The Making of Diasporas: The Power of Mobilising Frames, Social Networks, and Decolonisation Discourses. A Comparative Study of Belarusians and Ukrainians in Poland (DIAMOND)

Diasporas as actors of socio-political change are becoming an increasingly important topic of research. In their various forms, diasporas are able to actively engage in social and political processes taking place both in the country of origin and in the host country, as well as in transnational space. Moreover, the development of information and communication technologies makes such engagement more intense and meaningful. The main objective of the project is a comparative analysis of the diaspora formation process using the example of the Belarusian and Ukrainian communities in Poland. Specifically, the topic of the study is the formation and impact strength of mobilisation frameworks, the organisational structures (vertical and horizontal) that emerge in each mobilisation cycle, and the role of social media in the creation and dissemination of mobilising frameworks and discourses at national and in transnational space.

Ukrainian and Belarusian communities represent the two most numerous ethnic groups in Poland and comprise different generations and waves of forced and economic migration, as well as ethnic minorities that have historically inhabited Polish territory. Both diasporas are characterised by significant waves of mobilisation in response to critical events in their countries of origin, such as the violently repressed protests in Belarus in 2020 and the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The aforementioned events have led to the emergence of new diasporic structures and caused visible changes in already existing organisations

The main questions that will be answered in the course of the project are: 1) What features and elements of framing processes determine the magnitude and outcomes of collective actions within the Ukrainian and Belarusian populations in Poland?; 2) How do cycles of mobilisation affect the formation of vertical and horizontal organisational structures, and intergenerational dynamics within the Belarusian and Ukrainian diasporas in Poland?; 3) In which ways are the mobilization patterns and actions affected by the political context and opportunity structures in the host country and the diaspora policy of the country of origin?; 4) What is the role of social media within diasporic mobilising structures, their construction, and the dissemination of mobilising frames? How are the Belarusian and Ukrainian diasporas in Poland networked online—with each other, with their homelands, with diasporas worldwide?; 5) What contribution does the diaspora make to processes of nation-building and, within this, what is the place of decolonisation practices and discourses in the case of the Belarusian and Ukrainian diasporas?

An important aim of the project is to identify effective and sustainable mechanisms for mobilising diasporas in the digital age and to explore how diasporas construct and use mobilising frameworks in their efforts to influence national community-building processes. The project proposes an original methodological and analytical approach to studying the process of diaspora mobilisation through the use of mixed methods, including document analysis, multi-site ethnography of expert and narrative interviews, as well as digital research methods such as online ethnography and discourse analysis.

wiskowej wywiadów eksperckich i narracyjnych, a także metod badań cyfrowych, takich jak etnografia internetowa i analiza dyskursu.

Duration

2025 - 2028

Source of funding

NCN Opus 27, nr umowy: UMO-2024/53/B/HS5/01665