Hannah Cowdell (she/her/hers)
Postgraduate Researcher
Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies
About me:
I am an SWDTP ESRC-funded PhD researcher at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter. My PhD project examines histories of ontological negotiation of legal and medical categories of sex and gender in Lebanon. I am more broadly interested in issues of bioethical consensus-making, and in decolonial and transdisciplinary approaches to research.
Prior to starting my PhD, I completed an MRes in Middle East Studies at the University of Exeter, also funded by the ESRC SWDTP. My dissertation explored the use of social media by Lebanese activists and influencers. This research is now published in the British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies.
In 2020, I graduated from St Antony's College, University of Oxford, with an M.Phil in Modern Middle Eastern Studies. My M.Phil dissertation explored the politics of British post-conflict heritage aid to Iraq. I also hold a BA in Ancient Near Eastern Studies with Arabic from University College, University of Oxford.
I am a member of Healthscapes, a network that aims to bring together researchers, scholars, artists, activists and institutions working in the field of environment and health humanities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. I am also a member of the steering group of Routes: Migration, mobility and displacement, a research network of the University of Exeter.
Research Project:
My doctoral project comprises a historical and ethnographic tracing of the local, regional and transnational networks that impact ontological negotiations over categories of sex and gender by Lebanese state institutions and agencies. It will further consider how the negotiation and application of diverse ontologies of sex and gender impact everyday and embodied dimensions of citizenship across medical, legal and administrative contexts.
Research Supervisory team:
