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OU academics awarded for Outstanding Contribution to Research

Giles Mohan

The 2018 Outstanding Contribution to Research at The Open University Award was presented to Professor Giles Mohan, OU Chair of International Development, this month for research which spans 25 years and focuses on African development.

Dr Clara Mancini, OU Senior Lecturer in Computing and Communications, was awarded runner-up for her research into Animal Computer Interaction.

The awards were presented at The Open University’s Research Excellence Awards 2018 ceremony, which were held at Walton Hall, Milton Keynes on 11 July 2018.

Contributing to African development

Professor Mohan is an internationally recognised scholar whose work straddles human geography and international development. He has focused on the ways in which African development is made through the agency of those in Africa, even as they face huge structural constraints. This research has yielded over 50 journal articles and a number of books, and has been supported by significant external funding. Over the last decade Professor Mohan has secured almost £2.5 million in grant income and been part of nine externally funded projects, four of which he led. He has also been a leader in his field through journal and book series editorships, as a way of invigorating Development Studies to become more critical.

The judging panel praised Professor Mohan for his leadership in his field, particularly represented by his book and journal editorships, his leadership of the research culture within the OU, and his cross-disciplinary collaborative work with OU colleagues.

The panel also noted his support and development of part-time research students, many of whom come from developing countries and have gone onto research careers themselves.

Watch the video below to hear what Professor Mohan has to say about his award:

Contributing to human and animal wellbeing

Dr Clara Mancini was the runner-up in this Outstanding Contribution to Research at The Open University category for her leadership in the international community in methodological challenges and innovations relating to Animal Computer Interactions.

She has been instrumental in establishing a new interdisciplinary research strand that contributes to human and animal wellbeing, social inclusion, interspecies co-operation and environmental restoration. Through this work she has raised the international research profile of the OU. She has at the same time strengthened the research community within the OU through many fruitful internal collaborations with colleagues and young researchers.

Watch the video below to hear what Dr Mancini has to say about her research:

Read more about the OU Research Excellence Awards 2018

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