THE GOLDSMITHS YEAR IN REVIEW GOLDSMITHS INTRODUCTION Our academic successes were Financial Sustainability helps us Goldsmiths has had a year to recognised nationally and ensure Goldsmiths’ future will be as remember. The past 12 months have internationally this year. The bright and as bold as its past. We seen our students, staff and alumni Department of Design was ranked the will soon also see profound change make headlines around the world, best in Britain by The Guardian while in the Higher Education landscape: influence Government and make the QS World University Rankings among government proposals are a vital contributions in all areas of life. named Art and Design, and Media new framework to assess teaching CLOSE-KNIT COMMUNITY and Communications at Goldsmiths excellence and a major reshape From changing UK tax policy to in the top 25 in the world and in the of research funding. A ‘No’ vote in informing debate around the ongoing top five in the UK. Sociology was rated the EU referendum could cause humanitarian crisis and even helping 45th in the world and 9th in the UK. further upheaval in the sector. broaden the minds of Britain’s book publishers, 2015 has been full of London and the World celebrates Because of this we are taking steps RICH ACADEMIC HERITAGE landmark achievements. It finished on the global nature of Goldsmiths. to grow Goldsmiths. We have a high: the Turner Prize was awarded Whether it’s to study, work or broadened our range of Short to architecture collective Assemble collaborate, our doors are open to Courses and are extending our who will begin building a public all. Our community starts in New undergraduate offering with degrees art gallery on campus next year. Cross and stretches across the in Arts Management, Economics and world. Just ask the hundreds of Criminology. We are also investing CREATIVE POWERHOUSE The four pillars of our strategic plan alumni in 13 cities across the globe in our estate – with exciting plans have supported all of our successes. who helped celebrate ‘Goldsmiths to further develop our campus. Reunite: Around the World in 7 Days’. Knowledge Production is a must With so many positive innovations for an institution like ours. From The Student Experience is at the and developments it has been A THOUGHT-PROVOKING PLACE our beginnings as the Goldsmiths’ heart of all that happens on campus another challenging yet successful Company’s Technical and Recreative – with the QAA hailing the ‘particularly year for Goldsmiths, with the Institute in 1891, we have grown to positive’ inclusion of the student voice needs of our students, staff, alumni be at the forefront of creative and across the university. Our duty of and community remaining at the cultural thought and practice. care doesn’t end at graduation: our heart of everything we do. graduates were recently rated among the most employable in the UK. Patrick Loughrey Warden Both students were recipients of the Another graduate making a Some 3,187 Goldsmiths students Lewisham Fee Waiver, a scholarship difference isHadeel Ayoub. Her MA completed their degrees this for the borough’s best and brightest. Computational Arts final show won year, among them 100 newly global media coverage after she qualified teachers, 22 filmmakers Then there’s Laura Coryton, who developed a glove that turns sign and 44 social workers. graduated from the Department language into speech and text, helping of Politics this summer. Laura set people with a variety of disabilities to Many of our graduating students up the ‘Stop taxing periods. Period’ communicate. The design went from had amazing stories to tell petition, attracting global media her degree show in St James Hatcham GRADUATING about their lives before arriving attention, and becoming a leader to the pages of tech websites from the at Goldsmiths, the challenges in the campaign to get rid of the UK to Saudi Arabia, with Hadeel even they’ve overcome to graduate or ‘luxury’ tax on sanitary products. appearing on the Discovery Channel’s even get here in the first place, Daily Planet to talk through her design. and the incredible achievements By November 2015 Laura’s petition they’ve made along the way. had been signed by more than The ceremonies in February and TO SUCCESS 276,000 people – a wave of support September also saw us welcome Shellisha Downie from the which could not be ignored by the great and the good to campus. Department of Educational Studies the Government. In the Spending Graduation day is always one left school with no GCSEs, and had Review, Chancellor George Osborne Sir Daniel Day-Lewis, artist Fiona Rae, spent time living in a youth hostel. promised to redirect money from novelist Ali Smith, sociologist Howie to remember – where our Already the mother of a young son, the tax to women’s health charities. Becker, psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, students take centre-stage to Shellisha had her daughter during headteacher Sheena Gilby, producer celebrate their achievements. her first year studying with us - But Laura’s not giving up. ‘I’m happy Lord David Puttnam, musician Green around the time essay submissions