Inhabiting Research in the Neoliberal and Eurocentral University: Collaborative Ethnography as a Bet for the Common and Political Subjectivation

• Main Authors: Aurora Álvarez Veinguer, Luca Sebastiani
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Antropólogos Iberoamericanos en Red 2020-05-01
• Series: Antropólogos Iberoamericanos en Red
• Online Access: https://www.aibr.org/antropologia/netesp/numeros/1502/150204e.pdf

In this paper, we discuss the transformations undergone by the academic institution at global and European level, arguing that contemporary University is both neoliberal and eurocentric. First, we highlight the changes that have affected research practice, conceived as an increasingly “fast”, individualist and depoliticized activity; the role (and the subjectiv-ity) of the researcher, constantly pushed to accumulate academic merits and achieve “excel-lence” and “impact”; and the growing precaritization of both working and life conditions. Then, drawing on our experience of collaborative ethnography with “Stop Evictions Grana-da-15M” (Spain), we propose possible “lines of flight” from this situation. Based on our fieldwork, we theorize collaborative ethnography as a way to decolonize research practices. We stress its potential to produce collective knowledge and promote (re)politicization pro-cesses and claim that collaboration can help overcome the (currently hegemonic) individu-alistic and depoliticizing logics in Academia.