Ørecomm seminar: Histories and Dynamics of Globalization, Communication and Development

Studies on Somalis and Filipinos in Scandinavia, presented by  Marco Zoppi & Erliza López Pedersen,  will present  communication in the era of globalization and community practices involved. Join our seminar taking place in Malmö Högskola on 18th of May to see a wider picture. 

Here is an overview of the topics to be discussed during the seminar.

Voices and Performances-Transnational Radio Streaming and Community Practices

Erliza López Pedersen

This research examines the era of globalization- the movement of people, information, and extended social relations. The core of the study lies in the contemporary mediated and non-mediated practices of Filipino migrants in Spain and the Nordic countries. However, it also covers a historical landscape of the movement of the Filipinos to Europe as well as the unfolding of information and communication technologies that have been significant in the communication of this migrant group within and beyond their communities. The aim is to map out and understand the (im)mobility of information produced and consumed by the Filipino migrants and their application of media tools, traditional or new, in their communication practices. Based on the initial data, the Filipinos in the Nordic countries have been greatly active in bridging the communities through radio streaming by involving locals in production of their radio programs particularly aimed at this region. However, participation among community members is not as immense as one would expect. This is not the same in Spain despite the non-usage of an allocated Filipino online radio network for the country; one could see that interpersonal communication and employment of conventional communication tools seem to be serving the basic communication needs of the Filipinos in this country, but the information does not move beyond the local parameters.

Erliza Lopez Pedersen is a PhD Candidate in “Histories and Dynamics of Globalization, Communication, and Development” at Malmö Högskola. She obtained her MA in Communication for Development at Malmö Högskola in 2012. Her research interests, apart from migration and media and communication studies, include gender studies and online practices of citizenship.

Horizons of Security: Welfare and Social Security among the Somalis in Scandinavia

Marco Zoppi

This research attempts at tracing potential changes occurring in the practices of welfare and in the perceptions of social security among the Somali diaspora in Scandinavia: the matter is of remarkable relevance, considering that the Somalis are oftentimes considered the least “integrated” group in the mentioned area. In addition to that, the study gets possibly more intriguing because the Somali traditional society is definable to a good extent as stateless, while the countries of the so-called Nordic model display conversely a crucial component of ‘statism’ in their social systems, which is said to insure the individual citizen from the cradle to the grave. This research explores thus everyday negotiations of welfare practices among the Somalis in historical perspective, reflecting on the dynamics of interaction realizing between the experiences collected in the past and the realities they have found in the new countries of residence. For this scope, a qualitative study was pursued based on individual interviews with Somalis living in Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The most frequently discussed themes were those of family relations; care, education; security; trust; and relation with state authorities. In the provisional conclusion Marco Zoppi argues that while the Somalis are experiencing changes in the way they think and act about welfare, often embracing both systems, categories of the state are still dominating much of the Western understanding of social assistance, consequently marginalizing the study of alternative systems for its provision.

Marco Zoppi is a PhD fellow in “Histories and Dynamics of Globalization, Communication and Development” at Roskilde University, Department of Communication and Arts. He has obtained a MA in African Studies at the University of Copenhagen. Besides welfare and social security, his research interests include migration; colonialism/postcolonialism; Africa-Europe relations.

Interested to find out more? Join  Ørecomm seminar

Where? Malmö Högskola K3,Glocal Classroom (Niagara C0502), Nordenskiöldsatan 1, Malmö

When? 18 May, 15.15 – 17.00

Image via www.mah.se