Spotlight on: Dr Megan Donaldson
This month's UCL Laws Staff Spotlight is on Dr Megan Donaldson, who joined at the beginning of the academic year as Lecturer.
Lecturer in Public International Law
Tell us about your role at UCL Laws and how long you’ve been in post.
I joined UCL in September 2019. I mainly teach International Criminal Law in the LLM, and some portions of Public International Law in the LLB. From next year, I hope to also teach a new LLM module in Histories of International Law, which will complement UCL's terrific specialist international law modules and legal history modules.
What drew you to UCL Laws?
UCL has real strengths in Public International Law, and it's a very interesting and distinctive law school in terms of its history. I also liked the idea of being in the heart of London (and despite the pressure this places on our lecture space I do love the feeling of walking around Bloomsbury and knowing that at any given time of day there's teaching going on on both sides of the pavement and probably underneath it too).
What do you enjoy most about your role?
Colleagues and students. UCL is a very warm place. There's a huge amount of energy in Bentham House. And I'm finding the transition to a teaching position from a postdoc very rewarding intellectually. This is not an easy time to teach international law and particularly international criminal law with any sense of optimism - but that means I'm always very conscious of the stakes of how we think about particular issues, developments, institutions. And thinking about all that feeds back into the more historical work that I pursue in my research.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
Reading, traveling, walking, cooking (though not well enough that I have a signature dish!)
What's your favourite place you've ever travelled to and why?
I spent half a year in Paris when I was first an undergraduate, in a relatively unstructured program, and knowing no one really in the city, and I have very happy memories of that time - it was quite all-consuming to be speaking and to some extent thinking in another language. But in fact I moved quite a lot as a child, both in Australia and overseas, so favourite places are actually places I associated with 'home', although I didn't spend an enormous amount of time there - mostly the region near my maternal grandparents' house, in country Victoria; their garden and orchard and the paddocks around there.
If you were hosting a dinner party or entertaining guests, what would be your signature dish?
I think anyone who has been hosted in my various apartments over the years would be glad to have their own plate and fork; I'm not sure signature dishes are in the offing. Now that I'm cooking more I'm quite keen on baking - not cakes but just roasting huge quantities of vegetables. Also fruit, sometimes grains ... it's quite an experimental phase.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Maybe to worry a bit less. And to keep better notes of what I read because I am constantly going back through piles of paper for a half-remembered quote. But I wasn't really good at taking advice.
What would it surprise people to know about you?
I can't drive a car but anyone who's seen me play sports probably is not surprised by this.
Who should we shine a spotlight on next?
In each issue of the UCL Laws staff newsletter, we will be shining a spotlight on a member of the Faculty so you can find out more about the people who make up the UCL Laws community.
Let us know who you'd like to see in next month's issue of the newsletter!
Who should we shine a spotlight on next?
In each issue of the UCL Laws staff newsletter, we will be shining a spotlight on a member of the Faculty so you can find out more about the people who make up the UCL Laws community.
Email your suggestions for who you would like to see in the next 'Spotlight on', or if you'd like to be featured!