SC Education and Social Inequality (EduSocial)
Online Writing Retreats
We’re excited to share that the SC EduSocial online writing retreat for PhD students is back! This initiative aims to provide a structured and supportive environment for doctoral researchers to focus on academic writing, share progress, and engage in peer feedback. The retreats are held virtually over several sessions, allowing participants from different institutions and countries to join regardless of location. Following the success of previous editions, the retreat continues to prioritize inclusivity and accessibility, particularly for early-career researchers from underrepresented backgrounds. Participants will benefit from facilitated writing blocks, optional discussion groups, and informal networking opportunities.
Webinar Series: Language, Power, and Social Boundaries: Dynamics of Inclusion and Exclusion Across Social Spaces
The SC EduSocial in collaboration with the Centre for the Social Study of Migration and Refugee (CESSMIR, Ghent University) and the Center for Migration and Societal Change (EURAC Research), is pleased to announce the launch of a new webinar series, “Language, Power, and Social Boundaries: Dynamics of Inclusion and Exclusion Across Social Spaces”. This series explores the pervasive influence of language in shaping continuums of inclusion-exclusion across social spaces. It aims to foster debate on the entanglement of language with processes of racialisation and migratisation, while also engaging with other axes of difference through an intersectional lens. The webinar series will be held quarterly, beginning in January (exact date and time to be announced).
Workshop: Language Diversity, Education and Learning in the Context of Migration and Diaspora
The SC EduSocial, in collaboration with the Migration, Mobility and Ethnicity Research Group (CIES-Iscte), organized the workshop “Language Diversity, Education and Learning in the Context of Migration and Diaspora” held on 13-14 November 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal. The event addressed a wide range of themes related to the linguistic, educational, and sociocultural dimensions of migration and diaspora. It explored how language serves both as a medium of inclusion and as a marker of identity, and how educational systems, communities, and families respond to the needs of multilingual learners in transnational contexts. The workshop featured 13 paper presentations and two keynote speakers, namely Ingrid Piller (Universität Hamburg & Macquarie University) and Kamran Kahn (University of Birmingham). It was conceived as part of the process leading to a special journal issue, which will be further developed and discussed during the event.
SC Reflexivities in Migration Studies (Reflexivities)
The SC Reflexivities has several activities planned for fall and winter. One upcoming initiative is a blog series titled “Visions and Narratives in Migration Studies.” In this series, migration scholars will reflect upon, engage with, and develop new or alternative visions and narratives. This includes, but is not limited to, reflections on how authors’ own implicit normative assumptions structure their research, how they envision the role of migration studies, and, more broadly, what visions they hold of “migration” and “society.” The blog series will be published on the SC’s webpage—stay tuned.
Within the SC and with a focus on PhD scholars, the Reflexivities PhD Sessions Vol. VI (Fall 2025) are currently taking place online. These sessions offer early-career researchers an opportunity to present their work, exchange feedback, debate methodological and theoretical challenges, and expand their networks with peers interested in reflexive migration research. The sessions provide a supportive environment for young scholars eager to explore alternative research approaches, remain mindful of power dynamics in the production of knowledge on migration, and work toward de-nationalizing and de-migranticizing studies of mobility and diversity. PhD candidates and early-career researchers engaged in Reflexivities in Migration Studies are warmly invited to express their interest in presenting, discussing, or participating in other capacities. All relevant information, including a tentative schedule, can be found at the provided link. For further inquiries and updates, Marina Lazetic (
In addition, the SC is hosting the Online Writing Retreat on Reflexivities in Migration Studies for individuals working on projects in the field and seeking a supportive, collaborative space to boost writing productivity. This online retreat offers a unique opportunity for researchers, scholars, and students to come together for focused writing sessions. Key features include a 24/7 online space, weekly online sessions, monthly sessions with extended inputs on topics such as writing support, tools, and materials, and resource sharing through an exclusive online platform. Those interested in participating may contact Paul (
Subscriptions to the SC Reflexivities Newsletter are also open via this link. The newsletter aims to share the latest activities of the SC Reflexivities in Migration Studies, along with relevant publications, events, academic job postings, and additional news from within and beyond the standing committee.
