Olalekan Aduloju is a 2020 Commonwealth PhD Scholar from Nigeria studying at the University of Chester. His research focuses on brownfield sites in Nigeria and explores how urban planners address the contested issue of brownfield development.
Olalekan presented his research at the CSC’s 65th Anniversary Impact Showcase Reception in November 2024.
Before taking up his scholarship, Olalekan worked as a lecturer at the University of Ilorin.
How would you describe your Commonwealth Scholarship experience in three words?
Empowering, exciting, inspiring.
Before starting your scholarship, what did you hope to achieve?
Firstly, I hoped to pursue my doctoral studies, exposing me to new concepts and methodologies. Secondly, I was keen on attending conferences, academic seminars, and workshops to support and strengthen my doctoral pursuits. Thirdly, I envisaged attracting teaching opportunities and joining an interdisciplinary research lab alongside my doctoral pursuit that would strengthen my teaching credentials and deepen my research depth. Lastly, I hoped to improve and increase my research output in peer-reviewed, high-impact journals.
How do you see your research making a difference in the world?
My research employs new conceptual frameworks (urban political ecology and slow violence) to highlight the negative socio-ecological impacts of brownfields (previously developed lands) which are are often slow, concealed, brutal, and out of sight. Not only does it propose to rethink politically or imaginatively what previous accounts gloss over, it also draws attention to the many deprived geographies living on these sites, specifically in Nigeria.
The research also advocates for ‘slow observation’ and the use of virtual methodologies to understand how brownfields socio-ecologically reconstruct urban landscapes.
What are your hopes for the future?
We predict the future by creating it. The things that give me hope are determined by the chances I get to effect change through my chosen assignment.
Getting research citation alerts beyond the shores of my studies drives me to do more. An invitation to collaborate and review for high-impact journals gives me hope. Random messages from past and present students encourages me. My hope is inspired by those little things that deliver impact. Everyday relevance is a sign of a bright future.
What is your message to the next generation of Commonwealth Scholars?
You were selected not because of what you have done but because of what you could do. The real success is not determined by the past or present, but the future.
Every day as a Commonwealth Scholar is an opportunity to be indebted to effect change. As a new generation of Commonwealth Scholars, make yourself available to a range of developmental training, workshops, and seminars that the CSC offers. They are opportunities to always be one step ahead.
How does it feel to be part of a global community of over 31,000 Commonwealth Scholars?
It is a gratifying, rare privilege. 31,000 alumni exploring deep-seated issues intersecting with the CSC’s major themes across global borders fires my imagination and reminds me of the enduring legacies built by the CSC. It also puts me in a position of responsibility to believe more in myself and trust those who believe in me.
