Mobility Economies in Europe's Borderlands: Migrants' Journeys through Libya and the Mediterranean

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Marthe Achtnich (University of Cambridge)

Mobility Economies in Europe's Borderlands

Migrants' Journeys through Libya and the Mediterranean

Marthe Achtnich (University of Cambridge)

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Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Cambridge University Press
22 May 2025

Constitution: government & the state

The arrival of unauthorised migrants at the shores of southern Europe has been sensationalized into a migration 'crisis' in recent years. Yet, these depictions fail to grasp migrants' experiences and fall short of addressing a more complex phenomenon. In this original ethnography, Marthe Achtnich examines migrants' journeys and economic practices underpinning mobility to recast how we think of migration. Bringing the perspectives and voices of migrants to the fore, she traces sub-Saharan migrants' journeys along one of the world's most dangerous migration routes: through the Sahara Desert, Libya, and then by boat to Malta in Europe. Examining what she calls 'mobility economies', Achtnich demonstrates how these migrant journeys become sources of profit for various actors. By focusing on migrants' long and difficult journeys, the book prompts a necessary rethinking of mobile life, economic practices under contemporary capitalism, and the complex relationship between the two.

By: Marthe Achtnich (University of Cambridge)
Imprint: Cambridge University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
ISBN: 9781009310895
ISBN 10: 1009310895
Pages: 202
Publication Date: 22 May 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Marthe Achtnich is an anthropologist of mobility and migration. She has conducted ethnographic fieldwork on migrants' journeys in Libya and Malta, focusing on the lived experiences, governance, and economies of migration. Marthe was previously a Fellow by Examination in Anthropology (JRF) at Magdalen College, University of Oxford.