Welcome from the Director, Professor Anna Reading:

My name is Professor Anna Reading. I was appointed as Director of the Arts and Humanities Research Institute (AHRI) in 2018 and have since been leading an exciting transformation of the AHRI that includes the REACH space - an experimental and creative research space for the curious with a commitment to socially engaging research in the arts, culture and humanities.

The Institute was established in 2011 to support interdisciplinary research that links different subjects across the Faculty of Arts and Humanities. We ran a highly successful annual Arts and Humanities Festival to showcase work and provided support for 11 world-leading research centres. Since 2018 we support thirteen cross disciplinary research centres and launched our competition for a team to lead a College wide theme: For 2019-20 the theme is Engaging Memory.

At King’s researchers readily connect with each other across traditional boundaries from classics to creative industries, from modern languages to film, from music to history. But at the AHRI we recognise that politically and environmentally the world is facing unprecedented challenges. So at our Strand Campus we have REACH space - a new state-of-the-art engaged research suite that pioneers sustainable and lasting ways of thinking, doing and sharing research. We bring together arts, culture and humanities researchers and reach out to those working in the sciences, social sciences, policy and law, forming innovative and creative research teams and circles. Our research circles develop deep and trusting relationships and co-research partnerships with diverse non-academic communities through projects that offer new insights and results for all.

At REACH and in the AHRI we free imaginations and unleash potential to create rich research and life-long learning for staff, students and communities. By embracing diverse voices we are able to question fixed ways of thinking and doing. Together we are finding new ways to mutually understand difficult challenges big and small.  In short, the AHRI and the REACH space builds transformative research teams to make the world a better place.

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