CEIVINDICO & UNA EUROPA

Since its birth, the CEIVINDICO network has followed the spirit of the UNA Europa initiative and, as a result, our goals are closely intertwined with the initiative itself. As a matter of fact, as the academic development of some members in the group demonstrates, the team is rooted in the idea of an overarching European network that facilitates the exchange of knowledge between academics at all levels by means of joint PhD programmes, research proposals and initiatives and international mobility across European campuses.

The team embodies the idea of a network of young researchers that are willing to cooperate together fuelled by shared ideas and values regardless of the physical context they share. Both core and external members of this network are located in different spatio-temporal settings. However, we are a body of educated citizens and researchers who are committed to working together in examining the roles of digital communities in the creation, reproduction and perpetuation of discourses that challenge some of the common values we believe in: gender equality, the protection of LGTBIQ+s rights and identities, and a diverse and multicultural cohesive Europe that combats the impact of global and climate change.

All members in this network believe in the power of digital communities to shape the challenges that humanity as a whole will unavoidably face in the forthcoming years. As young scholars, we have grown up in parallel to the development of online communities and the new ways of accessing information, interacting with others and socialising. Apart from this, we have also invested our research efforts in understanding how digital communities work, and as recent socio-political scenarios and global health crises have demonstrated, digital communities have the power to debilitate some of the foundational values of the world as we know it today.

The CEIVINDICO network has begun its existence driven by the connections between different communities that are committed to exploring new initiatives that foster alternative ways to learn, research and live across different European campuses. We envisage a future that relies on more flexible and creative ways to provide answers to complex phenomena of current and future societies. We are also ready to be part of a community that expands outside the borders of Europe and becomes a part of global dialogue, willing to collaborate with researchers, activists or external stakeholders who share our mission. This is why some of the activities we envision will necessarily unfold in online contexts in order to foster spaces that are more accessible and inclusive to anyone interested in our goals regardless of their backgrounds and physical locations.