I never really know whether to mention events good and early (and run the risk of people forgetting all about them before they happen) or closer to the time, by which time diaries may already be full. Anyway, here goes with no fewer than three events next Thursday, 24th February.

1. At 14:00 UK time that day, Simon Borg will be giving a talk for Aqueduto, the Association for Quality Education and Training Online https://aqueduto.com/about-aqueduto/, on COVID-19 and the Shift to Online Teacher Education. Register here https://bit.ly/34y6YaQ PDF of Simon’s abstract below.

2. The second event next Thursday, 24th February, at 19:30 UK time, is an interview with Abdulrazak Gurnah, who recently won the Nobel Prize for Literature “for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism and the fate of the refugee in the gulf between cultures and continents”, talking about ‘After the Nobel Prize for Literature’. On YouTube, so no need to register https://youtu.be/tN7IfgNIe0g

I could imagine his life has changed quite a lot in the last three months! And just in case you’re interested, here’s a list of all the Literature winners since 1901 https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/lists/all-nobel-prizes-in-literature/

3. The third one sounds intriguing – A Narrative context lesson: The Class is the Story. Earlier in the day, at 11:00 UK time on 24th February; more info and registration here https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/a-narrative-context-lesson-class-story

4. ‘Belonging inclusion and mental health are all connected’ is the title of this WONKHE blog post, which reports on recent research by WONKHE and Pearson with over 5,000 university students https://wonkhe.com/blogs/belonging-inclusion-and-mental-health-are-all-connected/ “It’s been known for at least a decade that feeling a “sense of belonging” while at university can make or break students’ overall experience” – it’s the ‘key variable’. PDF of report below.

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5. Here’s a good short clear (adjective order OK?) piece on the current Ukraine crisis from Robin Niblett of Chatham House: https://www.chathamhouse.org/2022/02/russias-end-games-and-putins-dilemmas

6. And, finally, a high-flying wheelie bin from earlier today somewhere in London https://twitter.com/putasinghonit/status/1494349347470954503?s=20&t=KfbJf5iUiXhUqUI2cLXq6A

In Cambridge thus far – thus far – we’ve got off very lightly!