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Executive Summer School graduate awarded £7m
Dr Antonia Ashiedu, who developed a business plan as an LSE ESS student, was awarded the funds for a sustainable credit programme

 

Do you do behavioural science research?
The LSE Behavioural Research Lab is conducting a survey and would like your help. All you need to do is click...

 

Sonali Campion
Sonali, editor of the India at LSE blog, makes a mean hollandaise sauce and had possibly the best celebrity sighting ever when she was six.
 

 
             
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- Research

 

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  13 November 2014  

- News

 
  ...  
 
    Brazilian Secretary of State for Social Development to speak at LSE

Tereza Campello, the Brazilian Secretary of State for Social Development, and Camila Batmanghelidjh of Kids Company will be among the speakers at an international policy seminar on Friday 14 November to discuss LSE research carried out in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro.

Experts, policy makers and grassroots activists from Brazil and the UK will discuss how bottom-up experiences of social development intersect with governments and policy-makers in shaping decisive processes of policy design and implementation.

The seminar builds on the conclusions of Underground Sociabilities, a multiple stakeholder research partnership that mapped life trajectories and grassroots strategies of social development in the favelas. More
 

 
   

UN Habitat Director to join the 13th Urban Age Conference

The head of UN Habitat, Joan Clos, will join one of the major world gatherings of urban leaders next week in Delhi, as part of the 13th Urban Age conference, organised by LSE Cities and Deutsche Bank’s Alfred Herrhausen Society.

The conference, taking place from 14-15 November, will examine how urban governance and collective capacities engage with and shape the future development of cities. As India embarks on a major new urbanisation initiative, speakers will gather in Delhi to exchange experiences on decentralisation and devolution, leadership and institutional capacity, and new forms of network governance.

In addition to Joan Clos, Babatunde Fashola, Governor of Lagos - one of the fastest growing cities in the world - will join leading urban voices. These voices include the India and UK ministers for urban development - Venkaiah Naidu and Greg Clark MP.

Over 60 experts and policymakers from 22 cities in 10 countries from five continents will take part in discussions on urban governance and the future development of cities. More
 

 
    LSE Executive Summer School graduate awarded £7m for sustainable credit programme by Central Bank of Nigeria

Dr Antonia Ashiedu, Hon. Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation of the Delta State, Nigeria, and an LSE Executive Summer School graduate, is to manage and administer two billion Naira (over seven million pounds) awarded to Delta State Government, by the Central Bank of Nigeria for the continued sustainability of a Micro-Credit Scheme aimed at helping both the rural and urban poor. 

Antonia Ashiedu developed a business plan which assisted in winning Delta State the funding while she was a student of the LSE Business Model Innovation course run by the Executive Summer School at LSE.

The two billion Naira will be used to further develop the Delta State Micro-Credit Programme, which is led by Antonia Ashiedu and has, to date, helped over 111,312 people (67,861 females and 43,451 males). The programme seeks to empower the rural and urban poor by providing access to sustainable credit through working with microfinance banks, local communities, trade groups and faith based organisations. More
 


 
   

LSE History marks Remembrance Day

The LSE History blog has commemorated Remembrance Day with two posts about LSE and the First World War.

The first post is the story of the establishment of the war memorial in the Old Building in the 1920s and can be read here

The second post is about the 70 LSE staff and students who lost their lives during WW1 and whose names are recorded on the war memorial – including two by mistake.
 

 
 

 

 

Academics abroad

Dr James Ker-Lindsay, Senior Research Fellow at LSEE, was in Kosovo on 2-5 November. The visit took place as part of his Open Society Visiting Scholar award in the Department of Politics at the University of Pristina. As well as his mentoring activity, he delivered a public lecture on British policy towards EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans and was guest of honour at an LSE alumni dinner.

Dr Panos Kanavos, deputy director at LSE Health, Department of Social Policy and Aris Angelis, PhD fellow, Department of Social Policy, presented Advance-HTA project’s interim results together with other partners of the project at a two-day Capacity Building workshop in Mexico City, on Thursday 6 and Friday 7 of November. Over 70 Health Technology Assessment (HTA) experts and decision makers of ministerial and academic affiliation attended the workshop, coming from all over the Latin America region with countries including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago and Uruguay.

