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Description
The present project is a means of broadening and intensifying the cooperation of The Technical University of Liberec (and especially its Borders and Migration Research Group) and the University of Tromsø/The Arctic University of Norway (and especially its Border Poetics Research Group), with the central aim to exchange theoretical knowledge, practical know-how and best practices in researching and teaching about borders and migration. Following up on the previous successful cooperation, the project provides inter-institutional mobility for 12 people - both of the two institutions organizes a workshop, welcoming 6 members from their partners. These workshops focus on such issues as research methods in border studies and migration studies, theoretical and practical aspects of teaching topics related to borders and migration, social, political, psychological and environmental factors of migration, as well as curriculum and program development in border and migration studies. With a strong focus on stimulating theoretical discussions and intercultural teaching practice followed by peer-feedback, the ultimate long-term goal of the project, beyond strengthening cooperation between the two institutions, is to help participants gain new insights and acquire theoretical and practical knowledge not only about the benefits of various approaches to researching migration and borders, but also the practical aspects of curriculum and program design. Since migration is a phenomenon older than humanity itself, and borders and boundaries have played a special role in this process, the project''s commitment not only to understanding these related phenomena, but also, and most crucially, to the necessity of including them in higher education curricula, the project also hopes to indirectly influence present and future generations of university students and their thinking about these issues.
Summary of project results
The project was a means of broadening and intensifying the cooperation of The Technical University of Liberec (and especially its Borders and Migration Research Group) and the University of Tromsø/The Arctic University of Norway (and especially its Border Poetics Research Group), with the central aim to exchange theoretical knowledge, practical know-how and best practices in researching and teaching about borders and migration.
The project took the form of two coordinated stays. These workshops focused on topics including: - research methods in border studies and migration studies - theoretical and practical aspects of teaching topics related to borders and migration - environmental factors of migration and environmental aspects of borders - social, political, geographical and psychological factors of migration, as well as social, political, geographical and psychological aspects of borders - cross-border cooperation: organizational, para-diplomatic and political aspects - curriculum and program development in border and migration studies - common aspects of the participants'' and the organizers'' research.
In order to ensure practical training beyond theoretical discussions, teaching was also a key activity of these workshops, with participants from the sending institution teaching 4 teaching hours per person. The benefit of the workshop for both partners was the ability to exchange knowledge, experience, practical tips and theoretical considerations, while the teaching helped in testing various approaches and learning from each other''s teaching. In terms of the project’s tangible results, it provided the opportunity for 8 faculty members (6 from Liberec and 2 from Tromso) to get immersed in the teaching environment of the partner institution, while discussing research and teaching with like-minded colleagues with similar interests. Besides, through attracting further faculty members from the organizing institutions besides those who organized the workshop (8 in Tromso and 4 in Liberec) it opened up new ways of cooperation not only in-between the two participating institutions, but also inside those very institutions.
Summary of bilateral results
Further, the project resulted in a successful application for a further EEA grant project – Sites and Channels of Contact Within and Across Borders: Languages, Narratives and Representations. Besides this successful application, the present project also inspired a stronger cooperation across departments and even faculties in Liberec, resulting in the preparation of a new degree program entitled Comparative Studies of Europe and Asia.