I haven't blogged much in the last few years, largely on account of taking on more management responsibility in my research projects. This is the nature of research career progression: You work on other peoples' projects doing fieldwork, publishing, building your CV, yearning for the day when you will have the power. Then you take … Continue reading More writing, more fun
A Christmas Blogpost
Because I work in politics and humanitarianism, I have some particular views on the Christmas story. To be frank, I think the way that we celebrate Christmas, and the associated imagery, betrays the theology of the entire enterprise. The only Christmas service I've been to that felt hermenuetically true to the story culminated with the … Continue reading A Christmas Blogpost
Fieldwork with a Kid: Reflections on a trip to Ghana
I took my older daughter with me on a fieldwork trip to Ghana. As you can see below, it was a great adventure, and she experienced some amazing new things. It was a great experience for me too, and now that I've been back in Germany for a bit I've reflected on a few things … Continue reading Fieldwork with a Kid: Reflections on a trip to Ghana
Urban Refugees and Digital Technology: Now available!
My new book Urban Refugees and Digital Technology is now available for purchase through McGill-Queens University Press! You can find details here: https://www.mqup.ca/urban-refugees-and-digital-technology-products-9780228020523.php?page_id=73& In mid-March the e-book version will be released, and along with that an open-access electronic version. There will also be a lot more coming about the book, including videos, talks, and seminars … Continue reading Urban Refugees and Digital Technology: Now available!
Human Subjects, Digital Protocols: New book chapter on research ethics!
My colleague Ziad al Achkar and I recently published a chapter on the ethics of doing human subjects research using social media and digital technologies in complex research settings. This is a new, challenging topic in ethical research practice, and we hope the chapter is useful to researchers working with digital and social media data!
After the PhD: Where to go if you don’t want to be a professor
I wrote a post last week about getting a PhD when you have a career aim other than being a professor. It generated a lot of interest, which is great! However, I sort of left the last post with "you need some luck to pull this off" so I wanted to follow up in more … Continue reading After the PhD: Where to go if you don’t want to be a professor
Getting a PhD without wanting to be a professor: reflections on a fun but sometimes awkward career path
I've had a number of masters students and junior colleagues ask recently about the idea of doing a PhD without the explicit aim of going into the academy and becoming a professor. I've gotten the question "how and why did you do this?" enough times in the last few months that I thought it'd be … Continue reading Getting a PhD without wanting to be a professor: reflections on a fun but sometimes awkward career path
New Article: “Do Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) Support Self-Reliance among Urban Refugees? Evidence from Kuala Lumpur and Penang, Malaysia”
My colleague Katrina Munir-Asen and I have a new article out in International Migration Review! It is open access, so anyone with the link can read the whole thing. We deeply appreciate the collegiality and collaboration of the different refugee communities in Kuala Lumpur and Penang who participated in interviews, invited us into community centers … Continue reading New Article: “Do Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) Support Self-Reliance among Urban Refugees? Evidence from Kuala Lumpur and Penang, Malaysia”
Mastodon
Just a quick update in case Twitter crashes or burns to the ground, you can find me on Mastodon at @cmartinshields@mastodon.social. I'll be doing there what I have been doing on Twitter, mostly posting about development cooperation, research, academia, and occasionally fashion. As long as Twitter is up, my handle there will also be running, … Continue reading Mastodon
Organizing an ISA panel! Title: “Technology and Humanitarian Geography: Mapping, Sensing, and Social Media
My colleague Ziad Al Achkar and I are organizing a panel for the International Studies Association meeting in 2023 in Montreal! We've mentioned this panel a few times on Twitter, and would love to have 1-2 more papers on the panel. Here's the panel abstract: "This panel explores the roles that digital mapping, remote sensing, … Continue reading Organizing an ISA panel! Title: “Technology and Humanitarian Geography: Mapping, Sensing, and Social Media
Charles P. Martin-Shields 