About us

The Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities (BIH) was established by Professor Costas Douzinas in 2004 to stimulate research, public debate and collaboration among academics and intellectuals on important public issues of our time.

Now under the directorship of Professor Esther Leslie and Professor Jacqueline Rose, the BIH continues to support interdisciplinary research and engagement among colleagues across Birkbeck, University of London and beyond, and regularly collaborates with UK-based and international academics, researchers and activists.

Key to our mission is the promotion of new ideas and forms of understanding in the humanities and beyond. To facilitate this, the Institute organises and supports lectures, conferences, discussion panels, masterclasses and film screenings. Many of these are free and open to the public - check our events calendar for details. 

We also provide short-term fellowships for a small number of scholars from Britain and overseas, who wish to collaborate with colleagues at Birkbeck. These are chosen yearly through an open competition.

Each year, the BIH holds its internationally renowned London Critical Theory Summer School. This two-week course provides a unique opportunity for graduate students and academics to follow a course of study with internationally renowned critical thinkers. Past tutors have included: Etienne Balibar, Susan Buck-Morss, Drucilla Cornell, Costas Douzinas, Stephen Frosh, David Harvey, Esther Leslie, Laura Mulvey, Jacqueline Rose and Slavoj Žižek. Bursaries are available for international and Birkbeck students.

OUR TEAM

Below you will find the details of the people that contribute to the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities

BIH PERSONNEL

• Professor Jacqueline Rose, Co-Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities
• Professor Esther Leslie, Co-Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities
• Professor Costas Douzinas, Founding Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities
• Professor Slavoj Žižek, International Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities

BIH STEERING GROUP

• Dr Jasmine Bhatia, Lecturer in Politics 
• Professor Costas Douzinas, Professor of Law, Founding Director of BIH
• Professor Steve Edwards, Professor of History and Theory of Photography
• Dr Joanna Farr, Lecturer in Psychological Sciences
• Dr Amber Jacobs, Reader in Psychosocial Studies
• Professor Esther Leslie, Professor in Political Aesthetics, Co-Director of BIH
• Dr Elena Loizidou, Reader in Law and Political Theory
• Dr Mara Polgovsky, Lecturer in Art History
• Professor Jacqueline Rose, Professor of Humanities, Co-Director of BIH
• Dr Emma Sandon, Senior Lecturer in Film, Media and Cultural Studies
• Mark Stringer, Assistant Dean/Head of Department, Organizational Psychology
• Dr Joseph John Viscomi, Lecturer in European History