Summary
My project is looking into the commercialisation of LGBTQIA+ symbols, and investigating to what extent this has created a “queer aesthetic”. I am interested to explore whether this has created exclusion in the community by creating a new “norm” for which people need to conform. The project focuses on the intersection between sociology and economics, looking at whether the cost of acquiring commercially-driven symbols of queerness is a financial barrier to experiencing belonging in the queer community.
Approach and Methodology
Proposal/Outcome
Beyond Outcomes
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Overall LIS Journey
I finished my A levels in 2020 and went straight to Durham University to study maths. I loved school but quickly found that traditional uni wasn’t for me- something I never would’ve guessed before I went! I loved maths (and still do!) but struggled with being limited to one subject, and the lack of relevance to the real world. I took a year out to work and ended up being a nanny for 4 girls which I loved. The break was great but the thought of reapplying to another traditional uni filled me with anxiety and I felt stuck. Then a friend told me I should have a look at LIS… I read through the website and stalked every social media they had. It felt risky but also so right, which was a feeling I hadn’t had about academia since school. I decided to apply and have been grateful for that decision every day since.
Outside of LIS, I work as a maths tutor and my proudest achievement so far is winning the Imperial college x NASA Mission Discovery competition and having an experiment that I co-designed carried out on the International Space Station.
About me
Academically, I’m enjoying reading about how gender, racial and social equity are key to addressing the climate crisis, how international human rights laws can be used to pass local environmental policies, and exploring the idea of dynamic nominalism. On a less serious note, I have been re-reading the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus series, and am loving them! I’m really enjoying looking into Greek and Roman mythology, and learning about their overlaps. Outside of LIS, I love bouldering (there are great climbing walls near LIS), swimming and I sing in a choir.
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