The Learned Society of Wales ( Welsh: Cymdeithas Ddysgedig Cymru) is a

learned society A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and science. Membership ma ...

and

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

that exists to "celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines", and to serve the Welsh nation. The Learned Society of Wales is Wales's first and only all-embracing national scholarly academy. A registered charity, it was established and launched on 25 May

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull, Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A ...

at the National Museum of Wales and was granted a Royal Charter in 2015. The society is based in Cardiff. It is an independent, self-governing, pan-disciplinary, bilingual organisation operating throughout Wales.

Purpose

The Society describes its mission as to: * Celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect, and encourage excellence in all scholarly disciplines, and in the professions, industry and commerce, the arts and public service. * Promote the advancement of learning, scholarship, and the dissemination and application of the results of academic enquiry and research. * Act as an independent source of expert scholarly advice and comment on matters affecting the research, scholarship and well-being of Wales and its people, and to advance public discussion and interaction on matters of national and international importance.

History

The Learned Society of Wales was established in 2010 (more than 225 years after the establishment of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, for example, and nearly 350 years after the establishment of the Royal Society in London). The creation of a national academy of learning was a subject of interest and discussion in Wales for some years before then but the idea was taken forward practically only in 2008, when a group of some twenty independent scholars representing the major academic disciplines came together to address the lack of a learned academy in Wales. They formed themselves into a Shadow Council for what they decided should become the Learned Society of Wales and identified further eminent scholars (almost all of them Fellows of the Royal Society or of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

) who, along with the original group, became the society's sixty Founding Fellows. In February 2010, Sir

John Cadogan Sir John Ivan George Cadogan (8 October 1930 – 9 February 2020) was a British organic chemist. Early life Cadogan was born in Pembrey, Carmarthenshire, Wales, United Kingdom. He was educated at Swansea Grammar School, where he achieved St ...

was elected to serve as the Society's Inaugural President and Chair of Council and, on 18 May 2010, having operated in shadow form for some months before then, the Learned Society of Wales was incorporated as a company limited by guarantee. One week later, on 25 May 2010, the Society was formally launched during ceremony held at the National Museum in Cardiff. The

University of Wales , latin_name = , image = , caption = Coat of Arms , motto = cy, Goreu Awen Gwirionedd , mottoeng = The Best Inspiration is Truth , established = , , type = Confederal, non-member ...

played a pivotal role in founding the Learned Society of Wales, generously providing a grant, office space and other significant infrastructure facilities at the outset, and its support since then has been instrumental in ensuring the Society's success and growth. Other Welsh universities soon joined the University of Wales in supporting the society and, since 2015/17, all of the country's universities have been providing financial support. Their grants are treated as contributions towards the core costs of the society and as part of its unrestricted funds, thereby ensuring the Society remains fully independent. In 2015/16, grants from the universities comprised nearly three-quarters (£217,000) of the Society's income.

Fellowship

The Learned Society of Wales has over 500 Fellows, distinguished men and women from all branches of learning. Election to fellowship is a public recognition of academic excellence. The Society harnesses the expertise of the Fellowship to help promote awareness of how the sciences and the arts, humanities and social sciences benefit society. Fellows assist the Society in its work by serving on its various committees and working groups and by representing us nationally and internationally. Fellowship of the Society is open to Welsh residents, those born in Wales or with a particular connection to Wales, who have a "demonstrable record of excellence and achievement" in academia, or who have made a distinguished contribution to knowledge in their professional field. Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales are entitled to refer to themselves as such and use the initials FLSW after their name. Fellows are elected following a rigorous process of peer review . Nominations are proposed, and seconded, by existing Fellows of the Society. The nomination papers of each candidate are then considered by the relevant Scrutiny Committee, prior to further consideration by the Council and submission to the Fellowship as a whole for confirmation and formal election. Scrutiny Committees, made up of Fellows, operate in the following areas: * Medicine and Medical Sciences * Cellular, Molecular, Evolutionary, Organismal and Ecosystem Sciences * Chemistry, Physics, Astronomy and Earth Sciences * Computing, Mathematics and Statistics * Engineering * Language, Literature and the history and theory of the Creative and Performing Arts * History, Philosophy and Theology * Economic and Social Sciences, Education and Law * General Elections have been held each year since the Inaugural Election of Fellows in 2011, when 119 new Fellows joined the Society's ranks, and, as of 2019, the Society has more than 500 Fellows . The Fellows are all prominent figures who represent a high level of international expertise and knowledge within their respective academic disciplines and professions. The Fellowship includes some of Wales's leading scholars, many of whom are also Fellows of other UK learned societies, including the Royal Society, the

, the

Academy of Medical Sciences The Academy of Medical Sciences is an organisation established in the UK in 1998. It is one of the four UK National Academies, the others being the British Academy, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society. Its mission is to adv ...

