Bianca Szytniewski

Dr. Bianca Szytniewski is an Assistant Professor at Utrecht University's Faculty of Geosciences within the Social Urban Transitions department. She specializes in migration studies, border dynamics, and socio-cultural aspects of mobility. Her research focuses on migration governance, cross-border interactions, and everyday life experiences in border regions.

Education includes a BA in Language and Culture Studies (Utrecht University, 2003-2007), MA in International Relations (Utrecht University, 2007-2008), and MA in European Union Studies (Leiden University, 2008-2009). She completed a PhD at Utrecht University and Radboud University Nijmegen (2011-2018).

Research interests span migration-industry power dynamics, transnational mobilities, and socio-cultural proximity in border regions. Her work analyzes how physical and mental borders shape economic activities like petty trade and cross-border shopping, particularly in German-Polish and Dutch-German borderlands.

Recent publications explore emerging governance networks for non-EU migrants in peripheral regions, Polish labor mobility in the Netherlands, and the role of everyday encounters in borderland societies. She teaches courses on European integration, migration themes, and urban development.

Labs/Teams: Active in the Social Urban Transitions research group at Utrecht University's Geosciences faculty.