About
Dr Eleanor Wilkinson is an Interdisciplinary Senior Research Fellow in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Sheffield and co-director of the Sheffield Gender Research Network. Previously Associate Professor of Human Geography at the University of Southampton, she held prestigious fellowships including ESRC Future Research Leader and British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow, with visiting positions at Örebro University and University of Sydney.
Her academic background includes a BA in English and American Studies, an MA in Gender Studies, and a PhD in Human Geography.
As a feminist cultural and social geographer, Wilkinson investigates the political life of emotions and affect in intimate life, power structures, and ideological norms. Her research examines how normative ideals of the 'good life' falter and how new affective relationalities challenge power. Current projects include a monograph on the feminist politics of loneliness and a European study on LGBTQ+ youth wellbeing during crises and anti-gender populism, emphasizing how disaffection and ambivalence can foster social transformation.
Her publication record reveals consistent focus on feminist and queer geographies, with recurring themes of housing precarity, loneliness, and social transformation. Articles bridge cultural, social, and political geography with gender studies and affect theory, particularly analyzing austerity's impact on domestic life for marginalized groups through intersectional frameworks.
Scientific recognition includes:
- ESRC Future Research Leader Fellowship
- British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship
- ESRC Impact Acceleration Award
Wilkinson actively supervises doctoral students and mentors postdocs in feminist/queer geographies, critical loneliness studies, and participatory methodologies. Her grant portfolio features an ESRC-funded project (2015-2019) on austerity's slow violence in housing and an ESRC Impact Acceleration award for collaborative work with the Young Women’s Trust on young women's housing experiences.
Through leadership in the Sheffield Gender Research Network and the European 'LGBTQ+ youth wellbeing' project, she cultivates interdisciplinary collaboration on gender, sexuality, and social justice.
