SOAS’s anthropologist recognised for significant contribution to advancing human dignity
The Council of the Royal Anthropological Institute (RAI) has announced the award of the prestigious Lucy Mair Medal to SOAS University of London Professor of Social Anthropology David Mosse.
The Lucy Mair Medal is awarded to anthropologists who have made significant contributions to applied anthropology, particularly in advancing human dignity. Professor Mosse has been recognised for his leadership in the area of anthropology and mental health.
His work has not only furthered academic understanding but has also contributed to the improvement of mental health practices and policies. He is a researcher with extensive publications on the anthropology of religion, environment, development, and caste in India.
Earlier this year, Professor David Mosse and Dr Nikita Simpson received an £8m grant from Research England to understand and address inequalities in access to mental health care, challenges in provision, and deficits in the experience and overall outcomes of care.
It is a great honour for Professor Mosse to be recognised by the Royal Anthropological Institute for his enormous contributions over many years to the practice of anthropology and its applications in the wider worlds of policy and mental health care
Professor Laura Hammond, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange at SOAS, said: “It is a great honour for Professor Mosse to be recognised by the Royal Anthropological Institute for his enormous contributions over many years to the practice of anthropology and its applications in the wider worlds of policy and mental health care. We are immensely proud of David and happy to be a host for the new Centre for Anthropology and Mental Health Research that he and Dr Simpson are leading.”
Professor Mosse is a Fellow of the British Academy and has worked with Oxfam in South India and other development agencies. His interests include mental health, cultural psychiatry, caste and Dalit rights, development, environmental history, and South Asian society. He has also conducted a project on caste in the modern economy and development in India, and anti-discrimination law in the UK.
The Lucy Mair Medal, named after the distinguished British anthropologist, honors those who have significantly advanced the application of anthropological insights to real-world problems.
The award will be presented by RAI President Deborah Swallow during the Annual General Meeting (AGM), scheduled for 24th October at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. At the AGM, Professor Mosse will also deliver a speech highlighting his work and its impacts.
