{"id":473,"date":"2021-10-25T12:19:15","date_gmt":"2021-10-25T12:19:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogg.mau.se\/tims\/?page_id=473"},"modified":"2022-04-29T06:49:07","modified_gmt":"2022-04-29T06:49:07","slug":"news-2021","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogg.mau.se\/tims\/updates\/news-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"News 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Four questions to Sara Licata, research intern for TiMS<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sara Licata has been a research intern for the TiMS project during autumn -21. We took the opportunity to ask her four questions before she continues her studies at the IMER master\u2019s programme at Malm\u00f6 University.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You\u2019re a master\u2019s student at the IMER (International Migration and Ethnic Relations) programme at Malm\u00f6 University. Could you tell us a bit about the programme?<\/em><\/strong>
\u2013 IMER is focused on the study of the different dynamics, patterns, structures, and experiences of migration. It addresses issues about both the international and transnational mobilities, and the local integration or segregation processes \u2013 with a particular focus on ethnic diversity and multiculturalism.
\u2013 This programme is the exact reason why I decided to study at Malmo University. Before finding it, I had always been interested in migration, mobility, cultural and ethnic diversity intercommunication, and inclusion dynamics, but I had never had the chance to study and analyze them deeper. These topics are so interesting to me, because of several reasons, some personal ones linked to my family\u2019s and closest friends\u2019 stories of migration, and my own brief migration experience during a five-year stay in Shanghai; others connected to the questions which rise from the recent global migration situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did you get in contact with TiMS?<\/em><\/strong>
\u2013 During the third semester of IMER there is the possibility to apply for a research internship within the university research departments. During previous year my interest towards research has sparked, and this was a good opportunity to better understand the research process through practice and consider it for a potential future career.
\u2013 When I read about TiMS project, I thought it was the ideal project to explore the role that the interrelation between migration and tourism have in shaping the images of places and cultures, and the relevance that it might have for the inclusion of diverse minorities, as well as their role in development of different spaces and new opportunities in the flexible and dynamic city environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What projects have you been involved with as a research intern for TiMS?<\/em><\/strong>
\u2013 My supervisor for this intership is Sayaka Osanami T\u00f6rngren. We decided to explore the field of VFR (visiting friends and relatives) tourism and travel in multicultural societies, with a specific focus on the role of social networks, the mobility\/immobility patterns and the visibility\/invisibility aspect in the participation and feeling of participation in the place. VFR tourism and travel is an under-researched, complex and multifaceted topic. It is little studied in relation to migrants or minorities integration, participation, and inclusion in societies, even though both the host and the guest roles and experiences can have relevant influence in how a place is perceived.
\u2013 Currently, we are carrying out a pilot project with mixed-method interviews about VFR tourism and travel experiences of diverse ethnic groups here in Sweden to research on the role of social networks and the mobility, immobilty, and visibility effects on place participation and the feeling of participation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are your plans after the internship? Will you continue your research about VFR tourism?<\/em>
<\/strong>\u2013 Yes, my plans are to continue my research about this topic and write my master\u2019s thesis project about VFR tourism, social networks and place participation. After that, I think I will try to keep on doing research, by applying for a PhD programme or within independent researh projects, because the whole internship was such an interesting and inspiring experience to me.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Get to know our partners \u2013 municipality of Lysekil <\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What is an inclusive event, and how can municipalities support event organizers to develop events that are accessible for various groups in our society? These are some of the questions we work with in the TiMS research project. One of our partners is the municipality of Lysekil.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In October 2021, TiMS researchers Helena Kraff and Eva Maria Jernsand went to Lysekil, a town on the Swedish west coast, to ask residents in the municipality to share their thoughts, concerns, and ideas on inclusivity in relation to events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was done in collaboration with two representatives from the municipality, during a number of local cultural events. We took the opportunity to ask some questions to Cia S\u00e4ll, destination strategist, and Viktoria Drottz, event coordinator at the municipality of Lysekil, about why they got engaged in the TiMS-project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did it all start?<\/strong>
\u201cWe have had an ongoing collaboration with University of Gothenburg and Centre for Tourism in different tourism-related projects and processes. For instance, we have worked on a destination strategy for Lysekil municipality and explored the visitor center of the future, which included workshops, study visits and discussions on sustainable and responsible tourism. This has led us into working more with inclusion and diversity. So it felt natural to participate in the TiMS-project as well” says Cia S\u00e4ll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The municipality had identified that the procedure around local events was unsatisfactory. They wanted to investigate existing events and come up with an event strategy to support event organizers and make local events more sustainable, regarding, among other things, accessibility and inclusiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are carrying out surveys with both adults and youths, plus interviews with representatives from different organizations and other associations. This will lead up to a structured evaluation of events to make us work better together” says Viktoria Drottz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How have the residents responded to your work concerning inclusive events so far?<\/strong>
\u201cPeople are interested and appreciative of that we do this work. We can see that young people miss events that are specifically for them, so we have to do more. Our hope is that this work will be a start of a process where we can involve different groups, in the idea generation and organizing of events\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think it is very important to be out there, to be visible and talk to the residents, and that they feel they have a say in our processes. The dialogue is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Would you say there is a growing interest among Swedish municipalities to work towards making events more inclusive?<\/strong>
\u201cOur experience is that many municipalities have the ambition to work more inclusive. But it differs a lot from town to town, mostly it is a question of resources. We have a lot to learn but feel it is very positive that many towns want to work more with issues surrounding inclusion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Documentation from Lysekil, October -2021.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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TiMS conference attendance x 2 about inclusive tourism<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As researchers in the TiMS team, we have worked with an interesting methodology. We call it \u201ccollaborative introspection\u201d and we have used it to explore and reflect upon our own tourism memories during three sessions.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using the method enabled us to create an open dialogue that revealed instances of exclusion and inclusion in tourism, and how this relates to our national, cultural, gender and racial differences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sofia Ulver produced a film about the methodology for The International Transdisciplinary Conference 2021<\/em> (ITD21, 13-17 September 2021). Together with Eva Maria Jernsand and Helena Kraff from TiMS, Sofia also had a session with conference participants to discuss how collaborative introspection can be used in transdisciplinary projects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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