t2-cover-imageFilm buffs and arts professionals will explore screen cultures as part of a special public symposium event being staged on the QMU campus, Thursday 22nd June, 9am-6.30pm.

The ‘Adaptation and Nation’ symposium will feature a variety of expert presentations and discussions around the topics of screen adaptation, cultural policy, cultural heritage, national identities, performance, costume and cultural tourism.

The event will begin to map out some conceptual approaches to the study of adaptation in national, post-national and transnational contexts. It will also encourage a multi-disciplinary approach to the question of screen adaptation and nation, incorporating analyses from discursive, industrial and textual perspectives.

The event finale will be a special screening of the film 1745, an untold story of slavery (www.1745film.com), which is in competition for Best Short Film at the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2017.

Robert Munro, who’s completing his PhD ‘Screening Scotland’s Stories’ at QMU and is the event’s co-organiser, said: “The symposium will be an important event it its own right and will hopefully lead to a valuable collection of published essays.

“It is also intended that the symposium will be a starting point in a bigger project which would look at the adaptation industry more broadly, and also build a network of researchers interested in adaptation in national, post-national and transnational contexts.”

For further information and to register for tickets at only £30 per person, email Michael Stewart, E: MStewart@qmu.ac.uk, Robert Munro, E: RMunro@qmu.ac.uk or E: events@qmu.ac.uk

For more information and for a full event programme, visit: https://adaptationandnation.wordpress.com

RaceRunning 3The new sport of RaceRunning for people with severe mobility difficulties will be the topic of a research seminar held at Queen Margaret University (QMU) on Saturday 27th May 2017.

QMU has teamed up with the Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association (CPISRA) and researchers at Edinburgh University to stage its first ever public RaceRunning seminar.

The special event will be introduced by Danish Paralympic gold medallist and inventor of the Running Bike, Connie Hansen. A Running Bike is a three wheeled bike with no pedals that supports you as you walk or run. The bike allows people with even the most severe balance difficulties and who are unable to walk, to propel themselves independently.

From 10am until 3pm, physiotherapists, students, athletes and their families , researchers, and representatives of local leisure and sports clubs from across Scotland and beyond will come together on the university campus to find our more about this exciting new sport and its associated research.

Topics of discussion and debate in the morning will include physiotherapists’ and athletes’ perspectives of the sport, how to set up a RaceRunning group, and in the afternoon RaceRunning research, including studies focusing on the sport to be included in future Paralympic games.

Dr Marietta van der Linden from the Centre for Health, Activity and Rehabilitation Research at QMU and organiser of the RaceRunning seminar, said: “We’re really pleased to be working in partnership with CPISRA and Edinburgh University to raise awareness of RaceRunning and its related research at this special event. ”

“We hope to welcome a variety of physiotherapy professionals and students, as well as people from the sports world, researchers and all others interested in the development of RaceRunning in Scotland.”

“At QMU, we aim to generate research and knowledge exchange activity that enhances the quality of life of people living with long-term health conditions.. Our research, conducted with partners in the healthcare, community and commercial sectors, aims to support the development of enhanced professional practice and policy.”

Dr van der Linden has carried out research into the walking characteristics of children with Cerebral Palsy. At QMU, she has led research related to interventions aimed at improving physical function of people with Multiple Sclerosis and Cerebral Palsy through assistive technology and exercise.

The RaceRunning seminar is free, but people should register online at Eventbrite: www.eventbrite.com/e/racerunning-seminar-tickets-5932001777 or email Dr Marietta van der Linden at QMU, E: MVanDerLinden@qmu.ac.uk

For more information on RaceRunning, visit: www.racerunning.org

For more information on the Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association (CPISRA), visit: http://cpisra.org

QMU campus sunny small pondStaff and students from Queen Margaret University plan to raise awareness of dementia by organising a picnic in the grounds of QMU during Dementia Awareness Week 2017. The activity, run by QMU’s Dementia Friendly Working Group, aims to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Scotland and the QMU Dementia Group.

The word ‘Dementia’ describes a set of symptoms that may include memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem-solving or language. These changes are often small to start with, but for someone with dementia they have become severe enough to affect daily life. A person with dementia may also experience changes in their mood or behaviour.

According to 2016 figures, approximately 1100 people in East Lothian are registered as having a diagnosis of dementia. The condition is on the rise, with the number of people affected projected to rise substantially over the next twenty years.

This year, the theme of Dementia Awareness Week is ‘making friends’, so the QMU organising team felt it would be fitting to create an event where participants can have fun and socialise with new people. All funds from the event will be used to support dementia care in Musselburgh.

Professor Jan Dewing, lead of QMU’s Dementia Friendly Working Group, explained: “We are delighted that community groups will be joining us at the fun event in the lovely grounds of the QMU campus. The Dementia picnic is a great way to emphasise the importance of social inclusion, making friends and having fun in relation to our mental well-being. People with dementia, and those who care for them, need that as much as everyone else.”

Karen Rennie, a fourth year nursing student at QMU, said: “The QMU Dementia Friendly Working Group aims to bring students, staff and members of the community together to increase awareness about dementia. Having a picnic is a perfect way to achieve this and most importantly, to have some fun!”
Another fourth year nursing student, Jenny Kirkwood, explained: “I joined the dementia working group not knowing much about dementia, how it affects different people and what can be done to help people living with dementia. Having learnt what big a difference simple changes can make to lives of those living with dementia, I am keen to share this knowledge and awareness with others, and what better way to do this than a picnic!”

Hazel Johnson, Alzheimer’s Scotland Dementia Advisor, confirmed: “I’m very happy to offer this wonderful opportunity for people with dementia and their carers to have a picnic and make friends. People can also be involved in helping to re-design the QMU pathway to be more dementia friendly.”

The Dementia picnic will take place in the QMU grounds on Monday 22 May from 11am – 3pm. People must bring their own picnic lunch – and should bring something to sit on! Awareness raising about dementia and some fun activities will be taking place during the picnic. Everyone is welcome and free parking will be available that day in the QMU car park.