This document provides an overview of the Arts and Humanities Research Council's (AHRC) strategic themes: Science in Culture, Digital Transformations, Care for the Future, Translating Cultures, and Connected Communities. It outlines the goals and focus of each theme, recent activity including development awards and calls for proposals, and future plans which include notifications for large grant proposals in 2013. Theme leadership fellows are also introduced who will provide strategic advice and help build scholarly communities within each theme.

1. AHRC Themes: Overview
Christie Walker
Strategy & Development Manager
8 November 2012

2. AHRC Strategic Themes
• Science in Culture
• Digital Transformations
• Care for the Future
• Translating Cultures
• Connected Communities
(with other RCs)

3. AHRC Strategic Themes: Development
• ‘Future Directions’ consultation (Feb-May
2009)
• Further consultation e.g. with key partners
& Subject Associations, institutional visits
etc
• Development by Advisory Board & Council
• Knowledge exchange, international,
capacity building, public policy, partnership
activities
• Larger consortia grants
• Building on previous AHRC programmes &
supporting cross-council programmes

4. Science in Culture
• Understanding and developing the reciprocal relationship
between the sciences and the arts & humanities
• Historical evolution of science; creativity, discovery &
argumentation in science; science as a system of knowledge
• Impact on values, beliefs & ‘world views’; cultural, religious,
ethical and legal dimensions; representation of science in
language, literature, art, imagery, museums etc;
• Anticipating & influencing future controversies and
enhancing public debates & engagement
• Emerging areas such as medical and health humanities

5. Digital Transformations
• Focus on how digital technologies can transform the arts and
humanities and transform how arts & humanities research is
done
• Ensuring that arts & humanities research is at the forefront of
tackling crucial issues, e.g. intellectual property, cultural
memory and identity, communication and creativity in the
digital age, issues of access
• Not simply about studying technology and its use in arts &
humanities but also encouraging innovation in developing and
using technology as well

6. Care for the Future
Thinking Forward Through the Past
• “generating new understandings of the relationship between
the past and the future, and the challenges and opportunities
of the present, through a temporally inflected lens”
• Exploring changing values, perceptions, beliefs and
identities, both shared and contested, and at multiple scales
from the local to the global
• Sub-themes: cultural notions of the future; changing families
and communities; cultures and heritage – adapting for the
future; environmental change and sustainability; global
trauma, conflict, cultural memory and transitions to new
futures

7. Translating Cultures
• Need for understanding & communication between/across
diverse cultures
• Role of ‘translation’ / translation in the broadest sense
• Engaging with concepts such as multiculturalism, tolerance
& identities
• Exploring interactions such as youth language & online
language/identity
• Promoting opportunities for work across language areas &
disciplines
• 3 strategic questions: i) process & nature of translation &
interpreting; ii) developing understanding of diverse cultures:
iii) contributing to key public policy concerns

8. Connected Communities Programme
Aims to: mobilise the potential for increasingly inter-connected,
culturally diverse, communities to enhance participation,
prosperity, sustainability, health & well-being by better
connecting research, stakeholders and communities.
www.connectedcommunities.ac.uk

9. Recent Activity (1)
• Highlight notices:
– Fellowships (finishes end of December 2012)
– Networking and CfF in Research Grants (finished 30 October 2012)
• SiC, DT, CfF, TC:
– Theme Advisory Groups
– Development Awards made Feb 2012, finished Sept 2012 (SiC, DT,
TC)
– CfF Exploratory Awards call has just closed
– Digging into Data (DT)
– AHRC-NEH Joint Funding Initiative: Bridging Cultures (SiC)

10. Recent Activity (2)
• SiC, DT, CfF, TC (continued):
– Theme Large Grant Expressions of Interest (SiC, DT, TC)
• Digital Transformations – 10 January 2013
• Science in Culture – 15 January 2013
• Translating Cultures – 17 January 2013
• Connected Communities:
– Research reviews and scoping studies
– Research Development Workshops (Communities, Culture,
Environment & Sustainability)
– Research Development Awards (Creative Economy; Health &
Wellbeing in Communities)

11. Recent Activity (3)
• Connected Communities (continued):
– Annual Summits for award holders with follow-up funding
– Joint calls with other Funders (e.g. ESRC-led Community
Engagement & Mobilisation)
– Overall, 208 Connected Communities awards have been made

12. Theme Leadership Fellows (1)
• Science in Culture: Professor Barry Smith, Professor of
Philosophy and Director of the Institute of Philosophy,
School of Advanced Study
• Digital Transformations: Professor Andrew Prescott,
Professor of Digital Humanities and Head of the
Department of Digital Humanities, King’s College London
• Care for the Future: Professor Andrew Thompson,
Professor of Modern History and Chair in History,
University of Exeter
• Translating Cultures: Professor Charles Forsdick,
James Barrow Professor of French and Head of Cultures,
Languages and Area Studies, University of Liverpool

13. Theme Leadership Fellows (2)
• Connected Communities:
– Professor George McKay, Professor of Cultural
Studies and Director of the Communication, Cultural
and Media Studies Research Centre at MediaCityUK,
University of Salford
– Professor Keri Facer, Professor of Educational &
Social Futures, University of Bristol

14. Theme Leadership Fellows (3)
• Provide intellectual leadership and strategic advice on
Theme development and enrich intellectual agenda for the
Themes
• Take a lead in building a community of scholars
• Identify and develop cross-cutting themes and fostering
synergies between thematic activities
• Will act as ‘ambassadors’ for the Themes and will play a
key role in the development of strategic partnerships and
broader Thematic communication and engagement
activities
• Will also be developing their own leading-edge research
agenda in areas relevant to the Theme

15. Future Activity (1)
• Theme Large Grants:
– March 2013: Notification of EoI shortlisting outcomes
– May 2013: Closing date for full proposals
– August 2013: Notification of outcomes
– Between October 2013 and April 2014: Large grants to start
• Further activities and calls being developed for SiC, DT and
TC beyond Theme Large Grants
• CfF Large Theme Grants will likely be announced Summer
2013
• Digital Transformations Moot on 19 November 2012 in
London

16. Future Activity (2)
• Connected Communities Research Development workshop
under the ‘Community Cultures, Diversity, Cohesion,
Exclusion & Conflict’ strand in 2013
• Connected Communities International Conference planned
for 2013

17. Thank you!