Advance-HTA is a research project funded by the European Commission's Research Framework Programme (FP7). It comprises several complementary streams of research that aim to advance and strengthen the methodological tools and practices relating to the application and implementation of HTA. It is a partnership of 13 Consortium members led by the Medical Technology Research Group, LSE Health. More information can be found at http://www.advance-hta.eu/.

 
 
     

- Notices

 
  ...  
 
   

Do you do behavioural science research?

The LSE Behavioural Research Lab is conducting a survey and would like your help. If you can spare two minutes to answer the following question: Do you do behavioural science research? Simply click on the following to answer:

 

 
    Abseiling for a good cause

Tyrone Curtis, programme coordinator of LSE's Methods Summer Programme, will be abseiling the ArcelorMittal Orbit tower in the Olympic Park on Saturday 29 November to raise money for the Albert Kennedy Trust, a charity supporting homeless LGBT youth.

Tyrone said: "It’s estimated that around one in four homeless youth identify as LGB or T, so despite the changes in legislation and growing acceptance of gender and sexual diversity, homelessness still disproportionately affects LGBT youth. This is why the work of the Albert Kennedy Trust is so important, and why any support from the LSE community will be hugely appreciated.”

To donate, see Tyrone's donations page at  https://www.justgiving.com/Tyrone-Curtis
 

 
   

This Christmas I shall.... look after myself 

The Student Wellbeing Service will be running a stall outside the Saw Swee Hock Student Centre from 10am-2pm on Friday 28 November.

The holidays can be a stressful and emotional time of year. It’s important to try and look after yourself as much as possible.
As with the last wellbeing stall, we will be asking people will be asked to complete a “five things I will do to look after myself in the holidays“, “I will de-stress in the holidays by…”, “I will be kind to myself in the holidays by…” and “I will look after myself in the holidays by…” posters with ideas of things that we will all do to help maintain our mental health/wellbeing over the break.

We’ll be handing out mince pies, chocolates and fruit to any passers-by. More on the Student Wellbeing Service here
 

 
   

Middle East Centre invites proposals for funding

The Middle East Centre invites applications from LSE colleagues for academic collaborative projects in social, political, and economic sciences between academics at LSE and Arab universities for 2015-16.

These projects may involve collaborative research or capacity building. The centre's aims are: to promote high calibre research by scholars at LSE and Arab universities; to support academic excellence at Arab universities; and to strengthen academic collaboration and knowledge transfer between LSE and Arab universities.

Individual projects may have a total budget of up to £120,000 and a term of up to 36 months. The minimum term for projects is 12 months. There is no minimum budget for projects. First drafts of proposals must be submitted by 12 January 2015. Earlier expressions of interest are strongly encouraged. More
 

 
    LSE’s Information Security Policy

We all have responsibilities concerning the data we use as part of our everyday work. We must ensure that when we collect, use and store personal data that we do so in a secure, safe manner that abides by the data protection laws that govern information use within the UK. If we do not take the right steps to classify and protect our data, the School and responsible individuals can face fines and legal action.

The Information Security Policy (PDF) forms a part of the School's ongoing commitment to enhance and clarify the measures that we can all take to classify our data and protect it, making sure that as a community we safeguard information while still making it available to those who have the right to access it. Everyone at LSE is encouraged to read and abide by this policy in the course of their work and studies. If you have any questions and concerns regarding Information Security at LSE, please contact the IT Service Desk: it.servicedesk@lse.ac.uk 
 

 
    Honorary Doctorate nominations

LSE is inviting nominations for Honorary Doctorate. The criteria for the award of an Honorary Doctorate are:

The LSE Council may confer an Honorary Doctorate on an individual who has demonstrated outstanding achievement and distinction in a field or activity consonant with the work of the School and with its mission to improve society and understand the “causes of things".

Unlike Honorary Fellows, Honorary Doctorates do not need a direct connection with the School.

The deadline for the receipt of nominations to be considered in the 2014-15 academic year is Friday 16 January 2015. Any Honorary Doctorates awarded would be conferred in December 2015.

Full details, and a Nomination Form, can be found here. Joan Poole would be happy to answer any queries, on email j.a.poole@lse.ac.uk or extension 7825.
 

