Photo from the ‘dancing with bacteria’ session.

Erin Molyneux, Geography & Environment, Keele University (2025 Cohort)

I was delighted to be welcomed into the Creative Methods Creative Dissemination (CMCD) 2026 inaugural showcase as both a presenter and part of the organising committee. When I saw the email circulated by the NWSSDTP regarding the CMCD showcase that was being held at Keele University I couldn’t think of a better place to disseminate my research. This was my first time presenting my research outside of small seminars and in front of a diverse audience of academics and non-academics. As I read through the email, they were also looking for volunteers to be on the organizing committee for the event so I quicky contacted the organisers and offered to be a part of the event. This event was supported by a Methods North West grant alongside support from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The day was full of a variety of presentations from various disciplines including fine art, education, medicine and geography. There was a choice of workshops where a supportive space was maintained for individuals to explore creative methods in a hands-on way and a closing session named “dancing with bacteria” that got everyone outside for some somatic movement and dance. What a way to end a creative methods showcase!

The CMCD showcase was the perfect place to first present my research as it was a welcoming and supportive environment. When putting together my abstract for submission I wondered what to present as I am in the first year of my PhD and am yet to have any findings to present. I decided to present on the method of data analysis I used in my Masters degree and intend to develop further throughout my PhD. The title of my presentation was “Exploring Poetic Inquiry; An Investigation of Relational Wellbeing at Findhorn Ecovillage.” I presented in the session named ‘Exploring spaces and places’ and talked through my use of poetic inquiry before using the rest of my time as a poetry reading where I read three poems that were crafted through the analysis. It was great to see the emotional and affective responses to the poems as they were read aloud. This experience also gave me confidence in pursuing and developing poetic inquiry as a method of analysis within my PhD.

As I was wearing two hats on the day of the showcase (co-organiser and presenter) I had little time to become anxious about my presentation. This worked in my favour as the nerves of presenting for the first time were overcome by simply having lots to do on the day! I was largely responsible for the digital and physical poster display for the event. We had eight posters to display and thinglink came in handy when trying to think of ways to make the posters accessible for those joining us online. This online platform has multiple uses, but its 360° rooms are what I used to put the poster display together which utilises a 360° image of the Keele Hall Lobby as a setting for a poster room.

Some lovely feedback (The tops have significance! The mode of feedback was ‘tops’ for favourite parts, trousers or ‘pants’ for things that could have been better and ‘caps’ for things that got you thinking).

This was such a great opportunity to extend both my skills as a PhD researcher, but also to build further networks across Keele and meet fellow creative methods researchers. From shortlisting abstracts, liaising with delegates and contributors to making digital poster rooms and helping to decide on catering, this event truly was a learning experience and has helped me develop foundational and transferable skills. For anyone who is hesitant to volunteer on an organising committee for an event it is such a valuable experience, and you are supported the whole way through. On the day, we had 97 attendees both online and in person, including Master’s students, postgraduate researchers, academic staff and non-academics. We had registrations from around 60 different institutions, both academic and non-academic. I am so grateful to Rachel Marsden, Alice Faux-Nightingale and Charles Hay for trusting me and the other volunteers (Carina Williams and Richard Seymour) to support them in making this event come to life. I’m looking forward to seeing what we come up with as a group for next year’s showcase!