Three Edinburgh residents awarded prestigious Churchill Fellowships

Three Edinburgh residents have been awarded prestigious Churchill Fellowships offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel the world and research cutting-edge solutions to important topical issues. 

The award winners and their projects are:

• Jacqueline Cassidy, a charity worker, will travel to Japan, Singapore and the USA to research co-located intergenerational child and elder care settings. She will use her findings to create a social enterprise that supports the needs of both deprived children and older people in the UK. Jacqueline’s Fellowship is supported by The Rank Foundation.

• Clare Meakin, a museum worker, will travel to Canada, the USA, Japan and South Korea to explore STEM engagement through museums and formal education. She will use her findings to develop projects aimed at addressing the UK’s STEM skills shortage.

• Lorraine Close, Director at Edinburgh Community Yoga, will travel to Canada, Kenya and the USA to investigate sustainable business models for not-for-profit organisations delivering trauma-informed yoga. She will use her findings to develop a programme of yoga-based therapy in Scotland to support military veterans and women who have experienced trauma. Lorraine’s Fellowship is supported by The Rank Foundation.

Together they will receive grants totalling over £22,000. They are among 150 people from all regions of the UK who were selected this year from almost 1,800 applicants to win a Churchill Fellowship. The average length of a Fellowship is six weeks.

“Churchill Fellows are inspiring individuals who scour the world for fresh approaches to today’s crucial issues,” said Julia Weston, Chief Executive of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust (WCMT).

“It’s a unique chance to make change happen, and every UK citizen over the age of 18 can apply. The next round of applications will open on 16 May 2019.”

The next chance to apply for a Churchill Fellowship opens on 16 May 2019 and includes new categories on ‘Palliative and end of life care’ and ‘Physical activity: making moves for healthier lives’.

Application details are online at wcmt.org.uk.