Crafting Heritage for Well-Being in Iraq

This project explores the nexus of crafting, heritage and well-being for survivors of conflict in Iraq, which has one psychiatric hospital for 38 million people. It brings together a team with interdisciplinary expertise in arts, heritage and psychology from the UK and Iraq. A key aim is to create a robust evidence-base for arts and crafts in improving personal and social well-being. The project seeks to demonstrate to Iraqi stakeholders and policy makers that such reflective practices play a critical role in fragile post-conflict contexts. The project is geared towards determining the specific ways in which engaging with heritage through craft can help rebuild the personal and social well-being and dignity that are key to underpinning sustainable, inclusive peace in Iraq. 

Research Team: Dr Zena Kamash, Royal Holloway, University of London; Dr Emma Claire Palmer-Cooper, University of Southampton; Dr Alana Marie Levinson-LaBrosse, American University of Iraq