About Robin & Leela
Robin and Leela have travelled widely all over the world, beginning when Robin taught philosophy for a year (1972 – 73) at what was then the University of Ife in Nigeria. Their first two children went to a multinational nursery there, and Leela later drew extensively on the experience in her recent novel A Distant Voice in the Darkness. There followed a term for Robin teaching philosophy at the University of Nairobi in 1975 when their youngest child was a small baby; the family was warned not to come because of a milk shortage but luckily Leela was feeding Kate herself so all five came!
Over the years, Robin has been invited to lecture and attend conferences in many countries, and they have also taken holidays, from Los Angeles to Melbourne, and from Reykjavik to Cape Town; Leela always writes about it. They have taken their children to Denmark many times to visit Leela's mother's family, and to Kolkata to stay with Leela's father's family.
An important theme in Robin's later books is the ethics behind the earth's greatest crisis to date - see particularly his Environmental Ethics which appears in Oxford University's well-known Very Short Introduction series. He is now an emeritus professor of philosophy; his works discuss ethics, environmental philosophy, and the history of ideas.
Leela and Robin are both Quakers and have lived in Cardiff for 56 years, having met at Oxford. They have seven grandchildren, of whom six survive, and one great-grandchild.
FICTION AND PHILOSOPHY
Leela writes contemporary fiction, much of it about travel, while Robin is an emeritus professor of philosophy whose works discuss ethics, environmental philosophy, and the history of ideas. His latest book THE ETHICS OF THE CLIMATE CRISIS was released on April 26th 2024 - you can pre-order today from Amazon if you follow the link on this website, or alternatively you can get it reduced to £10.49 if you look at the Polity Press flier - click here for 30% off
ABOUT LEELA – CONTEMPORARY FICTION WRITER
Leela Dutt has written a wide array of contemporary fiction, novels as well as short stories, over the years - mind you, some of her family say they have also been reduced to tears of laughter when they receive texts from Leela about her day's events. Raised in Golders Green by an Indian father and a Danish mother, Leela has always considered herself an outsider. Living all of her adult life in Cardiff, Wales, she has been married to the philosopher Robin Attfield for more than 50 years and they have three children, seven grandchildren of whom six survive, and one great-granddaughter, Zara. She is a longstanding member of the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers. Get in touch today with any further enquiries - info@attfieldduttbooks.co.uk
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EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
After studying history at Oxford, Leela briefly worked as a teacher. She had a job selling dress fabrics in a snooty up-market Cardiff store, whose male manager complained about her untidy appearance (“Well, I was pregnant at the time, but all the same...”) She later wrote for a local paper and after achieving a degree in computing, she set up and managed an online database about housing research. Leela also worked as a proofreader and sub-editor for the Big Issue Cymru and wrote several book reviews for them. Obviously she supports Wales in rugby, and is seen here at a book signing one Saturday when there happened to be an international that afternoon...
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TRAVELS
Leela has a lifelong love of travelling. As well as having lived in Nigeria and Kenya with Robin and their small children, she’s been inspired by her experiences in various places since, including Beijing, California, Lesotho, and Reykjavik. She has visited her late father’s home in Kolkata, where his family have lived for more than three centuries. Leela also delights in keeping up with the younger generation of her late mother’s family in Copenhagen. When there a favourite place of hers is the restaurant on the top floor of the department store Magasin, where she loves the smørrebrød (open sandwiches). This led to a hilarious chapter in her novel A DISTANT VOICE IN THE DARKNESS during a book launch at which our heroine has an unfortunate encounter with some sildesalat...
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FICTION
Inspired by her travels and life experience, Leela’s fiction covers a range of subjects, from the Peace Movement in the 1980s, (RUBIK'S CUBE) to artificial intelligence and the 20th-century history of Indian and German-Jewish families (MATHISON). If you love her recent short stories FRESH BEGINNINGS, why not try her earlier collection KINGFISHER BLUE?
Any of her earlier books can be bought for £5 included postage by emailing info@attfieldduttbooks.co.uk
If you read Leela’s books, please leave a review on Amazon!
ETHICS AND PHILOSOPHY
With a vast array of experience, Robin Attfield has written extensively on subjects including ethics, philosophy of religion, history of ideas, and environmental ethics. He is married to the writer Leela Dutt and they have three children, seven grandchildren of whom six survive, and one great-granddaughter, Zara. Robin and Leela are longstanding members of the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers.
Get in touch with Robin today by emailing attfieldr@cardiff.ac.uk or by using the contact link below. Robin is also a keen gardener, eager to point out wild flowers and cultivated ones in other people's gardens when out on walks around the neighbourhood and much further afield. He bought a beautiful amarylis the other day... see below!
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QUALIFICATIONS AND EDUCATION
Robin studied Philosophy, Classics, and Ancient History at Christchurch, Oxford, and Theology at Regent’s Park College, Oxford. After undertaking research at Manchester University, he lectured in Philosophy at Cardiff University from 1968 until his retirement in 2009.
Robin completed his PhD in 1972 and has been a Professor of Philosophy since 1992. He has also taught in Nigeria and Kenya, and in 1999, he was awarded a National Research Fellowship in South Africa and addressed three universities there. Other awards include a D.Litt. from Cardiff University in 2008 for his contributions to environmental philosophy.
Foreign translations of Robin's work include a Spanish translation of OUP's Environmental Ethics: a Very Short Introduction by San Pablo Press and the Pontifical University of Spain.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Primarily, Robin’s research concerns:
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Environmental Philosophy (Most Branches)
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Ethics (Including History of Ethics and Applied Ethics)
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History of Ideas (Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries; also, Ancient Philosophy)
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Philosophy of Religion (Religious Language, Theistic Arguments, and Panentheism)
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PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
Robin has held a wide array of positions on prestigious committees and councils, including:
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Emeritus Professor of the School of English, Communication, and Philosophy, and the Institute of Sustainable Places at Cardiff University
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Chair of the Cardiff and District Branch of the United Nations Association
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Former Member of the Council of the Royal Institute of Philosophy
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Former Co-Opted Member of the Executive Committee of the British Philosophical Association
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Former Chair of the Cardiff Branch of the Royal Institute of Philosophy
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Participated in a UNESCO International Working Party on Environmental Ethics
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Member of the Interdisciplinary Environmental Ethics Working Party at the Ian Ramsey Centre, St Cross College Oxford – Also Co-Edited Their Report
This photo is of a splendid boat in Ha Long Bay, in north east Vietnam, where our twin great-nieces steered a safe passage for us through thousands of towering limestone islands!
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