Our People – Hugh Dunkerley
Hugh Dunkerley is Professor of Literature and Environment at the University of Chichester.
I am currently Professor of Literature and the Environment and lead the MA in Creative Writing. I am also working with colleagues from across the University to embed sustainability across our curricula.
The University and the Student Union have signed up to Responsible Futures, an NUS-led project which provides support for institutions wishing to engage with the sustainability agenda. As an educator, I believe we will be failing students unless we give them the tools to live in a world where environmental and social sustainability are key to functioning human societies.
I started at Chichester in 1989, when it was still The West Sussex Institute of Higher Education. It was a very different place then. I was employed to teach creative writing, which had recently been introduced as part of an English degree.
“I also write alongside my creative writing students, and sometimes surprise myself by writing a new poem in the class.”
Since then, creative writing has grown in popularity. The MA in Creative Writing is now nearly 30 years old and is one of the most respected courses in the country. In addition to creative writing, I teach literature. I particularly enjoy teaching my third-year special subject, Writing, Environment and Ecocriticism. I supervise a number of PhD students, some of whom are focussing on literature and the environment. As a researcher, I write articles and chapters on how literature can engage us with environmental issues.
I am also a poet and have published two full collections, Hare and Kin. Much of my poetry is about our relationship with what philosopher David Abram calls the ‘more-than-human world’. So my teaching, my poetry and my academic writing often have a similar theme running through them.
A typical day for me will often involve teaching all levels, from a seminar with first year BA students right through to supervision with a PhD student. I really enjoy teaching and I am still learning from my students. The best moments are when students come up with a piece of work or an idea that surprises me. My teaching often feeds into my research, which in turn feeds back into my teaching, so it’s a virtuous circle. I also write alongside my creative writing students, and sometimes surprise myself by writing a new poem in the class.
