Activities

Our lab hosts a vibrant biweekly reading group, coordinated by Dr. Yunsub Lee. The reading group serves as a core intellectual space within the COALESCE Lab, and alternates between two formats: sessions dedicated to discussing article drafts written by lab members in a supportive and confidential environment, and sessions focused on published papers that promise to spark debate or benefit ongoing projects. For draft sessions, the author briefly introduces their work before receiving constructive feedback from the group. For published-paper sessions, a rotating discussion leader guides the conversation. Visiting scholars are also welcome to participate in these meetings and discuss their own work or propose published papers. After the sessions, we have lunch together. All in all, these meetings foster rigorous scholarship, learning, and a sense of community. 

The lab also hosts seminars by international academics who come and present their research. In November 2026, Marijn Keijzer and Marion Hoffman (Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, Toulouse School of Economics) will visit the lab. In May 2026, Prof. jimi adams (University of South Carolina) visited our lab, presented his work and gave feedback on that of the lab members. On November 27th, 2025, we organized the seminar 'I cannot live without friends': using longitudinal, qualitative social network analysis to understand how refugees forge new relationships in new places, co-organised with the INMIX research group, featuring Prof. Louise Ryan (Metropolitan University London). We further recently hosted Dr. Filippo Oncini (Maastricht University) and Evangelos Dimosiaris (Utrecht University, the Netherlands). 

Furthermore, we frequently host guests at all academic levels who come and visit the lab for a longer time. The profiles of past researchers can be seen in the "past members and visitors" tab of the "Teams" page (see menu). If you are interested in a stay, contact Miranda Lubbers (mirandajessica.lubbers@uab.cat).

We also develop a variety of dissemination activities to spread our work beyond the immediate academics in our fields. During the past years, several of our team members have had guest appearances on the Knitting Networks/Tejiendo Redes podcast about social network analysis. Listen to them here: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/tejiendoredes/.  

We also collaborate with the press. For instance, based on a newspaper article about social ties in which Alejandro Ciordia collaborated, Miranda Lubbers was interviewed live on national TV (RTVE) on 09/01/26, in the program "La tarde en 24 horas" (minute 1:32:56 and further), and Alejandro Ciordia was interviewed on the radio in the program Xavifòrnia (Ràdio 4) on 13/01/26. Find more about it here: Article on social relationships in La Vanguardia and further press, with Alejandro Ciordia and Miranda Lubbers | COALESCE Lab.

Furthermore, we organize knowledge transfer activities. One of our favourites was the public round table “Machine anthropology or bastard algebra?” we organized for the 9th Edition of the Anthropology Week of the Catalan Institute of Anthropology (ICA) in Barcelona in 2024, an event aimed at bringing the discipline closer to a wider audience. Read more about it here. Soon, we will be present at the European Research Night and the Week of Anthropology.

Miranda Lubbers participated in the preparation and edition of a chapter on social isolation in the latest FOESSA report on social exclusion: Flores Martos, R. et al. (coords.) (2025). Informe sobre exclusión y desarrollo social en Cataluña: Resultados de la Encuesta sobre Integración y Necesidades Sociales. (Informes Territoriales). Madrid: Cáritas Española; Fundación FOESSA. 331 p. link

From time to time, we also have fun beyond the campus, whether it´s dinner, escape rooms, padel, or paella events.