Conference: The Public Humanities in the 21st century

Dates
Wednesday, June 17, 2026 - 09:30 to 18:00
Location
Online via Teams

The OpenARC Research Centre at The Open University is delighted to announce that it will be hosting a free online interdisciplinary conference, ‘The Public Humanities in the 21st Century’.

This conference will address the core question: what is the role of the public humanities in the 21st century?  We face the challenge of the increasing instrumentalization of university study, the narrowing and hollowing out of curriculum in schools, and the relentless prioritisation of STEM subjects by governments and funding councils. At the same time, the critical and creative thinking fostered by the Arts and Humanities is increasingly important in helping people make sense of the world and their place in it. Given the increasing pressures faced by the Arts & Humanities in the current environment, how might we, as researchers, teachers, and learners, rethink the role of the public humanities in the 21st century? 

If you would like to receive the Teams link to join or have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. There will be morning, afternoon and evening sessions, so we hope you will be able to attend for at least part of the conference. The conference will be free to attend.

Programme

Morning session

09:30-10:00am

Introductions | welcome

10:00-10:30am

Talk: Julia Bell (Birkbeck, University of London), 'Reinventing the Human: Radical Attention and the Public Humanities'

10:30-11:00am

Conversation: Katie Moss (Cambridge) and John Slight (The Open University), 'Living in the age of AI and what that might mean for humanities scholars and students'

11:00-11:30am

Break

11:30-12:00pm

Talk: Grace Halden (Birkbeck, University of London), 'Whose Knowledge Counts? (A Case Study of Maternal Experience in Neonatal Intensive Care)'

12:00-14:00

Break

Afternoon session

2:00-2:20pm

Lightning talk: Christine Plastow (The Open University), 'Why co creation matters'

2:20-2:40pm

Lightning talk: Veronica Davies (The Open University), 'Art History in the community'

2:40-3:00pm

Break

3:00-3:30pm

Talk: David Grummitt (The Open University), 'The Wars of the Roses: Negotiating the Battlefield of History and Heritage'

3:30-5:00pm

Break

5:00-5:45pm

Conversation: Prof Marion Thain (Edinburgh) in conversation with Dr Shafquat Towheed (The Open University)

5:45-6:00pm

Closing remarks | end of event

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