OUR STORY

:: We are a group of young social sciences researchers, who care about the world we live in. In the last few years, each of us has written larger or smaller (pieces, items, articles, papers) in the anthropological or sociological fields. Komunitas has brought us all together, giving us the chance to harmonize our interests, commitments, and visions, into a coherent social action initiative (plan, proposal, scheme, idea, enterprise, program, project). Our goal is to transcend the re-straining framework in which social sciences habitually manifest themselves, by attempting to bring them closer to the people and pursuing thus a practical dimension of these largely theoretical sciences.

TEAM (founder members - associated members - volunteers&internships)

Founder members

Ioana Alexandra Florea ioana_florea[at]komunitas[dot]ro

• Studies: Faculty of Sociology and Social Work, Sociology speciality, Bucharest University (bachelor paper: Public Transportation in Bucharest. An Analysis of Aggressive Behavior); studies in the frame of „Master of European Studies”, during the academic year 2004-2005, at the „Europa Viadrina” University (Frankfurt/Oder), with an Erasmus scholarship; Master in Anthropology and Community Development, National School for Political and Administrative Studies (first year).
• Domains of interest: urban anthropology, post-socialism and social change, urbanism and architecture, the social exclusion problem, consequences of migration.
• Research activities: comparative study on illegal housing (field research in Bucharest, Lisbon, Berlin and secondary data analysis on Istanbul, Moscow, Amsterdam); social negotiation of the public space (Bucharest); aggressive behavior as an instrument for creating social order (Bucharest); subcultures (Bucharest); research in the virtual space on migration (online forums used by the Romanian and Indian diasporas); study on multimedia products of the minorities (Great Britain and Germany); minorities and social exclusion (Cluj, Bucharest – individual research, but also research in the frame of the PHARE RO2004/016-772.01.01.01 program for improving the Roma condition and perception).
• Presented papers: „The State of Liminality in Post-Socialist Romania”, „Public Transportation. Towards the Post-socialist Space and Time”, „A Personal View on Nationalism Problems”, delivered in the “Master of European Studies” program frame

Simina Ana Guga simina[at]komunitas[dot]ro

• STUDIES: 2001-2005 Faculty of Sociology and Social Work, department of Sociology (thesis: The Impact of Tourism on the local community of Vama Veche); Master in Anthropology and Community Development, National School for Political and Administrative Studies (2nd year).
• DOMAINS OF INTEREST: rural/urban sociology and anthropology, social change, migration, photography, ecology, human rights, education, animal rights
• PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
a. field research on the topics of: migration (in Romania, Spain and The Czech Republic), tourism, traditional culture, marginalised comunities, extreme poverty, rural and urban development
b. Editor for Plotki-Rumours from around the block magazine (Berlin) www.plotki.net
c. Editor for Border Blogs (MKC/Migrationonline, Cehia)
• Publications:
a. articles on various topics for “Plotki – Rumors from around the block” magazine;
b. “The individuals that change history. The Quest for a path in between worlds” for the magazine Chrismon (Germany, march 2007) and for the catalogue Work is elsewhere (The Czech Republic, September 2006) as part of the project “Work is Elsewhere” (Multicultural Centre Prague);
c. “Transnational communities: redefining the local in a global world” for the project “Temporary Living abroad” (Open Society Foundation, November 2006)
d. „Anything to Declare? Transit stories from across borders” (Migrationonline/BorderBlogs, december 2007)

Vladimir George Panait vladimir_panait[at]komunitas[dot]ro

• Studies: Faculty of Sociology and Social Work, Sociology speciality, Bucharest University (bachelor paper: Psyho-social implications of sound). Master in Analisys And Management of Conflicts in Change-over Societies.
• Domains of interest: sociology and rural/urban anthropology, ecology
• Research activities: fields research- interethnic relations (Interethnisches Jugendbildungszentrum - Sighisoara,2003), socio-economical post-socialism development (Humboldt University – Berlin,2005), human rights-social and cognitiv justice-(Action for Peace and Justice/Acção para a Justiça e Paz - Granja do Ulmeiro, Portugal, 2006)

Miruna Maria Tîrcã miruna[at]komunitas[dot]ro

• Studies: Faculty of Letters, Etnology and Folklore department, University of Bucharest (thesis: Stories from 2 Mai – an alternative attempt of tourism anthropology) ; Master in Anthropology and Community Development, SNSPA (National School of Political Science and Administration) – dizertation in urban anthropology: Squats as social nucleums and alternative living spaces.
• Fields of interests: visual anthropology, urban anthropology, photography, alternative communities, disadvantaged areas and marginal communities.
• Field works: researches done in different areas from Romania (about Romanian traditional culture, inter-ethnic relations, migration and its effects, the impact of tourism ) and in Berlin-Barcelona-Poznan-Lisabona (urban cultures, alternative communities, squats).
• Publications: Stories from 2 Mai – an alternative attempt of tourism anthropology (Pucioasa 2004); Vama Veche between style and brand (Paideia, Bucharest 2005).
• Media products: DUPA SEZON (documentary about a group of fishermen from the village of 2 Mai) – selected at ASTRA Film Fest, international festival of documentary film and visual anthropology, Sibiu 2006; activist movie The revolt of the bicycles (realized to support the rights of bicycle users in Bucharest).

Associated members

Radu Molosaga - multimedia designer

Elena Irimia - artificial Intelligence researcher

Ioana Trantea - architecture student

Volunteers&internships

Roland si Petra
Tg MS/ Laurentiu Cheregi/Charlie McAvenia– for Mobile Cinema project
Tudor, Andrei
Emilian Ciobanu – for Ecotopia project
Radu Burebista – for musical events

OUR MISSION

Komunitas intends to contribute to the change of society and to the improvement of quality of life, by means of social interventions targeted on:

• Socio-anthropological study and reflection
• Institution of socio-cultural contacts between different social realities
• Creation of new spaces [intermedia] for social interaction
• Increasing the individuals’ participation to the communal life of the communities they live in
• Facilitating the access to culture for underprivileged categories
• Promoting the use of public space in the underprivileged areas, in the attempt of increasing the social visibility and power of self-representation of the underprivileged categories
• Transcending of social stereotypes

AREAS OF INTEREST

• Informal methods of education, visual education
• Activities with and for young people
• Quality of life analysis in ghettos or marginal neighborhoods
• Visual anthropology and documentary films (production of)
• Gentrification of the underprivileged categories and its consequences
• Migration and its consequences (local and transnational)
• Improve the children playgrounds and urban play; analysys of urban play alternatives
• Self-publishing techniques (stimulation of free speech of youngsters)
• Developing an ecological conscience and an environment responsability
::::::::::::::: Stimulation of alternative transports
::::::::::::::: Garbology and recycling
::::::::::::::: Acoustic ecology