SC Migration Politics and Governance (MIGPOG)
The SC MIGPOG is inviting applications for a third chair to join the leadership team in guiding and shaping the future of the group. This position is aimed at a senior researcher (Assistant Professor/Associate Professor/Full Professor) from an IMISCOE member institute and offers an opportunity to play a key role in developing the group’s activities, fostering collaboration, and strengthening the research community on migration governance and politics. Interested applicants are invited to send a short statement (1–2 paragraphs) outlining their motivation and ideas for the role, along with a current CV, to
The SC MIGPOG is also pleased to welcome a new PhD Representative who will help strengthen and shape the growing network: Jelle van der Wal. Jelle is a PhD candidate in Political Sciences, Public Policy, and International Relations at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), affiliated with the Transnational Relations, Democratization and Migration (TransDeM) research group. His research focuses on street-level policy entrepreneurship and representative bureaucracy in migration policy. He has an academic background in Public Administration, Latin American Studies, and International Studies, and has teaching experience in Public Administration at Leiden University. Outside his PhD work, Jelle volunteers as an analyst specializing in Latin America at The Hague Institute for Geopolitics (Haagsch Instituut GeopolitiekNu), pursuing his interest in geopolitics with particular emphasis on Brazil. His engagement in organizing future events for members and coordinating a range of academic activities is greatly anticipated.
SC Families, Welfare, Care and the Life Course (FamWeLC)
The SC FamWeLC was established in 2024 to advance a life-course perspective in migration studies and to draw wider attention to the interconnections between families, welfare and care, and their changing contexts. The SC has active PhD and ECR representation, as well as four thematic working groups:
- Informal care and social support;
- Healthcare and social services;
- Financial welfare and welfare regimes;
- Migration and life-course transitions.
The group has grown significantly over the past year and currently includes more than 100 members. Individuals interested in joining SC FamWeLC and staying up to date with its activities can fill in the form provided.
Upcoming activities:
4 December 2025: Webinar – Migrants and Formal Providers of Health & Social Services: What Is the Role of Trust in These Interactions?
Speakers:
• Prof. Monique Kremer, University of Amsterdam – The Price of Trust: Institutional Capital and the Welfare State
• Dr. Elżbieta Czapka, University of Gdańsk – Trusted Sources? Migrants & Public Health Information
• Dr. Freya Diedeirch, University of Bremen – Cultural Differences in Older Immigrants’ Health Services Use
11 December 2025: Online book launch – Exile & Beyond, a graphic novel by Gaspard Njock (Sorbonne University) and Félicien de Heusch (University of Copenhagen).
The work combines graphic poetry, field investigation, and a socio-anthropological approach to explore one of the most poignant realities of contemporary migration: deaths in transit.
29 January 2025: Online book forum – Stuck at Home by Yasmine Ortiga.
Stuck at Home examines how the Philippine state and its aspiring migrants negotiated the meaning of immobility during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Discussants: Anju Paul (NYU Abu Dhabi), Kerilyn Schewell (University of North Carolina), and Ken Sun (Villanova University).
Registration for these events is available on the SC FamWeLC webpage.
SC Migration, Citizenship and Political Participation (MIGCITPOL)
The SC MIGCITPOL organized another session of the Online Café on September 17. This session focused on one of the Standing Committee’s recent outputs: a special issue of the Journal of Immigrant and Refugee Studies entitled “Migration Crisis with Adjectives: Towards a New Conceptualization and Assessment of Institutional Responses to Migration Crises across World Regions.” Further details are available here.
On 6–7 November, the SC co-sponsored—together with the IMISCOE Migration Politics and Governance Standing Committee—a workshop on Complexity and Migration at the University of Nebrija in Madrid (Spain). The event was highly successful, and the co-organizers are now preparing a collaborative publication: a forthcoming special issue of Political Research Exchange on this theme. More information can be found here.
As in previous years, the SC MIGCITPOL remains involved in the organization of the upcoming IMISCOE Annual Conference. Throughout this month, the Standing Committee will participate in the review of submitted proposals.
SC Superdiversity, Migration and Cultural Change (DIVCULT)
The SC DIVCULT will hold its next webinar on 5 December 2025 from 12:00 to 13:30 CET. The session will include two speakers: Kremena Dimitrova (Oxford Brookes University) will present “Runaway Poetics: Mapping Histories of Migration Through Comics But Not Only”, in which she will explore comics-based research as a creative and interdisciplinary method for narrating migration histories through visual and poetic forms. Fatma Serdaroğlu (Anadolu University, Eskişehir) will discuss “Refugee Films in Contemporary Turkish Cinema: Representation, Agency, and Comparative Perspectives”, analysing representations of Syrian refugees in Turkey and the counter-narratives they construct against dominant political discourses.
Building on its previous initiatives, the coordination team is now inviting members to submit proposals for hosting the next DIVCULT Spring Event and General Assembly, which will take place between January and April 2026. For any further information, feel free to contact Marco Martiniello (