 
    Call for proposals - AXA Chair or Successional Chair

The AXA Chair scheme is intended to create a full-time position to support research into global risks (environmental, life, or socio-economic) within the host institution. Institutions can apply for either an AXA Chair, held on a long-term basis by an individual Chair holder (5-30 years), or an AXA Successional Chair, held by a series of temporary medium-term appointments (2-5 years each).

The School is allowed to submit one application per year. Due to the competitiveness of the call, you are strongly advised to only submit an application if a candidate for the Chair has already been identified. If you are interested in the programme, please review the application guidelines and email Business Partnerships (Businesspartnerships@lse.ac.uk) as soon as possible to discuss your proposal and available funding.
 

 
    Accommodation available for staff

Staff Accommodation currently have rooms, studios and apartments available to let throughout the Lent and Summer Term for staff and visitors to LSE. These are suitable for short or long term lets from £45 per night. Book now to avoid disappointment!

For more information, contact Samantha Da-Costa on ext 7023, staff.accommodation@lse.ac.uk or click here.
 

 
   

A3 wooden frames needing a new home

‘The Sustainability team have an abundance of A3 wooden frames previously used by the Arts Department going free to anyone who would like one (or two!).

Pop up to Estates, 4th floor, Tower 1, or email Elena at E.Rivilla-Lutterkort@lse.ac.uk to arrange collection.
 

 
    LSE Chill – calling performers!

Friday 28 November, 6-8pm
Café 54, New Academic Building

We are looking for acts to perform at the next Chill! If you are interested in performing please contact arts@lse.ac.uk with your name and details of your act.

For more information about LSE Chill, see the LSE Chill webpage.

 
    New edition of Perspectives

The November edition of Perspectives is now online. Each month 12 photos taken by the LSE community are chosen to appear in LSE Arts online gallery. This month's edition includes '"Look Left - Or Else!" by LSE undergraduate Ryo Takahashi (pictured left). Check out November’s edition here.

Find inspiration in past galleries, and find out how to submit here and email lseperspectives@lse.ac.uk
 

 
    LSE Treatment Clinic

The LSE Treatment Clinic, which welcomes LSE students and staff, is on the first floor of Tower Two.

The clinic offers professional treatments, at reduced rates for LSE, of acupuncture, osteopathy and sports massage from practitioners with over 20 years of experience between them. Their combined expertise is effective in the treatment of musculoskeletal pain, repetitive strain injury, tension headaches, posture advice, sports injuries, anxiety, insomnia, migraine, among many other ailments.

The practitioners are:

  • Hanya Chlala
    Acupuncture and Reflexology available in a dual-bed setting on Wednesdays and Fridays
  • Laura Dent
    Sports massage available on Mondays
  • Tim Hanwell
    Osteopathy available on Tuesdays and Thursdays

Appointments are available Monday - Friday from 9am - 6pm and can be booked online at www.lsetreatmentclinic.co.uk.

All consultations are strictly confidential and sessions will last between 30 and 60 minutes depending upon the treatment. To reach the clinic, enter the Tower One/ Tower Two reception, go up to the first floor in Tower Two and follow the signs to the LSE Treatment Clinic.

 
 
     

- LSE in pictures

 
  ...  
 
 

This week's picture features the musician, singer and political activist Hugh Maskela at the 2014 Steve Biko Memorial Lecture, Europe on Thursday 23 October 2014.
 
For more images like this, visit the Photography Unit.

  NAB Artwork  
 
     

- Research

 
  ...  
 
    As world is deadlocked on Syria war, local ceasefires offer respite for civilians and a glimpse of peace

Local ceasefires could hold the key to easing humanitarian suffering in Syria and build momentum towards ending the bloody conflict, if backed by the international community in the context of a wider peace plan. This is the conclusion of a new report by LSE and Syrian NGO Madani.

The report, 'Hungry for Peace', documents local negotiations and agreements in Syria since early 2012 which have helped to bring respite, aid, services and hope to thousands of civilians caught up in the brutal war. But the report also finds that with trust between parties at rock bottom, deals are often manipulated and there is a lack of neutral go-betweens. The report argues that these truces have the potential to protect and provide for Syria’s war-devastated people but only if international support is expanded. The international community needs to provide dedicated mediation and monitoring services and relate local truces to efforts at finding an overall political solution.

