Have you ever fancied yourself as an archaeologist? Well, this might be your chance…
An exhibition presenting the project’s findings will tour the region; and there will be lasting impact through an online education pack created for schools.
Dr David Petts, from our Archaeology Department, is looking for hundreds of volunteers for an ambitious new community archaeology project. What’s it all about? The project is called ‘Belief in the North East’. The aim is to capture an overview of the heritage of religion in North East England, from prehistory to the present. The team will study Neolithic rock art landscapes, Bronze Age burial mounds, an early medieval cemetery, and medieval monasteries. It will be led by David and colleagues, but much of the work will be undertaken by an army of community volunteers. How can I get involved? There are loads of volunteering opportunities available, to suit your experience and ability.
You could be doing: site excavation, digital photography, geophysical site mapping, landscape surveying, exploring historical archives, or document searches. Training and supervision from experts will be available, sometimes to an undergraduate level standard.
Initial workshops will be held this summer, then fieldwork between this summer and summer 2020. Final workshops are expected to take place in summer 2021, followed by a major conference.
Please get in touch for more information or to register your interest. Then the team will be in touch as further details are confirmed. Visit: beliefne.net Belief in the North East has received a £180,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
A community excavation project at Harehaugh, Northumberland
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July - August 2019
Oracle Cloud:
coming soon
In September, our payroll, HR, expenses, recruitment, timesheets and absence management systems will move to Oracle Cloud, a cloud-based computer system. Dialogue caught up with Eddy Osborne, the programme manager, to find out more. Tell us about the Oracle Cloud programme. Oracle Cloud is a cloud-based computer system that we’re adopting to replace our existing payroll, HR, expenses, recruitment, timesheets and absence management systems from September. As a University, we want an IT system that enables us to focus on our strategic priorities: research, education and the wider student experience. At the moment, we have several different systems, which involve a lot of manual effort and carry a high risk of error. We need common practices, processes and supporting systems. Oracle Cloud makes things simpler, more consistent, is better supported, and allows a higher level of self-service. It’s also accessible from any location, using
any device, and is very secure – which, of course, is really important when we’re dealing with personal information. How’s the programme going? We started work towards the end of last year, we've had the system designed, built and tested and we are now gearing up to go live in September. I’m really grateful to the project team, who’ve been brilliant; our Change Network of representatives across the University, who’ve been a great source of information and really helped us to tailor the system for Durham; and everyone else who’s been part of the programme. We’ve tried to keep everyone informed of progress through our web pages, Dialogue Signposts, the Change Network, and via College and Department Heads; and support will be in place once the system goes live. If anyone has any questions, they can email us at: oracle.communications@durham.ac.uk
Anything else we need to know? Once Oracle goes live, the process of getting old P60s will require manual input from Finance; and there will be a charge for this. So I’d encourage everyone to download their P60s now. Once we’ve gone live with Phase 1 in September, we’ll be starting work on Phase 2, which includes other areas of finance. That will also be a year-long programme, with go live scheduled for next Autumn. There’s lots more information on our web pages, at durham.ac.uk/oracle What do you do when you’re not thinking about Oracle? I live locally and this is my first job in many years where I’ve been able to commute from home, so I’m enjoying being in my own home every night. I’ve tried to get back into running, and I’ve also been able – for better or worse – to see more Middlesbrough games. In addition, I recently became a grandad for the first time. It’s great fun, and a second grandchild is on the way, so whatever I’m doing, I’m busy!
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Music Durham We had a fantastic end to the 2018/19 academic year, with a number of concerts, masterclasses and other events taking place throughout June, as part of the Durham Summer in the City Festival. Particular highlights were the annual joint Music Durham concerts, which started the summer concert series in style.
Full Score
Combining the talent of hundreds of students, with representation from all Colleges, including a number of staff performers and special guest Sir Thomas Allen, this year’s concerts were bigger and better than ever before.
Music Outreach: Students perform new works written by pupils On 16 June, Durham University Palatinate Orchestra (DUPO) performed alongside pupils from St Margaret’s Primary School, bringing a spectacular end to a monthslong outreach project.
Summer in the City Festival
Northern Lights
The core aim of the project was to bring classical music to a young audience in a vibrant and exciting way, as well as providing children with a unique performing opportunity. In January, pupils began creating paintings, statues, collages and bunting. These works of art were then used as inspiration for the pupils to compose their own pieces of music, in much the same way that 19th century Russian composer Mussorgksy was inspired by paintings to compose the famous Pictures at an Exhibition. The children were guided along the way by Music PhD student and composer, Rob King. Months of hard work all culminated in a performance of Mussorgksy’s Pictures at an Exhibition, interspersed with the children’s pieces of music, or “Promenades”. Pupils from St Margaret’s Primary School performed alongside DUPO in what was, for many of them, their first experience of playing with a full-sized symphony orchestra. It was a pleasure to see and hear the fantastic creations from the pupils, and to see our students engaging in such an interesting project.
