A message from Will Fletcher, Head of Geography
24 Oct 2025
Reflections from Will Fletcher for SEED colleagues as he approaches three months since he started as Head of Geography
It’s approaching the three-month mark since I started as Head of Geography. I thought time flew before... but nothing previously quite compared to the new weekly whirlwind! On that note: get the Christmas party booked in, William!
I owe a huge debt of thanks to the SEED School Office, particularly Lucy Adams, for coordinating a comprehensive induction programme. From July onwards, Lucy orchestrated a series of hugely valuable meetings with the School Teams and Directors as part of a newly developed induction programme for incoming HoDs. What a great initiative, so helpful for first steps in navigating ‘new worlds’ and an encouragement to anyone thinking about putting themselves forward for HoD in future.
I’m very grateful also for the support and guidance of our new Head of School, Khalid Nadvi, and the other HoDs across SEED – as well as past HoDs in Geography – who provide a vital network of support and voices of experience. While I had a sense of the departmental responsibilities that awaited, I hadn’t fully appreciated the integration into School leadership that comes with the role. Despite a long track record since I joined the University in 2010, an exciting aspect for me has been learning more about our wider institution – School, Faculty and University – both as things stand now but also looking to the future as the Manchester 2035 programme kicks in.
What I was most looking forward to as Head of Department was the opportunity to learn more about all the amazing initiatives that my colleagues organise and lead. Happily, this is proving to be every bit as rewarding as I had hoped, with each working day offering windows into the rich life of the Department – whether these be the small ‘snapshots’ of travel and fieldwork approvals to the ‘wider panoramas’ offered by PD&R reviews, REF preparation discussions, departmental seminars or welcoming our new Bicentenary, Hallsworth and Simon Fellows into the Department. It’s a privilege to have these insights and a constant reminder of how wide the horizons of Geography are.
Over that last few weeks, I hugely enjoyed the book launch event of Amy Barron and Joe Blakey, as they brought together – in person and virtually – all the co-authors from their new volume ‘Aesthetics and the City’, and showcased an elegant short animated film developed to engage and translate the research to a wider audience (very helpful for me as a non-expert!). I also greatly appreciated the thought-provoking virtual reality exhibition organised by Nerea Okong’o on the ‘Panorama of Congo: Exposing Colonial Propaganda through VR’. It was brilliant to see how Nerea had engaged our students to help deliver the exhibition, and humbling to see the reflective conversations that this stimulated.
Both events were a powerful reminder of the exciting things that happen at the intersection of academic activity, technology, teaching and public engagement – stimulating the life of the intellect, building communities of purpose, and inspiring critical reflection on the world around us.
A wonder of academic life – and perhaps a Geographical take on things - is the thrill of leaping between the novel and the familiar, and from the broadest sweeps to the minute details. I’m sure we all experience the energising thrill of that particular focus that ‘floats our boat’. Today I found a few moments to help an undergraduate student in the SEED labs to identify microscopic limestone encrustations formed around the spindly stems of green algae at the margins of an ancient lake in the High Atlas of Morocco, many thousands of years ago. That’s my boat!
I wish you a great continuation of the semester, success in the diverse and impactful ventures that you undertake, and opportunities to re-discover that dimension that inspires you. I feel privileged to be working with you and look forward to the months ahead.
Will Fletcher
Head of Geography