“After three and a half painful years, Syrians are yearning for peace,” said Dr Rim Turkmani an LSE research fellow, Syrian activist and lead author of the report. “While global efforts to pursue a political solution are rapidly being de-prioritised, Syrians are pushing for periods of calm by brokering local deals. In some case these have stopped the fighting and opened up the flow of aid, other deals succeeded in restoring water and electricity services to a large area. Even when negotiations fail, they reflect strong local potential and desire for stability that remains untapped. There must be a combined bottom-up and top-down effort to achieve peace in Syria, neither alone will do.” More
 

 
   

More of us are heading down the social ladder, new research finds

A study by Oxford University and LSE shows that, contrary to what is widely supposed, there has been no decline in social mobility in Britain over recent decades but more of us are moving down rather than up the social ladder.

The study, published in the British Journal of Sociology, looked at a total of more than 20,000 British men and women in four birth cohorts from 1946, 1958, 1970 and 1980-84.

The researchers worked with the 7-class version of the official National Statistics Socio-Economic Classification (NS-SEC), in which individuals are given social classes on the basis of their employment status and occupation. They compared the class of each individual when in their late-20s or 30s with the class of their fathers, and found that around three-quarters of men and women alike ended up in a different class to the one they were born into, and that this proportion was more or less constant across the four cohorts. More
 

 
    Smartphones put children under pressure to be constantly available

Even children get annoyed by the constant availability that smartphones bring says a new report by the Net Children Go Mobile project.

The researchers conducted a qualitative study of children, their parents, teachers and others working with young people in nine European countries.

Many children interviewed believed that having a smartphone made them more sociable but recognised that they were distracted by constantly receiving notifications from, for example, WhatsApp – the instant messaging app.

The availability of 24/7 information feeds also meant that many found themselves repeatedly scrolling through Social Networking Sites’ notifications, even when there was no new ‘news’.

Parents expressed concern that their children are continuously waylaid by ‘irrelevant’ messages when they should be doing their homework.

However the researchers also found that children had come up with preventative measures to deal with the consequences of the omnipresence of mobile devices, such as leaving them in another room or turning them to silent.

Many children were critical of peers spending time writing text messages when they were, for example, in social situations where they should be interacting face-to-face. More
 

 
    Changing internet risks for children

European 11 – 16 year-olds are more likely to be exposed to some online risks, including receiving hate messages, seeing pro-anorexia or self-harm websites and being cyberbullied, compared to four years ago. However, they are less likely to make contact with a stranger online today than in 2010.

According to the research by EU Kids Online – a project based at LSE – the percentage of children and teenagers encountering hate messages online has risen from 13 per cent to 20 per cent and those experiencing cyberbullying has gone from seven per cent to 12 per cent.

Thirteen per cent of young people said they had encountered websites promoting anorexia in 2014, compared with nine per cent in 2010. Eleven per cent had seen websites promoting self-harm compared to seven per cent four years ago.

In contrast, the proportion of young people making contact online with someone they don’t know face-to-face is down from 32 per cent in 2010 to 29 per cent in 2014 – possibly because awareness raising efforts about ‘stranger danger’ are proving effective. However, they are slightly more likely to meet an online contact offline. More
 



 
   

New Gearty Grilling online

A new Gearty Grilling video, part of the series of short video debates between Conor Gearty, director of the IPA and professor of human rights law, and leading researchers at LSE, is now online.

This week, Mary Morgan, Professor of History and Philosophy of Economics, discusses how economists work and think. More
 

 
 
     

- Events

 
  ...  
 