Looking ahead to Edinburgh Fringe This year, we are delighted that two of our groups will be heading to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. After sell out shows in 2017 and 2018, mixed a cappella group and regional ICCA champions for three years running, Northern Lights, will return in August 2019 with their all-singing, alldancing show A Riff in Time. Performances: Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, Fleming Theatre, theSpace @ Surgeons Hall More information at: edinburghfestival.list.co.uk/ event/1297386-a-riff-in-time/
The second Music Durham group appearing at the festival this year, Full Score will be making their Fringe debut with their show Sing, Sing, Sing. The only a cappella ensemble in Durham to specialise in barbershop harmony, we are excited that Full Score will be taking their infectious energy and exciting arrangements to Edinburgh this year. Performances: Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, Theatre 1, theSpace @ Surgeons Hall More information at: edinburghfestival.list.co.uk/ event/1271805-full-score-sing-sing-sing/
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July - August 2019
New College and student facilities taking shape fast, ready for 2020 We’re making major investments in our facilities so that our students enjoy an experience to rival anywhere in the world. More of our students will live in Colleges, where they can benefit from a mixed community and dedicated support. As part of this, it’s great to see two new Colleges quickly taking shape, ready for 2020. What’s being built? A new home for John Snow College, plus a brand new South College. John Snow will have a traditional feel, while South will be more contemporary. Both will be at a site known as Mount Oswald, across South Road from the Howlands site. Mount Oswald is close to existing Departments and Colleges and has good transport links to Durham City Centre.
We're looking forward to moving into our purposebuilt new home. Seeing the buildings going up at Mount Oswald is exciting for our staff and students.
Martyn Evans, Interim Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Colleges and Student Experience), John Snow College JCR President Will Lewington, Prof Carolyn Summerbell, Principal, John Snow College
Prof Carolyn Summerbell, Principal, John Snow College
Also at Mount Oswald there will be a University Hub, where students will enjoy formal dining and events, a gym, music practice rooms, a performance practice room, a Yoga/dance studio, a launderette and a faith room. Plus, there will be a dedicated all-weather sports pitch. When will the new facilities be ready? The work is progressing well. Builders started work on site in summer 2018, and the first of two blocks of townhouse-style accommodation at the new John Snow College has now reached its full height. University and project leaders gathered for a ‘topping out’ ceremony on site back in June, when Professor Martyn Evans, our Interim Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Colleges and Student Experience), laid the final coping stone.
All the new facilities will be ready for the 2020/21 academic year. Keep up to date with progress at durham.ac.uk/mountoswald
The new home for John Snow College will be a top class facility where students can learn and grow in a vibrant and supportive College community. I’m confident that Snow students and staff will find their new home an inspiring and motivating environment, where they can pursue their development, both academic and personal. Prof Martyn Evans, Interim Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Colleges and Student Experience)
Artistic impressions of the new John Snow College
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Celebrating our first
Community Fun Day A huge thank you to everyone who helped make our first Community Fun Day such a wonderful success. Over 1,000 people visited our marquee on Palace Green, Durham, on Saturday 22 June. The idea was to bring as many of the huge variety of activities organised by our staff and students as possible together in one place, for an event which was free and open to all to enjoy. There was live music and theatre, sports, dancing, hands-on science, arts and crafts, stalls, exhibitions and much more.
Tell us what you thought… Here’s some of the feedback we received via Facebook… “Fab day, brilliant activities and we had loads of fun.” “Excellent day, interesting activities, lots of fun. Brilliant atmosphere, thank you.” “Brilliant fun day out. Kids loved it and lots of really interesting events for them to take part in! Thank you so much for all your hard work in organising such a great event!!”
We’d love to hear your thoughts. What did you enjoy? How would you improve things? Email us at: community.funday@durham.ac.uk
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July - August 2019
Celebrating student success in the summer sunshine
Anthony Hughes
Thousands of Durham students had fun in the sun as they celebrated their academic successes with family and friends at Summer Congregation. In total, around 4,600 students from 90 countries graduated across 16 ceremonies in the magnificent setting of Durham Cathedral. It was a joyous celebration of all our students’ hard work and achievements. We’re proud to know that they’ll go on to Michelle Simmons
achieve outstanding things all around the world, and act as wonderful ambassadors for our University, City and region. We were also privileged to be able to award Honorary Degrees to five remarkable individuals - including the 2018 ‘Australian of the Year’, a former Supreme Court Judge, an influential folk musician, a celebrated molecular biophysicist and a leading corporate financier. Professor Michelle Simmons, Lord Anthony Hughes, Jon Boden, Professor Elspeth Garman and Robert Gillespie are among the very best in their chosen fields, and their brilliance set an inspiring example to our new graduates. All the ceremonies were streamed live online, so that anyone who wasn’t able to travel to Durham could still be part of the celebrations. It was the first congregation event at the Cathedral following the completion of three years’ renovation work to its iconic central tower, and it was the perfect setting for a glorious occasion.
