Introductory description

This module tackles migration from the perspective of sustainable development and its social, environmental and economic dimensions. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development acknowledges the impact of human mobility on the sustainable development of 'countries of origin, transit, and destination', highlighting its global nature. Thanks to a series of case studies, students will consider elements such as: the environmental and historical contexts of migration routes, in particular from a postcolonial perspective; migration policies; instances of human rights violation (e.g. human trafficking) and inequalities; different (gendered, racialized, classed) categories of people experiencing migration; experiences of LGBTQUA+ migrants; issues of inclusion, belonging, community and social cohesion in destination countries.
A key, transdisciplinary critical lens in the module invites learners to investigate how human mobility is represented in the media and in artistic productions, in order to reflect on how global issues are communicated, their relation with identity and (in)visibility, and their narratives in the public discourse.

Module web page

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

weeks 1-2: Introduction to migration and sustainable development
Key definitions, theories, and implications of various forms of human mobility (e.g. forced migration; refuge; etc)

weeks 3-4: Representations of migration
A focus on how migration-related themes are represented in the media and artistic productions and how it influences public discourse on migration.

weeks 5-9: Global trajectories of human mobility
Each week will consider the social, environmental and economic dimensions of a case study centred on a specific region (e.g. the Mediterrenean).

week 10: Individual work on essay plan
This week students will complete some asynchronous activities to help them brainstorm and research the topic of their essay and refine their arguments, plus will have some independent study time to work on their essay proposal.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• develop a critical understanding of key theoretical tools in the areas of migration and sustainable development
• explore strategies to communicate academic knowledge and research to wider public audiences
• engage with narrative research and narrative practices as critical lens, with a focus on media and artistic productions
• plan and undertake research on a topic related to the module

Indicative reading list

Ahmed, Sara, Claudia Castañeda, Anne-Marie Fortier, and Mimi Sheller, eds. 2020. Uprootings/regroundings: Questions of Home and Migration. London: Routledge. --- Aliverti, Ana J. 2021. Policing the Borders within. Oxford: Oxford University Press. --- Behrman, Simon, and Avidan Kent, eds. 2018. Climate Refugees: Beyond the Legal Impasse?. London: Taylor and Francis. --- Fina, Anna De, and Amelia Tseng. 2017. ‘Narrative in the Study of Migrants.’ In The Routledge Handbook of Migration and Language, 381–96. London: Routledge. --- Hynes, Patricia. 2021. Introducing Forced Migration. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. --- International Organization for Migration. ‘Migration and Sustainable Development.’ https://www.iom.int/migration-and-sustainable-development [last accessed: 11 January 2021]. --- Lin, Xiaodong. 2013. Gender, Modernity and Male Migrant Workers in China. London: Routledge. --- Lowndes, Vivien, and Roda Madziva. 2016. ‘“When I Look at This Van, It”s Not Only a Van’: Symbolic Objects in the Policing of Migration’. Critical Social Policy 36 (4): 672–92. --- Mazzara, Federica. 2016. ‘Subverting the Narrative of the Lampedusa Borderscape.’ Crossings: Journal of Migration & Culture 7 (2): 135–47. --- Messer, Michi, Renée Schroeder, and Ruth Wodak, eds. 2012. Migrations: Interdisciplinary Perspectives. Vienna: Springer. --- Nasser-Eddin, Nof, and Nour Abu-Assab. 2020. ‘Decolonial Approaches to Refugee Migration.’ Migration and Society 3 (1): 190–202. --- Squire, Vicki. 2020. Europe’s Migration Crisis: Border Deaths and Human Dignity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. --- Stierl, Maurice. 2019. Migrant Resistance in Contemporary Europe. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. --- Tazzioli, Martina. 2020. The Making of Migration: The Biopolitics of Mobility at Europe’s Borders. Los Angeles: SAGE. --- Thambinathan, Vivetha, and Elizabeth Anne Kinsella. 2021. ‘Decolonizing Methodologies in Qualitative Research: Creating Spaces for Transformative Praxis.’ International Journal of Qualitative Methods 20 [online, last accessed: 11 January 2021]. --- UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. ‘COVID-19 and Refugees.’ https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/95cc3b65d9264cf3b80fffef0daa0358 [last accessed: 11 January 2021] --- Zetter, Roger, and James Morrissey. 2014. ‘The Environment-Mobility Nexus: : Reconceptualizing the Links between Environmental Stress, (Im)mobility, and Power.’ In The Oxford Handbook of Refugee and Forced Migration Studies, 343–54.

Research element

The module includes asynchronous activities to help students research the topic of their essay and refine their arguments: as part of the syllabus, students will be given some independent study time to work on their essay proposal and the opportunity to discuss it with the tutor.

Interdisciplinary

The module will offer students access to a variety of disciplinary perspective that are essential to discuss migration in relation to sustainable development. In addition to the economic, social, and environmental perspectives, the module will draw from expertise in history, law, and communication. Narrative research is a cross-disciplinary approach, too, and will be used to discuss narratives of migration of various forms.

International

Internationalisation is inherent in the topic of the module, as it invites learners to go beyond monocultural representations of nation states and engage with multicultural and inclusive models of contemporary societies. The focus on the various forms of human mobility will help students develop a self-awareness of different cultural backgrounds. Students will also be invited to complete the Warwick Intercultural Training Programme as part of their optional activities https://warwick.ac.uk/students/opportunities/worldatwarwick/interculturaltraining/openprogramme

Subject specific skills

The topic of migration is discussed through the lens of sustainable development. Students will be able to apply the expertise that they acquired in their first year of GSD to tackle the complexity of the specific global issues at the centre of this module. Students will also consider the representation and public discussion around migration, which can then be applied to other global issues that they will study in the course.

Transferable skills

• Intercultural awareness: developed through engaging with issues that relate to cultural and linguistic diversity that you will be able to apply to real-world contexts
• Research: academic writing skill, specifically the ability to understand and synthesise complex concepts and apply them to specific case studies; the ability to unpack information provided and identify a research gap
• Written communication and storytelling – Developed through assessments involving rewriting a written text for non-specialist audiences such as articles