Dr Kuba Jablonowski (he/him)
Research Fellow and Lecturer
j.jablonowski@exeter.ac.uk
Amory D385
Amory Building, University of Exeter, Rennes Drive, Exeter, EX4 4RJ , UK
Overview
I am a Research Fellow at the University of Exeter, where I also wrote a doctoral thesis on Precarious Citizenship: Rights Claims of EU Migrants in the UK. My reseach investigated political action generated by free movement before and after the 2016 EU referendum. It cast vulnerability as a source of political mobilisation and argued that politics enacted through citizenship is iterative: repetitious and rebelliouis at once.
I currently work on a research project exploring Algorithmic Politics and Administrative Justice in the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS). The EUSS is a policy framework and an administrative process designed to transfer EU, EEA, and Swiss residents and family members living in the UK before Brexit into the UK’s immigration system. The research explores digital design and algorithmic operations of the EUSS. It asks: how do processes of digital tranformation reconfigure practices of administrative justice in immigration governance and public policy more broadly?
The project relies on an engaged research methodology. It is conducted in partnership with the3million, the leading civil rights campaign of EU citizens in the UK, and Public Law Project, the UK’s leading charitable organisation in public law. The project is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Grant ES/V004506/1. It was led by Clive Barnett until December 2021 and it is currently led by Sam Kinsley.
I spoke about my research on EU citizens' rights to a number of broadcast media including BBC Radio 4 and LBC Radio, as well as print and digital media including Al Jazeera, the Atlantic, the Economist, Europe Street News, the Financial Times, the Guardian, and the Independent.
I also provided written and oral evidence on the EU Settlement Scheme to a number of public bodies, including the House of Commons Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union.
Before my doctoral studies, I worked for community development and migrant rights organisations in Bristol. I currently colaborate as a Research Associate with the3million and the Law Centres Network.
I am supportive of widening participation in higher education, and always keen to chat about feeling out of place in the academia. Just get in touch.
Qualifications
PhD Geography (Exeter)
MSc Development and Security (Bristol)
MA International Relations and Regional Studies (Poznan)
Links
Research
Research projects
Algorithmic Politics and Administrative Justice in the EU Settlement Scheme
What are the aims of the project?
This research explores the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), a policy framework and an administrative procedure introduced in line with the Withdrawal Agreement ratified by the United Kingdom and the European Union in January 2020. It is focussed on the algorithmic design and digital operation of the EUSS, with particular attention to the systematic asymmetry between the administratively efficient processing of information and decisions, and opacity for those engaging the system. The research aims to address two intersecting research questions:
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How does the digital management of the EUSS reconfigure issues of equality, fairness and accountability in systems of immigration control?
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How does the digitalization of immigration control in the EUSS reconfigure processes of legal monitoring, representation, and redress through which the responsibilities for administrative justice are enforced?
What kinds of research methods does the project use?
Using a process tracing research methodology, the project is designed around two main strategies of generating and collecting data:
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Digital archival research, which includes qualitative and quantitative information already in the public domain, as well as data discovered trough freedom of information requests and other strategies to generate disclosure.
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Engaged ethnographic research, which includes close cooperation with two project partners, the3million and Public Law Project, and participation in meetings about the EUSS between civil socity representatives, UK and EU civil servants, and relevant businesses.
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Interviews with key stakeholders, which include politicians, policymakers, civil servants from the UK and EU, as well as representatives of civil society organisations and independent scrutiny bodies involved in the implementation, monitoring, or challenging of the EUSS operations.
What is the duration of the project?
The project runs from January 2021 until December 2023.
We will engage with stakeholders throughout this time, although we seek to complete data collection stages by December 2022.
Research grants
- 2020 Economic and Social Research Council
Algorithmic Politics and Administrative Justice in the EU Settlement Scheme. ESRC grant: £414,892. This research is part of the Economic and Social Research Council's Governance after Brexit programme. It explores the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), and it is focussed on its algorithmic design and digital operation. The research aims to address two intersecting research questions: (1) How does the digital management of the EUSS reconfigure issues of equality, fairness and accountability in systems of immigration control? (2) How does the digitalization of immigration control in the EUSS reconfigure processes of legal monitoring, representation, and redress through which the responsibilities for administrative justice are enforced?
Publications
No publications found
Office Hours:
In Janaury 2021 I moved to a research role with very few teaching responsibilities. I do not hold regular office hours so please email for an appointment instead. ALL WELCOME.