4,600 students
90
from
countries
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Another busy term for Team Durham The past few months have been a busy time for us at Team Durham, with national finals, charity fundraisers and community sport taking a forefront. Not to forget the ever highly anticipated Palatinate Dinner which was, again, a roaring success. April saw our Volleyball team build on their fantastic BUCS and National League season as they returned from the National Volleyball League Finals as champions. This ends the most successful season in the club’s history which will only benefit them as they now begin their recruitment campaign for next year. Elsewhere, the Hill vs Bailey rugby game took place in order to raise money for Sport in Action. The game historically raises an incredible amount of money; this year ticket sales alone raised nearly £1,500 and money from donations and player’s contributions is still being counted. The Hill Colleges won both the men’s and women’s games and we would like to thank all of those involved in the organisation and coordination of
the event as well as everyone who has supported the cause so far. Over 200 students from schools across County Durham and Stockton-on-Tees took part in the ‘Her World, Her Rules’ basketball campaign led by our WBBL team, the Durham Palatinates, on behalf of GB basketball, which culminated in a festival held in early May. This has been an ongoing programme, designed to engage and increase participation and enjoyment for basketball on a large scale. We are back at Twickenham again this term but this time with DURFC alumni Josh Beaumont, Simon Hammersley and Claudia Macdonald who were named in the England rugby squad who faced the Barbarians. PhD student and international Heather Kerr also made an appearance, having been selected to play against her home team for the Barbarians side. The last time Heather was at Twickenham was when she was pulling on her Palatinate shirt in the BUCS final and she said that she was humbled to return in an international capacity. The final scores were 40-14 to England in the women’s game and 51-43 to England in the men’s. On the water, the boat club has been working hard, which paid off as they had a successful Metropolitan Regatta. Our men’s coxed four raced in both the championship event and the academic event and after progressing in their heat, finished fourth in the final in a close race. Our women also raced, changing between three different boat classes. They finished sixth in the championship women’s fours and fourth in the pairs before capping off the day with a great win in the academic event.
More recently, the Palatinate Dinner and Awards Ceremony was held at Hardwick Hall and hosted by Team Durham President Will Richie-Moulin. Amongst a multitude of awards being handed out for outstanding achievement and commitment to Team Durham this season, the evening culminated in the presentation of a final six prestigious awards. The winners were as follows: Sportsman of the year: Josh Basham (Rugby Union) Sportswoman of the year: Tess Howard (Hockey) Individual performance of the year: Sophie Shams (Rugby Union) Team performance of the year: M1s Football Team of the year: Volleyball W1s Club of the year: Women’s Lacrosse
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July - August 2019
Celebrating female philosophers RESEARCH INSIGHTS
British Academy exhibition
Dr Clare Mac Cumhaill, of our Department of Philosophy, co-directs In Parenthesis, one of 15 projects chosen by the British Academy for its annual summer showcase of the best new humanities and social sciences research. Here she gives us an insight. What is In parenthesis? It’s a project which explores the work, lives and friendships of four remarkable women philosophers - Iris Murdoch, Elizabeth Anscombe, Philippa Foot and Mary Midgley. They met whilst studying Philosophy at Oxford University during the Second World War. Many male
academics and students were conscripted to the war effort, which meant that the four women, sometimes known as the Quartet, had a distinctive education, one where women were no longer in the minority.
What was the school of thought they came to represent? At that time British philosophy had a reputation for being obscure, technical, and unrealistic. It was concerned with minute investigations into the meaning of words - Mary Midgley described it as a philosophy that encouraged “a lot of
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They focussed on their belief that philosophy is a central activity in human life and should help us to understand the world.
