Clare Archer-Lean

Biography

Clare Archer-Lean is discipline lead of English and Higher Degree Research Coordinator in the School of Business and Creative Industries. Clare is published widely, nationally, and internationally, on the transdisciplinary connections between anti-colonial English literary praxis and critical animal studies.

Clare is passionate about more ethical, sustainable, and compassionate relations with more than human companions. She has publications in the areas of anticolonial reading and literature, ecocritical literature, Australian literature, animal fictions, and the human dimensions of animal management.

Clare is a core member of both Melbourne University’s ARC awarded Literary Education Lab and the UniSC Indigenous and Transcultural Research Centre. She serves on the UniSC’s inaugural NTRO committee and the Graduate Research Committee.

Clare has supervised over 20 Creative Writing, Ecocritical, Literature and Indigenous Studies HDR projects to completion and was awarded the 2024 UniSC Award for Excellence in Graduate Supervision. Clare is a chief investigator on the ARC Reading Climate Linkage Project (ID LP220200724 June 2024 to July 2026).

Potential research areas for HDR and honours students

• Critical Animal Studies
• Literary Studies
• Sustainability and Arts

Teaching areas

• Literary Animal Studies
• Critical Human Animal Studies
• Australian Literature
• Ecocriticism
• First Nations’ Writing

Professional memberships

• Australian Universities Heads of English Association (executive member)
• Australasian Animal Studies Association (member)
• International Australian Studies Association
• Association for the Study of Australian Literature (executive member)
• The Australasian Universities Language and Literature Association
• The Association for the Study of Literature, Environment and Culture—Australia and New Zealand
• Social Alternatives (journal) Short Story Editor

Awards

• UniSC Graduate Supervision Excellence Award Early Career Researcher Award, 2015
• Faculty of Arts and Business, USC (with Dr Anna Potter) 2012

Expert media commentary

Dr Clare Archer-Lean's specialist areas of knowledge include English literature, cross-cultural studies, Indigenous literature, Australian literature, Canadian literature, post-colonial literature, human animal studies and eco-criticism.