, the

Royal Academy of Engineering The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) is the United Kingdom's national academy of engineering. The Academy was founded in June 1976 as the Fellowship of Engineering with support from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who became the first senior ...

, the

Academy of Social Sciences The Academy of Social Sciences is a representative body for social sciences in the United Kingdom. The Academy promotes social science through its sponsorship of the Campaign for Social Science, its links with Government on a variety of matters, ...

, the Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of Chemistry, and the Royal Historical Society. Two of the Fellows are Nobel Laureates.

Presidents

* 2010–14 Sir John Cadogan * 2014–2020 Sir Emyr Jones Parry *2020-present Professor Hywel Thomas

Fellows

Past Fellows include: * John Davies * R. Geraint Gruffydd *

Noel Lloyd Noel Lloyd (26 December 1946 – 7 June 2019) was a Welsh academic, who served as Vice-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University from 2004 to his retirement in 2011. Biography Noel Lloyd began his academic career at the University of Cambrid ...

, CBE *

Meic Stephens Meic Stephens (23 July 1938 – 2 July 2018) was a Welsh literary editor, journalist, translator, and poet. Birth and education Meic Stephens was born on 23 July 1938 in the village of Treforest, near Pontypridd, Glamorgan. He was educated at ...

* Gwyn Thomas Current Fellows include: * Barbara Adam * Catherine Barnard *

Deirdre Beddoe Deirdre Beddoe (born 1942) is a historian of women in modern Britain, with particular focus on Wales. She is Emeritus Professor of Women's History at the University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd. Life She was involved in the Women's Liberation Moveme ...

* Kirsti Bohata * David Crystal *

Menna Elfyn Menna Elfyn FLSW (born 1952) is a Welsh poet, playwright, columnist, and editor who writes in Welsh. She has been widely commended and translated. She was imprisoned for her campaigning as a Welsh-language activist. Background During the 1970 ...

* Ilora Finlay, Baroness Finlay of Llandaff * Andrew Green * Mererid Hopwood * Medwin Hughes *

Ronald Hutton Ronald Edmund Hutton (born 19 December 1953) is an English historian who specialises in Early Modern Britain, British folklore, pre-Christian religion and Contemporary Paganism. He is a professor at the University of Bristol, has written 14 ...

* Rhiannon Ifans * Sir

Simon Jenkins Sir Simon David Jenkins (born 10 June 1943) is a British author, a newspaper columnist and editor. He was editor of the ''Evening Standard'' from 1976 to 1978 and of ''The Times'' from 1990 to 1992. Jenkins chaired the National Trust from 20 ...

* Ann John * Ruth King * Geraint F. Lewis *

Gwyneth Lewis Gwyneth Denver Davies (born 1959), known professionally as Gwyneth Lewis, is a Welsh poet, who was the inaugural National Poet of Wales in 2005. She wrote the text that appears over the Wales Millennium Centre. Biography Gwyneth Lewis was b ...

* David Lloyd Jones, Lord Lloyd-Jones * John Loughlin *

Peredur Lynch Peredur Ionor Lynch (born 13 January 1963) is a Welsh academic who serves as professor of Welsh & Medieval Literature in the School of Welsh and Celtic Studies at Bangor University. Early life and education Lynch spent much of his early life ...

Laura McAllister Professor Laura McAllister (born 10 December 1964) is a Welsh academic, former international footballer and senior sports administrator. As a Wales women's national football team player, McAllister won 24 caps and served as team captain. She ...

Kenneth O. Morgan Kenneth Owen Morgan, Baron Morgan, (born 16 May 1934) is a Welsh historian and author, known especially for his writings on modern British history and politics and on Welsh history. He is a regular reviewer and broadcaster on radio and telev ...

*Dame

Elan Closs Stephens Dame Elan Closs Stephens (' Roberts; born 16 June 1948) is a Welsh educator and Wales' representative on the BBC Board. She specialises in cultural and broadcasting policy. She also serves as a non-executive director of the Welsh Government's Bo ...

*Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard * Meena Upadhyaya * Alasdair Whittle * Rowan Williams, Baron Williams

References

External links

Learned Society of Wales website
{{authority control 2010 establishments in Wales * Organizations established in 2010 Organisations based in Cardiff Professional associations based in Wales