photographs, books and jottings that capture the way the women developed their arguments and interacted with one another. One of the Quartet – Mary Midgley - died just last year. Was she aware of the work? Yes – she lived in Newcastle and my co-director Rachael and I were incredibly fortunate to spend time with her in the three years before she died. She regularly invited us over for tea and biscuits and we came to rely on her sane, wise and philosophical outlook to help us not only with our work but with our lives. She was a massive fan of the project and loved hearing updates on our progress. How do you promote your project? We have a dedicated website womeninparenthesis.co.uk which captures all our talks, articles and interviews about the Quartet. It also features a library of video, audio and written interviews with the women as well as resources for teachers and students. This year is Iris Murdoch’s centenary and along with An Post (the Irish postal service) we are celebrating her philosophy and love of letter-writing by running an event called #PhilosophybyPostcard. This is to show that philosophy is and can be part of the everyday and take a snapshot of the questions and concerns that people would like philosophers to address. clever young men to compete in winning arguments”. For some philosophers, who the women opposed, the idea of talking about good and bad, right and wrong, was considered as nothing more than an expression of emotion, so no genuine moral disagreement or discussion was possible. In the wake of WW2, the women thought that this was bad philosophy. How did the Quartet challenge this way of thinking? They wanted a philosophy that would enable them to say to the Nazis, ‘But we were right, and you were wrong’. They focussed on their belief that philosophy is a central activity in human life and should help us to understand the world. Mary
Midgley ruefully described this time as “The Golden-Age of Female Philosophy” because they achieved prominence in the discipline at a standard that rivalled their male counterparts - however she didn’t think that only four philosophers could make a ‘Golden-Age’. What is the aim of In Parenthesis? Ultimately, the goal is to rewrite the history of 20th Century Philosophy and see the Quartet recognised as a school in Analytic Philosophy. The project recovers facts about the wartime conditions the Quartet experienced to understand why the Quartet were able to flourish in the way they did. Using archives from Durham and Oxford, the project has discovered letters,
#PhilosophybyPostcard From now until September you can send postcards asking questions or sharing problems that matter to you. 100 philosophers from around the globe have signed up to the project and they will answer 100 of the postcards received – see philosophybypostcard.com for further details
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July - August 2019
Durham Revue
Ladies Who Lunch
Ophelia Is Also Dead
Durham at the
Edinburgh Fringe We have 10 exciting shows at the Edinburgh Fringe this year, 1-25 August, spread across the city. Will you be there? With over 100 shows annually and 30 theatre companies, Durham’s student drama scene is one of the most vibrant in the UK. The shows representing us at the Fringe this year are just a fantastic snapshot of what else theatre has to offer. Tickets are available at tickets.edfringe.com
Bedlam (Wrong Tree)
Sing, Sing, Sing! (Full Score)
Friday 2 – Sunday 18 August, 4.30pm
Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, 2.05pm
Sweet Grassmarket – Grassmarket 2
theSpace @ Surgeons Hall, Theatre 1
‘This place is a human rat trap. It is easy to get in, but once in, it is impossible to get out’. Immerse yourself in the infamous Victorian asylum, where identity becomes a distant memory in cycles of routine and human cruelty. Rooted in history, Bedlam follows the journey of a subversive young woman as she uses her deep friendships with other patients to cultivate the beginnings of a revolution. In her attempts to disrupt the asylum’s rigorous orders, she brings them into danger of even more horrific treatment. The cycle of Bedlam continues... ***** (Palatinate)
As the University’s only A Capella ensemble that specialises in barbershop harmony, ‘Full Score’ has already established itself as one of our premiere music societies. Named as Durham’s Music Society of the Year after seven months in existence, Full Score has gone on to receive critical acclaim for their dazzling harmonies, slick choreography as well as their infectious energy. Performing songs from a range of different styles – including jazz, musical theatre, pop and folk music – there is sure to be something for everyone.
Dialogue
Hamlet
Skylight (Lion Theatre Company)
(Durham University Classical Theatre)
Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, 10.10am
Friday 2 - Saturday 3 August and Monday 5 - Tuesday 6 August, 11.05am
theSpace @ Niddry St. – Upper Theatre
theSpace on North Bridge – Fife Theatre This is a modern-day twist on the classic, inviting its audience into a haphazard and disorderly world, mirroring the turbulence of Hamlet’s madness. The production draws parallels to contemporary mental health issues, illustrating the destructive properties it can have on both relationships and ourselves from the perspective of a female Hamlet. The production combines Shakespeare’s script and narrative with the experience of living with a mental health disorder in 2019. We have redefined the (somewhat offensive) term ‘madness’ as we view Hamlet’s symptoms as a schizoaffective disorder, and focus on how its symptomatic manifestations affect people in Hamlet’s life.
Ladies Who Lunch (Fourth Wall) Friday 2 – Saturday 10 August and Monday 12 – Friday 16 August, 10.05am Greenside @ Infirmary Street Sally has enemies. Well she thinks she does. The problem is, they are all old friends. Gathered around a bistro table after 30 years of silence, five mothers pour out their parenting experiences for dissection. Motherhood may be the ultimate competition, but what’s the prize? Who’s done it well? Who’s plagued by regrets and who deep down wishes they had never done it at all? After an explosive run of Yen, Fourth Wall is back with a witty but strikingly poignant drama holding a microphone to the voice we seldom hear: the mother. ***** (TheBubble.org.uk).