   

How Finance is Tackling Sustainability: a roadmap to the future - on Monday 17 November at 6.30-8pm in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building with Michael Mainelli, Angela Ridgwell (pictured), Nick Robins

Speakers from the financial sector, NGOs and think tanks will discuss if the finance industry is doing enough to combat the challenges of environmental sustainability. More
 

 
   

Transforming the United Nations System - on Monday 17 November at 6.30-8pm in CLM6.02, Clement House with Professor Joseph Schwartzberg

Global problems require global solutions. However, the United Nations, as presently constituted, is incapable of addressing many global problems effectively. One nation–one vote decision-making in most UN agencies fails to reflect the distribution of power in the world at large, while the allocation of power in the Security Council is both unfair and anachronistic. Extensive reform is essential. More
 

 
    Sustainability in Practice public lecture: How Finance is Tackling Sustainability: a roadmap to the future - on Monday 17 November at 6.30-8pm in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building

Speakers from the financial sector, NGOs and think tanks will discuss if the finance industry is doing enough to combat the challenges of environmental sustainability. More
 

 
    What Europe? - on Monday 17 November at 6.30-8pm in the Old Theatre, Old Building with Professor Timothy Garton Ash (pictured), Professor Renaud Dehousse, Giuseppe Laterza, Professor Jan Zielonka

A panel debate to mark the official launch of Eutopia - the pan-European online magazine in which incisive thinkers from Europe and beyond address searching questions about the very nature of Europe. What exactly is "Europe"? What should be the EU's final frontier? What's left ( if anything) of "The European Project"? And do Europeans need a new lexicon and a whole new mindset for thinking about their continent? More
 

 
   

Social Psychology open lectures: Attitudes and Changing Behaviour - on Tuesday 18 November at 2.15-3.45pm in the Old Theatre, LSE with Tom Reader 

How do attitudes develop? Do attitudes predict behaviour? By simply changing attitudes, can we change behaviour? A key issue for social psychologists are the permanence of attitudes, and the extent to which they predict behaviour. Research shows attitudes to fluctuate according to a variety of factors, for example social norms, organisational culture, knowledge, and personal interests. Furthermore, attitudes have been shown to influence behaviour in a variety of organisational, health and social settings. We will reflect on examples of this, and consider whether the relationship between attitudes and behaviours is as straightforward as it appears…

This event is free and open to all on a first come-first-serve basis.
 

 
    Transboundary Climate Security: Climate Vulnerability and Rural Livelihoods in the Jordan River Basin - on Tuesday 18 November at 5.30-7pm in 9.04, Tower 2 with Dr Michael Mason (pictured), Muna Dajani

In this lecture, Dr Michael Mason and Muna Dajani will report the principal research findings of a collaborative project, Transboundary Climate Security, involving the LSE Middle East Centre and Birzeit University. The project investigated the climate-related vulnerabilities of agricultural communities living in areas with current or historically recent experience of military occupation – labelled ‘(post)occupation’ – within the Jordan River Basin. More
 

 
    The 2013 Belgrade-Pristina Normalization Agreement - What has it delivered - on Tuesday 18 November at 6-7.30pm in Cañada Blanch Room, COW 1.11, 1st floor, Cowdray House with Dr Joanna Hanson

Dr Hanson shall be trying to make an assessment of what the real objective of the 2013 Belgrade-Pristina Normalization Agreement was and whether it was common to all sides; what it has achieved so far; the nature of its implementation; is it a model which could be replicated.

More

 
    The Scale-up Manifesto: why scale-ups will drive the global policy agenda for the next generation - on Tuesday 18 November at 6-7.30pm in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building with Sherry Coutu (pictured), Geoff Mulgan, Tamara Rajah, Andy Tong

This event marks the launch of a major report commissioned by the UK government on increasing the economic impact of high growth firms, which will be published on 17 November during Global Entrepreneurship Week. The report seeks to identify the actions governments, corporates, universities and entrepreneurs in the UK should consider taking to ensure high growth firms are “scaling up” successfully. More
 

 
    Anglo-Iranian Relations Revisited: The Curious Case of the Proposed Nuclear Company of Britain and Iran - on Wednesday 19 November at 6.30-8pm in G.01, Tower 1 with Professor Ali Ansari

In this talk, Professor Ali Ansari will look at the Iranian proposal in 1977 to establish a joint British-Iranian nuclear company which would have entailed the construction of up to twenty nuclear reactors in Iran in return for significant Iranian investment in British Industry. Had the deal been followed through, it would have marked an unprecedented shift in British-Iranian relations. His presentation will chart the rise and fall of the negotiations and what they reveal about the nature of Iran’s relations with Britain. More
 

 
    Poverty and the Pope - on Wednesday 19 November at 6.30-8pm in the Old Theatre, Old Building with Professor Jagdish Bhagwati

