Projects per year
Personal profile
Research Statement
Anna Bryson is a Professor in the School of Law and a Fellow at the Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice. She was appointed Director of Research for QUB Law in 2023.
Her most recent research has developed at the intersection of socio-legal studies, transitional justice and oral history. A strong commitment to social justice underpins the diverse interdisciplinary projects she has developed over the years. She has a strong track record for research impact and won a Vice-Chancellor’s award for her contribution to a 4* Impact Case Study for REF 2021. This helped to place QUB Law joint-first in the UK for impact.
She is currently working on two RCUK funded projects - 'Enhancing Democratic Habits: An Oral History of the Law Centre Movement' (AHRC-funded collaboration with colleagues at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford, and the British Library) and 'Apologies and Dealing with the Past' (Principal Investigator on ESRC Impact Acceleration grant). A British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship supported the completion of her fifth book (forthcoming with OUP) titled ‘Conflict and Civility: Memory, Identity and Dealing with the Past in Northern Ireland’.
Anna has previously been co-Investigator on a number of externally funded research projects including ‘Apologies, Abuses and Dealing with the Past: A Socio-Legal Analysis’ (ESRC) and ‘Brexit and Northern Ireland: The Constitutional, Conflict Transformation, Human Rights and Equality Consequences’ (ESRC). The co-authored monograph (with K. McEvoy and L. Mallinder) arising from an ESRC-funded international comparative project on ‘Lawyers in Conflict and Transition’ was published by Cambridge University Press in March 2022.
Prior to her appointment to QUB Law in 2014, Anna was involved in a series of research projects exploring various aspects of the history and legacy of conflict (including, as co-PI, the €1.1million EU-funded ‘Peace Process: Layers of Meaning’ project). She has significant expertise in the theory and practice of oral history and has to date conducted more than 200 substantial interviews with a wide range of individuals including victims and survivors, former security force personnel, ex-combatants and former prisoners, lawyers, politicians and senior government officials. She is the Northern Ireland representative for the Oral History Society and provides accredited training on behalf of the organisation.
In 2020 Anna was elected as Chair of the independent human rights organisation, the Committee on the Administration of Justice. She is also a member of the AHRC Peer Review College. In 2021 she was a Visiting Scholar at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies at the University of Oxford.
In recognition of her successful delivery of a range of modules at undergraduate and post-graduate level and the fact that her career is grounded in 'an integrated approach to teaching and research leadership' she was appointed Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in July 2021.
As Director of Research for the School of Law, Anna works closely with colleagues at School and Faculty level to help cultivate world-leading research that addresses both local and global challenges. She is the QUB staff representative for the Knowledge Exchange Seminar Series at Stormont and is an active member of the Board of the Socio-Legal Studies Association (and the Impact Award committee). Drawing on her previous experience as Chair of the QUB Law ethics committee she was appointed to the Royal Irish Academy’s ‘Ethical, Political, Legal and Philosophical Studies Committee’ for the 2022-26 term.
Anna’s impact work on dealing with the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland has involved intense and sustained engagement politicians, policymakers and victims to provide them with accessible legal and policy commentary. Outputs from the collaboration have included authoring over 30 policy documents and blogs, drafting ‘model legislation’, writing responses to government consultations and providing free technical legal and policy advice to key stakeholders in Northern Ireland (victims and survivors, civil society organisations, the British and Irish governments, political parties, veterans, former combatants, the British Army, the PSNI, religious leaders, politicians) as well the British and Irish governments and international actors e.g. Council of Europe, US Congress and the United Nations. With colleagues, she has organised twenty public seminars and six major conferences (attended by senior representatives of the British and Irish governments). Anna has given expert evidence to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Good Friday Agreement (2018), the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (2020, 2022) and the US House Foreign Affairs sub-committee on Europe (2022) and has contributed extensively to media analysis of issues relevant to her research (television, radio, blogs).
