Aberystwyth academics elected Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales

The Fellows will be formally admitted at The Learned Society of Wales’ Annual General Meeting on 22 May 2019 in Cardiff.

The Learned Society of Wales has named five academics from Aberystwyth University among its newly elected Fellows.

Professor Matthew Jarvis, Professor Peter Midmore, Dr Helen Ougham, Professor Phillipp Schofield and Professor Elan Closs Stephens are among 48 new Fellows who have joined the Learned Society of Wales this year from across the arts, humanities, sciences and beyond.

Professor Matthew Jarvis is Professorial Fellow of Literature and Place at the Department of English and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University and the Anthony Dyson Fellow in Poetry at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David. A co-chair of the Association for Welsh Writing English, Chair of the Poetry Wales Committee, he is also lead editor of the International Journal of Welsh Writing in English.

Professor Peter Midmore is Professor of Economics at Aberystwyth Business School. A former President of the UK’s Agricultural Economics Society, he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and the Higher Education Academy, and a Member of the Institute of Welsh Affairs.

Dr Helen Ougham is Emeritus Reader at the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS). An expert on plant science and crop bioinformatics, Dr Ougham is a co-editor of New Phytologist and co-author of the textbook The Molecular Life of Plants.

Professor Phillipp Schofield is Head of the Department of History & Welsh History and a historian of the medieval English economy. He recently completed a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship on the Great Famine in early fourteenth-century England.

Professor Elan Closs Stephens, Emeritus Professor in the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies, is currently a Non-Executive Director of the BBC and the BBC board member for Wales.

Election to the Fellowship is a public recognition of excellence; it is keenly competed, and takes place following a rigorous examination of each nominee’s achievements in their relevant field(s).

Professor Elizabeth Treasure, Vice-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University said: “My warmest congratulations to colleagues who have been elected Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales this year. This recognition is richly-deserved for their valuable contributions to the academic life of Wales and their commitment to excellence in their respective academic disciplines.”

Sir Emyr Jones Parry, President of the Learned Society of Wales and former Chancellor of Aberystwyth University, said: “I am delighted to welcome 48 new Fellows to the Society. Their election recognises their individual achievements and additions to the world of learning and I am pleased that they encompass such a range of research disciplines and beyond. The addition of these new Fellows will strength our capacity to champion excellence across all areas of academic and public life in Wales and abroad.”       

Established in 2010, the Learned Society of Wales uses the knowledge of its experts to promote research, inspire learning, and provide independent policy advice. The yearly addition of new Fellows aids the Society in achieving these aims.

The 2019 election is the ninth in a rolling process towards the building of a strong, representative Fellowship. The Society’s continuing focus on excellence and achievement will ensure that the Fellowship represents the very best of learning that Wales has to offer.

The full list of new Fellows elected is available here.

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