The Occupy Movement has focused the ethical attention of many on the rich. By contrast, the ethical objective has been refocused instead on the poor, most notably by Pope Francis. The focus on the rich reflects usually mankind’s ignoble instincts like envy and jealousy. On the other hand, focus on the poor and on reducing poverty reflects mankind’s noblest instinct: empathy for the poor and the unfortunate among us. While therefore the refocus on the poor is to be applauded, the next question is: how are the poor to be aided? More
 

 
    LSE Arts lunchtime concert: Rosamunde Trio - on Thursday 20 November at 1.05-2pm in the Shaw Library, Old Building

Martino Tirimo (piano), Ben Sayevich (violin), Daniel Veis (cello)Mozart - Piano Trio in B flat K254
Dvorak - Piano Trio in E minor Op.90 ('Dumky')

A trio of world-class soloists whose performances and recordings have earned outstanding praise from the music critics. More
 

 
    The War that Was Lost - on Thursday 20 November at 6.30-8pm in the Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House with Dr Robin Archer

Why did radicals retreat on the eve of the Great War, even where opposition was strongest? What are the lessons for us today? More
 

 
   

A Conversation with Professor Muhammad Yunus - on Friday 21 November at 3-4.15pm in the Old Theatre, Old Building with Professor Muhammad Yunus 

This event is ticketed and tickets will be released from 10am on Friday 14 November.

Muhammad Yunus has devoted his life to providing financial and social services to the poorest of the poor. He is the founder of Grameen Bank, serving as managing director until May 2011, the author of the bestselling Banker to the Poor and in October 2006, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, along with Grameen Bank, for their efforts to create economic and social development. Muhammad Yunus was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science (Economics) by LSE in November 2011. In April 2013 he received the US Congressional Gold Medal. More
 

 
   

Book launch: Resolving Cyprus: new approaches to conflict resolution - on Thursday 27 November at 6.30-8pm in CLM.2.02, Clement House with Dr James Ker-Lindsay

Resolving Cyprus presents a comprehensive overview of the 'Cyprus Problem' and offers new and innovative ideas as to how to tackle one of the longest running ethnic conflicts on the world
stage. To mark the launch of the book a group of contributors will discuss the question: Can Cyprus be Solved?

With contributions by : Emel Akcali, Yeshim Harris, Klearchos Kyriakides, Neophytos Loizides, Robert McDonald, Mustafa Ergun Olgun, Zenon Stavrinides, Birte Vogel. More 

 
 
     

- 60 second interview

 
  ...  
     
     

with.....Sonali Campion

I’m Sonali, and I study comparative democratisation half of the time and edit the India at LSE blog the rest of the time. I think I’m one of the few graduate students at LSE who actually comes from London – I was keen to go abroad for my masters but LSE had the course I wanted to do, and the option to study part-time.

As well as being the blog editor of India at LSE you are studying part-time for an MSc in Comparative Politics. Any tips on managing the work/study/life balance?

It’s the boring answer but organisation I suppose. I have all my fixed stuff that involves other people in my calendar, whether it’s work meetings, lectures, or socialising. Then I slot in everything else around that. I don’t always get it right and I do get stressed sometimes but the important things are always taken care of. I also really enjoy both my job and my masters so there are good incentives to make it work!

What would your friends say is your greatest quality?

Probably that I’m funny when I don’t mean to be (I’m never funny when I try to be). They also like my hollandaise sauce.

If you could bring one famous person back to life, who would it be and why?

Douglas Adams. I’ve read all of his books about a million times and they still make me laugh out loud but there aren’t enough of them.

What has been the most memorable day in your life so far?

When I was six I went on safari at the end of my first trip to India. We saw a female tiger with three cubs up close from the back of an elephant. I remember being beside myself with excitement. The same female tiger appeared on the cover of the National Geographic later that year so I spent a good few months telling anyone who’d listen that I’d seen that tiger. As far as I was concerned it was better than meeting any celebrity.

Have you kept any toys from your childhood?

I still have my collection of 37 beanie babies. I always take one along on holiday with me so I can do “toy on tour” photos – like the gnome in Amelie.

What is your favourite smell?

Fresh mango.

