Departmental news
Uki Goñi, ‘The Real Odessa: How Nazi War Criminals Escaped Europe’ - Report
Generously sponsored by the Humanities Research Centre, the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, the School of Law, and the European History Research Centre.
The large influx of fugitive Nazis and collaborators in post-WWII Argentina created an environment that normalized the presence of such heinous criminals in society and by doing so facilitated the crimes of Argentina's own genocidal dictatorship in 1976-83. “If you're a neighbour to Adolf Eichmann or Josef Mengele, or just a random German that you knew did bad things during the war, what does this do to you? It means that once these things start happening in your own country, society has acquired the habit of coexisting with evil,” says Goñi. A witness to the erasure of truth as a measurable reference, of the moral decay and the normalization of violence that preceded Argentina's 1976 military coup, Goñi sees alarming parallels with the extreme views and abusive behaviour in current political discourse. The author believes the dictatorship survival skills he acquired under Argentina's military junta could prove useful in such an environment.
Uki Goñi is best known for his book The Real Odessa: How Nazi War Criminals Escaped Europe, augmented edition, Granta Books, London, 2022, resulting in numerous appearances in documentaries on the topic by the BBC, Discovery, NatGeo and PBS. As a journalist he was written a series of stories on human rights and the environment for the Guardian, op-eds for the New York Times and essays on authoritarianism and racism for the New York Review of Books. Born in the US to an Argentine family, he was raised in Dublin where he lived until the age of 21. He resides in Buenos Aires.
Report
Uki Goñi, investigative journalist for several international newspapers of record, spoke on 15 May 2023 about the expanded edition of his book The Real Odessa, to an audience of 30 students and staff at Warwick. Rather than reprising the content of his book, he explained the reasons why he wrote it. He offered unique and important insights into the origins of the Argentine dictatorship in the 1970s and 1980s, recalling for example his childhood in Dublin as the son of the Argentine ambassador in the late sixties welcoming some of the military representatives who would go on to declare and wage a bitter cultural war against the left in Argentina – initiating a cultural attack comparable to the cultural wars discussed today. He traced the origins of this mentality to Nazi Germany and connected it to the role of Argentine President Juan Perón in enabling the escape of Nazis to South America at the end of World War Two. Goñi’s vision thus looked back from the Argentina of the junta to the legacy of WWII while also demonstrating the relevance of exposing such public discourses today. He also explored the process of locating, accessing and divulging sources, narrating instances of lost and burned documents, and those difficult to access because of official policies. Goñi’s forensic research has been used in legal trials in Argentina, illustrating the value of the ethical investigative approach that he employs The audience was thus treated to an excellent discussion of methodology and the value of challenging prevailing policies as they influence access to materials. Questions covered the dilemma for a journalist of being called to testify in public, which for Goñi comes down to his commitment the truth held in concealed and hidden archives, the responsibility of the researcher in relation to individual and highly charged stories, and his future book plans.
Goñi also exchanged thoughts with a group of researchers in the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, deepening the discussion about strategies for accessing archives which officialdom may wish to keep out of reach and offering his views of journalism and the problems of so-called media ‘balance’ in the era of ‘fake news’. The conversation was an especially valuable insight, from a professional and practice-focused angle, into questions which concern academia at present, but also opened up a discussion about how they might be navigated.
Objectives
The aim of this visit was to give students an insight into how to research and manage materials relating to multiple archives and contentious historical topics. It also brought together students from a variety of disciplines (Languages, Law, History, Creative Writing) with research overlaps but who may not always come together to discuss them, as well as the wider university in an exchange about research ethics. In this sense, the objectives were met. Goñi met a number of researchers working on Latin America for whom this connection could be helpful in the future, and the visit put Warwick firmly on the map of interdisciplinary scholarship in how to manage contested pasts. Goñi will also speak in London (introduced by Guardian journalist Jonathan Freeland) and Dublin, with acknowledgement of Warwick in enabling his trip. While there are no immediate outcomes, the connection should bear future fruit and is reputationally important.
CILT accreditation for WMG Master’s Programme
The Supply Chain Logistics Management (SCLM) MSc Programme at WMG, University of Warwick, has received accreditation from the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT).
The programme originally received accreditation in 2012. This was renewed again in 2017, and after receiving very positive feedback, from all of the panel members, this has now been recommended for a further five years.
This will allow all students, upon graduation, to be automatically approved for CILT membership, a great benefit as they begin careers in supply chain.
Gary Bilsbarrow, Senior Teaching Fellow at WMG and MSc Supply Chain and Logistics Management lead for CILT accreditation, explained: “A strong relationship with the CILT as our industry’s leading professional body is key to continued recognition of our programme.
“This reaccreditation, along with strong positive feedback, recognises the potential benefits to employers of a SCLM MSc graduate and builds on the recently established academic partnership with CILT. This active partnership enhances employability and recognises the fusion of academic excellence with industrial relevance.
