An Interview with Clarissa Tabosa on Teaching, Cooperation, and the Legacy of ACRONYM

As the ACRONYM project comes to a close, we spoke with Clarissa Tabosa, Rotating Chair in Migration and Asylum Studies and Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences, Comenius University Bratislava. In this interview, she reflects on the moments that defined her experience — from the pedagogical intensity of the ACRONYM Summer Schools to the project’s most significant outcomes and its lasting legacies for research, teaching, and collaboration. She also shares why she believes “connection” best captures the spirit of ACRONYM and its contribution to more nuanced and human-centred conversations on migration.

Looking back, which activities or moments did you enjoy the most within your role as Rotating Chair, and why?

Without a doubt, the Summer Schools (I took part in Bratislava and Corsica). There is a specific kind of pedagogical magic that happens when you bring together bright, motivated students from every corner of the globe to discuss complex migration topics. The summer school in Corsica, in particular, stands out as a core memory. It wasn’t just the unforgettable landscape; it was the atmosphere of extreme openness. Our discussions reached a level of critical depth that you rarely find in a standard classroom. We moved beyond theory into the personal (scholars, practitioners, and students) shared lived experiences and stories that stayed with us. According to the feedback we received, many left not just with new knowledge, but with lifelong professional and personal bonds.

In your opinion, what has been the most significant outcome of the ACRONYM project?

The “C” in ACRONYM stands for Cooperation, and I believe the project lived up to that name in a way that was truly transformative. The most significant outcome wasn’t a single paper or report, although these were also relevant, but the unprecedented network we built. We managed to build true cooperation. We brought senior scholars in the field together with junior researchers; we bridged the gap between the Global North and South by putting together students coming from all around the globe. Perhaps most uniquely, we facilitated a dialogue between faith and science, bringing priests and academics, practitioners, and politicians, to the same table. Seeing these people find common ground on migration is a rare achievement, and it is something the entire Team should be immensely proud of.

Now that the project has ended, what do you see as its most promising legacies for future research and teaching?

I believe we have opened a door to a heavily understudied frontier: the role of religious institutions in shaping public perception of migration. Through ACRONYM, we have gathered a massive, high-quality dataset that will serve as a foundation for excellent research in the years to come. Beyond the data, our policy dialogues and conferences have sparked a new wave of interest on the interconnection between faith and migration. We’ve demonstrated that migration governance isn’t just about border counts: it’s about narratives, ethics, and community perception. The legacy of this project is the new generation of researchers we’ve inspired to look at migration through this multi-dimensional lens, in particular, the role of religious institutions in shaping migration.

What parts of this project would you most like to see carried forward into future collaborations or initiatives?

Definitely the collaborative spirit of the project. I want to see that specific model of intellectual community carried forward. We shouldn’t let the connections between these scholars, practitioners, and students go cold. My hope is that the ACRONYM network evolves into a permanent ecosystem of exchange, where the research doesn’t just sit in a journal but continues to be refined by those working on the front lines of migration and asylum every day. This was also one of the goals of the project and I hope it is carried forward through the Migration Hub, a sustained community of experts, researchers, academics, and policymakers working in the field of migration and asylum, serving as a platform for sharing knowledge, research, and other related initiatives.

Lastly, if you had to describe your ACRONYM experience in just one word, what would it be, and why?

Connection. In a field that is often characterized by division, whether political, geographical, or ideological, this project was a bridge. It connected data to human stories, faith to policy, and a diverse group of strangers to a common purpose. It reminded us that at the heart of migration governance, there are always human beings trying to find a way to communicate and to navigate the complex migratory landscape.