Unnatural Disaster (The Durham Revue) Thursday 1 – Sunday 11 August and Tuesday 13 – Sunday 25 August, 4pm Underbelly, Cowgate – White Belly New Year, new troupe, 100% new material. The apocalypse was originally planned for 2012, but clashed with the Olympics, and so has been rescheduled to now: 2019. Join our award-winning sketch comedy troupe, The Durham Revue, as they celebrate the final hour of human existence. From the group, that brought you Ed Gamble, Nish Kumar, Jeremy Vine, and many more, this is an hour of cutting-edge student comedy not to be missed.
When Kyra Hollis receives an unexpected visit from her ex-lover Tom Sergeant on a London evening, the two attempt to rekindle their previously passionate relationship. The gulf between the two lovers is made clear through the course of the night, as the two battle with their opposing beliefs and raw emotions. A show that will make you laugh, cry and question your moral compass, Skylight celebrates the complexities of adolescence, relationships, grief, and the day-to-day struggle many face.
The Wheel of Improv: Musicals Edition! (Durham Improvised Musical) Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, 9.45pm
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something for everyone, featuring hits from God is a Woman to Can’t Help Falling in Love. This versatile and entertaining group will leave you wanting to come back for more so make sure you don’t miss out.
Poseidon’s Playhouse (First Theatre Company) Friday 2 – Saturday 10 August, 9.55pm Greenside @ Nicolson Square – Lime Studio Follow the madcap mishaps of the local parish priest whose pathetic attempts to be loved by others (as much as he loves himself) go wrong. When Ned books a weekend retreat and emotionally blackmails the parish into joining him, a huge storm breaks loose and all preexisting tensions explode to the surface. The town parish will never be the same again! Where The Office meets Father Ted, this comedy will leave you on the floor laughing.
theSpace Triplez – Studio Spin that wheel! Join us for an evening of improvised musical comedy where you create the show. We take your suggestions for a location, title and song that must appear in our musical and write them up onto our spinning wheel of improv! Give us your craziest, wackiest and most outrageous suggestions and let the spin decide our fates!
A Riff in Time (Northern Lights) Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, 12.35pm theSpace @ Surgeons Hall After sell-out shows in 2017 and 2018, our award-winning Northern Lights return with their most ambitious and best show yet. Having been crowned regional champions for three years running, Northern Lights is coming off the back of another successful year. This all-singing, all-dancing show will feature hits from a range of genres. There is Full Score
Ophelia Is Also Dead (Sightline Productions) Monday 12 – Saturday 17 August, 4.55pm theSpace Triplez – Studio Monday 19 – Saturday 24 August, 10.20pm theSpace @ Niddry St. ‘Ophelia is Also Dead’ follows Ophelia telling us the story of her whole life. The show offers kaleidoscopic scenes of her alone, the raucous party life at Elsinore and a boy’s boarding school production of Hamlet done in drag, hauling the cast of Hamlet with it. Ophelia is Also Dead is about girlhood, yes, and Hamlet, but it’s also about growing up, qualia and Natalie Portman. All singing, all dancing, watch as Ophelia goes from Stoppard to Bowie, kindness to madness, to muddy death. You can find out more about our Student Theatre at durhamstudenttheatre.org.
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Our pledge on
plastics GREENSPACE
July - August 2019
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Single-use plastics, and the amount of plastic waste in our oceans, are global issues. We want to do our bit to help tackle these critical problems as an environmentally-responsible institution. We’ve signed the County Durham Single-Use Plastics Pledge, and we’re going to review how we build, heat and light our buildings, how we travel, and the way in which we procure supplies needed for our day-to-day operations. We want to significantly reduce, and ultimately remove, single-use plastics from our operations. What’s more, we’ll be encouraging our students, staff, community partners, and others to do the same. As members of the Durham County Council Partnership, we need to act responsibly, both corporately and socially. We’re already making changes across our catering outlets and Colleges, and we’ve set up a working group to take this forward. Some of the things we’re doing include: Discounts on drinks in reusable mugs We now offer reusable cups at all of our catering outlets. You’ll receive a free hot drink if you buy one, plus you’ll get 20p off all future hot drinks every time you re-use it.
Removal of plastic bottles Since March, we’ve removed more than 50 per cent of drinks sold in plastic bottles from our catering outlets, and we intend to reduce this amount further in the next academic year. We’re also the first university in the North East – and only the second in the UK – to join the Northumbrian Water ‘Refill’ campaign, enabling staff, students and members of the public to fill up their reusable water bottles at any of our public cafés for free.
