Autumn Festivals aglow with inspiring events

Students and staff are at the heart of three festivals spotlighting how the arts, humanities and social sciences inspire, enrich and help us understand our everyday lives.

Experts from Edinburgh are joining an appealing line-up of events for learning and discovery as part of the UK-wide Economic and Social Research Council’s Festival of Social Science from 18 October to 9 November.

The New College Festival of Books and Belief, on 7 and 8 November, will feature acclaimed authors and speakers from all faiths and none, exploring the fascinating relationship between literature and belief.

Researchers have also worked with communities and cultural partners to create inspiring events as part of the Being Human Festival from 6 to 15 November. 

Festival showcase

In Edinburgh the Festival of Social Science culminates on its final weekend with a burst of events about the secrets to work life balance, how to create harmony at home and how to make healthy food choices.

The showcase, on 8 and 9 November, offers a stellar-line up of talks and workshops, craft activities and exhibitions presented by researchers at the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute, at High School Yards from 10am to 4pm.

Highlights include an exhibition and creative activities to help people support their well-being at work and at home, presented by Rowena Piers and Ula Kolinska of Clinical Psychology.

Sarah Foley of Development Psychology is hosting Cut, Colour and Connect, a creative session for adults and children, to share how working families can make time for personal interests and well-being. 

Interactive events

Kirsty Blair of Global Agriculture and Food Systems leads a fun interactive drop-in activity to help uncover how everyday food choices can support people’s health and protect the planet. Kirsty will also be sharing her expertise on the theme at the Being Human Festival. 

In an interactive session social scientists will share research that sheds new light on hybrid work, productivity and inclusion.

Elsewhere, Hands that Toil is an invitation to hear stories from Scotland’s food workers. A range of accessible resources shares insights into how our food is produced and consumed. 

The project Healthy Homes, Healthy Kids gives an opportunity for families to pick up practical tips for a warmer and healthier home.

Victoria Lee of Edinburgh College of Art will be leading a session to help people navigate energy improvement projects in historic homes. 

The 2025 New College Festival of Books and Belief brings together authors, poets, historians, and thinkers for discussions and readings on The Mound.

An illuminating line-up of twelve events across 7 and 8 November are taking place at the home of the School of Divinity with an on-site popup bookshop providing signed copies by the authors.

Author and journalist Abi Millar will discuss her debut book, The Spirituality Gap: Searching for Meaning in a Secular Age, on the opening afternoon. Abi will  share her exploration into practices from ayahuasca to astrology and reiki to raves in her search for spiritual meaning, in conversation with Edinburgh scholar Suzanna Millar.

Acclaimed authors

Professor Shannon Vallor, the Baillie Gifford Chair in the Ethics of Data and Artificial Intelligence will be in conversation with Jeremy Carrette, Head of the School of Divinity, about AI, robotics, and data science, and how these are reshaping human moral character, habits, and practices.

Renowned for his work in ancient history and Persian studies, historian Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones will speak about his new book The Cleopatras: The Forgotten Queens of Egypt. 

Other authors and speakers in the packed programme include prizewinning author and creative writing teacher Manya Wilkinson, who joins playwright and presenter David Neville to talk about time, place, landscape and the lost world of Jewish Poland, and scholar and author Mustafa Briggs, who will discuss his book Islam and The Making of The Modern World with Edinburgh academic Shadaab Rahemtulla.

Exciting line-up

Elsewhere Vanessa Sasson, an academic in the field of Buddhist Studies, will discuss her second novel, the Gathering: A Story of the First Buddhist Women, and award-winning writer and poet Liz MacWhirter will deliver a creative writing workshop and perform her new prose poem set on Iona, Blue: A Lament for the Sea. The event is chaired by poet and Edinburgh scholar Jane McKie. 

Nadine Aisha Jassat, author of the poetry collection Let Me Tell You This, will discuss her writing and creative practice which explores multiple voices, heritage and social justice at an event sponsored by the Scottish Book Trust’s Live Literature fund. 

Literature scene

Edinburgh scholars Greg Walker and Randall Stevenson, the editors of the new Oxford Handbook of Scottish Theatre, discuss the fascinating relationship between religion and Scottish drama with two celebrated figures on the Scottish literature scene, Linda McLean and Donald Smith.

Winner of the inaugural PFD Queer fiction prize, author Niamh Ní Mhaoileoin will share insights from her novel Ordinary Saints, praised for its sensitive and compelling treatment of queerness, grief, humour, family, and the Catholic church in contemporary Ireland. 

A comedy-drama about Artificial Intelligence, new insights into Scotland’s heritage, and a workshop on the future of food are among the offerings at Edinburgh’s Being Human Festival.

The UK’s national festival of the humanities, which runs 6 to 15 November, features academics from the University delivering five events including theatre performances, workshops and exhibitions. 

The potential risks of AI in creative, legal and bureaucratic settings will be given a humorous twist in a production presented in partnership with the Civic Digits Theatre Company and the Scottish Poetry Library.

Other highlights include an exhibition at the University's Inspace Gallery in partnership with the National Library of Scotland, where web archive data are transformed into playful, thought-provoking artworks. 

AI bias in visual and language models will be explored at a joint event with the University of Greenwich at the University's Dugald Stewart Building, with an invitation to collaborate and co-design AI tools to create an artwork.

An art and craft workshop at the Scottish Storytelling Centre will create a friendly and creative space to talk openly about periods and share experiences. 

Being Human is supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the British Academy for universities and researchers to inspire and collaborate with communities across the UK. 

_{Image credit - John Lawson via Getty Images}