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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R1244LAW: Enhancing Democratic Habits: An Oral History of the Law Centre Movement
Bryson, A. (PI) & McEvoy, K. (CoI)
06/07/2022 → …
Project: Research
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R1293LAW: Conflict and Civility: Memory, Identity and Dealing with the Past in Northern Ireland
Bryson, A. (PI)
22/03/2022 → …
Project: Research
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R1378LAW: Apologies and 'Dealing with the Past'
Bryson, A. (PI)
14/04/2021 → 31/12/2022
Project: Research
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R1764LAW: Brexit and Northern Ireland: The Constitutional, Conflict Transformation, Human Rights and Equality Consequences
Harvey, C. (PI), Bryson, A. (CoI) & McEvoy, K. (CoI)
04/04/2017 → 31/03/2019
Project: Research
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R1599LAW: Apologies, Abuses and Dealing with the Past: A Socio-Legal Analysis
McEvoy, K. (PI), Bryson, A. (CoI), MacCarthaigh, M. (CoI) & McAlinden, A.-M. (CoI)
01/03/2016 → 30/11/2021
Project: Research
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Apologies in transitional justice
McEvoy, K. & Bryson, A., 11 Aug 2023, Research handbook on transitional justice. Lawther, C. & Moffett, L. (eds.). 2nd ed. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd, p. 306-323Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
Open AccessFile2 Citations (Scopus)244 Downloads (Pure) -
Human rights activism and transitional justice advocacy in Northern Ireland
Bryson, A. & McEvoy, K., 07 Nov 2023, (Early online date) In: International Journal of Transitional Justice.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Oral history and education in Northern Ireland: Kate Melvin in conversation with Anna Bryson, Denver Charles, Lesley Emerson, Alan McCully and Sean O’Connell
Bryson, A., 01 Apr 2023, In: Oral History. 51, 1, p. 128-144 17 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review
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The role of oral testimony in truth and clarification commissions: history, memory and the law
Bryson, A., 25 Feb 2023, (In preparation) The Bloomsbury handbook of oral history. Thomson, A., Freund, A. & Jessee, E. (eds.). Sydney: Bloomsbury AcademicResearch output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
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A battle for truth and justice (invited review of UK Legacy and Reconciliation Bill for Amnesty International)
Bryson, A. & McEvoy, K., 01 Aug 2022, Amnesty International Newsletter, Autumn 2022 2 p.Research output: Contribution to specialist publication › Article
Prizes
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Appointed Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Authority
Bryson, A. (Recipient), 23 Jun 2021
Prize: Fellowship awarded competitively
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Article Shortlisted for Socio-Legal Studies Association Article Prize of the Year 2022
Bryson, A. (Recipient) & McEvoy, K. (Recipient), 05 Apr 2022
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Awarded British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship 2022-23
Bryson, A. (Recipient), 2022
Prize: Fellowship awarded competitively
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Awarded CAST Cohort Collaborative PhD Studentships (Funded by the Department of the Economy)
Bryson, A. (Recipient), 2022
Prize: Other distinction
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Awarded Government of Ireland Scholarship (Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences)
Bryson, A. (Recipient), 1999
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Activities
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Invited panel member for Féile an Phobail Debate on UK Government Public History Project and Controversial Legacy Act
Bryson, A. (Invited speaker)
08 Aug 2024Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
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Invited Speaker at International Symposium in New York on Post-Conflict Stage and Screen in Northern Ireland ("Oral History and Reconciliation: Speaking, Truth and Power")
Bryson, A. (Invited speaker)
30 Apr 2024Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited or keynote talk at national or international conference
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Post-Conflict Stage and Screen in Northern Ireland - American Irish Historical Society, New York
Bryson, A. (Invited speaker)
30 Apr 2024Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in conference
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Invited to Address Members of the West Belfast Heritage Forum on 'Oral History, Reconciliation and the NI Legacy Act'
Bryson, A. (Invited speaker)
26 Feb 2024Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
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Invited to brief members of the Pat Finucane Centre on Part IV of the NI (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act
Bryson, A. (Invited speaker)
06 Feb 2024Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in conference
Press/Media
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Reconciliation and the Legacy Act: A Human Rights Perspective
01/07/2024
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
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Interviewed for Times Higher feature on relationship between UK government public history project and controversial Legacy Act
03/05/2024
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
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Reconciliation and the Northern Ireland Legacy Act: A Human Rights Perspective – Part 1
02/05/2024
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Public Engagement Activities
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Reconciliation and the Northern Ireland Legacy Act: A Human Rights Perspective – Part 2
02/05/2024
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Public Engagement Activities
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Interviewed for Irish News feature on British government’s ‘Public history’ of the Troubles project
25/04/2024
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
Impacts
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Co-author of 4* Impact Case Study for REF 2021
Bryson, A. (Participant), McEvoy, K. (Participant) & Mallinder, L. (Participant)
Impact: Public Policy Impact
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Invited to Give Expert Evidence to Northern Ireland Affairs Committee at Westminster
Bryson, A. (Participant)
Impact: Public Policy Impact
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Invited to Give Expert Evidence to US House Foreign Affairs Committee on "Truth and Accountability for Victims of the Troubles in Northern Ireland"
Bryson, A. (Participant)
Impact: Public Policy Impact
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Invited to Give Private Briefing to Members of NI Affairs Committee on UK Government Proposals on the Legacy of Conflict in Northern Ireland
Bryson, A. (Participant)
Impact: Public Policy Impact