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Biography

Mahlet Getachew Zimeta is a philosopher and writer. She read Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Somerville College, Oxford, and completed an MPhil in Philosophy at King's College, Cambridge. She was received her PhD in Philosophy at University of York where she also served as President of the British Postgraduate Philosophy Association and designed a new "Masterclass" model for research collaboration, funded by the AHRC and supported by the HEA. Her interests span ethics, aesthetics, social theory, and cognitive psychology. Her research focuses on creativity and innovation, on social and cultural transformation, and on intellectual and conceptual revolution. Outside academia, she has worked for a range of leading think tanks and NGOs, including Demos, the Fabian Society, Index on Censorship, and Hostage UK. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, New Statesman and Prospect magazine.

What motivated you to engage with the public?

After completing my PhD I worked in the media and in civil society organisations, with a strong emphasis on social and policy issues, as well as a strong emphasis on engaging in the debates and issues that galvanise and inspire public interest. This has given me a keen awareness of the ways in which HEIs and academic disciplines contribute, or can contribute, to the lives of individuals and to wider society.

Describe the public engagement work you have done

Having worked in a range of sectors, I have had the opportunity to see some of the ways in which HEIs and academic disciplines can, or could, contribute to the lives of individuals and to our shared society. I am keen to help promote and strengthen this dialogue, to the mutual benefit of academics and non-academics. I am also passionate about my discipline – Philosophy – and its exciting potential. I hope that my background as an ethnic minority woman may yield some insights that help HEIs and academic disciplines better engage under-represented or typically marginalized parts of our society such as migrant communities, ethnic minorities, and women.