Gail Davies
LightNews LightNews
banner
gailfdavies.bsky.social
Gail Davies
@gailfdavies.bsky.social
1.2K followers 680 following 91 posts
Prof in Human Geography at University of Exeter researching spaces of science & technology, human & animal health, research involvement & responsibility. Currently works on animal research & its replacements. Unexpected interest in chronic pain & FND.
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Gail Davies
fndportal.bsky.social
Bumping this story again cuz it’s good

magazine.hms.harvard.edu/articles/fun...
Functional Neurological Disorder, Reframed
magazine.hms.harvard.edu
February 15, 2026 at 2:10 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
rebeccawynter.bsky.social
Incandescent. One of the best pieces I've read about what university means to people and their communities - and what will happen to a city and people after one closes. The *Labour* government and Jaqui Smith in particular should be ashamed of themselves and shamed into doing something. Deplorable.
‘If I think about what this means, I want to cry’: what happens when a city loses its university?
When Essex University’s Southend campus opened, it was a message of hope for a ‘left behind’ UK seaside town. Its closure will be felt far beyond its 800 students, some of whom will not get their degr...
www.theguardian.com
February 4, 2026 at 7:25 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
georgeholmes.bsky.social
This is the latest salvo in what I'm calling The Great British Herpetological Hoo-Hah - disagreements on what amphibians and reptiles should be 're'-introduced to Britain, where, and how. Lots of fascinating details. Worthy of a PhD study or a 4-part BBC1 drama
www.arc-trust.org/lost-frogs-r...
Lost Frogs report: comment from Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust
This note summarises ARC’s views on “Investigating the Status of Britain’s Lost Frogs: Prospects for Rewilding” (Tweats, 2026), hereafter referred to as the “Lost Frogs report”. ARC was pleased to be ...
www.arc-trust.org
January 30, 2026 at 5:13 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
angecass.bsky.social
While these scholarships won't cover full costs of MA study, they will make things a fair bit easier, in turn creating critical access routes into PGR and academia, on an absolutely cracking course.
Please share widely! #HEaccess #sustainability #envpol #foodstudies
January 27, 2026 at 9:37 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
paulnightingale.bsky.social
Quick science policy thread 1

Changes in the governance of UK science since the mid 1980s make it extremely hard to be strategic (that was the point), in terms of both process (dropped) and capability (hollowed out).
February 1, 2026 at 5:21 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
the-polyphony.bsky.social
Claire Jeantils, Rong Huang, and Benjamin Dalton unravel the stories behind the International Narrative Neurology Network (INNN), a cross-sectoral network that investigates Narrative Neurology from a practical and theoretical perspective.

thepolyphony.org/2026/01/29/i...
Hearing the Neuro-Voice in the International Narrative Neurology Network (INNN)
Claire Jeantils, Rong Huang, and Benjamin Dalton unravel the stories behind the International Narrative Neurology Network (INNN), a cross-sectoral network that investigates Narrative Neurology from…
thepolyphony.org
January 29, 2026 at 12:12 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
lsangha.bsky.social
Pics from local Devon news today in the aftermath of the wind. Heavy rain still coming down and the weather warning now extends into Wednesday.

Left: Matt Gilley, centre: Richard Heiron.
Train tracks running next to the sea wall at Dawlish. The sea looks choppy, and a large part of the wall has fallen down onto the tracks. About 10 men, head to toe in orange high vis gear are standing around looking at the wall. Huge waves crash into the sea wall at Dawlish, south Devon coast. A car attempts to drive through sand that has blown across the road at Exmouth.
January 25, 2026 at 7:49 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
felicitycallard.bsky.social
Please circulate. Our deadline for our ECR Prize at @histhum.bsky.social is approaching (30 January 2026)
January 13, 2026 at 5:15 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
hetanshah.bsky.social
Very interesting piece from @anastasiabekt.bsky.social responding to @geoffmulgan.bsky.social's challenge that we need an Aria for social science
anastasiabekt.substack.com/p/an-aria-gr...
An ARIA-grade agenda for social science
The missing R&D pipeline for building and scaling social science solutions
anastasiabekt.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 5:25 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
thesociologicalreview.org
FUNDING CALL: Undisciplining Seminar Series 2026

The Sociological Review Foundation is inviting proposals for in-person, hybrid or online seminars that explore the transformative potential of sociological thinking.

