SoRU21
Sociology of Risk and Uncertainty
About SoRU
The SoRU initiative was developed in 2005 as part of the interdisciplinary work in the ESRC ‘Social Contexts and Responses to Risk’ priority network (SCARR, 2003-2008) led by Prof. Peter Taylor-Gooby.
In 2004 Jens Zinn prepared with the support of a number of enthusiastic colleagues two proposals for founding research networks on the Sociology of Risk and Uncertainty, one to the European Sociological Association (ESA) and one to the International Sociological Association (ISA). In 2005 the Research Network 22 within ESA and in 2006 the Thematic Group 04 within ISA had been confirmed and started to work. A central website was established, research streams within the major conferences of ESA and ISA were organised and started to attract usually more than 100 abstracts.
In 2009 another SoRU group ‘Risk Societies’ has been established within the Australian Sociological Association (TASA) by Jens Zinn and Alphia Possamai-Inesedy.
That same year Patrick Brown took over the lead of RN22 and a group of experts from Mid Sweden University – Anna Olofsson, Susanna Öhman and Jörgen Sparf – became more active. Jörgen developed a new enhanced website and the group organised a first Mid-Term Conference for RN22 in 2011 at Mid Sweden University, campus Östersund.
The success and development of the SoRU initiative and the regional networks very much depend on the voluntary contributions of scholars all over the world. We welcome anyone who would like to contribute and help to develop this initiative further.
That same year Patrick Brown took over the lead of RN22 and a group of experts from Mid Sweden University – Anna Olofsson, Susanna Öhman and Jörgen Sparf – became more active. Jörgen developed a new enhanced website and the group organised a first Mid-Term Conference for RN22 in 2011 at Mid Sweden University, campus Östersund.
The success and development of the SoRU initiative and the regional networks very much depend on the voluntary contributions of scholars all over the world. We welcome anyone who would like to contribute and help to develop this initiative further.
Letteria FassariAssociate Professor at DiSSE
Letteria (Lia) Fassari is Associate Professor at DiSSE. She teaches Sociology of Cultural Processes (Undergraduate) and Sociology of Contemporary Cultures (Postgraduate) at DiSSE. She is a board member of the Doctorate in Applied Social Sciences, Sapienza University. From 2007 to 2010 she was a member of the AIS (Italian Association of Sociology) board and is currently a member of the Scientific Network for the Italian Journal Scuola Democratica. She is the founder and and director of Research Unit: Social Aesthetics (https://web.uniroma1.it/disse/en/node/7307). In 2014 she was Visiting Scholar at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). She is currently Visiting Fellow presso the Institute for Sociology / Collaborative Research Centre on Refiguration of Spaces SFB 1265 a Berlino. Her latest publications include monographs “Poplife. Il realitysmo tra mimetismo e chance sociale”, Carocci, Roma 2014; “L’esperienza del prof. Che cosa si fa nelle università italiane”, Franco Angeli, Milano 2009. Articles: (with) Spanò E. “Capturing Phantasm in Academia: evaluation artefacts and gender” in Italian Journal of Sociology of Education Padova University Press n. 1/2019); (with G. Pompili) “On the learning process to be Italian Muslim” In Scuola Democratica 3/2017, Special issue “School and religious identities” a cura di Salmieri L., Fabretti V., Benadusi M. Il Mulino, Bologna; (with Lo Presti V.) “La mela bacata. Per una riflessività culturale dell’università”) in Scuola Democratica 2/2017 Il Mulino, Bologna; “Oltre il realitysmo. Una mappa dell’esperienza mediale contemporanea” in Sociologia e Ricerca sociale, Vol. 113/2017; ‘Realitysm’ as a melancholic storytelling to cope with contemporary risk” in Health, Risk & Society, Vol.18/2016, Issue 7-8; Chapters in books: Fassari L. G., “Art, Performance and Metropolitan Lifestyle”, in Benincasa C., Neri G., Trimarchi M. (a cura di) Arts and the City: New Cultural Maps - Collana Urban Studies - Transcript Verlag: Columbia University Press; “The social experience of second-generation young Italian muslims in Italy”in El saber en Al-Andalus. Textos y estudios Volumen VI Mohammed Dahiri, Inmaculada Camarero Castellano (Coords) Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, España 2016;
Letteria FassariAssociate Professor at DiSSE
