We are delighted to announce that Dr Rogelio Luque-Lora, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow within the School of GeoSciences, has been awarded the top prize of £10,000 through the Royal Society of Literature Giles St Aubyn Awards for Non-Fiction. Awarded for the first time in 2017, the three annual prizes – £10,000, £5,000, and £2,500 – are made possible through a bequest from author and RSL Fellow Giles St Aubyn (1925-2015). The award provides financial support for new writers to complete their first non-fiction book, aimed at a mainstream audience. Dr Luque-Lora’s prize will support the development of his project, provisionally titled, 'LAND: A History of Belonging', which will be published by Manchester University Press in Summer 2027.Please join us in congratulating Dr Luque-Lora on this incredible achievement. Summary of 'LAND: A History of Belonging' This book is a search for humans’ place in the land, and for the land’s place in human lives. How has using animals, plants and soils to meet our needs made us who we are? How should we relate to beings and landscapes for which we have not always found a use – wolves, marshes, uplands? What is lost when a landscape vanishes, or when humans vanish from it – memories, cultures, identities? LAND: A History of Belonging explores these questions by combining philosophy, literature and geography with a series of journeys in Spain, Scotland, the USA and Australia. Related links View the project webpage for Land: A History of Belonging and Value Find out more about the RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards for Non-Fiction Find out more about the Royal Society of Literature View Dr Rogelio Luque-Lora's research profile Publication date 19 Dec, 2025
