Short summary of the staff-exchange project
The PAGENS project aims to be at the forefront of life course research, combining interdisciplinary approaches and international comparisons. It aims to gain a better understanding of how age categories and individual trajectories are shaped by socio-economic, demographic and cultural transformations, in Europe as well as in Africa and South America. The project brings together 20 partners from ten different countries: Colombia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Burkina Faso, Togo, Canada Finland, France and Italy. The staff-exchange project is co-funded by the European Union as a MARIE SKŁODOWSKA-CURIE ACTION. The project started in January 2026.
A major challenge: redefining the ages of life
Facing global changes – population ageing, increasing mobility, job insecurity, climate change – PAGENS proposes an innovative reading of life transitions, incorporating perspectives from the Global South that are often under-represented. Far from standardised models inspired by the North, the project analyses how individuals navigate between ages, statuses and social roles in a variety of contexts.
An innovative and inclusive methodology
PAGENS brings together a team of researchers in anthropology, sociology, psychology, history, lawyers, literature, and geography, working in synergy with civil society actors and public institutions. Using participatory methods, innovative visual tools (photography, video, mapping) and comparative approaches, the project produces in-depth but accessible analyses.
A scientific and societal impact
PAGENS is part of an open science dynamic, with publication of articles in open access, creation of a life course database and dissemination of results in the form of podcasts, exhibitions and policy briefs. This project strengthens North-South collaborations and encourages dialogue between academic research and field expertise, thereby helping to ensure that issues relating to age and life course are taken into account in the development of public policies.
MARIE SKŁODOWSKA-CURIE ACTIONS: Staff Exchanges HORIZON-MSCA-SE-2024
Partners
The project is coordinated at the CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE (CNRS) led by Constance Perrin-Joy.
Partners (city and country of legal address):
2. UNIVERSITE D’AIX MARSEILLE (AMU), Marseille, France
3. NUORISOTUTKIMUSSEURA RY UNGDOMSFORSKNINGSSALLSKAPET RF (FYRS), Helsinki, Finland,
4. UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DEL PIEMONTE ORIENTALE AMEDEO AVOGADRO (UPO), Vercelli, Italy
5. INSUCO INTL LIMITED (INSUCO INTL), Longborough, Moreton-in-Marsh, United Kingdom
6: ALMA MATER STUDIORUM – UNIVERSITA DI BOLOGNA (UNIBO), Bologna, Italy
7. UNIVERSITE DE STRASBOURG (UNISTRA), Strasbourg, France
8. UNIVERSITE MARIE ET LOUIS PASTEUR (UMLP), Besançon, France
9. UNIVERSITE DE LORRAINE (UL), Nancy Cedex, France
10. ETHNOART (ethnoart), Paris, France,
11. UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI PARMA (Unipr), Parma, Italy
Associated Partners:
12. INSUCO MADAGASCAR SARLU (INSUCO MADA) Madagascar
13. INSUCO TOGO SARL U (INSUCO TOGO), Lomé, Togo
14. INSUCO CENTER FOR SOCIAL INNOVATION (ICSI Colombie), Medellin, Colombia
15. INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH IN AFRICA (IFSRA), Burkina Faso
16. Institut de Recherche Indépendant de la Corne de l’Afrique (IRICA) Djibouti
17. UNIVERSITE OUAGA I PROFESSEUR JOSEPH KI-ZERBO (UJKZ), Ouagadou, Burkina Faso
18. ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY (AAU), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
19. PONTIFICIA UNIVERSIDAD JAVERIANA (PUJ), Bogota, Colombia
20. UNIVERSITE DE MONTREAL (UdM), Montreal, Canada
The contact person at the Finnish Youth Research Society is Tuuli Pitkänen.
- Start year:
- 2026
- End year:
- 2029
Project Researchers
Sofia Laine
PhD, title of docent in Youth Research (University of Tampere)
Research Professor
+358 44 416 5374
sofia.laine@youthresearch.fi
Tuuli Pitkänen
PhD, Adjunct professor
Research Manager
+358 41 517 8678
tuuli.pitkanen@youthresearch.fi