Faculty of Social Sciences
Department of Geography
Staff Profile
Andrew Fordham
a.i.fordham@open.ac.uk
Research Student
Geography
Profile
I am in the second year of my PhD in Human Geography.
Awards and Achievements
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Research Studentship (2007-2011)
Lee Jordan Award for exceptional contribution to Geography at Oxford Brookes (2007)
Qualifications
BSc (Hons) Geography with Psychology (Oxford Brookes University)
MRes in Human Geography (The Open University)
Affiliations
Postgraduate Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) with the Institute of British Geographers (IBG)
Affiliate Member of the Institute for Learning (IfL)
Member of the Heritage Studies Research Group at The Open University
Research
My research interests broadly include: rural development and change; regeneration; place promotion; tourism; festivals and events; culture and the arts; heritage. These interests span an array of disciplines, including social and cultural geography, sociology, anthropology and social psychology (to name a few).
My PhD explores and examines the cultural politics of regeneration within rural areas, with a particular focus on the development of 'theme' towns (places which have adopted particular 'brands' within strategies of place promotion). The empirical focus of this project consists of a multi-sited, ethnographic case study within Dumfries and Galloway (Scotland, UK). Within this area, three places are examined - Castle Douglas ('Food Town'), Kirkcudbright ('Art Town') and Wigtown ('Book Town'). Together, these places are being promoted through the F.A.B promotional campaign. Theoretically, my research is influenced by the work of Pierre Bourdieu. The current working title of my thesis is "Food, Art, Books: The Cultural Politics of Rural Place Development".
Publications
Fordham, A.I. (2008) Rural Governance and Regeneration: The Emergence of a ‘Book Town’ in Sedbergh, UK (Unpublished MRes Dissertation, The Open University)
Fordham, A.I. (2007) Festivals and the Cultural Agenda: A Case Study of the Bedford River Festival (Unpublished BSc Hons Dissertation, Oxford Brookes University)
Fordham, A.I. (2006) Whose Festival? A Comparative Study of Official and Local Attitudes Towards the Edinburgh International Festival (Unpublished BSc Hons Project, Oxford Brookes University)
Teaching
I am currently a part-time lecturer of Psychology at Northampton College.