In Person: CFGS C179 (Sedgewick) or Zoom. The meeting will take place from 10:00AM to 11:30AM PST.
Register in advance for this meeting here.
The objective of the presentation is to analyze institutional innovation related to crossborder mobility and flows. The presentation identifies different bodies of theories that have emerged in the border literatures and analyze how these theories help us understand mobility (flows) not only from the classical spatial perspective of flows of “things”, but also flows from a relational perspective. The bodies of border theory presented are: 1) the classical territoriality perspective, 2) borders in globalization, and 3) border “everywhere”. The main argument is that mobility is a policy field where institutional innovation is more likely to take place due to the convergence of interests of both sides of the border to facilitate the flows of goods and people. Also, mobility, particularly undocumented human mobility, is a very dynamic and fast changing therefore state institutions (e.g., customs and border patrol among others) must adapt their strategies. Institutional innovation is defined as the ability to “reduce distance” that would allow institutions to cooperate and collaborate to boost the development of the region. Moreover, the presentation will take a critical approach that innovation also raises ethical and moral dilemmas.
Dr. Sergio Peña holds a doctoral degree in urban and regional planning from Florida State University. He works for the Colegio de la Frontera Norte a research think tank specialized in border research and graduate education. His research agenda focused on studying crossborder planning, governance, and cooperation processes. He is the co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Borderlands Studies. He is conducting research on crossborder mobility comparing the US -Mexico and the US- Canada.