Dr Giuliana Fenech is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English at the University of Malta, specialising in work involving children and young adult literature and citizenship, agency, creative protest, and activism. She combines research with cultural and artistic community projects involving stories, multimedia, cultural heritage, and youth.
Among these projects, as part of an Erasmus K2 project on Creative SDGs led by Esplora Interactive Science Centre in Malta, between 2018-2021, Giuliana directed a team of researchers and storytellers researching the representation of girls in science stories for children. In May 2022, Giuliana convened the circuit conference The Child and the Book, themed, ‘The Role of the Child as Citizen: Constructing Childhood through Agency and Activism’ in Malta. She was then awarded an Erasmus K2 fund for a project themed, 'Seen and Heard: Young People's Voices and Freedom of Expression' (2023-2026) being run in collaboration with Humboldt University in Berlin, University of Wroclaw in Wroclaw, and Amnesty International Poland.
Among other publications, Giuliana is the editor of forthcoming volumes; ‘Child as Citizen: Agency and Activism in Children's Literature' (2023)’ and co-editor of ‘Geopolitics, Activism, and Citizenship in Children’s and Young Adult Literature’ (2025).
Additionally, Giuliana runs a storytelling organisation, Lignin Stories, which has worked with diverse groups of children and youths, as well as other social groups at risk of marginalisation, in Malta and various other European countries, including Italy and Scotland.
'Where To? Stories of Migration and Belonging' (Lignin Stories and Centro Italiano Storytelling, 2023-2024), Project Lead
‘Creative SDGs’, a virtual compendium of science and girls stories (Esplora Interactive Science Centre & Seven Stories UK, 2018-2021), Writer/ Researcher
‘The Day the Sleeping Lady Woke’, Presentation (Radio Cavolo, Italy, November 2020), Guest Speaker
‘Maltese Folktales and Legends’, Presentation (Bakul Foundation, India, November 2020), Guest Speaker
‘How Stories Can Help Me Parent’, Interview (Jai Institute for Parenting, US, May 2020), Guest Speaker
‘Storytelling our Heritage’, writing and retelling old folktales related to museum artefacts (Heritage Malta, 2018-2020), Convener
‘Story Solutions for Parents’, online course (Lignin Stories, 2018-2020), Convener
'Telling Stories to Children', presentation (Seven Stories Centre for Children’s Literature, Newcastle, July 2019), Guest Speaker
‘Parallel Universe’, Teaching Science through Stories Conference (Malta Arts Council & Esplora Interactive Science Centre, 2017-2019), Convener
‘Storytelling our Heritage’, writing and retelling old folktales related to museum artefacts (Heritage Malta, 2018-2020), Convener
'Sansuna and the Carob Tree’, a contemporary Maltese fairy tale performance (Ziguzajg Festival & St James Cavalier & Malta Arts Council, November 2018), Writer
‘Points of Contact’, a storytelling course for adults (Victor Pasmore Gallery & Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti, 2017-2018), Convener
‘Quintessence [CITY]’, a sound story lab and interactive installation (Valletta Capital of Culture, 2017-2018), Researcher/ Writer
‘Of Fairy Tales and You’, a storytelling workshop for children (Ziguzajg Festival & Edinburgh Scottish Storytelling Centre & Centro di Storie Italiano, September 2017), Convener
‘Pasmore at Play, with Poetry’ (Victor Pasmore Gallery & Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti, March 2017), Speaker
Transgressive Textualities Conference (Dept. of English, University of Malta, May 2016), Convener
‘Alice in Absentia’, a multisensory performative adaptation (St James Cavalier, December 2015), Writer/ Researcher
Alice through the Ages Conference (University of Cambridge, September 2015), Speaker
Bodies on Stage Conference (Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris, June 2015), Speaker
‘Anima/ Animus’, archetypal story told through sound (St James Cavalier, May 2015), Co- Writer/ Researcher
‘Je Tiens La Reine’, a dance performance (Argotti Gardens, July 2015), Dramaturg Malta National Dance Company
Arts Council Malta Create 2020 Strategy Launch, (Malta Arts Council, December 2015), Chair
