Blandy, Sarah

I worked on a monograph, to be published in the Palgrave Macmillan Socio-Legal series, which is provisionally titled Common Property: Owning, Sharing, Managing Residential Space.

I have been to Onati before, to attend workshops, and for a very brief period as a visiting scholar in June 2015. I was determined to come back to Onati for a longer period, and was able to do this because my university gave me study leave September 2016-January 2017. The library is second to none and it is a lovely place to work, away from all the usual distractions of university life. Onati is a beautiful town, and its social life in the square and streets is enjoyable to observe and feel part of, even if you don’t speak Basque!

I had never been at the Institute before while the Masters programme was in full swing, and the presence of the students made this visit particularly enjoyable. They are such an interesting and welcoming group of people, from all over the world. I very much enjoyed their company and conversations, and was delighted to be included in the life of the Residencia, especially the wonderful Italian and Polish meals, the celebration of the start of Colombian Christmas, and the collective Advent calendar.

As the book  I was working on while in Onati concerns the development of rules and norms for sharing residential space, this was extraordinarily appropriate! My time as a visiting scholar at the Institute in Onati will get a special acknowledgement in the book.