NUCUSP Member, Ruth Houghton took part in a discussion on ‘Utopia as a Method’ for the Talking about Methods (Frontiers of Socio-Legal Studies) podcast.
In the episode, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Aislinn Fanning, Cristy Clark, Zoe Tongue and Ruth Houghton about utopia as a method. The discussion includes reflections on what utopia as a method is and how it can be used in research projects. The episode also covers the method’s limits and some of its downsides.
NUCUSP member, Dr Lisa Garforth will be speaking at an event in King’s College London in February on ‘New Directions in Utopian Studies’. Lisa’s paper is entitled, ‘Utopia as a social thing: on dreaming, doing, defining and describing’
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/new-directions-in-utopian-studies-tickets-1979739755903
This event is part of the AHRC network on Utopia and Failure.
Ruth Houghton appears alongside Aoife O’Donoghue and Matt Leggatt in an episode of Utopian and Dystopian Fictions.
Oscar Horton Chandler acted as a Rapporteur for the AHRC Utopia and Failure Network workshop in Newcastle in September 2024.
In a blog post on the AHRC Utopia and Failure network blog, Oscar provided some reflections. You can read the blog post: Reflections on our second workshop in Newcastle by Oscar Horton Chandler (I) | School of Social and Political Science
On 11th June 2025, Rebecca Coleman led a creative methods workshop. Rebecca is Professor in the School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies at Bristol University. She led academics and researchers in a creative exercise of building utopias as part of a teach-out at Newcastle University. Against the backdrop of a Higher Education sector that is in crisis, with UCU strikes at Newcastle, people gathered in the local pub to create a space where it might be possible to engage in alternative utopian worldbuilding.
You can read about the workshop on the AHRC Utopia and Failure network blog: Practical utopias: A creative methods workshop | School of Social and Political Science
Miranda Iossifidis writes with Mack Sproates and Bethan for AHRC Network Utopia and Failure about ‘Exploring speculative climate justice futures with creative methods’
Read the blog post discussing their Zine-making workshops: Exploring speculative climate justice futures with creative methods | School of Social and Political Science
This zine is made by the Speculative Climate Futures zine workshop folks, including Ansh Meeta, Francesca DiGiorgio, Jim Kaufman, Shevek Fodor & Sophie Buxton. The beautiful cover, paintings and zine layout are by Mack.