Knowledge as a relational process is the basis of both my teaching and research approach. This means that I believe there is a dialectal relationship between the teacher and the students, the researcher, and the interlocutors she encounters. I understand the process of knowledge as an intimate exchange; one where everyone involved is personally implicated in producing meaning to better understand social life at various scales. This relationality is founded on principles of situated knowledge, compassion, and kindness.

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Situated knowledge invites students to understand that where they are matters as much as what they are studying. As a geographer, I believe location matters. I do not understand geography just as a way of speaking about area studies, but rather, it is an ontological lens by which I access the world. This means that I believe where we are partly shapes what we see and how we see it. One practice I operationalize this philosophy is through an exercise of positionality and reflexivity.

 

One of the introductory exercises I teach students is to learn how to position themselves in themes we explore in class. How do they understand home? What questions are important to them when they think about migration and why do they believe they ask these questions in the first place? My students are often surprised to be invited to think about their role as students in their pursuit of knowledge and it is often very appreciated by them. This is especially important in classrooms where students are coming from all over the world and need to exercise a foundation for relating as much to each other as to the course material.