The workshop on (public) space in migration research focuses on exploring the role of (public) space as a site of social research and a source of conceptual perspectives within the broader 'spatial turn' in the social sciences.
Migration and mobility are pre-eminently spatial phenomena, as they consist by definition of a movement through space. Scholars in this field often view their research through a spatial lens, via sites of study such as arrival cities (Saunders, 2011) or neighbourhoods (Hanhörster & Wessendorf, 2020), public spaces (Bhatti et al., 2009), everyday geopolitics (Benwell, 2016), semi-public spaces such as asylum- and reception centres (Griffiths, 2014), and soft arrival infrastructures (Boost & Oosterlynck, 2019) such as coffee bars or hair salons (De Backer et al., 2023).
Yet, the importance of (public) space in migration research is often left quite implicit. For this reason, this interdisciplinary workshop focuses on the role of (public) space in migration research, both as a site of social research, as well as an inspiring source of conceptual and theoretical perspectives.
Please check out the Call For Papers, inviting paper presentations by junior or early career scholars working in the broad field of migration research, with an important focus on the importance of (public) space.
Programme
13:00-13:10: welcome by Lucas Melgaço (Crime & Society Research Group)
13:10-13:30: keynote by Mattias De Backer (Crime & Society Research Group) & Lena Imeraj (BCUS - Brussels Centre for Urban Studies)
13:30-15:00: panel + Q&A
15:00-15:15: coffee break
15:15-17:00: collective cartography workshop by Annelys de Vet (Subjective Editions) & Floris Liekens (Crime & Society Research Group)
17:00-18:00: closing drinks
Organised by Mattias De Backer en Floris Liekens (CRiS), Lena Imeraj (COSM), participation of Annelys de Vet (Subjective Editions) and in collaboration with BCUS and BIRMM.
This event takes place in room Brugge in Pleinlaan 5