If you met the UK Prime Minister and you could only ask one question, what would you ask him?

April to June every year is mango season in South Asia. Indian and Pakistani mangoes are nothing like the ones you usually get in Britain – they’re stickier, juicier, more perfumed and generally the most delicious thing in the world. Normally you can get them by the box load here in the UK during the season, but this year EU stopped imports due to concerns about pests. Last April, Cameron promised the first issue he would talk about with the new Indian PM would be mangoes but I never heard anything more. I want to know what’s been done about it and whether we’ll be getting our mangoes next year.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose and why?

Costa Rica. I’ve been a couple of times and absolutely loved it. It has so much natural beauty, from volcanoes to rainforest to stunning beaches and the people were very laid back and friendly. It’s also politically very interesting: it dissolved its army after the civil war in 1948 and unlike its neighbours it has managed to maintain a relatively stable democracy – I’d love to study it in more detail. Plus I think speaking the language is important if you’re going to live somewhere and my Spanish is passable. 
 
 
     

- Training and jobs

 
  ...  
 
    Training and development opportunities for staff

Courses scheduled for next week include:

These are just some of the events running in the next week. To receive a monthly summary of all training courses, subscribe to email list by clicking here and pressing send. To find out more about training and development across the school and for links to booking pages, see lse.ac.uk/training.
 

 
   

Research Division workshops

Designing your grant proposals - What Makes a Research Application?
Thursday 20 November, 1.15-3.30pm

A good research proposal needs more than a great research question. This session is about effective ways of designing your research project; including project design, management, dissemination and having appropriate resources to deliver it. This aims at researchers who are relatively new to designing research funding proposals and those who want to brush up their skills. Book your place here.

Funding Clinic: UK Research Councils
Thursday 27 November, 2-34pm

Regular funding clinics occur throughout the term where a small number of participants can discuss specific aspects of their research application. Sessions are facilitated by the Research Division's Research Development Managers. This specific event is intended to discuss potential project applications developed for standard route schemes to the UK Research Councils, such as ESRC, AHRC and EPSRC that are open all year round. Those who will have attended the Research Funding Information Session on "Research Project Grants - Open calls" (held on 20 Oct 2014) are encouraged to attend to this specific meeting if they have any proposal ideas to discuss; however the clinics are open to all academic and research staff. Book your place here

Information Session: Research impact case studies - a panel discussion with LSE faculty members
Wednesday 3 December, 10.30am,-12noon

With just two weeks to go until the announcement of the REF2014 results, this session will bring together LSE faculty who submitted impact case studies to the REF to share their experiences of creating and documenting research impact. Confirmed panellists are:

  • Sonia Livingstone: Protecting and empowering children in digital environments
  • Simon Hix: VoteWatch - Making European Union politics more open, democratic and accountable
  • Quwei Yao: Helping Barclays meet the new Basel III regulation rules
  • Adelina Comas-Herrera: Improving the provision of mental health services in the UK

Book your place here.

These workshops are delivered in partnership with the Teaching and Learning Centre.

For the list of upcoming events and to book your place click here. Contact researchdivision@lse.ac.uk for more information. For daily updates, follow us on Twitter @ LSE_RD.
 

 
  HR   Jobs at LSE

Below are some of the vacancies currently being advertised to internal candidates only, as well as those being advertised externally.

  • Assistant Professor in Behavioural Science, Department of Social Policy
  • Assistant Professor in Finance, Department of Finance
  • Assistant Professor in International Development, Department of International Development
  • Assistant Professor in Law, Department of Law
  • Director of the Teaching and Learning Centre, Teaching and Learning Centre
  • IGC Country Economists, International Growth Centre
  • Research Support and Academic Liaison Manager, Library: Academic Services

For more information, visit Jobs at LSE and login via the instructions under the 'Internal vacancies' heading.

 
 
     

- Get in touch!

 
  ...  
 
  Nicole Gallivan   If you have some news, an achievement, or an aspect of LSE life that you would like to share, I would love to hear from you. Do get in touch at pressoffice@lse.ac.uk or on ext 7060.

The next edition of Staff News is on Thursday 20 November. Articles for this should be emailed by Tuesday 18 November. Staff News is emailed every Thursday during term time and fortnightly during the holidays.