Public Speaking
I have presented scholarly papers on my research at academic conferences in the UK, Europe, Canada, and the US. I continue to speak about my research in academic settings, but in the past few years I’ve also been focusing on bringing my work to a general audience. Find out about upcoming events and watch the recordings of some of my talks below.
I’m open to invitations for both academic and public talks
Areas of expertise include:
Dr Diletta De Cristofaro
Upcoming Talks & Events
26-27 June 2023
The Cultural Meanings of Insomnia
Keynote presentation at Somnambulations 2: Critical Approaches to Sleep, Montreal, Canada
Selected Past Talks & Events
Understanding and Reimagining Sleep and Its Disorders Workshop Series
In this hybrid workshop series (part of the Reimagining Sleep public engagement project I lead), members of the public met with researchers and an artist to talk about the impact of sleep issues. Together, we discussed ways to increase awareness and improve the wellbeing of people who live with sleep disorders, and produced creative responses about sleep, which will be published in late 2023 as part of an online exhibition.
Hot Takes, A World Sleep Day Roundtable organised by The Sociability of Sleep
On World Sleep Day 2023 (17th March), I had the pleasure of moderating an online roundtable featuring Jayson Porter, Kelton Minor, Arun Kumar, Benjamin Reiss, Devon Bate, and Sarah Barnes. The roundtable was organised by The Sociability of Sleep research-creation project.
Writing Sleep Salon at the Sociability of Sleep
As part of the Sociability of Sleep‘s salons (Université de Montréal / McGill University, Canada), I gave a talk about the writing of sleep. I was in conversation with Julie Flygare, President and CEO of Project Sleep.
Sleep Stories and the Science of Sleep
I chaired the launch event of the “Sleep Stories” commission at Durham Book Festival 2021 with Salena Godden, Professor Jason Ellis, and Dr Erik Hoel. The video below collects some highlights of our conversation.
Il sonno è in crisi? Che cosa ci dice la cultura contemporanea
A talk in Italian at MEETmeTONIGHT 2021, part of the European Researchers’ Night, a Europe-wide event that aims at making research accessible to the general public.
Are We in a Sleep Crisis? Perspectives from Contemporary Culture
An online public lecture I gave at The Lit & Phil in June 2021.
Forty Winks Café
An online public event on sleep health and contemporary culture I organised for Being Human Festival 2020, the UK’s only national festival of the humanities. The event featured talks by myself, Professor Katy Shaw and Professor Jason Ellis, and was chaired by Claire Malcolm of New Writing North. Thanks to our attendees’ and speakers’ suggestions, we crowd-sourced a list of recommended books, films, and videos featuring sleep – you can download it here.
God After God: Coupland, McLuhan, and Divine Absence in the Digital Age
A writers’ panel organised by Image Journal for the online conference Douglas Coupland and the Art of the ‘Extreme Present’ (April 2021). Below you can watch my pre-recorded remarks and the live conversation featuring myself, Nick Ripatrazone, Meghan O’Gieblyn, and Lisa Cockrel.
Thirty Years of Generation X
A video roundtable with myself, Andrew Tate, Mary MacCampbell, Shumon Basar and Makoto Fujimura. This roundtable is part of a cluster of essays, published by ASAP/J in November 2020, celebrating the 2021 30-year anniversary of the publication of Douglas Coupland’s debut novel Generation X.
The “Apocalypse” of 9/11: Cormac McCarthy’s The Road
Talk at Liceo Banfi, Vimercate, Italy, May 2021. The talk is in English, with the introduction and Q&A in Italian.
“I don’t believe in the future. I think we’re all doomed”: The Contemporary Apocalyptic Imagination
Gold Room Lecture, Harlaxton College, November 2016.
Applying for Wellcome Trust Funding: My Experience
Talk at #ECRday2021: Academic Opportunities after the PhD: Postdocs, Fellowships & More, July 2021. The panel below features talks by myself, Dr Anna Pilz, and Dr Katie Mishler.