Dr. Gemma Edwards

Biography

Gemma Edwards is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Manchester, where she has worked since 2007. Her expertise lies in social movements, protest, qualitative and mixed social network analysis, and critical social theory. Gemma has researched a variety of historical and contemporary social movements, including climate activism and public sector trade unions, with a particular focus on how interpersonal social networks shape participation in high-risk forms of activism, especially among women. She has pioneered mixed-method approaches to social network analysis in the study of social movements and has provided training workshops on this subject. As a co-founder of the research group movements@manchester, Gemma has been involved in significant projects exploring the intersection of religion, theology, and climate change. Her teaching includes courses on social theory and social movements, and she has served as the Undergraduate Programmes Director in Sociology. Gemma's contributions to the field have been recognized through awards, including the University Teaching Excellence Award in 2015.

Research Interests