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Biography
I have been an Assistant Professor - in various forms - in the School of Geography at Nottingham since August 2016 where I am a member of the Cultural and Historical Geography and Environment and Society research groups. My principle research interests relate to animal, more-than-human and food geographies in Italy from the nineteenth century to the current day.
I completed for my BA(Hons) History, MA Environmental History and PhD in the Department of History at the 海角黑料. (Geography) and Dr Ross Balzaretti (History) and explored the comparative cultural-historical geographies and cultural-environmental histories of wolves and wild boar in the northwest Italian region of Liguria from the sixteenth century to the modern day.
I extended my research as a postdoctoral research and teaching fellow at the as part of the (LASA), an interdisciplinary research group comprised of academics and researchers from the (DAFIST) and the (DISTAV). During my time at Genova I also received funding from the and worked on a projects with the . I continue to work closely with the Universita degli Studi di Genova and with the , where as a Visiting Professor contribute to and convene courses on the (Animal and More-than-Human Food Geographies: Perception, Culture, and History) and the (Mapping Foodscapes).
I have since held various postdoctoral research positions in the UK and Italy; as at the (British Academy), in the Centre for Advanced Studies at Nottingham working on the AHRC-funded '' project, and as research assistant on a Leverhulme-funded at the (UCL), with whom I continue to as an Honorary Research Fellow.
I am keen to supervise MRes and PhD research in the following topics:
- Animal and more-than human geographies
- Italian environmental histories and humanities
- Cultural and historical food geographies
- Historical geographies of science
- Rural and environmental geographies
- Qualitative and creative research methodologies
Please contact me to discuss potential projects and for information concerning potential sources of funding. I am particularly interested in supervising interdisciplinary projects with colleagues in other academic schools across the university.
Expertise Summary
I am a cultural and historical geographer with a background in cultural and environmental History. My specific research interests relate to animal and more-than-human geographies, the cultural-historical geographies of food and foodways, and landscape and memory, with a particular focus on Italy from the nineteenth century to the modern day.
Teaching Summary
I am a Fellow of the Higher Eduucation Academy (FHEA) and hold a PGCHE.
Undergraduate Teaching/Supervision
I am on a teaching-focused contract and currently teach on a number of courses:
GEOG1005 Tutorials (Level 1)
GEOG1008 Exploring Human Geography (Level 1)
GEOG1001 Geographical Fieldcourse (Level 1)
GEOG2004 Techniques in Human Geography (Level 2)
GEOG2030 Research Tutorial (Level 2)
GEOG2031 Dissertation Preparation (Level 2)
GEOG3004 Dissertation (Level 3)
GEOG3001 European Landscapes (Italy Fieldcourse) (Level 3) [Convenor]
GEOG3064 Animal Geographies (Level 3) [Convenor with Dr Adam Searle
Postgraduate Supervision
In addition to supervising projects on the MSc Environmental Leadership and Management, and past postgraduate course (PGR & PGT), I also supervise the following postgraduate students:
- I am co-supervising the PhD thesis of C茅sar Rodr铆guez on the 'Effects of future warming on the ecological functioning of invasive signal crayfish in UK waters' with Dr Matthew Johnson and Dr Stephen Dugdale. COMPLETED SEPTEMBER 2024.
- I was internal examiner for Natalia Ciecierska-Holmes for her PhD on 'Raw Feeding for Dogs in the UK and Australia: A Social and Ethical Cross-Cultural Comparison' in the School of Sociology and Social Policy supervised by Professor Pru Hobson-West (Nottingham) and (Adelaide University). COMPLETED APRIL 2025
- I am co-supervising the MRes thesis of Madeline O'Brien on contemporary pagan practitioners with Professor David Matless. PT 2024-2026
- I am lead supervisor for the PhD thesis of Elena Manservisi 'Church Dedications to Colombanus in Northern Italy: the heritage of a Saints Cult in the Present Day' with Professor Ross Balzaretti (Emeritus, History)
Recent Publications
PIETRO PIANA, LORENZO BROCADA, ROBERT HEARN and STEFANIA MANGANO, 2024. Cities: the international journal of urban planning. 144, 104660
PIETRO PIANA, STEFANIA MANGANO and ROBERT HEARN, 2023. Fluvial landscapes: exploitation, marginalisation and rewilding in Genoa, NW Italy. In: ANDREA PASE, ALDINO BONDESAN and SARA LUCHETTA, eds., Elementi, animali, piante: :mobilit脿 dei costituenti, delle forze e degli organismi 148-157
ROBERTA CEVASCO, VALENTINA PESCINI and ROBERT HEARN, eds., 2023. Genova University Press.
ROBERT HEARN, 2023. . In: ROBERTA CEVASCO, VALENTINA PESCINI and ROBERT HEARN, eds., Situating foodways and foodscapes: dalla tavola al terreno 407-432