Liz Thomas

Liz is a Research Fellow at The University of Manchester. She is based within the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering and is an Affiliate Researcher at the Institute of Cultural Practices. Liz has a BA in Heritage Studies, an MA in Archaeology and a PhD in Historical Archaeology and has recently completed her British Academy Independent Postdoctoral Fellowship on the subject of ‘Sailortown’ a docklands area of Belfast, being the first person on the island of Ireland ever to hold such a fellowship. Her research interests include heritage, contested spaces, institutions, identity, memory and power structures – she mainly uses site-observation, oral histories, focus groups and simulation games as tools of study. Having successfully led numerous community-driven and engagement projects, Liz was awarded the ‘Best of Belfast’. Liz’ current research, and hence her connection with The Beam, involves engagement with various stakeholders in understanding perceptions of radiation in the medical and civil nuclear industries both in the UK and Internationally.

Led by The University of Manchester, this project considers Sellafield’s possible end states.