USJ Hosts the 5th International Workshop in Visual Methods
USJ Hosts the 5th International Workshop in Visual Methods
15
Dec
15/12/2025
The University of Saint Joseph hosted the 5th International Workshop in Visual Methods. Organised by the International Sociological Association’s Research Committee 57 (RC57), it was the first large-scale RC57 forum to be held outside of Europe and the inaugural workshop in Asia.
The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) hosted the 5th International Workshop in Visual Methods from 10 – 14 November at its Ilha Verde Campus. The event was co-organised by the International Sociological Association’s (ISA) Research Committee 57 (RC57) in Visual Sociology, the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at USJ, and the Center for Research and Studies in Sociology (CIES-ISCTE, Portugal).
This important event marked a milestone as the first large-scale RC57 forum to be held outside of Europe and the inaugural workshop in Asia.
The workshop convened over twenty emerging scholars at the postdoctoral and doctoral levels, representing a diverse range of academic and regional backgrounds, including the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea, Singapore, Spain, Portugal, Hong Kong, Macao, and Mainland China.
The five-day programme featured intensive scholarly exchange, advanced methodological training, and immersive fieldwork. Participants engaged with a panel of international mentors and lecturers from the United Kingdom, Germany, Singapore, Canada, and Macao, including Professor Terence Heng (University of Liverpool), Professor Carolina Cambre (Concordia University), and Dr. Dennis Zuev (representing CIES-ISCTE, Instituto Oriente, and USJ). Additional insights were provided through online sessions by Professor Gary Bratchford (Birmingham City University) and Professor Veronica Gregorio (National University of Singapore), and an in-person lecture by Dr. Tobias Kamelski (Lingnan University).
The curriculum addressed core methodologies in visual research, including the visual essay and ethnography, ethical considerations, and strategies for publishing visual research. Complementing the academic sessions, organised field trips before and after the core workshop offered participants invaluable firsthand experience of Macao’s unique sociocultural and geographic landscape, essential for grounding their visual inquiries.
The workshop fostered interdisciplinary dialogue, attracting scholars from sociology, media and design, arts and communication, museum, heritage, tourism, and development studies. The high quality and the visual nature of the participants’ work has allowed organisers to approach “Visual Studies” journal for a potential themed section and a potential publication of the proceedings edited volume in the “Social Visualities” series by Palgrave Macmillan.
Demonstrating the event’s lasting impact, participants have proactively established a dedicated website to continue sharing and developing their visual essays. Scholars from India and the Philippines have also expressed strong interest in forming regional hubs for visual research, seeking guidance from the workshop mentors.
The University of Saint Joseph acknowledges with deep appreciation the contributions of the workshop mentors, Prof. Terence Heng and Prof. Carolina Cambre; and USJ members from the Research Laboratory for Cultural Sustainability including David Perez Casamayor, Bonnie Sin, and Loretta Chang, Coordinator Dr. Dennis Zuev; as well as the support of local partners Prof. Carlos Lo (University of Macau) and Mr. Terence Lee (President of Sustaincia.Org).