Letteria (Lia) Fassari is Associate Professor at DiSSE. She teaches Sociology of Cultural Processes (Undergraduate) and Sociology of Contemporary Cultures (Postgraduate) at DiSSE. She is a board member of the Doctorate in Applied Social Sciences, Sapienza University. From 2007 to 2010 she was a member of the AIS (Italian Association of Sociology) board and is currently a member of the Scientific Network for the Italian Journal Scuola Democratica. She is the founder and and director of Research Unit: Social Aesthetics (https://web.uniroma1.it/disse/en/node/7307). In 2014 she was Visiting Scholar at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). She is currently Visiting Fellow presso the Institute for Sociology / Collaborative Research Centre on Refiguration of Spaces SFB 1265 a Berlino. Her latest publications include monographs “Poplife. Il realitysmo tra mimetismo e chance sociale”, Carocci, Roma 2014; “L’esperienza del prof. Che cosa si fa nelle università italiane”, Franco Angeli, Milano 2009. Articles: (with) Spanò E. “Capturing Phantasm in Academia: evaluation artefacts and gender” in Italian Journal of Sociology of Education Padova University Press n. 1/2019); (with G. Pompili) “On the learning process to be Italian Muslim” In Scuola Democratica 3/2017, Special issue “School and religious identities” a cura di Salmieri L., Fabretti V., Benadusi M. Il Mulino, Bologna; (with Lo Presti V.) “La mela bacata. Per una riflessività culturale dell’università”) in Scuola Democratica 2/2017 Il Mulino, Bologna; “Oltre il realitysmo. Una mappa dell’esperienza mediale contemporanea” in Sociologia e Ricerca sociale, Vol. 113/2017; ‘Realitysm’ as a melancholic storytelling to cope with contemporary risk” in Health, Risk & Society, Vol.18/2016, Issue 7-8; Chapters in books: Fassari L. G., “Art, Performance and Metropolitan Lifestyle”, in Benincasa C., Neri G., Trimarchi M. (a cura di) Arts and the City: New Cultural Maps - Collana Urban Studies - Transcript Verlag: Columbia University Press; “The social experience of second-generation young Italian muslims in Italy”in El saber en Al-Andalus. Textos y estudios Volumen VI Mohammed Dahiri, Inmaculada Camarero Castellano (Coords) Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, España 2016;
Fiorenza GambaAssociate professor at DISEA
Fiorenza Gamba graduated in History of Philosophy at University of Turin, held a PhD in Philosophy from Sorbonne University in Paris, a PhD in Sociology of Culture and Communication from University of Turin and a HDR (Habilitation à diriger des recherches) in Sociology and Anthropology from University of Strasbourg. She is associate researcher at IRS (Institut de recherches sociologiques) of University of Geneva and associate professor at DISEA (Dipartimento di eccellenza di scienze economiche e aziendali) of University of Sassari. She is also co-founder of AIS section - Sociologia dell’immaginario and of AISLF CR38 – Socio-Anthropologie politique.
A strong interdisciplinary character marks out her research, which is located at the crossroads between sociology, anthropology and communication. She studies the transformation of rituals of death and commemoration and the way to copying with loss through the digital rituals, as well as the contemporary demand for immortality. Another field of interest is the social effects of digital technologies especially linked to mobility condition. Currently, Fiorenza Gamba focuses her research on urban identity, inclusion and urban ritual. This is also the subject of her recent project “UNIC Unexpected Inclusions: Migration, Mobility and the Open City”, founded by Swiss National Science Foundation in partnership with Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research under the Lead Agency process.
She has published on this topic:
Gamba F., Cattacin S. (2019). “Memory and mobility in a transnational world: urban rituals as space of belonging and identity”. City&Community: forthcoming.
Gamba F., Cattacin S. and White B. (2019). Créer la ville. Rituels territorialisés d’inclusion des différences. Montréal: Presses Universitaires de Montréal, forthcoming.
Gamba, F. (2019). “Inclusion et rituels. Un autre regard sur la ville des différences ”in Blais, Nathalie, Marisa Fois et Antoine Roblain (eds.). Dynamique de formalisation et d’informalisation dans l’étude des migrations. Genève : Université de Genève – Sociograph 42.
Gamba, F. (2018). “Spazio urbano e rituali di commemorazione a Hong Kong. Rappresentazioni della morte nelle Mobile Societies ”, Funes. Journal of narratives and social sciences : 2.
