Henry Marshall Tory Chair and Professorship, University of Alberta
Brey asked about the Chair I’m taking up at U of A. Its an honour to have been nominated and an incredibly privileged position. I will be focusing my research on place, social spatialization and digital and urban cultures and of course continuing to edit Space and Culture. I’m based in Sociology and in Art and Design, where there is a product design/material culture/industrial design program.
Let’s stake out the territory: My remit shall be “Professor in the Arts” and the international reputation of the university. The Tory Chairs are intended to “enhance the reputation of the University and who can provide leadership and experience fot he strengthening of teaching and research”‘ (BG 7 Nov. 1980; Exec 1 Nov. 1999; GFC policy Manual 122.3.1a). I’m dedicated to working with students as well as with the community at all levels. And on this (I’ll put the following up if only to remind myself to fight for the privilege of the Chair so as not to compromise it for future Chairs), the Board of Governors provides the following guidance: Tory Chairs “teaching shall not necessarily be of specific courses in an existing program, but perhaps more appropriately, special courses, seminars and public lectures in the field of interest of the person who holds the Chair” (GFC Policy Manual 122.3c). Stay tuned.
There is no Human/Cultural/Social Geog Dept @ U of Alberta. One reason I’m attracted is to re-establish one in some format. An Urban and Regional Studies Institute is starting, but for now their PhDs will be other fields such as Poli Sci. or maybe Soc. What is also important about U of A is its sudden centrality in the cultural studies landscape in Canada.
I know Geog. can still be at a professionalizing stage in Canada (hostile to non-geog of which I’m one (Urban and Regional Studies, Sussex UK) but this is less true of the leading depts. If you’re reading the blog, and you can find a current U of A program and you’ve set your standards at world class, I’d be interested in talking more about how to make a PhD or postdoc happen.