Please join us for a webinar hosted by the ‘Migrant transnationalism’ standing committee of IMISCOE (Europe’s largest migration and integration studies network) on Thursday 19 November, 14:00-16:00 (Central European Time). The webinar features a an exchange about visions for research on migrant transnationalism in the 2020s, reflecting on the foundations which have been laid over the past three decades.

Our aim is to energize and inspire new conversations on migrant transnationalism research.

Migrant transnationalism is a central theme in migration research. It was defined 25 years ago as ‘the processes by which immigrants forge and sustain multi-stranded social relations that link together their societies of origin and settlement’ (Basch et al. 1994:6). The subsequent decades saw a burgeoning of research on transnationalism and specific aspects of it, including transnational families, remittances, and transnational social protection. However, there has also been a backlash against the phenomenon of transnationalism, arguing that it is sometimes exaggerated beyond its empirical significance and sometimes used so broadly that it loses analytical value. In this webinar, we ask how ‘migrant transnationalism’ should be understood and delimited today, and what directions future research should take. Presenting participants will address three questions:

  • How should ‘migrant transnationalism’ be understood and delimited today?
  • What is transnational and what is not transnational in the research field of international migration, integration and social cohesion?
  • And, what are the most pressing research questions for future studies of migrant transnationalism?

14.00 Welcome and moderation by Erik Snel(Erasmus University Rotterdam)

Presentations addressing the three questions posed for the webinar:

14.10 Jørgen Carling (PRIO)

14.20 Özge Bilgili(Utrecht University)

14.30 Paolo Boccagni(University of Trento)

14.40 Parvathi Raghuram (Open University)

14.50 Paul Statham (University of Sussex)

15.00 Mike Collyer (University of Sussex)

15.10 Marta Bivand Erdal(PRIO)

15.20 Comments and questions from the audience (and among panelists)

16.00 Thank you!

There is no registration for this webinar, but please join us via the Webex app ahead of time to avoid technical challenges. You may enter the virtual meeting room from 13.45, which we warmly recommend, all you need to do is join via this link. Please consider following us on Twitter here, and please share information about this webinar to potentially interested scholars.

The IMISCOE Standing Committee on Migrant Transnationalism (MITRA) is seeking a social media curator. Read more about this opportunity. Deadline for expressions of interest: 25 November.