“Focused content is combined with the opportunity for industrial visits and industry guest speakers to provide an insight into current practice and the challenges of the future."
The MSc in Supply Chain and Logistics Management is a well-established course at WMG and has a current intake of 180 students.
Find out more about WMG’s Postgraduate Programmes here: WMG (University of Warwick) Full-time Master's (MSc) Programmes
In this blog post, Charlotte, Lizzie and Maddie reflect on running the conference Territorial Bodies: World Culture in Crisis, which took place in February 2023.
A Conversation between the Conference Organisers: On the Day (Featuring Comparative Literature PhD
Writing about web page https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/hrc/confs/territorialbodies/
In this blog post, Charlotte and Maddie reflect on their experience organising the conference Territorial Bodies: World Culture in Crisis, which took place in February 2023.
A Conversation between the Conference Organisers: The Build–Up
Writing about web page https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/hrc/confs/territorialbodies/
WLS Visiting Fellow attends conference on 'Ukraine's Recovery'
Dr. Aisel Omarova, BA Fellow at the University of Warwick, was invited as a delegate to the conference "Ukraine’s Recovery: Rebuilding with Research", which took place earlier this week on the 15 May 2023 in London.
In memoriam: Professor John Forty
I have to report the very sad news that Professor John Forty, the founding professor of the Department of Physics, passed away on Sunday 14th May aged 94.
The leading position that the Department holds today is due, in no small measure, to the vision and leadership that John showed in setting up the Department in the 1960s, from his choice of staff and their research areas to the design of a building that has remained "fit for purpose" for many decades, despite the many changes in use that have occurred.
More information will be provided when available.
Mark Newton
Head of Department
Student article on the impact of Black role models and Black creative spaces
Xaymaca Awoyungbo, a final year undergraduate student studying History at Warwick, has written an article for Lacuna magazine. Xaymaca speaks with author Sandra A Agard and explores Britain’s young Black creative networks.
You can read the full piece here.
New Director of Business Development appointed at WMG
Dyrr Ardash has been appointed as the new Director of Business Development for WMG, at the University of Warwick.
Dyrr will engage with education and research communities focusing on growing services to industry. He will lead business development across WMG, within professional education programmes and across all research areas - whether it be collaborative or industry funded opportunities. He will be engaging with a variety of customers from SMEs to large multi-nationals, within the UK and across the globe.
Dyrr is an automotive engineering graduate with more than 25 years’ experience in mobility and transportation, and a breadth of technical, commercial and strategic experience.
He started his career in powertrain development at Ford Motor Company, before joining DENSO where he developed electronic powertrain control and fuel systems for several European manufacturers. Dyrr held both Chief Engineer and senior commercial roles at Ricardo before joining WAE.
He has delivered projects globally in a variety of technical areas across products, from two-wheel mobility solutions, passenger cars, through to construction equipment and marine applications. At WAE he was responsible for strategic partnerships, collaborating closely with industry and academia, in addition to leading several de-carbonisation initiatives.
Dyrr explains: "I have long admired the impact that WMG has had on UK industry and its reach across the world. WMG capability is very relevant for the needs of today, but also the transformation of industry to one that will meet the sustainability requirements of mobility, transportation and beyond. I am very excited to be able to work with our current and potential partners to meet their sustainability goals and have a lasting impact on the world we live in.”
Professor David Greenwood, the CEO of the WMG centre High Value Manufacturing Catapult and Director for Industrial Engagement at WMG, University of Warwick, comments: “Dyrr joins WMG at an exciting time, as our primary research areas of electrification; sustainable materials; sustainable manufacturing; and sustainable transport are at the top of the agenda for government and much of industry.
“We look forward to broadening the impact of our research by working with an increasing number and type of businesses to deliver innovation into a wide range of market sectors.”
Find out more about the High Value Manufacturing Catapult centres here: https://hvm.catapult.org.uk/
To contact Dyrr about working with WMG, please email: wmgbusiness@warwick.ac.uk
You can also connect with Dyrr on LinkedIn
Conference Report - Demokratie 50 years after Geschichtliche Grundbegriffe (May 3-5 2023)
This was a slightly unusual conference in that was directed to the detailed exploration of the Geschichtlicher Grundbegriffe (henceforth GG) entry on Demokratie written 50 years ago, which has had a profound influence, not only on German historiography. But also on the way in which political ideas are discussed in, especially, Central and Northern Europe.
The conference circulated both an epitome of the GG entry, and a detailed agenda for discussion. The six key speakers (German speaking experts from the region) whose travel we supported were given the task of responding to the different topics on the agenda in turn, and then, in each session, the floor was opened to others attending. These included a number of senior people in the field from Oxford, Cambridge , Sussex, Nottingham, York, etc.