The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust has awarded 150 travelling Fellowships across the UK and 13 of the grants, totalling almost £80,060, have been awarded to people in Scotland.
Fellows will travel to 11 countries and four continents between them, where they will carry out a wide range of projects. The average length of a Fellowship is six weeks.
This year’s Scottish Fellows include several from Edinburgh :
Kate Holl, a Land-use Adviser from Edinburgh, who will be travelling to France, Iceland and Norway to investigate protection of flowers and flowering plants in sites similar to the Scottish uplands.
Niki Powers, a Chartered Psychologist and Managing Director from Edinburgh, who will be travelling to the USA to investigate services for teenagers affected by trauma.
Lyndsay Fraser Robertson, a Family Support Worker from Edinburgh, who will be travelling to the USA to investigate approaches to supporting families affected by substance misuse.
Anna Raymond, from Glasgow, and Project Manager and Community Consultant for creative consultancy Pidgin Perfect, who will be travelling to Canada and the USA to investigate approaches to empowering women from disadvantaged backgrounds to work in the design sector.
Matt Fountain, from Glasgow, and Managing Director of the social enterprise Freedom Bakery, who will be travelling to Italy and the USA to research social enterprises employing disadvantaged people.
Rose Filippi, a Community Development Worker from Glasgow, who will be travelling to Belgium and Germany to observe programmes which use the arts as a tool for refugee integration.
Dr Michael Ng, a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon from Glasgow, who will be travelling to Finland to study best practice in gender reaffirmation surgery services.
Anne MacDonald, a policy worker from Inverness, who will be travelling to Canada and the USA to investigate new models of business that deliver social and economic impact.
Martin Malcolm, from the Isle of Lewis, and Head of Public Health Intelligence with NHS Western Isles, who will be travelling to Canada and New Zealand to explore approaches to tackling social isolation and loneliness in rural communities.
Ellie MacLennan, a Marine Conservation Researcher from the Isle of Skye, who will be travelling to Canada and the USA to investigate measures aimed at preventing marine mammals from dying as a result of entanglement in fishing gear.
Dr Hannah Grist, a Marine Ecologist from Oban, who will be travelling to Germany and the USA to study efforts to improve the general public’s understanding of science through involving them in scientific research.
Steven Gray, a Science Educator from Broxburn, West Lothian, who will be travelling to the USA to film a solar eclipse using a 360° camera and use this to engage people in astronomy.
Since its inception in February 1965, 5,400 ordinary men and women have been awarded Churchill Fellowships, from over 100,000 applicants.
The ethos remains the same five decades on – for individuals to visit different parts of the world in pursuit of new and better ways of tackling a wide range of social, environmental, medical and scientific issues.
The new approaches and innovative ideas with which they return are shared to benefit their local and regional communities, and, in many cases, the nation.
Experienced news, business, arts, sport and travel journalist. Food critic and managing editor of a well-established food and travel website. Also a magazine editor of publications with circulations of up to 200,000 and managing director of a long-established PR/marketing company with a string of blue-chip clients in its CV. Former communications lecturer at a Scottish university and social media specialist for a string of successful and busy SMEs.
