CRIA

Multidisciplinary approach is an added-value to the originality and impact of CRIA in contemporary anthropological knowledge. CRIA researchers are involved with several international activities:

a) members of international committees: “Health and Social Care for Migrants and Ethnic Minorities in Europe” (action promoted by COST - European Cooperation in Scientific & Technical Research;

b) members of multidisciplinary research groups: e.g. EXPERICE (psychoanalysis, education sciences and ethnopsychiatry in France);

c) international and transversal research projects:

1) “El discurso geopolítico de las fronteras en la construcción socio-política de las identidades nacionales: la frontera hispano-portuguesa en siglos XIX y XX”, Spain Ministry of science and education;

2) “Interethnic relations, identity, representation and discrimination” (IMISCOE, EC Network of Excellence);

3) “Multilinguism in a digital world“ (UNESCO project based in Brazil (UNICamp) with partners in Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Goa, Guinea-Bissau, Macau, Mozambique, S. Tomé and Timor;

d) Several senior researchers are scientific advisors for Master and PhD thesis in scientific domains beyond main traditional anthropological fields – Art, Theatre, Dance, Performance, Musicology, Biology, Environmentalism, Botanic, Social Service, Marketing, Design, Architecture.

The promotion of scientific meetings reveals a strong involvement in an international and transversal network of knowledge:

1) “Ethnografeast III” (June 20-23), (CEAS/ISCTE, U. Minho, U. California Berkeley and Journal Ethnography), addressed the question of ethnography and the public sphere promoting an intense dialogue between anthropologists and sociologists from top international universities;

2) “Life Histories” (July 12), (CEAS/ISCTE), debated theories and practices on the use of life histories in sociology, psycho-sociology, education sciences, nursing sciences and anthropology;

3) “4th Iberian Meeting of Anthropologists” (September 4-8), (U. Minho) strengthened the academic linkage and the development and debate of issues common to both Portuguese and Spanish anthropologists,;

4) the conference by M.-E. Handman, “What is prostitution? An ethnography of prostitution in Paris” (ISCTE October 1) (LAS-EHES, Paris) reinforced the link between Portuguese and French anthropology;

5) “Youth and Modernity in Africa” (October 10-12), (CEAS/ISCTE and CEA/ISCTE), debated issues related to African youth;

6) “Sexual tourism and migrations” (November 23) (CEAS/ISCTE and CIES/ISCTE) brought together the approaches of anthropologists and sociologists to common questions on gender and migrations;

7) “Heritage, tourism and cultural consumption” (March 13-16), (CEAS/ISCTE, Casa da América Latina, CIES/ISCTE), was a set of events (two conferences, a specialized three-day course and a public debate) that brought to Lisbon two Latin-American experts in cultural hybridism, tourism and cultural consumption (N. Garcia Canclini and A. Rosas Mantecón);

8) as a way to introduce CRIA to Portuguese academy, we organized Conferences by leading international anthropologists: Rafael J. Bastos (October 24), I. Boaventura Leite (December 6).

Our senior researchers attended several meetings in Portugal and abroad, where they delivered papers to international audiences. Some of the most relevant contributions are available in the group reports under “internationalization”.

During 2007 we combined the effort to reach general public and non-specialized audiences.

Almost all running post-doctoral research projects have a strong involvement with society: migration, migrants' mental health, health policies, youth-related issues, work and technology, gender, social discrimination, transnacionalism, development in Africa, gypsies’ mobility, Koranic schools, surveillance databases. We promote of a continuous debate between CRIA's post-doctoral researchers and external advanced researchers, through opened regular workshops.

CRIA was responsible for several outreaching anthropological activities in Portugal during 2007:

1) “Anthropological books in dialogue” (on behalf of CEAS/ISCTE) a set of open sessions where invited anthropologists discussed books with the audience. The aim of this monthly event was to debate thematic affinities and differences considering their distinct moments of production in the course of anthropology in Portugal. This event took place in a public Bookshop (Bulhosa) in Lisbon and was attended by common book-shoppers and people outside the academy;

2) “Winter Rituals with Masks” (March 20), (CRIA on behalf of CEEP/FCSH-UNL, CEAS/ISCTE and the department of Anthropology at FCSH-UNL) put together in a public debate all researchers with written contributions to the catalogue of the exhibition with the same name held at Abade de Baçal Museum (Bragança). This event had two remakes outside Lisbon, one in Aix-en-Provence (France) and another one in Oporto promoted by ICM - Instituto dos Museus e da Conservação;

3) “Anthropology, cinema and senses” (June 7-10), (CEAS in collaboration with UTAD, LPN and two local municipalities associations) took place in northern Portugal and brought together anthropological debate, documentaries and open-air activities with local communities.

 

1) ACIDI (High Commissioner for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue). In May 16, CEAS/ISCTE and CEMME/FCSH-UNL engaged with ACIDI in a partnership contracted only with highly recognized Portuguese research centres. This protocol includes organization of public activities on immigration as well as research projects, publication of studies and articles in ACIDI’s editions.

2) LPN (League for the Protection of Nature). LPN and CEAS/ISCTE were partners in the development of a Bibliographic Database on Environmental Research in Portugal in the framework of the Social Sciences, now virtually available worldwide;

3) GIS (Group for immigration and Health). CRIA supported a set of seminars promoted by GIS that brought together a varied audience, from child-educators to nurses and other medical staff;

4) CPR (Portuguese Council for the Refugees). CRIA (CEAS/ISCTE) started collaborating with CPR in the external scientific audit of CPR projects. The first audit was contracted in 2007 and at least two more are planned for 2008.

1) EU/FP6-funded project titled “Marama II”, leaded by a Danish university researcher in cooperation with other international universities in Europe and Africa. This project aims to improve food safety and diversify livelihoods for poor people in Southern Africa.

2) “’Recognizing Christianity’: how African immigrants redefine the European religious heritage” (NORFACE /ERA-NET project based in Portugal – ICS-UL – with partners in The Netherlands and in England;