Course Co-Directors: Oksana Ovsiiuk (University of Fribourg) and Madlen Kobi (University of Fribourg)
Contemporary social relations increasingly transcend national borders as people migrate in response to war, repression, climate change, economic opportunities, or intimate partnerships. This seminar examines how people sustain social, familial, and intimate relationships across national borders, focusing on the role of digital technologies, infrastructures, routines, and affective labor that maintain or disrupt long-distance connections. Using socio-anthropological perspectives on transnationalism and care, students explore how kinship and support systems adapt when lived across distance. Through readings, discussions, guest lectures, and collaborative Swiss–Ukrainian research projects, the course offers both theoretical foundations and hands-on experience studying transnational relations. The seminar is offered in collaboration between the Invisible University and the University of Fribourg and takes place primarily online.
Learning objectives:
• Students understand the key debates in the field of transnational relations and care in order to apply them in the anthropological analysis of contemporary societies
• Students develop the ability to analyze and discuss complex societal questions
• Students are able to plan, conduct, and finalize small research projects in groups.
• Students interact with one another transnationally through online teaching and research settings and reflect on the benefits and challenges this brings.