Information about past and forthcoming events and outreach connected to the project.

Forthcoming Events and Outreach

18-21 November 2017, Boston, Mass.

I will be giving a paper at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion.

My paper will focus on the gendered aspects of grieving and funeral practices among Muslim communities in the UK and France.

Past Events and Outreach

(Most recent first)

31 August 2017, London

I gave a paper at the annual meeting of the Royal Geographic Society (with Institute of British Geographers).

My paper focused on the gendered aspects of grieving and funeral practices among Muslim communities in the UK and France.

5 July 2017, Edinburgh

I had the opportunity to present my work at the 2017 conference of the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES), in a panel on the topic of ‘Scotland’s Muslims.’

My paper discussed two themes: negotiations and planning disputes over Muslim cemetery spaces in Scotland; and the changing role of women in Muslim funerals. Thanks to the audience for some great comments!

30 June 2017, Rotterdam

I gave a paper at the 14th annual conference of the IMISCOE Research Network (International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion in Europe).

My paper focused on the gendered aspects of grieving and funeral practices among Muslim communities in the UK and France.

10 May 2017, Edinburgh

I presented a paper at a seminar hosted at the Institut Français d’Écosse titled New Perspectives on Religious Pluralism and Political Conflict. I talked about the history of legislation which has governed French municipal cemeteries and the accommodation of religious diversity in public space.

11 April 2017, Chester

I gave a paper at the 2017 conference of the British Association for Islamic Studies in Chester.

My paper discussed some of the rather unprecedented questions for British and French Muslims raised by demographic ageing and new norms about where to be buried.

5 December 2016, Edinburgh

I presented a progress report to colleagues at the Alwaleed Centre, University of Edinburgh in early December. This was an opportunity to receive feedback on the piloting phase of the fieldwork in Scotland.

1 September 2016, London

I gave a paper at the Annual Conference of the Royal Geographic Society (with Institute of British Geographers) in London in early September.

My paper discussed how Muslim burial grounds are rendered less ‘visible’ in local landscapes. Comparing Britain and France, I contrasted the importance of secularist principles in France with more pragmatic but equally ‘invisibilising’ approaches to diversity in multiculturalist Britain.

7 July 2016, Bristol

In early July I was invited to contribute to a workshop organised by Dr Avril Maddrell and Dr Katie McClymont at the University of the West of England entitled ‘Deathscapes for the future: international perspectives on mobility, diversity and sustainability.’

My paper discussed religious and ethnic diversity in France, and the place of Islam in municipal cemeteries. In earlier times the French municipal cemetery functioned as the guarantor of an equal and cohesive society. Yet in more recent times the cemetery has become a site of re-negotiation of these secularist principles.

29 June 2016, Helsinki

In late June I attended the Annual Conference of the European Association for the Study of Religion, this year in Helsinki.

My paper discussed how Muslim burial grounds are rendered less ‘visible’ in local landscapes. Comparing Britain and France, I contrasted the importance of secularist principles in France with more pragmatic but equally ‘invisibilising’ approaches to diversity in multiculturalist Britain.

15 March 2016, Paris

In March I presented my initial research for the Burying our Differences project to colleagues at the National Institute for Demographic Studies in Paris.

I demonstrated how death is a crucial juncture in the settlement process for migrant-origin communities: either to repatriate loved ones, thus reaffirming ties to the place of origin, or to lay deep and permanent roots in the country of settlement, through burial/disposal there.