As part of the project "Learning about Mainz from the perspective of Critical Refugee Studies", fourteen MA students of Cultural Studies worked out how Mainz is perceived from different perspectives. Through interviews, they investigated how people with migration and refugee experiences perceive the city, which places are important to them and why. The aim was to find out their perspectives and tell urban stories that are often overlooked. Read more about the theoretical framework of the project here.
Based on the empirical research, the students prepared a digital map of the city of Mainz that reflects the experiences of migrant people in Mainz. Users can click on the markers on the map to find out more about the places that our interviewees described as important for their everyday lives.
The students also offer city tours that follow this map. In two different tours, they present different places, including public squares, buildings and stores, which were emphasised by their interview partners. The city tours are not just about showing Mainz but also about the personal stories of the migrants and their perception of the city. For each stop, the students have prepared corresponding presentations that focus on these experiences in the city of Mainz. With the two city tours, they aim to give a broad audience new access to the city of Mainz by taking up important everyday spaces in order to illustrate the respective realities of people's lives.
Further information on the project can be found in the flyer here.