Paul Pickering

Paul Pickering is a Professor and Founding Director of the Australian Studies Institute at the Australian National University (ANU), concurrently serving in the School of Politics & International Relations within the Research School of Social Sciences. His career includes roles such as Dean of the College of Arts and Social Sciences (2014-16) and Director of the ANU Centre for European Studies (2010-12). He holds a BA (Hons) and PhD from La Trobe University and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

His research spans British, Irish, and Australian social/political history, public memory, digital humanities, and industrial heritage. Notable works include Chartism and the Chartists in Manchester and Salford, The People's Bread: A History of the Anti-Corn Law League, and Historical Reenactment: From Realism to the Affective Turn. Current projects include studies on urban-industrial heritage and a book on British industrial landscapes (forthcoming 2025).

Recent articles explore digital humanities, social media's role in extremism, and global political dynamics. He has held fellowships at institutions like the University of Edinburgh, Huntington Library, and New York University. Awards include ANU's Excellence in Graduate Supervision (2012).

Advancing interdisciplinary collaboration, he directs the Australian Studies Institute and leads projects such as Heritage in the Limelight (magic lantern history) and Sounds of Liberty (music & 19th-century radicalism). His work bridges academic rigor with public engagement through podcasts like Democracy Sausage.