Theme: Who & what is sociology for?
Deadline to apply: 31 January

buff.ly/VOwOmYt
FUNDING CALL Apply to be part of the Sociological Review Foundation’s UNDISCIPLINING SEMINAR SERIES of in-person, online or hybrid events Theme for 2026: Who and what is sociology for? Deadline: 31 January
January 6, 2026 at 8:01 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
nc3rs.bsky.social
2026 is continuing where 2025 left off with a focus on alternatives to animal use in research and testing. Today the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology published a POSTnote on this topic highlighting the opportunities and challenges: post.parliament.uk/research-bri...
Technology alternatives to animals in life sciences research
How is the UK replacing animal testing with technology alternatives? What are the opportunities, risks and barriers?
post.parliament.uk
January 5, 2026 at 12:25 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
felicitycallard.bsky.social
This is such an important paper by @gailfdavies.bsky.social on how functional neurological symptoms are produced. I hope it is very widely read by clinicians, clinical researchers, and medical humanities researchers — as well as geographers
gailfdavies.bsky.social Gail Davies @gailfdavies.bsky.social · Dec 22
New paper outlining a spatial account of #FND and proposing an approach to the co-production of functional symptoms. It draws on my longstanding work on geographies of health knowledges, my recent health experiences, and emerging interdisciplinary conversations www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Screenshot of the front page of an article published in the journal Social and Cultural Geography called Remapping the body: an autoethnography of pain, paraesthesia, and the co-production of functional neurological symptoms
December 23, 2025 at 9:49 AM
gailfdavies.bsky.social
Happy New Year’s Eve from a frost Dartmoor
Photo of a moorland landscape with track in the foreground and trees on the horizon. The shadows and frost on the track form stripes of white, green and grey
December 31, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
timnicholson.bsky.social
Such a superb, insightful & brave paper from @gailfdavies.bsky.social who so eloquently captures and describes what many of us have noticed about the evolution of symptoms as a result of patients’ interactions with the medical system👏👏💪🏻💪🏻

Straight into my top 10 of best papers ever on FND👌👌
gailfdavies.bsky.social Gail Davies @gailfdavies.bsky.social · Dec 22
New paper outlining a spatial account of #FND and proposing an approach to the co-production of functional symptoms. It draws on my longstanding work on geographies of health knowledges, my recent health experiences, and emerging interdisciplinary conversations www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Screenshot of the front page of an article published in the journal Social and Cultural Geography called Remapping the body: an autoethnography of pain, paraesthesia, and the co-production of functional neurological symptoms
December 22, 2025 at 9:45 PM
gailfdavies.bsky.social
New paper outlining a spatial account of #FND and proposing an approach to the co-production of functional symptoms. It draws on my longstanding work on geographies of health knowledges, my recent health experiences, and emerging interdisciplinary conversations www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Screenshot of the front page of an article published in the journal Social and Cultural Geography called Remapping the body: an autoethnography of pain, paraesthesia, and the co-production of functional neurological symptoms
December 22, 2025 at 8:15 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
rgs.org
📣Join the States of Precarity team for the launch of the States of Precarity in UK Higher Education Geography report.

📅 Wednesday 14 January
🎦 Online
👉 Sign up to attend: https://bit.ly/4rvQgP2

Check out the report before the launch: https://bit.ly/44HTUvg
Small blue house perched precariously on the edge of a concrete structure against a cloudy sky.
December 4, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
nc3rs.bsky.social
Our Chief Executive Vicky Robinson appears in @resprofnews.bsky.social today, in an opinion piece focusing on the UK government's ambitious strategy to replace the use of animals in research and testing: www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v....
UK’s plan to reduce animal experiments is strong - Research Professional News
Government strategy reflects recent progress and sets a path to the future, says Vicky Robinson
www.researchprofessionalnews.com
November 26, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
scgrg.bsky.social
Upcoming Event: Social and Cultural Geography beyond the Academy – Opportunities in Policy and Practice
Friday 28 November, 11.00-12.30, ONLINE (UK)

This event joins academic and non-academic geographers to discuss their transition from the academy into the world beyond

