Neuchâtel, Switzerland
18 — 19 February 2027
Deadline for applications — 30 September 2026
Institute of Sociology, University of Neuchâtel
Organised by: Prof. Mihaela Nedelcu and Dr. Oksana Ovsiiuk
Mass displacements of populations due to military conflicts, political regimes and humanitarian disasters over the past decades have dramatically reshaped the structure of contemporary families. The ongoing war in Ukraine, the devastating conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan and South Sudan, as well as humanitarian collapse, economic crises and repression in countries such as Venezuela and Iran, have generated large-scale migration flows worldwide. Millions of people have experienced disruption to family life, including the fragmentation of households, the breakdown of relationships, the dispersion of relatives across national borders, the transformation of support networks, and the need either to build new family ties or to devise strategies to sustain existing ones.
These challenges are further exacerbated in contexts where families are divided by lines of occupation and related tensions over values, ideologies, and loyalties – as in Ukraine –, as well as in the precarious situations of multi-generational diasporas confronting increasingly restrictive and shifting migration regimes. For example, Afghans now facing deportation to a homeland they have never known must navigate complex reconfigurations of family relations across countries of origin, host societies and third countries.
This workshop aims to document, analyse and understand the dynamics of transnational family (re)configurations in contexts of crisis-driven migration. We define transnational family configurations as diverse, geographically dispersed personal networks of kin and non-kin whom individuals subjectively identify as members of their family (Nedelcu, Fernandez & Wyss, 2024). The (re)configuration of these networks reflects evolving needs for mutual support, as well as shifts in the quality of family relationships resulting from dispersion and shifting values. We invite researchers from migration studies, sociology, anthropology, gender studies, education, psychology, political science, history, and related disciplines to submit proposals based on original empirical data. We also welcome practitioners working in the field of migration whose contributions draw on practice-based insights. Contributions should explore how forced displacement transforms family structures, caregiving practices, and relational dynamics across diverse crisis contexts worldwide.
We particularly encourage submissions that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:
1) Family structures, transformation of ties, and coping strategies.
– The transformation of family ties under the impact of military conflict (and other lifethreatening conditions), forced migration and prolonged separation.
– The role of non-kins (e.g. friends, volunteers, neighbours, etc.) in expanding, reconfiguring or substituting “traditional” family networks.
– Individual and collective strategies for rebuilding support networks and coping with psycho-emotional stress within family under conditions of prolonged uncertainty.
2) Everyday family practices, gender roles, and technologies of remote care.
– The transformation of relationships between different age groups (in particular, remote parenting and care for elderly relatives) in the context of the destruction of familiar local support systems.
– The reformulation of traditional roles, responsibilities and expectations within households separated by borders and conflicts.
– The use of digital technologies (e.g. messaging applications and video communication tools) to sustain family ties and coordinate everyday practices of transnational care.
– The tensions, difficulties and emotional labour emerging in the context of transnational exchanges of support.
3) State regulation, legal constraints and family solidarity as a source of security.
– The impact of legal statuses, asylum systems, and temporary protection regimes on family subjectivities and agency.
– Opportunities and constraints surrounding family reunification across diverse legal and policy frameworks.
– The role of family-based solidarities as primary sources of security and survival under conditions of legal precarity and economic hardship in host countries.
– The contribution of community networks, solidarity initiatives, and activism in sustaining transnational family life.
Submission instructions:
Please submit an abstract of no more than 300 words to Mihaela Nedelcu ([email protected]) and Oksana Ovsiiuk ([email protected])
Deadline: 30 September 2026.
Notification of acceptance: 30 October 2026.
A selection of papers presented at the workshop will be invited for publication in a special issue edited by the organisers.
