Anne Pauwels, PhD, FASSA, is Professor (Emerita) of Sociolinguistics at The School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, where she was also Dean of Languages and Cultures (2010-2015) and Head of the Endangered Languages Unit. She is also a Professorial Fellow (Hon.) at the School of Languages and Linguistics, University of Melbourne. Prior to these she held several appointments as Professor of Linguistics and Dean of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in Australian Universities including the Universities of Western Australia, Wollongong, New England and Monash as well as being Head of College, Arts & Law at the University of Birmingham.
Her first degree is in Germanic Philology (Belgium) and her MA and PhD in Sociolinguistics (Australia). In 1995 she was elected Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. She has been President of the Applied Linguistics Association of Australia as well as Vice-President of the Australian Linguistic Society.
Her research covers both sociolinguistics and applied linguistics, specifically in multilingual and transnational settings. Main research foci include multilingualism, minority languages, language maintenance & shift, language policy, heritage language learning in schools and universities as well as various aspects of the relationship between gender and language. Her more recent work explores multilingual soundscapes in cities.
She has multiple publications in these fields. Professor Pauwels is also dedicated to ensuring that the outcome of research reaches beyond the academy. Her linguistic activism is focused on the promotion of heritage language learning in schools, on assisting minority/migrant/indigenous communities in their language maintenance and revitalisation efforts, as well as on addressing issues of race and gender in communication.
