Welcome to a panel discussion at Gothenburg City Library. The event will begin with brief presentations, followed by an in-depth discussion of how migration, integration, and segregation are portrayed in public debate; how language and perceptions shape images of people and places; and how these narratives relate to—and can be challenged by—the realities of everyday life.
Today, public debate is dominated by the idea that differences between “Swedes” and “immigrants” constitute one of our most significant social problems. At the same time, political discourse is characterized by rhetoric that portrays migration as an existential threat. In this discussion, we aim to critically examine the current preoccupation with “failed integration” and explore how ideas about integration and segregation can create and reinforce boundaries between people and places.
Drawing on research and field studies, the discussion will present a different picture: a Sweden in which diversity is already a natural part of everyday life and where having a migration background is far from always decisive in shaping how people interact and live together. The focus will be on how people live with, navigate, and negotiate these conditions in their everyday lives. At the same time, attention will be given to how language and symbolic boundary-making can shape perceptions of segregation, people, and places, and influence how different parts of the city are understood.
The discussion thus focuses on the tension between how migration, integration, and segregation are described and categorized, and how diversity is actually lived and negotiated in everyday life.
This event is part of the Centre on Global Migration’s series on migration and integration in Swedish politics, which addresses some of the most pressing issues in the lead-up to the 2026 election. CGM is part of the University of Gothenburg.
Panelists
Lisa Åkesson
Professor of Anthropology, Department of Global Studies, University of Gothenburg. Her research focuses on transnational migration, North–South migration, and diversity in everyday life.
Signe Askersjö
Postdoctoral Researcher in Migration Studies, Department of Social Medicine and Public Health, University of Gothenburg, and member of the research platform Borders in Medicine, Health and Society. Her research examines how migration policy shapes healthcare systems and practices.
Johan Järlehed
Professor of Multilingualism, Department of Swedish, Multilingualism and Language Technology, University of Gothenburg.
Moderator, tba
About the Seminar Series
During the 2026 election year, migration and integration remain high on the political agenda. At the same time, public debate is marked by deep divisions. But what does research tell us?
Throughout the year, the Centre on Global Migration (CGM) at the University of Gothenburg is hosting a seminar series in which researchers offer different perspectives on one of the most debated issues of our time. Participants will gain insight into current research findings and lessons learned from practical work in areas that are central to Sweden’s migration policy debates.
The aim is to create a meeting place where academic knowledge, professional experience, and broader societal perspectives can come together.
The series includes lectures, panel discussions, and seminars, and is open to the general public, students, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.
By bringing together research, and public debate, the seminar series seeks to contribute to a more informed and evidence-based conversation about migration and integration in Sweden during the 2026 election year.
Programme Autumn 2026
- 7 september, kl. 18.00-19.30, Gothenburg City Library: Seminar and panel discussion at Gothenburg City Library on suburban communities as political scapegoats in the public debate?
- 9 October, 10:00–12:00, Department of Education and Special Education, University of Gothenburg: Seminar at the Department of Education and Special Education on the politics of language testing and critical perspectives on assessment and language education for migrants
- 13 October, 18:00-19:00, Gothenburg City: Seminar and panel discussion at Gothenburg City Library on the ongoing crisis at Europe’s borders: silenced voices and forbidden places.
- 14 October, 12:00–13:00, Gothenburg City Library: Seminar and panel discussion at Gothenburg City Library on Language Introduction, Language Testing, and the Conditions for Participation.
- 24 November, 18:00–19:30, Gothenburg City Library: Seminar and panel discussion at Gothenburg City Library on “integration panic” and diversity in everyday life.