Gamba, F. (2009). Leggere la città: indizi di contaminazioni sociologiche. Napoli: Liguori.
Fiorenza GambaAssociate professor at DISEA
Fiorenza Gamba graduated in History of Philosophy at University of Turin, held a PhD in Philosophy from Sorbonne University in Paris, a PhD in Sociology of Culture and Communication from University of Turin and a HDR (Habilitation à diriger des recherches) in Sociology and Anthropology from University of Strasbourg. She is associate researcher at IRS (Institut de recherches sociologiques) of University of Geneva and associate professor at DISEA (Dipartimento di eccellenza di scienze economiche e aziendali) of University of Sassari. She is also co-founder of AIS section - Sociologia dell’immaginario and of AISLF CR38 – Socio-Anthropologie politique.
A strong interdisciplinary character marks out her research, which is located at the crossroads between sociology, anthropology and communication. She studies the transformation of rituals of death and commemoration and the way to copying with loss through the digital rituals, as well as the contemporary demand for immortality. Another field of interest is the social effects of digital technologies especially linked to mobility condition. Currently, Fiorenza Gamba focuses her research on urban identity, inclusion and urban ritual. This is also the subject of her recent project “UNIC Unexpected Inclusions: Migration, Mobility and the Open City”, founded by Swiss National Science Foundation in partnership with Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research under the Lead Agency process.
She has published on this topic:
Gamba F., Cattacin S. (2019). “Memory and mobility in a transnational world: urban rituals as space of belonging and identity”. City&Community: forthcoming.
Gamba F., Cattacin S. and White B. (2019). Créer la ville. Rituels territorialisés d’inclusion des différences. Montréal: Presses Universitaires de Montréal, forthcoming.
Gamba, F. (2019). “Inclusion et rituels. Un autre regard sur la ville des différences ”in Blais, Nathalie, Marisa Fois et Antoine Roblain (eds.). Dynamique de formalisation et d’informalisation dans l’étude des migrations. Genève : Université de Genève – Sociograph 42.
Gamba, F. (2018). “Spazio urbano e rituali di commemorazione a Hong Kong. Rappresentazioni della morte nelle Mobile Societies ”, Funes. Journal of narratives and social sciences : 2.
Gamba, F. (2009). Leggere la città: indizi di contaminazioni sociologiche. Napoli: Liguori.
Justus L. UitermarkProfessor of Urban Geography at the University of Amsterdam
Justus Uitermark is an urban geographer and political sociologist. He is a professor of Urban Geography at the University of Amsterdam. As a relational sociologist, he focuses on networks: what sorts of networks do people form to resolve their collective problems and achieve their goals vis-à-vis others? With a background in human geography, he is particularly interested how different kinds of environments mediate collective action.
Uitermark has a long-standing interest in the roles of cities as terrains of political struggle. He has written extensively on the origins and effects of urban policies. His most recent book, Cities and Social Movement (co-authored with Walter Nicholls), examines under what conditions specific neighborhoods or cities grow into hotbeds of activism. His current research project, between Collectivity and Enclosure, examines how power relations change under conditions of rapid urbanization.
Some of Uitermark’s more recent work examines social media platforms facilitate challenges against the status quo or breed conformity. In particular, he studies how digital platforms like Instagram or Facebook change the way we navigate, use, and shape urban space.
Justus L. UitermarkProfessor of Urban Geography at the University of Amsterdam
Justus Uitermark is an urban geographer and political sociologist. He is a professor of Urban Geography at the University of Amsterdam. As a relational sociologist, he focuses on networks: what sorts of networks do people form to resolve their collective problems and achieve their goals vis-à-vis others? With a background in human geography, he is particularly interested how different kinds of environments mediate collective action.
Uitermark has a long-standing interest in the roles of cities as terrains of political struggle. He has written extensively on the origins and effects of urban policies. His most recent book, Cities and Social Movement (co-authored with Walter Nicholls), examines under what conditions specific neighborhoods or cities grow into hotbeds of activism. His current research project, between Collectivity and Enclosure, examines how power relations change under conditions of rapid urbanization.
Some of Uitermark’s more recent work examines social media platforms facilitate challenges against the status quo or breed conformity. In particular, he studies how digital platforms like Instagram or Facebook change the way we navigate, use, and shape urban space.
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