In spite all my best intentions, since becoming a parent who can't live in one place for more than a few years at a time, my activism has gone to the wayside. The Barefoot Doctoral has not done much to help those without access to education gain access since this blog has existed. My field is abstract enough, that having any sort of real world impact via my work is very unlikely. I live thoroughly within the walls of the ivory tower.
Not so for my partner. His work can potentially have policy implications. He is now in the initial stages of a project that addresses issues of inequality that both he and I care about. We came to Europe, saw things being done differently here than in the US, and wondered why. He realized that he and his colleagues have the knowledge and access to actually study the issue.
I have no delusion that one paper, or set of papers, or even a multi-year grant/research program will have strong policy implications. But it will have more impact than him adding his voice to a crowd marching down a street.
We have both always wondered whether we were making the right decision by entering academia rather than do something "useful" in the world. Watching my partner decide to apply his skills to
issues we would otherwise be simply signing petitions on makes me very proud.
Not so for my partner. His work can potentially have policy implications. He is now in the initial stages of a project that addresses issues of inequality that both he and I care about. We came to Europe, saw things being done differently here than in the US, and wondered why. He realized that he and his colleagues have the knowledge and access to actually study the issue.
I have no delusion that one paper, or set of papers, or even a multi-year grant/research program will have strong policy implications. But it will have more impact than him adding his voice to a crowd marching down a street.
We have both always wondered whether we were making the right decision by entering academia rather than do something "useful" in the world. Watching my partner decide to apply his skills to
issues we would otherwise be simply signing petitions on makes me very proud.
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