Cartographies of Differences ― Interdisciplinary Perspectives

This volume investigates the process of learning how to live with individual and group differences in the twenty-first century and examines the ambivalences of contemporary cosmopolitanism. Engaging with the concept of ‘critical cartography’, it emphasizes the structural impact of localities on the experiences of those living with difference, while trying to develop an account of the counter-mappings that follow spatial and social transformations in today’s world. The contributors focus on visual, normative and cultural embodiments of difference, examining dynamic conflicts at local sites that are connected by the processes of Europeanization and globalization.
The collection explores a wide range of topics, including conflicting claims of sexual minorities and conservative Christians, the relationship between national identity and cosmopolitanism, and the ways that cross-cultural communication and bilingualism can help us to understand the complex nature of belonging. The authors come from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds and all contribute to a vernacular reading of cosmopolitanism and transnationalism, aimed at opening up new avenues of research into living with difference.

Ulrike M. Vieten is a Queen’s Research Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Conflict Transformation and Social Justice at Queen’s University Belfast. Her research deals with the (de-)construction of racialized, classed and gendered boundaries in the context of cosmopolitanism, nationalism and citizenship and currently focuses on right-wing populism in Europe and beyond. Her publications include Gender and Cosmopolitanism in Europe: A Feminist Perspective (2012) and Revisiting Iris Marion Young on Normalisation, Inclusion and Democracy (2014).
Gill Valentine is Professor of Geography at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on social identities and exclusion; childhood, parenting and family life; and cultures of consumption. She has published widely and was one of the founding editors of the journal Social and Cultural Geography. Her research has been recognized by the award of a Philip Leverhulme Prize and the Royal Geographical Society/Institute of British Geographers Memorial Award.