Dr Rachel Hunt and Dr Willow Mullins worked with Earth Fellow Freya Buckley to explore the multifaceted concept of seasons.
Exploring seasonal change
Edinburgh Earth Initiative’s Earth Fellows programme enables University of Edinburgh researchers to further their climate and environment research aims with the support of a postgraduate student intern. In 2025 Dr Rachel Hunt and Dr Willow Mullins worked with Earth Fellow Freya Buckley to explore the multifaceted concept of seasons.
Willow and Rachel had noticed an upsurge in scholars interested in questions such as: what is a season? How are people engaging with seasons? And how are seasons changing? Their project aimed to investigate the temporal, social, and ecological dimensions of seasons and to build an interdisciplinary network of scholars.
Building collaborative networks
Central to the project was the organisation of a workshop and writing retreats that convened a diverse group of participants, including scholars from museum studies, archive management, and the arts, as well as PhD students from multiple disciplines. These events provided a platform for exchanging ideas and exploring how various disciplines perceive and engage with the concept of seasons. The Earth Fellow, Freya, played a pivotal role in orchestrating these gatherings and setting up an email network that continue to facilitate connections in seasons research beyond the end of Freya’s project.
Role and impact of the Earth Fellow
Freya wrote a comprehensive literature review as well as establishing the seasons research support network. Freya’s work helped sustain the project’s momentum. Her coordination efforts and enthusiasm acted as an anchor, ensuring consistent progress amid the academic pressures of the year. So far, Rachel and Willow have found the interdisciplinary support workshop ideal for helping researchers develop their thoughts, highlighting where ways of thinking about seasons originate from particular disciplines.
Advice for hosting an Earth Fellow
“If possible, pick a candidate who is really interested in the specifics of what you are trying to do, as this helps a lot with motivation for tasks like literature reviews. Try to be cognisant of the career stage of the student you’re working with and have some initial meetings that establish what type of support and supervision is needed” – Dr Rachel Hunt, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Humanities, School of Geosciences
Interested in hosting an Earth Fellow?
This project exemplifies the significant impact that Earth Fellows can have on research initiatives, including facilitating interdisciplinary collaboration and sustaining project momentum.
To host an Earth Fellow, get in touch with Earth Fellows programme manager Chloe Francis (chloe.francis@ed.ac.uk) to discuss your project. Or look out for our annual call for project proposals in April 2026.
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Get the lowdown on the role and impact of Earth Fellows – hear from our research partners across a range of interdisciplinary projects and meet the latest cohort of talented student collaborators.
