Celebration Event Showcases Collaborative Partnership Between LSSI and UBA

One of the strategic aims of LSSI is to develop international partnerships with interdisciplinary social science organisations where bilateral collaborations and exchanges might prove mutually valuable. 

In October 2022, LSSI held an online workshop to connect researchers from the University of Leeds with University of Buenos Aires.  Subsequently seven collaborative research proposals were selected to receive pump-prime funding to catalyse the development of research outputs or support the collaborative delivery of impact-related activities. 

A hybrid workshop held in July 2023 brought together researchers from both organisations to discuss their projects, celebrate their research impact and discuss opportunities for future collaboration. 

Professor Louise Waite, LSSI Director, and Associate Professor Sahla Aroussi Deputy Director LSSI welcomed participants in Leeds and Dr Emilio Ayos Professor of Social Policy and Social Work and Researcher of National Council of Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET) at the Gino Germani Research Institute, Faculty of Social Sciences, UBA, opened on behalf of the team in Buenos Aires.   

We are looking forward to hearing about the future development of these projects

Our first speakers were Dr Deidre Conlon, Associate Professor in the School of Geography at the University of Leeds, and Dr Emilio Ayos, Doctor in Social Sciences at UBA.  Their project looked at the global north-south comparison of racism, xenophobia and sexism in the intersection of security and migration post pandemic.  Colleagues from Leeds and Buenos Aires have been able to host 2 workshops, sandpit meetings and literature reviews in both Spanish and English.  The team have overcome language and technical barriers and have formed a solid basis for continued collaboration.  They are now looking at identification of future grants and network funding opportunities. 

Dr Mercedes Di Virgilo and Dr Jose Vega Barbero discussed their project contested food landscapes which they worked on with Professor Sara Gonzalez  Professor in the School of Geography. This research connects urban and rural studies scholars by focusing on how processes of gentrification generate food injustices in the city and creates further contestations along the food supply and production chain.   

Dr Martin Zebracki, School of Geography, in collaboration with Dr Maria Rovisco  School of Sociology and Social Policy and Dr Lorena Verzero of IIGG, UBA & CONICET presented their work on the project Artivist Crossings for Climate Justice: Novel Interdisciplinary Methods for Inclusive Environmental Change.  The project has examined the potential of methods of art and activism – also known as ‘artivism’ – to provide a critical response to this pressing issues. 

 

 

Dr Asiya Islam from the University of Leeds Business School highlighted the social inequalities, particularly gender and class are shaping the experience of digital platform work, such as Deliveroo.  

Dr Madeleine Le Bourdon from the School of Politics and International Studies and Dr Emilio Ayos discussed the research network on youth activism in educational spaces. 

The team held regular seminars to share research and stimulate ideas for collaboration. In July, the group will host the panel 'International Trends in Youth Activism' at the V Latin American and Caribbean Biennial in Early Childhood, Childhood and Youth in Manizales, Colombia. The research team hopes to build on the success of this network to obtain a grant for a larger project to explore the role of informal and formal education on youth across Argentina and the UK.  

Dr Anna Grimaldi, Lecturer, School of Politics and International Studies, University of Leeds & Francisco Garcia Chicote, Lecturer, University of Buenos Aires, looked at the pilot research of two relatively new far-right political groups: UKIP (UK) and La Libertad Avanza (Argentina). It poses the question: how and to what effect are political struggles and subjectivities of the past reactivated in far-Right groups today?  

Rounding off the presentations, Professor Angharad Beckett from the School of Sociology and Social Policy, presented the project ‘Disability Friendships: Exchanging perspectives between Leeds and Buenos Aires’ on behalf of the multi-disciplinary and international team of researchers including Dr Maria Pia Ventureillo.    The objective of this research was to establish a collaborative network to strengthen research that promotes the rights of disabled people, supports efforts aimed at decolonising Disability Studies and makes a positive contribution to social transformation and inclusion.   

Sahla Aroussi closed the event with thanks to everyone who contributed to these collaborative projects. "It was fantastic to see how the pump-prime funding initiative has enabled building collaborative research networks and ideas, and strengthened the partnership between UoL and UBA. We look forward to hearing about the future development of these projects."

To read further information on each of the projects, please visit our LSSI News pages.