Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Shereen Fernandez @shereenfdz.bsky.social · 17d

My latest article for Area looks at questions around friendship, solidarity and calls for a radical geography. I consider how the university space is paradoxical: it offers us hope as seen through the recent encampments but is also a space where securitisation forces are strong.

Area @areajournal.bsky.social · 18d

#OpenAccess in Area:

'Networks of securitisation in the academy: The role of friendship, solidarity and radical geographies' by @shereenfdz.bsky.social

This paper is part of an ongoing Special Section: 'Dialogues in Radical Geography'.

doi.org/10.1111/area... #geosky

Screenshot of a paper abstract in Area by Shereen Fernandez (2025) entitled: 'Networks of securitisation in the academy: The role of friendship, solidarity and radical geographies' with a black banner at the top.

This intervention has three aims: (1) to consider how solidarities are being policed in the academy; (2) how friendships and solidarities emerge in practices of resistance; and (3) what a radical geography which embraces a decolonial pedagogy can offer us in these unsettling times. While solidarity with the Palestinian cause is transnational, it is also heavily policed and disciplined by our academic institutions. Although universities are heavily influenced by neoliberalism that prioritises profit over people, I examine how these activist spaces allow for the organic development of solidarity and friendship, which is fundamental to these movements, both in the USA and the UK. As universities increasingly embrace national security discourses and policies, such as the deployment of counter-extremism measures in UK universities, activism is being pushed outside of our institutions. Through a call for the recognition of radical geography which embraces a decolonial framework, this intervention highlights the need for the discipline to re-imagine how knowledge can be produced outside the narrow parameters of the institution, while centring and nurturing dynamics of friendship and care.

1 3

Reposted by Shereen Fernandez

Area @areajournal.bsky.social · 17d

#OpenAccess in Area:

'Networks of securitisation in the academy: The role of friendship, solidarity and radical geographies' by @shereenfdz.bsky.social

This paper is part of an ongoing Special Section: 'Dialogues in Radical Geography'.

doi.org/10.1111/area... #geosky

2 6

Shereen Fernandez @shereenfdz.bsky.social · Jun 20

I just saw this and wanted to say it’s fantastic! So much to think about geographically and personally too.

1 1

Shereen Fernandez @shereenfdz.bsky.social · May 17

Yes! I think modules which rely on essay based courseworks must dedicate time to AI and how ‘easy’ it can be to detect when a text has been written using it. We do this on my course, although we still get a few sneaky chatGPT essays. Always happy to help

Shereen Fernandez @shereenfdz.bsky.social · May 16

Ha! Exactly what I teach to students at LSE. It’s truly remarkable what’s happening with AI and the types of knowledge it produces.

1 1

Shereen Fernandez @shereenfdz.bsky.social · May 16

I don’t think I’ve witnessed the almost complete breakdown of universities in such a rapid way before. I’m seeing daily posts about redundancies, merging of departments and a drastic fall in student numbers. It’s as if all the shouting that’s been done over the last decade hasn’t worked.