After fourteen years of Conservative governments defined by the infamous hostile environment launched by Home Secretary Theresa May, a new Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, seems eager to build her political profile by weaponising the migration issue once again. The search for a new catchphrase may still be on, but the underlying message feels all too... Continue Reading →
July 2025 marked a significant month for the Institute for Research into International Migration & Superdiversity (IRiS) in Brazil, as Dr Angelo Martins Junior represented the University of Birmingham in a series of academic, diplomatic, and community-focused activities across the country. His engagements spanned the Amazon, São Paulo, Campinas, and Brasília, deepening IRIS’ international collaborations... Continue Reading →
The Academy of Social Sciences is delighted to welcome 45 leading social scientists to our Fellowship this autumn. Spanning a range of research and practice areas including urban governance and public policy, health technology assessment, hunger and food insecurity, migration and forced displacement, and international law, our newly elected Fellows highlight the importance, breadth and... Continue Reading →
The Call for Participants for the euniwell winter school on Migration And DivErsity IN EUROPEan cities (MADEINEUROPE) is now open. The winter school is open to Masters and PhD students enrolled to one of the seven universities of the euniwell network - the universities of Birmingham (UK), Florence (Italy), Leiden (the Netherlands), Cologne (Germany), Nantes... Continue Reading →
Co-hosted by the Institute for Research into Superdiversity (IRiS) and the Department of Economics, University of Birmingham. Poor air quality in the UK has been estimated to contribute to between 28,000 and 36,000 deaths per year and to reduce the quality of life for those who experience chronic health conditions. A concern increasingly raised by... Continue Reading →
Fieldwork memories at the beginning of a new academic year.
In the follow up to our first Conversations with Iris episode, Lyndsey Stonebridge (IRiS) talks to Les Back (Goldsmiths, University of London) about the future of universities. https://youtu.be/fUTB8-iE-6U
#rethinkingnationalism is a twelve bite-sized (1-9 min) video series that offers academic insight and public perspectives on nationalism, belonging, and diversity in Europe today. The series produced by Migration Matters is part of Erasmus+ Virtual Exchange, a ground-breaking project that enables youth in Europe and the Southern Mediterranean to engage in meaningful intercultural experiences online.... Continue Reading →
IRiS was established as a cross-University of Birmingham institute in 2012 and has quickly gained ground and recognition to become one of the world’s leading institutes for the interdisciplinary study of superdiversity, migration and displacement. Birmingham, as one of the largest and most diverse cities in Europe, provides the ideal location for research both at... Continue Reading →
Exciting PhD opportunities at IRiS, as part of the Global Challenges initiative at the University of Birmingham. Successful candidates would work on one of the themes/projects below, supervised by a member of IRiS: Cities on the Edge: How to create welcoming, egalitarian, adaptable, flourishing cities of tomorrow (Dr L Goodson, Prof A Green, Dr Rachel Humphris )... Continue Reading →
Conversations with Iris: Podcast on migration, diversity and displacement
The Age of Superdiversity 