Colleges as environmental champions Our colleges are already doing things differently for the environment: • Van Mildert College has already banned single-use plastics. Laundry and shopping bags made from sustainable materials are given to all new students, along with reusable cups and water bottles, and reusable boxes for student meals are proving both popular and effective. • Plastic straws have also been banned from all college bars, and replaced by paper ones. • University College held its own Environment Week in June and revealed that the College bar gets through an average of 7,000 single-use flexi glasses
per week and around 350,000 per year. The College has now switched to reusable polycarbonate glasses, and the bar has also made a commitment to eliminate all of their single-use plastic waste too. It’s a great start, and we hope that other similar initiatives will be rolled out in the next academic year.
Working with suppliers We are working with our suppliers to remove or replace plastic packaging, or collect and reuse their own packaging to prevent waste on our site. Our water supplier, Marlish Water, has also switched from bottles to cans to reduce plastic waste.
Social, corporate, legal and economic aspects We will be compliant with all relevant and upcoming legislation, including the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) ruling that plastic straws, stirrers and other single-use plastics will be banned in the UK from April 2020.
It’s up to you! So there’s lots going on to cut down on the use of plastics but we need to do more. We encourage you all to continue to support this important initiative, both at the University and in your everyday life – even small changes can make a big difference in the long run.
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Dialogue
July - August 2019
University and City We are proud of the work we do to support our local communities and we want to do this in a way that benefits everyone. You can keep up to date with all the latest community news at durham.ac.uk/ community, where you can also sign up to receive our monthly Community Newsletter. Here are a couple of stories from recent weeks.
Children and local artist create ‘cosmic’ art for Ogden Centre for Fundamental Physics Why are we all here? How did the Universe begin? What is its ultimate fate? These were some of the big questions that school children, a local artist and some of our physics researchers explored when they got together to create a new piece of art for our Ogden Centre for Fundamental Physics.
It has been wonderful to see the children’s first ideas develop into a stunning piece of art – which we’re very pleased and privileged to have on show. Brambles Primary Academy said their pupils had really enjoyed meeting our researchers and being able to ask their questions; and many pupils had been inspired to go away and find out more.
Dementia-friendly art workshops at Oriental Museum
The workshops are aimed at people living with mild to moderate dementia, and their carers.
We want our museums and attractions to be accessible to, and enjoyed by, all.
Participants will explore the Museum’s collections and create their own artwork inspired by what they see and do.
So we’re really pleased to offer dementia-friendly art workshops at our Oriental Museum.
They’ll take place every Wednesday from 2.30pm to 4.30pm, and each session will be run by a professional artist.
Dialogue
Let there be light -
Lumiere returns this autumn We’re proud to be sponsoring Lumiere, the UK’s largest light festival, when it returns to Durham in November, and we’re excited to announce we’ll be hosting an innovative installation at one of our Colleges.
Lumiere’s got talent: introducing Keys of Light Keys of Light is an interactive installation by Dutch artist Mr.Beam, which will see visitors play a grand piano and have their music visualised through dazzling projections. Each note played will trigger an animation onto the front of Rushford Court, off North Road, which from this summer will be home to our own John Snow College. We’re looking forward to giving seeing you there.
Your chance to be part of Lumiere Lumiere producers Artichoke are inviting pianists to apply for ten-minute playing slots on the grand piano. This is an exciting opportunity to be part of Lumiere, show off your talent and be part of a live artwork. All genres of music are welcome. To apply, email: participation@artichoke. uk.com with your contact information and which pieces you would like to play.
More about Lumiere Durham 2019 The festival is commissioned by Durham County Council and will be a special tenth anniversary edition, featuring around 30 bespoke installations from local talent and internationally-acclaimed artists. It will run over four evenings, from Thursday 14 to Sunday 17 November, and will be free to attend. We think we have much in common with Lumiere: it’s inspiring, innovative, and exciting; it brings many visitors to Durham, makes a significant contribution to the economy, and helps raise the
Around 30 bespoke installations from local talent and internationally – acclaimed artists.
Keys of Light
profile of our City and region nationally and internationally. So we’re proud to be a major partner: making a major cash contribution and supporting cultural activity, volunteering and logistics. Keys of Light is the first installation to be publicly announced. Further details about the festival programme will be revealed nearer the time.
