Section: Staff Profiles

Neil Thin

Name
Dr Neil Thin
Title
Senior Lecturer, Social Anthropology
Organisation
Social Anthropology, School of Social and Political Science
University of Edinburgh
Address
5.27 Chrystal Macmillan Building 15a George Square Edinburgh UK EH8 9LD
Telephone
+44 (0)131 650 3880
E-Mail
URL
http://www.csas.ed.ac.uk/staff_profiles/thin_neil
neil thin

Office Hours During Semester

Tues 9.00-11.00 and Thurs 9.00-11.00

Research Interests

  • happiness and social progress

  • poverty
 and education
  • social development
  • policy and planning

  • human rights

  • civil society

  • forestry
 and environmental change
  • South Asia (Karnataka, Tamil Nadu)

  • Africa (Rwanda)

  • Indonesia
 

PhD Supervision

Interested in supervising students in areas related to:
Social development; happiness; well-being

Biographical Statement

Neil Thin specialises in the application of multidisciplinary happiness and wellbeing scholarship to social planning. He has over 20 years of practical and policy experience working towards the reduction of poverty and promotion of justice and wellbeing in poorer countries, working at all levels from grassroots to governmental and international official agencies.

He has frequently served as a social development adviser and trainer for international development agencies such as the UK Department for International Development, UN Agencies, the World Bank, and international NGOs.

For over 10 years he served as a Director/Trustee of Practical Action [formerly Intermediate Technology Development Group] and latterly also as Chair of Practical Action Publications (formerly ITDG Publications, now incorporating Oxfam Publications). He was also a Director of the Edinburgh Centre for Tropical Forests, Adviser to the Scottish Executive International Development Programme, and to NIDOS, BOND, and the UK National Lottery Charities Board's International Grants Programme, and the Diana Princes of Wales Fund.

Selected Publications

2012 Social Happiness: Research into Policy and Practice. Bristol: Policy Press  http://www.policypress.co.uk/display.asp?K=9781847429193

2012 ‘Anthropology.’ Forthcoming In A.Michalos [ed], Encyclopedia of Quality of Life Research. Dordrecht: Springer http://referencelive.springer.com.qure

2012 ‘Multidimensional concepts of poverty: beyond money, beyond measurement, beyond minimalism’ forthcoming UNESCO/International Association of Universities Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems.

2011 ‘“No-one is unmusical”. Elizabeth, everyday cheermongery, and active musical citizenship.’ International Journal of Wellbeing  ‘Fecilitators Symposium’, Special Issue ed. John Helliwell www.internationaljournalofwellbeing.org/index.php/ijow/issue/view/4

2011 ‘Socially responsible cheermongery: on the sociocultural contexts and levels of social happiness policies.’ In Robert Biswas-Diener (Ed.), Positive Psychology as a Mechanism for Social Change. Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 33-49

2009, ‘Schoolchildren's wellbeing and life prospects: Justifying the universal tax on childhood’ University of Bath Well-being in Developing Countries Working Paper 09/46 http://www.bath.ac.uk/econ-dev/wellbeing/wedworkingpapers.htm

2009, ‘“Autres aptitudes et habitudes diverses”: éducation sentimentale et disposition au bonheur’.[‘“Any other capabilities and habits”: sentimental education and the capability for happiness.’] In Salomé Berthon et al (eds), Ethnologie des Gens Heureux. Cahiers d'Ethnologie de la France, pp. 139-148

2008, ‘Good feelings and good lives: why anthropology can ill afford to ignore well-being’ in Mathews, G. and C. Izquierdo, Pursuits of Happiness: Well-Being in Anthropological Perspective. Berghahn, pp. 23-44

2008,  ‘“Realising the substance of their happiness”: how anthropology forgot about Homo Gauisus.’ in A.Corsin Jimenez [ed], Culture and the Politics of Freedom: the Anthropology of Well-being. London: Pluto Press, pp. 134-155

2007, 'Schooling for Joy? Why International Development Partners Should Search for Happiness in the Processes and Outcomes of Education.' Paper presented to the Wellbeing in International Development conference, University of Bath, June 28-30, 2007. [Session: "Wellbeing and Development Policy and Practice"] 

2006, Food And Agriculture Organization Of The United Nations, Better Forestry, Less Poverty: A Practitioner's Guide   Rome: FAO Forestry Paper 149 ISBN 92-5-105550-5 

2005, ‘Happiness and the sad topics of anthropology’ University of Bath: Wellbeing in Developing Countries Working Paper No.10http://www.welldev.org.uk/research/workingpaperpdf/wed10.pdf

2002, Social Progress and Sustainable Development. London: ITDG Publications 

2001, Branching Out: Joint Forest Management in India. Delhi: OUP (co-authored with Nandini Sundar and Roger Jeffery)


 

 

This page was published on 2 February 2012


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