Manju Bura
The Social Lives of Heat and Heatwaves
Background
BSc Biomedical Sciences; MSc Climate Change Science and Policy
PhD
The Social Lives of Heat and HeatwavesMy research investigates the power dynamics of climate change narratives, with a particular focus on how heatwaves are understood and governed across modern and non-modern ontologies. I conduct ethnographic research on the practices and materialities of governing heat in Nepal, and analyse media representations to examine common tropes of heatwaves. Drawing from participatory Science and Technology Studies and postcolonial scholarship, my research contributes to discussions on how prevailing infrastructures of knowing shape, and sometimes limit what can be seen or said about climate phenomena, as well as broader debates on environmental adaptation and climate justice.
In Simple Terms...
To study large collections of news articles to understand how news media talks about heatwaves. Computational text analysis methods help find patterns in the ideas most often linked to extreme heat and reveal how different themes and concepts are framed in relation to each other. In other words, it helps me uncover patterns in how publics describe and make sense of extreme heat, and how these narratives reflect deeper logics about climate, power, and responsiblity.
Case Studies
Supervisors
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Lead Supervisor
Dr Ernesto Schwartz-Marin
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Co-Supervisor
Dr Chico Camargo