Could you help out? Hundreds of volunteers are needed to make this Lumiere the best yet. For more information, please visit durham.gov.uk/festivalmaker
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Dialogue
July - August 2019
What's on in our
In pursuit of elegance
libraries and museums
Students studying Museum and Artefact Studies have created an exhibition celebrating a collection of Chinese jades donated to the Oriental Museum in memory of the entrepreneur and philanthropist Gerard Arnhold. Part of a German-Jewish family, Gerard was forced to flee his homeland in 1936. He served in the British Army during World War II, before starting a successful technology company in Brazil. He and his family supported post-War rebuilding in Germany and many other charitable causes around the globe, always working anonymously. The jades donated to the Oriental Museum in his memory represent the highest levels of craftsmanship, including pieces produced in the workshops that supplied the imperial court. See the exhibition from 14 June to 15 September. Entry is free for all campus card holders.
Wild: A Celebration of The Natural History of The British Isles Palace Green Library, 18 May – 6 October 2019 Palace Green Library is being taken over by animals this summer; from soaring birds to swimming fish and everything in between. This new exhibition will give visitors the opportunity to see some of Britain’s most elusive animals including the red fox, red squirrel, barn owl and great crested newt up close and personal. The exhibition also includes treasures from the Palace Green Library collections, including two books of hand painted British birds by ornithologist John Selby, as well as an art commission from Newcastle-based artist Helen Collard.
Summer in the City festival Durham’s first Summer in the City festival took place in June this year and celebrated the best of the city’s theatre, music and art. The month-long festival of creative events, workshops, talks, performances and exhibitions featured an art market, music concerts in the cathedral, art
tours and theatre performances at venues across the university and city. A collaboration between the University and Durham County Council, the festival worked with a group of enthusiastic student volunteers to deliver nine art exhibitions, several of which featured the University’s Collections, over thirty-four creative workshops for all ages, over sixty theatre productions and more than twenty music performances.
Dialogue
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Rachel’s Comrades Marathon Many colleagues will know Rachel Ball as part of our Executive Office. But outside of work, she’s an enthusiastic runner, achieving extraordinary feats over extreme distances.
6,000ft
of climbing
55 miles
She was in the top six per cent of female finishers, and the top 17 per cent of all finishers – including professional athletes. She was the fifth placed British female, with three of the four ahead of her being a Team GB ultra-runner, a four-time Ironman world champion, and an Olympian. Rachel told us… “The atmosphere was electric. It’s almost a national event for South Africa: locals come out in their masses to line the streets and cheer on the runners. “There are about 40 official refreshment stations on the route that runners can use to fuel their journey, and they are definitely needed! “As with any distance event, there were bad patches, but I worked through them to get there in the end. I thoroughly enjoyed the race, even though the last eight miles felt like a full marathon! “My favourite race mantra is ‘Focus on the process, not the outcome, and the rest will take care of itself’. That’s what I managed to do, constantly reframing my thoughts so my body wouldn’t give up. “I’m hoping to return next year to complete the ‘down’ run, so I can earn my ‘back to back’ medal and hopefully go under the nine-hour barrier, so I can get the Bill Rowan medal.” Congratulations Rachel, an inspiring achievement.
In June, she completed the Comrades Marathon, which stretches approximately 55 miles from Durban and Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. It’s the world’s largest ultramarathon, with up to 25,000 runners taking part, and also the oldest – this year’s was the 94th edition of the race. To take part, you need to have completed a marathon in under four hours and 50 minutes. And there’s a time limit of 12 hours – if you cross the line after that, you don’t get a medal.
Each year, the race alternates between the ‘up’ run, starting at Durban, and the ‘down’ run, starting at Pietermaritzburg. This year, the race date was set for Saturday 9 June and it was the turn of the ‘up’ route, meaning 6,000ft of climbing, including five major hills and five supposedly smaller hills, in conditions which were hot and humid. Rachel did tremendously well – crossing the finishing line in nine hours, seven minutes and 20 seconds, meaning she earned the Mtshali medal (for finishing times of between nine and ten hours).
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Devices on the network include:
Dialogue
July - August 2019
CIS News OVER 50KMelements to The Big 3; readers there are As the name suggests, three important of cable has been used to network, hosting and storage. deliver the project, which servers
access card
is the equivalent length of 476 football pitches.
ipads
mobiles
More resilient hosting platform. Devices on the network include:
CCTV
fire alarms
The new network is built to last for laptops 25+ years.telephones
servers
access card readers
Increased storage options for OVER 50KM academic and of cable has been used to deliver the project, which is the equivalent length of research staff. 476 football pitches.
Improving our network
More resilient hosting platform
We’re making great headway with our network, with over 25 per cent of the University’s estate now operating on our brand new, future proof, high speed broadband network.
ipads mobiles a new hosting environment, and will be working hard over the summer to move the outstanding 100.
The new network is built to last for
25+ YEARS.
To check out our interactive map on your phone, simply point your camera at the QR code. Android users may need to download a QR reader app first.
