Two weeks today, I will be meeting Wendy Dossett, Emeritus Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Chester, for the first time. We’ve been in contact since Wulf’s interview with Wendy back in April 2023, but we’ve never met in person. I’m really looking to spending some time with Wendy. I was fascinated by her conversation with Wulf, as was my good friend Michael Scott from down the road here in Perth, he who celebrated his 46th year in recovery on Wednesday.
Below, is what Wulf had to say about Wendy in the introduction to her People (Archive) page on this website. This page contains links to 17 films of Wendy and Wulf’s conversation, totalling over 88 minutes, as well as written summaries. There is also a link to Wendy’s YouTube Themes Playlist.
‘Professor Wendy Dossett and I share a love Eryri [Snowdonia], and its beaches, valleys and mountains where we both live. Yet despite this proximity, our relationship began in other overlapping spaces of academia and wider recovery communities. Wendy’s generosity and warmth stood out. Over the last decade, we have increasingly translated this acquaintance into some shared working collaboration.
As reflected in our conversation, it becomes rapidly clear that Wendy has so much to offer to, and insight on, the process of recovery. She is honest and thoughtful in reflections on her own recovery journey. Rich and insightful in her understanding of the 12-Step Fellowship and particularly the role that spirituality plays in recovery. Finally, Wendy has an abundance of wisdom that comes from many years of navigating the obstacles within systems and supporting meaningful actions and change.
In the films below, edited from our interview, Wendy describes reaching out for help 18 years ago at a time when she was in absolute agony due to her drinking problem. She has not had a drink of alcohol since that time. In our conversation, we cover a wide range of topics, including the nature of addiction, a wide variety of aspects related to the 12-Step Fellowship, foundations of recovery, grassroots community, recovery advocacy and the system, and recovery friendly universities.’
Please check out Wendy”s Film Teaser I edited:
