Organised by BIRMM (VUB)–CEDEM (ULiège)–CESSMIR (UGent)–GERME (ULB)–MIGLOBA (University of Antwerp)
Welcome to the sixth edition of our joint research day! This 2026 edition will focus on knowledge production on migration in a context of increasingly restrictive and violent migration policies and discourse in liberal democracies (Europe, USA, Canada etc). Some argue that we are living and working in authoritarian times, or at least appear to be on a slippery slope, marked by the erosion of the rule of law, with a clear impact on migrants themselves and mounting pressure on both civil society working in solidarity with migrants and researchers interested in diversity. The day aims to reflect on the implications of this context for conducting, disseminating and collaborating on migration research.
- How can researchers still engage with policy debates when migration is politically contested?
- How can migrant voices be heard without exposing them to additional risks?
- How can researchers deal with backlash towards their work?
- How can researchers still contribute to societal transformation and alternative futures in such times?
- How can we build alliances within and beyond academia that support aiming for that goal?
Throughout the day, we will discuss practical examples of researchers who worked through these challenges in different contexts and with different solutions, we will revisit the debate between policy-relevant and policy-irrelevant research and we will discuss how to deal with state-centred priorities that go against societal justice.
Much like in the past editions, we aim for a day full of inspiring talks and workshops by researchers with diverse disciplinary backgrounds and ample possibilities for networking between migration scholars.
- When? 17th of November, 9:00-17:00
- Where? Brussels, VUB, Pleinlaan 5, Lisbon & Rome conference room
- Participation fe: free
Interested in joining? More information can be found on the BIRMM website and below.
Programme
9:00 Registration and welcome coffee
9.30 Welcome by the organising teams from BIRMM, CESSMIR, CEDEM, GERME and MIGLOBA
10.00 Keynote 1 by Thomas Huddleston (CEDEM, ULiège): 'Belgian Migration Studies in the Face of Trumpification'
10.45 Break
11.15 Keynote 2 by Laura Stielike on the relevance of policy (ir)relevant research
12.00 Keynote 3 - speaker tbc
12.45 Lunch
14.00 Parallel workshops
- Workshop 1: Can we still do policy relevant research in restrictive political context? - with Thomas Huddleston (ULiège)
- Workshop 2: The relevance of policy (ir)relevant research - with Sol Ballet (Ghent University)
- Workshop 3: The need for and the potential of alliance building with civil society - with Sotieta Ngo (CIRé) and Joost Depotter/ Thomas Willekens (Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen)
16.00 Closing comments