Grantham Scholar Dr Mira Lieberman is now a postdoc research assistant for the head of CRAFiC. At the Grantham Centre Mira researched the implementation of extinction accounting in the agrochemical industry through an ecolinguistic framework.
“Being a Grantham Scholar is an honour, not only are you a part of a team of brilliant people, but they are amongst the first line of defence for our planet. I’m maybe simplifying things a little, but what the Grantham Centre is about is essentially life and death. The day-to-day work, symposiums, seminars, training – it is all to ensure the survival of life on Earth.”
Mira Lieberman a Grantham Scholar at the Sheffield University Management School. Mira received an MA in Sociocultural Linguistics from Goldsmiths College, University of London. She is a co-convenor for the International Ecolinguistics Association and is currently on the editorial board of a new ecolinguistics book series with Bloomsbury.
Her interdisciplinary research, supervised by Prof. Jill Atkins and Dr. Robert McKay, addresses mass extinction. The project explores the implementation of the extinction accounting framework in the agrochemical industry. Following the debate on neonicotinoid insecticides’ effect on pollinators, the project extends the concern to other species that may be adversely affected.
The European hedgehog has declined in the last decade by nearly two thirds, with British hedgehogs found to be increasingly absent from arable land due to the intensification of agricultural practices. Loss of hedges and copses coupled with an increased use of biocides reduce prey availability. Hedgehogs are insectivores, feeding on earthworms, beetles, slugs and other invertebrates making them a bio indicator species of soil health and a natural pest control species.
The potential broader impact of biocides on biodiversity beyond pollinators may be a material issue for companies in the crop protection industry. The project analyses integrated reports of multinational agrochemical companies through an ecolinguistic framework. Ecolinguistics explores the role language has in shaping humans’ relationship with the natural world and how the communication practices of companies can contribute to creating a better future. The discourse used to address key ecological crises may shape the way in which we view the solutions, not only to our own survival but to all living beings on Earth.
Grantham Scholar POSTnote on financial risks of nature loss. Grantham Scholar Mira Lieberman and her supervisor Prof Jill Atkins contribute to a POSTnote on financial risks and nature loss. Jill also spoke at the launch event for the POSTnote.
Hedgehogs, ecosophy & extinction accounting – Mira Lieberman interview. We interviewed Mira to learn more about hedgehogs, agrochemical companies and extinction accounting.
You can keep up with Mira by reading her blog, which focuses on ecolinguistics. Read: Sociolinguini.
And Mira wrote one of the most popular blogs to appear on our website: Why Activism Is Our Moral Duty. In this blog, Mira outlines a case for the importance of activism, especially animal rights activism, in and beyond academia.
For International Women’s Day 2018, Mira wrote about how the Grantham Centre has helped her become both an early career researcher and an activist for animal rights. Read: How the Grantham Centre helped me become an early career researcher and activist.
Lieberman, M. (2022) Cultural and religious aspects of extinction governance in the Middle East: Accounting for Camels in Atkins and Macpherson (eds.) Extinction Governance: Implementing a Species Protection Action Plan for the Financial Markets.
Lieberman, M. (2022) Research methods: the role of ecolinguistic analysis in species protection – A toolkit for practitioners and academics in Atkins and Macpherson (eds.) Extinction Governance: Implementing a Species Protection Action Plan for the Financial Markets.