Dario Mazzola

Dario Mazzola holds a BA and MA in Philosophy from the University of Pavia and a PhD in Philosophy and Human Sciences from the University of Milan. Mazzola is currently concluding an FNS-funded research project on “Inter-state trust over asylum policies” at the University of Geneva, where he is also a lecturer, and he teaches the course on “Ethics and international affairs” at The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. Besides having published a book and a dozen articles on a variety of subjects in social and political theory and philosophy, Mazzola specializes in the theory, ethics, and politics of migration and asylum, in particular as seen from a realist standpoint that is informed by interdisciplinary research.

Planned research at ODID

The purpose of the academic visit is to carry out interdisciplinary and applied ethical and political research on the issue of (mis)trust in refugee policies and politics, with a special focus on the Schengen/EU context. Possible comparative case studies include the (lack of) progress in the development and application of intra-EU(/Schengen) solidarity schemes for the reception and assistance of asylum seekers, as well as initiatives such as Sunak and Meloni’s proposed international cooperations (with Rwanda and Albania respectively) to deport asylum seekers to third countries. The research is qualitative and philosophical but informed by data from political sciences, sociology, and law. It is intended to be enough case-specific to provide critique and guidance over the individual cases, but also to serve as an element of a broader theory of trust over asylum issues, within and without the Schengen area, and even globally.