Sylabus
The seminar is divided into three topical blocks:
Block I.: Diasporas and transnationalism
Seminar 01/
Introduction, requirements, introduction to the topic
Migration terminology
In this lecture we will discuss the key migratory terminology and definitions used in the course. We will discuss our experience with migration. Prepare the answer for this question: What are three most important topics/issues in the migration studies?
- basic terminology (migration, emigration, immigration, internal, international, irregular/undocumented/illegal);
- types of migration (economic, political, etc./permanent, circular, temporary);
- migration flows in the world, the numbers of migrants worldwide and in Czechia and the main sources of data on migration.
Seminar 02/.
Diasporas - old and new diaspora
In this seminar we will look at the definitions and concepts of diaspora. Reations, ties between country of origin and country of destination, example of the Syrian diaspora in the world (invited speaker)
Compulsory article:
Bruneau, M. (2010). Diasporas, transnational spaces and communities. Diaspora and transnationalism: Concepts, theories and methods, 3(1), 35-50.
Shaar, AlHakam (2021). Finding the Center:Placemaking by Allepian Migrants and Refugees in Berlin. MA theses.
Seminar 03/
Transnationalism
Concept, terminology and development of transnationalism. Political, social, cultural, religious and economic transformations.
Compulsory article:
Jones, R. C. (2020). The decline of migrant transnationalism with time abroad. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 43(15), 2685-2704.Recommended article:
Recommended article:
Price, M. D. (2016). Constructing the Andean diaspora: State-based and immigrant-led development strategies. In Legacy of slavery and indentured labour (pp. 63-86). Routledge.
Seminar 04/. 1. Test in the class.
Block II.: Forced Migration Series
Seminar 05/
Refugees in the world
This lecture will introduce the topic of refugees in the world by looking at terminology, frameworks and international responses to the refugee crisis around the world and through different contexts and perspectives. The aim is to gain a clearer picture of the complexity of this topic.
Seminar 06/
Internally Displaced Persons - who are they?
At this lecture, we will look the topic of internal displacement as humanitarian challenge. The session will cover the basic terminology as well as topics of social protection, durable solutions, and social experiences of IDPs in their everyday lives.
Compulsory article:
Nguya, G., & Siddiqui, N. (2020). Triple nexus implementation and implications for durable solutions for internal displacement: on paper and in practice. Refugee Survey Quarterly, 39(4), 466-480.
Recommended article:
Ferris, E., & Halff, K. (2011). Protracted internal displacement: Is local integration a solution?. Forced Migration Review, (38), 53.
Seminar 07/
Ukrainian refugees: European and Czech response
The content of the lecture will focus on topics related to forced migration within the European Union. Attention will be paid to the different asylum systems applied by EU Member States towards asylum procedures. Specifically, the content of the lecture will focus on the particular groups of unaccompanied minors and the context of the Ukrainian refugees in Eastern European member states as well as the refugee trends from Ukraine since 2014.
Compulsory article:
Lems, A., Oester, K., & Strasser, S. (2020). Children of the crisis: ethnographic perspectives on unaccompanied refugee youth in and en route to Europe. Journal of ethnic and migration studies, 46(2), 315-335.
Recommended article:
Seaman, M., & Stites, E. (2022). Family Matters: Older Refugee Minors in Vienna and Factors for Resiliency. Journal of Refugee Studies.
Seminar 08/ 2. Test in the class.
Block III: Environmnetal migration
Seminar 09/
Environmentální migrace I (Drbohlav)
Výklad zachytí nejprve ve zkratce stav a vývoj prostředí a probíhající klimatickou změnu na globální úrovni; následuje definice tzv. „environmentální migrace a navazující legislativy; budou představeny vybrané důležité typy environmentální migrace včetně tzv. „amenity migration“; následuje přehled počtů a regionů, kde je environmentální migrace významně zastoupena; poslední část je věnována výkladu hlavních determinant a podmíněností environmentální migrace.
Seminar 10/
Environmentální migrace II (Drbohlav)
Vybrané důležité aspekty environmentální migrace; seznámení se s mýty zatěžujícími danou problematiku (de Haas), vysvětlení procesu migrace jako adaptaci na danou environmentální změnu, demonstrace nejvíce ohrožených území; charakteristika výzkumných přístupů k problematice environmentální migrace; představení vybraných případových studií – Marshallovy ostrovy, Pákistán a Mexiko (viz literatura).
Compulsory articles:
Van Praag, L., Timmerman, Ch. (2019) Environmental migration and displacement: a new theoretical framework for the study of migration aspirations in response to environmental changes, Environmental Sociology, 5:4, 352-361, DOI:10.1080/23251042.2019.1613030
Nawrotzki, R. J. et al. (2015) Undocumented migration in response to climate change. International Journal of Population Studies, vol. 1, issue 1, pp. 60-74.
Seminar 11/.
Environmentální migrace III (Masná)
Bude představen výzkum ze Zambie, a to adaptačních strategií obyvatelstva ve vybraných oblastech této země. Je analyzován vliv/podíl environmentálních faktorů na motivaci jedince migrovat a zjišťuje se jakou roli hraje migrace v rámci adaptačních strategií na změnu přírodních podmínek u vybrané populace ve vybraném regionu Zambie. Výzkum je založen zejména na kvantitativním přístupu a sofistikovanějších statistických metodách.
Seminar 12/ 3. Test in the class.
Seminar 13/
Wrap up of he course, discussion, eventually oral exam
Anotace
The aim of this seminar is to complement the traditional migration courses offered by the Department of Social Geography and Regional Development. The course introduces students to recent theoretical and practical developments in migration studies, enabling them to engage with the studied material proactively and meet experts in selected lectures. It intensively uses a discussion about the relevant topics as well as about the student's feedback on recommended articles. Three selected migratory issues will be introduced: Diaspora and transnationalism, Refugees and asylum seekers, and Environmental migration. All of the topics will start firstly with terminology and definitions, then concepts, and thirdly will be introduced case studies and empirical examples. Students will understand the studied concepts and make sense of the relations between historical and current events, or between local and global events and migration flows. The study material comprises presentations and academic texts, as well as videos.
The course is recommended for Czech and international students with an interest in migration studies at both the bachelor’s and master’s levels. The whole course is conducted in English.