Further info: scgrg.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
drbevans.bsky.social
This is on Monday. Do join us if you can and are interested in more inclusive academic workplaces
drbevans.bsky.social Prof. Bethan Evans @drbevans.bsky.social · Oct 23
Join us 24th Nov 2-3pm for a webinar on creating inclusive workplaces for academics with Energy Limiting Conditions. Register: AcademicsWithELC.eventbrite.co.uk For academics with ELC, line managers, HR, funders, publishers, union & EDI reps & conference organisers @isrfoundation.bsky.social
Image of a person buried under a pile of marking, grant deadlines and meeting requests. Logos of University of Liverpool and Independent Social Research Foundation. Text reads: Creating more inclusive workplaces for academics with energy limiting conditions. Webinar and guidance for academics with ELC, line managers & HR professionals, EDI & union representatives, funders, publishers & conference organisers. Monday 24th November 2-3pm.
November 21, 2025 at 8:17 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
stuartelden.bsky.social
Tom Harper, Nick Dykes, & Magdalena Peszko, Secret Maps: Maps You Were Never Meant to See, from the Middle Ages to Today @uchicagopress.bsky.social, November 2025
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
Secret Maps exhibition @britishlibrary.bsky.social until 18 January 2026
events.bl.uk/exhibitions/...
Secret Maps
An illustrated story of the relationship between mapping and secrecy, charting the role maps played in concealing and revealing knowledge across centuries. Is there anything more intriguing than a sec...
press.uchicago.edu
November 17, 2025 at 8:07 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
heikedrotbohm.bsky.social
This SI places plant and multispecies studies in dialogue with anthropological debates on emplacement, displacement, mobilities and migration. Highly recommend!
berghahnbooks.bsky.social Berghahn Books @berghahnbooks.bsky.social · Nov 6
The latest Open Access issue of The Cambridge Journal of Anthropology has been published! View the TOC for this Special Issue on "Making Place with Plants: Intimacy, Mobility and Displacement," here: bit.ly/4qLWERG

@lianachua.bsky.social
@giuliacarabelli.bsky.social
@heikedrotbohm.bsky.social
November 7, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
rafdebont.bsky.social
*Globalizing Wildlife*, a book edited by @vbateman.bsky.social, Tom Quick, and myself, is now available for pre-order with @uncpress.bsky.social!
Using code 01SOCIAL30 at checkout, you can save 30%
www.uncpress.org/book/9781469...
Globalizing Wildlife
Humans have always incorporated wildlife into processes of work, capture, and exchange. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, globalization became t...
www.uncpress.org
November 7, 2025 at 8:43 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
geoopenaccess.bsky.social
New in Geo:

'Repairing epistemic injustice and loss in the era of climate coloniality' by Farhana Sultana

This paper critically examines the intersections of power, pedagogy and praxis in producing inequitable climate knowledge, global governance, policies and solutions.

doi.org/10.1002/geo2...
Screenshot of a paper abstract in Geo: Geography and Environment by Farhana Sultana (2025) entitled: 'Repairing epistemic injustice and loss in the era of climate coloniality' with an orange banner at the top. Climate change intensifies existing inequities, disproportionately impacting marginalised populations, particularly in the Global South and Indigenous communities. This is maintained through inequitable global climate governance, policies and solutions. The paper argues that climate coloniality, the complex entanglements of colonial legacies with contemporary climate and ecological changes, operates through systemic knowledge-based marginalisation or epistemic injustice, serving as a key mechanism in the uneven production and distribution of climate harms. Beyond the more commonly discussed material dimensions of loss and damage, epistemic injustices arise from silencing critical voices and devaluing knowledge systems. The paper extends the scope of loss and damage debates by drawing attention to epistemic losses: the erasure of worldviews, ontologies and practices that are vital for just and sustainable climate futures. It critically examines the intersections of power, pedagogy and praxis in (re)producing epistemic injustices, while simultaneously revealing counter-narratives of refusal, resurgence and relationality. By engaging Indigenous and Global South scholarship, the paper underscores the need to decolonise knowledge systems that reproduce dominant climate narratives and heed the epistemological alternatives offered by land- and kinship-based knowledge systems. Advancing climate justice depends on confronting epistemic injustice as both a form of loss and a condition of possibility: centring Global South and Indigenous perspectives is essential for cultivating pluriversal, decolonial and just climate frameworks and futures.
October 31, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Reposted by Gail Davies
metasciencejournal.bsky.social
"Lab Dog is a landmark study. Brad Bolman’s history of what might seem a niche subject is, in fact, an original and illuminating exploration of key aspects of the biological and biomedical sciences in the twentieth century."

Read Michael Worboys' review here: link.springer.com/article/10.1...
October 28, 2025 at 10:20 AM
Reposted by Gail Davies
dinostalgia.bsky.social
A call for 🦕🦖🦣 contributors! With Victor Monnin, I'm editing a collection about extinct animal parks—it's a field guide, of sorts, that turns a critical eye on places real, imagined, and yet to be. Find the full CFP for LANDS OF THE LOST here: tinyurl.com/dinoparks #PaleoSky #HistSci #EnvHist #STS
A promotional image for an edited collection called "Lands of the Lost: A Field Guide to Dinosaur Parks Physical, Fictional, and for the Future." The collection editors Dr. Victor Monnin & Dr. Alison Laurence are putting out a call for contributions. Abstracts are due January 10, 2026 to dinoparkfieldguide@gmail.com. Find the full call at: https://tinyurl.com/dinoparks The background image is of the outdated-but-adored Iguanodon models at Crystal Palace Park.
October 13, 2025 at 2:22 PM