Help fund a disabled neuroqueer student's PhD!

Hi, there! I am Srestha, a disabled and neuroqueer person from West Bengal, India. I am a first generation academic and artist who is currently training to be a cognitive neuroscientist by pursuing a PhD in Cognition, Behaviour & Neuroscience in Vienna.

As a second-generation refugee with a working class background, the editor of Shiuli (an art magazine that aims to preserve culturally rich heritages of global myths and folklore) and the co-founder of the Feminist Alliance Book Club (that prioritises intersectionality) - my interests and lived experiences have made me fiercely passionate about the empowerment of socially marginalised communities, especially through the medium of art.

As a queer disabled person, I always try to strongly advocate for disability and LGBTQ+ rights. Naturally, I am also passionate about mental health advocacy, especially involving those with marginalised and intersectional identities like myself. I have been a mental health crisis worker and activist for more than five years now. My previous experiences include those of being a PVG Scotland-certified volunteer for Volunteering Matters, the DEI officer at Stirling Nightline, and an international Student Ambassador of the University of Stirling.

‎‎‎‎

‎‎‎‎

By donating to my fundraiser, you will enable me to become the first person in my whole family and community to pursue a PhD!!! You will also help fund crucial cognitive research at the intersection of the arts and psychological sciences that may have practical, real-life implications for reducing social discrimination against refugees, asylum-seekers, and migrants (e.g., racism, xenophobia, etc.)! How AWESOME is that?! To know more about my research, see below. (Please feel free to get in touch with me via email if you have further questions!)

Why I’m fundraising for my PhD: I am currently enrolled in the prestigious and competitive Cognition, Behaviour & Neuroscience PhD Programme of the Vienna Doctoral School (VDS CoBeNe) at the University of Vienna, pursuing my dream PhD research topic of cognitive and neuroaesthetics, in collaboration with a PhD advisor of my top choice!

Sadly, the PhD position is not currently funded. The general PhD Fellowship Programme of the University of Vienna (i.e. the fellowship I originally intended to fund my PhD with), was suspended indefinitely (from 2020 onwards) due to the worsening cost of living crisis resulting from the ongoing inflation and wars. Moreover, my application for the CoBeNe PhD pooled call was also unsuccessful last year. As a result, I am having to arrange for funds externally for the time being. I have also applied to several smaller research grants, and if I am successful, they will only cover some of my research-related expenses but NOT my personal living expenses (e.g. research and conference travel costs, material costs, participant fees, etc.). Also, securing funding in Austria as a non-EU/international student is especially very difficult as many grant applications have special requirements I cannot fulfil because of my immigrant status and nationality.

Why I need the money URGENTLY: As an international (non-EU) student in Austria, I have to renew my residence permit every year. For successful renewal of the permit, it is mandatory to show evidence of sufficient funds for the following calendar year, which is ≈ €16000. I’m required to show this entire amount upfront when I apply for my renewal later this year (Nov/Dec). So, it is very important that this fundraiser reach its goal before that!

Note: Bank account statements (showing the required balance) count as valid evidence of funds when a job contract is n/a. As my PhD position is not currently funded, I do not have a prae-doc job contract that I can provide as evidence.

Why this fundraiser is extremely crucial: Doing a PhD in neuroaesthetics has been a long-term dream of mine, and I am strongly determined to bring it to fruition. However, being disabled and chronically ill, it is not possible for me to work part-time and simultaneously pursue a full-time intensive PhD degree - especially given the fact that I was forced to take a complete break from academia for two years (2020-2022) due to the severity of my illnesses. So, the fundraiser money would financially sustain me until I secure a research fellowship or apply for additional financial aid in the meantime, without having to compromise on my physical and mental health. It would also help me cover additional living costs associated with my disability and accessibility support needs (e.g. private consultation fees of doctors and clinical professionals not covered by ÖGK health insurance).

How the money will be used: Besides acting as evidence of sufficient funds for my residence permit renewal, the fundraiser money will directly go towards: the tuition fee for the next two semesters of my PhD, my living expenses in Vienna, and travel expenses between Vienna and Kanchrapara.

Cost Breakdown of Yearly Expenses

University tuition fee for non-EU students: €1498.84 (€749.42/semester)

Living Expenses (for 2024-25):

Living costs in Vienna: €16058.88 (€1338.24/month)

OeGK student health insurance: €829.56 (€69.13/month)

Annual ticket pass for public transport in Vienna (Jahreskarte): €365

Prescription & OTC medicine expenses ≈ €200 (€17/month)

1 round trip Vienna <> Kanchrapara: €1000

Gross yearly expenses: €19952.28

Note: The living cost includes the rent excess amount calculated according to the OeAD website.

Fundraiser goal : €18000

‎‎‎‎

‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎ ‎‎‎‎

My PhD research - why it is extremely important and needs to be funded:

My chosen PhD topic in cognitive and neuroaesthetics will explore how art can positively transform people’s attitudes towards refugees, immigrants & asylum seekers, and try to identify potential art-based interventions for societal challenges of discrimination and prejudice. Additionally, throughout my PhD, I will use a decolonial research approach by active collaboration with stakeholders and artists from refugee or migrant backgrounds, including organising critical reflection workshops. The main objective of the workshops is to come up with actionable outcomes that can be easily incorporated into European/Western academic research practices to directly combat prevailing systemic disparities, starting from a very grassroots level‎‎‎‎.

This PhD project may be one of the first endeavours in cross-cultural neuroaesthetics to explore the intersections of art, cognitive psychology, and marginalised populations with hopes of efficiently implementing art’s transformative role in the society. The implications of this project not only benefit transdisciplinary and cross-cultural neuroaesthetics research, but may also provide real-life actionable interventions to contemporary and urgent societal challenges like xenophobia, racism, or even class disparities.

At their core, I believe that both arts and sciences cherish intuition, creativity, diversity, and community. Engaging with either is not a solitary event. With your financial support and through my research, we can together harness the potential of the arts to bring people together, and understand the enigmatic ‘human condition’ better than ever.

I sincerely hope you consider helping me out, as every cent helps me edge a little closer to manifesting my dream!

Best wishes,

Srestha.