to see that our voices are being Gartside, designer Margaret Howell were due - and went on to ace her heard by [George] Osborne, and and composer Adrian Sutton were course, graduating with a 2:1 in that some real positive change is welcomed into the Goldsmiths family Education, Culture and Society. being made,’ she said. ‘But it’s still as Honorary Fellows and Graduates. not okay to pin societal problems, Tim Powell, also a parent of two such as domestic abuse, onto the gold.ac.uk/graduation young children, gained a First in his BA responsibility of women. We need to Design, Creativity and Learning from end the tampon tax, not substitute it.’ the Department of Design. Among other achievements, he’s helped set up London Reclaimed – a charity enabling disadvantaged people into careers through furniture-making. He also turned local kids into bug-hunting biologists with his final-year project. A WORLD LEADER RESEARCH MAKING THE NEWS Dr Aminul Hoque from Educational Dr Chris Brauer from IMS was a From studies on autism diagnosis Studies’ interviews with British regular name in the news over the RESEARCH AT and fieldwork exploring social Bangladeshi teenagers in east last year commenting on wearable media’s role in disaster recovery to London formed the basis of his technology in the workplace. One an exploration of British-Bangladeshi book ‘British-Islamic Identity: Third- of his studies, commissioned by youth culture, our researchers Generation Bangladeshis from East the Energy Saving Trust, found are constantly contributing to London’. The ethnographic study that automating the home – and knowledge and practice in a explores the creation of a new moving away from individual GOLDSMITHS range of disciplines, in a range of British-Islamic identity, helping young consumption toward collectives - ground-breaking ways. This is a people find a sense of belonging, would cut energy costs and allow snapshot of this year’s Goldsmiths recognition and acceptance. a reinvention of the utility sector. research: see gold.ac.uk/news and gold.ac.uk/research for more. The Department of Psychology’s Working with the Holocaust Dr Sophie von Stumm made Educational Trust, Professor Dr Johnna Montgomerie (Politics) global headlines this year with her Jonathan Freeman’s Goldsmiths led a delegation of activists, authors innovative work on the imagination, spin-out i2 media helped create and academics from Goldsmiths the time of day your brain the digital app ‘70 Voices: Victims, and across the UK to Athens, works best, and the connection Perpetrators and Bystanders’ where they met with politicians, between breastfeeding and IQ. to mark the 70th anniversary of community groups, trade unionists the liberation of Auschwitz. and activists calling on the Greek Media and Communications’ Dr government to take a firm stance Mirca Madianou’s work investigated Through new research and in opposition to the ‘Troika’. The trip the use of social and digital media in public events, the Department was one of many activities designed disaster recovery. Her group found of Design’s Rose Sinclair shed to bring academic research and that platforms introduced by aid light on the 19th century women’s the work of think-tanks, civil society agencies to facilitate information philanthropic, socially progressive, Almost three-quarters of REF highlights and activists together to develop dissemination and feedback in the Bible-inspired textile-making clubs research at Goldsmiths was viable solutions to tackle household Philippines were often appropriated for that are still flourishing today. Rose rated as ‘world leading’ or • Media and Communications indebtedness and craft an alternative different purposes by affected people is currently completing her PhD ‘internationally excellent’ by the was rated in the top three in the politics of debt across Europe. in an attempt to regain ‘normality’. on the subject of Dorcas clubs, Research Excellence Framework UK for 3 and 4* research, with and will be speaking at the V&A (REF), the results of which were Anthropology placed in the top Why are older children less likely Goldsmiths is renowned as a on the subject in January 2016. announced at the end of 2014. five on the same measure to help their bullied peers? Dr global centre for practice research. • The research environments Sally Palmer and Professor Adam Our expertise in the area led to a Teaching and learning about religion The Warden, Patrick Loughrey, of our departments of Art, Rutland (Psychology) found symposium in June entitled and belief is outdated and needs reacted to the outcome of the Design, Visual Cultures, that younger school pupils were ‘The Future of Practice Research’ an overhaul, according to the RE for REF: “Goldsmiths has a proud Music, Anthropology and more likely to reason that bullying co-hosted with HEFCE, REal report published by Professor tradition of being a place where Computing were wholly rated is ‘not a nice way to treat other which drew more than 200 Adam Dinham and researcher research and teaching fuses as internationally excellent or people’, believe that everyone is practitioners and academics.