In this webinar, Dr. Lorenzo Piccoli examines how dominant narratives shape the way migration is understood and governed. While migration governance is often analysed through state interests and institutional arrangements, this seminar asks a different question: how do narratives influence what migration becomes visible as a political problem?
The presentation introduces the concept of “selective visibility” and explores how narrative infrastructures - including films, communication campaigns, and the global geography of migration research institutes - shape public and policy understandings of migration. Across these domains, migration is frequently portrayed as movement toward wealthy destination countries and framed through images of crisis, border crossings, and humanitarian suffering.
This framing creates a strong North-bound bias, overshadowing other widespread forms of mobility such as regional migration, labour migration, family reunification, and South–South migration. As a result, migration is often publicly imagined primarily as a problem of entry into affluent states, while other migration realities receive comparatively little attention.
The seminar discusses how these selective representations influence the way migration problems are defined and, in turn, shape the priorities of migration governance and policy responses. By critically examining the production and circulation of migration narratives, the webinar offers insights into the relationship between knowledge production, public discourse, and migration policymaking.
About the Speaker
Dr. Lorenzo Piccoli coordinates teaching and training activities at the Migration Policy Centre in collaboration with the School of Transnational Governance at the European University Institute. His research focuses on migrants' rights and protection mechanisms, including access to social protection, with particular attention to Southern European countries.
He has published extensively in international peer-reviewed journals and regularly contributes to public and media debates on migration and citizenship. He is currently writing a book on the dilemmas faced by volunteers providing social services to migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Mediterranean countries.
Dr. Piccoli holds a PhD in Social and Political Sciences from the European University Institute (2018). Previously, he served as Scientific Coordinator of the Swiss National Center of Competence in Research for Migration and Mobility Studies (2019–2021) and as a Research Associate at the Global Citizenship Observatory (2018–2021).
