Exeter gets double election to British Academy

Alexandra Walsham is Professor of Reformation History and Head of Department of History in the University of Exeter’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences. Her research focuses on the religious and cultural history of early modern Britain and she has published widely in this field. Professor Walsham was educated at the University of Melbourne and Trinity College, Cambridge. She was appointed to a lectureship in History at Exeter in 1996 and to a personal chair in 2005.

Professor Paul Cloke is a human geographer with interests in social and cultural geographies of rurality, nature and ethics. He began his academic career at the University of Wales, Lampeter, and was Professor and Head of School at the University of Bristol before moving to the University of Exeter in 2005. Paul’s recent research has focused on the provision of services for homeless people, and on the politics and ethics involved in campaigns for ethical consumption. He is currently undertaking research on the role of faith-based organisations in promoting social welfare and justice in the city and is based in the School of Geography, Archaeology and Earth Resources.

On speaking about being elected for the award, Professor Alexandra Walsham says “I was surprised and overwhelmed when I opened the letter informing me of my forthcoming election to the Fellowship of the British Academy. I am very grateful to my colleagues at Exeter for their support and encouragement over many years.” She adds, “I hope that my election will enable me to represent the discipline of History in an era of significant challenge and change in the sphere of higher education”.

Professor Paul Cloke says: “To receive this wonderful peer-recognition is both a personal pleasure and a more general confirmation of the importance of geographical research in contemporary society. As much of my work over the years has been collaborative, I am so grateful to my colleagues and postgrads in Lampeter, Bristol and now Exeter for their rich contribution to the research environment in which I have been working.”