LGBTQ+ History Month 2022: Media Transphobia and Democratic Inequality

By Dr Charlotte Galpin, Associate Professor and Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, School of Government and Dr Gina Gwenffrewi, Co-Director of SUISS at the University of Edinburgh The climate for minorities in the U.K. at the moment is fearful, and febrile. LGBT History Month provides an opportunity to shine a spotlight on an increasingly … Continue reading “LGBTQ+ History Month 2022: Media Transphobia and Democratic Inequality”

Character and Emotions on Social Media

By Aidan Thompson, Director of Strategic Initiatives The Jubilee Centre for Character & Virtues, University of Birmingham Engaging meaningfully on social media platforms can mean keeping up to date with former friends and colleagues, throwing yourself into discussions and debates with strangers, filtering through endless memes, or watching videos of current affairs, sports, and politics. … Continue reading “Character and Emotions on Social Media”

Fair-weather friends? Aristotelian friendship in the present-day

By Jason Metcalfe, Research Associate in the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues School of Education, University of Birmingham July 30th marks the United Nations (UN) ‘International Day of Friendship’. The authors of the UN webpage state that friendship is essential to forming mutual trust and overcoming all of the world’s challenges, disasters, and divisions. … Continue reading “Fair-weather friends? Aristotelian friendship in the present-day”

Making Wise Choices Online: Navigating the Moral Web

By Aidan Thompson, Director of Strategic Initiatives The Jubilee Centre for Character & Virtues, University of Birmingham Last week, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby called for social media users to engage with ‘truth, kindness and welcome’ when interacting online. The focus on engaging with social media morally and positively, from a prominent religious and political … Continue reading “Making Wise Choices Online: Navigating the Moral Web”

Saudi-Canadian Diplomatic Spat: An intersection of Twitter Diplomacy and Political Optics

By Umer Karim, Doctoral Researcher School of Government and Society, University of Birmingham The Saudi-Canadian tensions that started from a string of tweets from the Canadian foreign minister and subsequently by the Canadian Embassy in Saudi Arabia has now developed into a full fledged diplomatic spat. With Saudi Arabia declaring Canadian Ambassador to the Kingdom … Continue reading “Saudi-Canadian Diplomatic Spat: An intersection of Twitter Diplomacy and Political Optics”

Friendship in the age of social media: Friend-collectors and well-wishers

By Dr Katy Dineen, Research Fellow Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, University of Birmingham What does friendship mean in a world of clicks, likes, emojis and pokes? The idea of a ‘friend’ is becoming increasingly unrecognizable; from a noun denoting some form of sanctuary, sympathy and simpatico to a verb conferring social status (or, … Continue reading “Friendship in the age of social media: Friend-collectors and well-wishers”

A little less ‘Ego’ and a little more humility

By Dr Catherine Darnell, Research Fellow Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, University of Birmingham The antidote for egotism may therefore be a humble one; rather than deny our limitations, take ownership of them, seek ways to improve them, listen to different points of view, acknowledge alternative conclusions and be ready to repeat this all again. … Continue reading “A little less ‘Ego’ and a little more humility”

Random Acts of Kindness: Displaying Moral Character or the Pursuit of Likes?

By Aidan Thompson, Director of Strategy and Integration Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtue, University of Birmingham “The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention”. Saturday 17 February 2018 is National Random Acts of Kindness Day, where people are encouraged to perform acts of kindness either at random, or for random … Continue reading “Random Acts of Kindness: Displaying Moral Character or the Pursuit of Likes?”