In view of the 23rd IMISCOE Annual Conference (29 June – 2 July 2026, Girona & Online) on “Strengthening Migration Studies through Community Engagement”, we invite submissions for our panel on “Youth Transitions and Transnational Families in Diverse Contexts”.
Organisers: Melissa Villegas (PUCP, Peru) Marta Moskal (Glasgow, Scotland, UK)
Standing Committee: Families, Welfare, Care and the Life Course
Submission deadline: 19 September 2025
Panel abstract: This panel explores the intersections between youth transitions and transnational family life within the broader field of Migration Studies. We seek to examine how migration shapes young people’s pathways to adulthood and how transnational family practices influence their educational, social, and professional trajectories.
Young people growing up in transnational families often navigate complex cultural expectations, economic responsibilities, and emotional ties across borders. Their transitions to adulthood - completing education, entering employment, or forming intimate partnerships - are shaped by both the opportunities and constraints of their cross-border family networks. These dynamics are deeply inflected by social class, gender, ethnicity, legal status, and place, which can either expand or limit young people’s life chances.
We welcome theoretical, empirical, and methodological contributions from diverse geographical contexts. Potential themes include: youth transitions in migrant and diaspora communities; the impact of transnational care arrangements on young people’s identities and wellbeing; the role of remittances, family obligations, and emotional labour in shaping youth trajectories; educational aspirations and mobility among second-generation and 1.5-generation youth; and comparative approaches to youth transitions across national and cultural contexts. Papers using participatory, ethnographic and decolonial methodologies are particularly encouraged.
This panel aims to bring together scholars to critically interrogate how transnational family practices and migration regimes structure young people’s lives and to explore the implications for social and educational policies.
Please submit your 250-word abstract by September 19 to Marta Moskal (University of Glasgow, Scotland, UK)