Sep 10, 2024: InfraNorth Workshop “Ethnography Beyond the Case Study: Possibilities and Limitations of Comparison”
The ERC Advanced Grant project InfraNorth, in collaboration with Nordregio, will host the workshop “Ethnography Beyond the Case Study: Possibilities and Limitations of Comparison” in Stockholm on September 10, 2024.
Comparison stands as a cornerstone within empirical social sciences and humanities research, presenting a versatile array of methodologies. Sociocultural anthropology, on the other hand, typically insists on the priority of ethnographic fieldwork and engages with questions about the uniqueness of a particular case study. Thus, the question arises what can be gained by engaging in comparative endeavors? Or, to put it more provocatively, isn’t the level of generalization needed for comparison the foe of ethnography?
This workshop encourages broad discussions from a variety of social science perspectives about successful comparative projects across different regional and topical areas. At the same time, the organizers are engaged in a pan-Arctic project addressing transport infrastructures. Thus, the comparability of human engagements with transport infrastructures across regional contexts will be a reoccurring topic of conversation.
The event will be held in a hybrid format, with previous registration: in person at the Nordregio offices in Stockholm (Holmamiralens Väg 10) and online via Zoom. Invited speakers include Ulf Hannerz (Stockholm University), Leneisja Jungsberg (Nordregio), Corine Wood-Donnelly (Nord University), Florian Stammler (University of Lapland), Johan Lindquist (Stockholm University), and Chakad Ojani (Stockholm University).
A detailed program is available as a PDF file here.
Date and time: September 10, 2024, from 09:30 to 18:00 CEST.
Venue: Nordregio. Holmamiralens Väg 10, Skeppsholmen, 111 49 Stockholm, Sweden (See: Map).
Agenda
09:30 – 10:45
Session 1
Moderation: Peter Schweitzer
Timothy Heleniak (Nordregio) and Peter Schweitzer (University of Vienna):
Opening: Welcome and Introduction to the Workshop
Ulf Hannerz (Stockholm University):
Memories of Comparative Anthropology
10:45 – 11:15
Coffee Break
11:15 – 12:45
Session 2
Moderation: Philipp Budka
Leneisja Jungsberg (Nordregio):
What is Arctic Adaptive Governance in the Context of Climate Change and Permafrost Thaw?
Corine Wood-Donnelly (Nord University):
JUSTNORTH: Reflections on the Viability of Sustainable Development
Florian Stammler (University of Lapland):
Ethnographic Comparison in the Arctic: Collective and Individual Transport Infrastructure
12:45 – 14:30
Lunch Break
14:30 – 16:00
Session 3
Moderation: Elena Davydova
Peter Schweitzer et al. (University of Vienna):
From Case Study to Pan-Arctic Ambition: The InfraNorth Project and the Challenge of Comparison
Olga Povoroznyuk (University of Vienna):
Infrastructuring Arctic Coastal Communities: A Comparative Anthropology of Seaport Projects in Alaska, Norway and Russia
Alexandra Meyer, Ria-Maria Adams, and Sophie Elixhauser (University of Vienna):
Accessing the “Inaccessible”: The Role of Airports for Arctic Local Communities
16:00 – 16:15
Coffee Break
16:15 – 17:45
Session 4
Moderation: Katrin Schmid
Johan Lindquist (Stockholm University):
Infrastructures of Circulation: Migrant Preparatory Training in Southeast Asia and East Africa
Chakad Ojani (Stockholm University):
Small and Large Infrastructures: A Comparison
General Discussion
