When: Thursday, April 29, 2021, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PMWhere: Online
Our People and Pandemics series brings together experts from across Queen Mary University to examine, interrogate and discuss the impact pandemics have had on human communities throughout history.
Our first event of 2021 will explore the collective impact of the pandemic on society, and in particular, on our social interactions with each other and within our communities.
Meet our speakers:
Dr Evi Argyriou: Lecturer in Psychology, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences.
Dr Evi Argyriou’s research area is the psychology of language and communication (including non-verbal communication), and the overarching goal of the research work is to understand how language interacts with other aspects of cognitive functioning and influences human behaviour.
Dr Evi Argyriou is currently working on a project (initially funded by the British Academy) which investigates the relationship between gestures and empathy.
Dr Sevasti Foka: Senior Lecturer in Psychology and Director of Graduate Employment and Opportunities, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences.
Dr Sevasti Foka’s research focuses on resilience building and wellbeing. In particular, Dr. Sevasti Foka is interested in positive psychology interventions that target protective factors and positive psychological resources (e.g. positive emotions, hopeful thinking, and meaning in life) among war affected children, adolescents and youth.
Sevasti Foka’s current project “Strengths for the Journey” is based on a resilience building approach to enhance resilience, hopeful thinking and self-esteem among refugee children and adolescents.
Professor Pat Healey: Professor of Human Interaction, School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science.
Professor Healey is Professor of Human Interaction and Head of the Cognitive Science Research Group in the School of Electronic Engineering, Queen Mary, University of London. He recently served as Senior Researcher in Residence at the Digital Catapult and as 2016 International Visiting Chair in Empirical Foundations of Linguistics at Sorbonne Cite / Paris 7.
Professor Healey's research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of human-human interaction and the development of technologies that can enable richer, more effective forms of communication.
Chair: Professor David McCoy: Professor of Global Public Health, Institute of Population Health Sciences.
Professor David McCoy works at the Centre for Primary Care and Public Health at Queen Mary University of London where he heads a unit that delivers a suite of undergraduate and postgraduate Global Health taught programmes, and conducts critical public health research.
David is a public health generalist with experience across the domains of professional practice, academia and civil society activism. He has been a member of the Steering Council of the Peoples Health Movement, and was the founding managing editor of Global Health Watch, the alternative world health report.