Michael Stasik

Michael Stasik is a lecturer at the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Basel. His research and teaching focus on migration, mobility, infrastructure, kinship, affect and imagination, with a regional specialization in West Africa.

• Research Interests: Migration, mobility, infrastructure, kinship, affect and imagination, time and temporality.
• Editorial Roles: Editor of Basel Anthropology Papers, member of the editorial team of New Diversities.
• Previous Positions: Postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity; lecturer at the University of Bayreuth.

His recent publications include the monograph Bus Station Hustle: Transport Work in Urban Ghana (Cambridge UP, 2024) and peer-reviewed articles on infrastructural practices, urban migration, and labor dynamics in West Africa. His work explores how globalization and policy transformations impact social relationships and livelihoods.

Scientific Awards:

• Young Scholars’ Award (African Studies Association in Germany)
• Dissertation Award (University of Bayreuth)
• ASC Africa Thesis Award
• Senior Fellow (Maria Sibylla Merian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa, University of Ghana)

Michael Stasik’s research connects broader themes of mobility, affective labor, and infrastructural change, emphasizing their implications for kinship and social belonging across generations.