Project: Identity, citizenship, and nationhood in the post-genome era
CITIGEN is a collaborative research project involving the Universities of Copenhagen, Iceland, York, and Trinity College Dublin. Our consortium brings together perspectives from the fields of social anthropology, history, modern population genetics, and paleogenomics to examine a new way in which individuals and societies are using and reflecting upon the past: through the production and interpretation of genetic knowledge. Recent technological advances have led to a surge in the availability of both modern and ancient genomic data, which are increasingly being used to reshape our understanding of human population histories. Humanities scholars are uniquely equipped to supply complementary data and critical perspectives to these insights; however, true interdisciplinary progress has thus far been hampered by a lack of dialogue between the two fields. Our project, rooted in the humanities but forged in collaboration with natural scientists, seeks to bridge this gap by providing a framework for cross-disciplinary collaboration, introducing an integrated approach to the study of human population histories. At the same time, we offer an up-to-date perspective on the different ways in which the public uses of genomic data are impacting current experiences of citizenship, nationhood, and identity in different parts of Europe. In collaboration with our associated partners, our aim is to encourage societies and individuals to take reflective stances regarding the interpretation and dissemination of genomic data, promoting responsible readings of the past that can shape a brighter future.
| Acronym | CITIGEN (Reference Number: HERA.15.065) |
| Duration | 20/06/2016 - 20/06/2019 |
| Project Topic | REFLECTIVE-1-2014 |
| Network | HERA JRP UP |
| Call | HERA Call “Uses of the Past” |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Natural History Museum of Denmark | Coordinator | Denmark |
| 2 | Smurfit Institute of Genetics | Partner | Ireland |
| 3 | Department of History | Partner | United Kingdom |
| 4 | Department of Anthropology | Partner | Iceland |
| 5 | AncestryDNA.com | Observer | United States |
| 6 | Eneclann | Observer | Ireland |
| 7 | Pint of Science | Observer | United Kingdom |
| 8 | Sence About Science | Observer | United Kingdom |