First, it is a high honour to be awarded this scholarship. Growing up in Canada the Commonwealth felt like a faraway concept, and I was troubled by the colonial origin of it. Now, I think that regardless of the origin of these ties, being part of the Commonwealth is more important than ever in a fractured world. I see the chance to work and study with people from worlds entirely different from mine, and this is a blessing. I am grateful for the bond of the Commonwealth and the global focus of this scholarship.

Come, just come.

It is a multistage project to: 1) test and document the best indicators and data sources for identifying gamblers who are exhibiting risk in the online environment, 2) intervene in ways that are simple and effective, 3) provide a framework for measuring the effectiveness of this system, and continuously improve it.

The most important skills I will build are experimental research methods and more complex statistical analysis. In my previous studies and work, my strongest focus was on qualitative methods such as focus groups and in-depth interviews, and the use of quantitative methods mainly in survey research. My PhD will involve more complex modeling and some experimentation.

A recent study by Public Health England (2021) found that, despite having the lowest gambling participation rates, the most socio-economically deprived and disadvantaged groups in England have the highest levels of harmful gambling, a situation they described as likely to make existing health inequalities worse.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/landmark-report-reveals-harms-associated-with-gambling-estimated-to-cost-society-at-least-1-27-billion-a-year

This distribution of harm is likely similar in other countries. The more we can simplify and standardize these processes – to identify players who are at risk as early as possible, and to intervene in ways that are practical and effective – the closer we can come to a safer experience for all those who gamble, especially those who are most vulnerable.