Who will benefit? We’ve moved over 500 virtual servers to Storing our data securely And we’re excited to have recently launched our new storage solution for fire alarms CCTV research-active staff.
ALL STAFF & ALLlaptops STUDENTS. telephones
Our research community told us that they needed more storage for their personal and shared research projects. We listened, and now we have delivered highly
Want to know more about our IT services? We have created a new IT Service Catalogue to bring together all the services we offer you into a single online reference tool. Arriving at the catalogue, users select whether they are staff, student or visitor and are then presented with their own tailored homepage, where they can find out about all the services we provide that are relevant to them. From audio visual systems to web publishing, each has its own entry that simply explains key features
available, scalable storagelots to meet their We’ve uncovered of weird needs today and into artefacts the future. around and wonderful
More resilient hosting platform.
the City while we’ve Our new Personal Research Storagebeen newResearch network cables in, (PRS)putting and Shared Storage (SRS) services are nowan available to toilet all including ancient research-active staff. PRS will give users behind Hatfield College! an automatic 1TB of storage space for personal research. And SRS will give users the option of additional shared storage beyond the limits of PRS (up to 100TB per share), and research projects. This important part of The Big 3 will significantly enhance our storage provision for research staff, and provide a stable, secure solution for the University.
Who will benefit?
The new network Easy to and with isnavigate built toa powerful last for of the service, how to request it and the help and support available.
25+ YEARS.
search function, the catalogue also enables access to the self-service portal with its comprehensive knowledge base to answer users’ IT questions. Visit the catalogue now at services.durham.ac.uk
ALL STAFF & ALL STUDENTS.
In o a re
Dialogue
An insight into NAME: Isobel Rooke JOB TITLE: Communications Officer
What was your best subject? I always loved art and now spend a lot of time painting.
Have you got any pets? Yes we have two cats – Maud and Nora. I find them very entertaining, though I think my family don’t want to receive any more photos of them. What are you reading at the moment? One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It’s a beautiful book and I’m enjoying it, though I wish the characters weren’t all called the same name. What was the first record you bought? Of course it had to be the Spice Girls. I was a nineties kid. What achievement are you most proud of? We bought our first house last year and it was a complete wreck. We’ve spent the last year renovating it outside of work. I’ve learnt a lot of new skills (most of which I hope to never need again!). It’s been exhausting but every time I go home I feel proud of what we’ve achieved so far.
What was your best subject? I studied History at University, though I always loved art and now spend a lot of time painting. When was the last time you laughed and why? I was eating in the conservatory-space of a restaurant and managed to walk into a window when looking for the loo.
Where will you be going for your next holiday? Japan in September – I can’t wait! What’s the worst job you’ve ever done? Minding reindeer in Santa’s grotto. It was freezing cold and I never got paid. The things you do as a student… What luxury item would you take to a desert island?
What did you want to be when you were a child?
A kettle. I am nothing without a brew.
A vet, an actress, an artist. It would change very regularly. I often think it would be nice to be a helicopter pilot.
Tea from 6am. Wine from 6pm.
What’s your vice?
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What’s on at the University
@/durhamuniversity
@Durham_Uni
August
@DurhamUniversity
@DurhamUniversity
September
Marvellous Mini Beasts
Teddy Bears Picnic
Heritage Open Days 2019
Venue: Botanic Garden, Hollingside Lane, Durham DH1 3TN
Venue: Botanic Garden, Hollingside Lane, Durham DH1 3TN
Venues: Various
Dates: Thursday 1 and Saturday 31 August
Dates: Monday 19 August
Times: 10am – 5pm
Times: 10am – 4pm
Pick up a spotter sheet from the Visitor Centre and see what Marvellous Mini Beasts you can discover in the Garden. This is a self-led activity, and subject to availability of spotter sheets.
Visit the Garden for a day of bear-related fun this summer. Bring your own teddy, enjoy bear-related craft activities and storytelling.
Autism Friendly Activities – Scary Scarabs Venue: Oriental Museum, Elvet Hill, Durham DH1 3TH Dates: Friday 9 August Times: 10am – 12noon Children with autism, learning or sensory impairments and their families can take part in our quiet time craft activities. Spot the Ancient Egyptian scarab beetles on display and make your own from clay. Free admission.
Dates: 13 – 22 September Watch out for details of events and activities across Durham as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of Heritage Open Days!
Ushaw Jazz Festival Venue: Ushaw College, Woodland Road, Durham DH7 9RH Dates: Friday 23 – Sunday 25 August A weekend of live jazz music in the stunning surroundings of historic Ushaw College. Visit the website for the full programme ushawboxoffice.com
For more information on University events go to durham.ac.uk/whatson