Staff Profiles

Dr Pilar Luz Rodrigues

BA, P.Grad.Dip, MA

Contact Details

Post Doctoral Researcher
School of Languages, Literatures and Culture
University of Galway
E: Pilar.LuzRodrigues@universityofgalway.ie

Biography

Dr. Pilar Luz Rodrigues is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Moore Institute for Research in the Humanities and Social Studies, of the University of Galway.

Previously, she was as a Research Assistant at the South East Technological University (SETU), working with the Dean of the School of Humanities on social and health related research projects. She also taught several courses within the School of Humanities at SETU between 2017 and 2023. In addition, Dr. Rodrigues has had research experience at international organizations, such as the International Organization for Migration (IOM - UN Migration), and NGOs, such as the Irish Council for International Students (ICOS).

Dr. Rodrigues concluded her PhD in Sociology in 2023, under the President's Scholarship, with a thesis titled 'Mitigating the Effects of Precarity: Brazilian Migrant Workers and Place-Making in Rural Ireland'. Her research involved one year and a half of fieldwork with Brazilian migrant workers in rural Ireland, particularly in Gort, Ireland's Little Brazil. She is currently working on the Irish Research Council (IRC) funded project 'Rural Villages, Migration and Intercultural Communication'. The study seeks to understand the linguistic background and the experience of migrants and refugees living in rural communities in Ireland, as well as how they use different languages in their daily lives. It also investigates any obstacles or opportunities in learning English and/or Irish in the community.

She has recently been awarded funding from the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Fund of the South East Technological University (SETU), for the project 'Understanding Race Equality in the South East'.

Dr. Rodrigues is a member of the Race and Ethnicity Study Group of the Sociological Association of Ireland (SAI), of the Sociology of Migration Research Network of the European Sociological Association (ESA), and of the HIDDEN (History of Identity Documentation in European Nations) COST Action Network.

Her research interests include migration, social policy, and cultural diversity.

Recent Publications:

Peer-Reviewed Journals:
Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) Inclusion and exclusion in Europe: migration, work and employment perspectives by Olena Fedyuk and Paul Stewart (eds.), reviewed in Work, Employment and Society, 34 (5), pp. 961-962.

Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) The field researcher¿s handbook: a guide to the art and science of professional fieldwork by David J. Danelo, reviewed in International Studies Review, 21 (4), pp. 718-719.

Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) Migrant professionals in the city: local encounters, identities, and inequalities by Lars Meier (ed.), reviewed in International Sociology, 34 (2), pp. 217-219.

Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) Global labour and the migrant premium: the cost of working abroad by Tugba Basaran and Elspeth Guild (eds.), reviewed in Irish Journal of Sociology, 27 (1), pp. 91-94.

Rodrigues, P. L., Cuffe, J. (2017) `The 20-year strategy for the Irish language and the Irish speaking communities: an ethnographic investigation¿, ABEI Journal ¿ The Brazilian Journal of Irish Studies, n. 19, pp. 123-130.

Book Chapters:
Rodrigues, P. L., O¿Brien, H., Boland, T. (2023) ``Here it¿s good but it¿s bad, there it¿s bad but it¿s good¿: experiences of precarious work and life among Brazilian migrants in rural Ireland¿, in Palombino, F. M. (ed.) Labour migration in the European Union: current challenges and ways forward, Rome: CNR Edizioni.

Reports:
Denieffe, S., Gooney, M., Hunt, P., Prendergast, M., Rodrigues, P.L., Rabbitte, M., Nevin, M., May, P., and Denny, M. (2024) Energy hardship for people with palliative care needs at home: Understanding issues and promoting actions, Ireland: Irish Cancer Society, available: https://www.cancer.ie/sites/default/files/2024-02/Energy-Hardship-and-Palliative-Care-Research-Repor...

Hearne, B., Rodrigues, P. L. (2021) International student report 2021: impact of the covid-19 pandemic and the overall international student experience in Ireland, Ireland: Irish Council for International Students, available: https://www.internationalstudents.ie/sites/default/files/media/file-uploads/2021-12/ICOS%20Internati...

Hearne, B., Rodrigues, P. L. (2021) The international student experience: impact of the covid-19 pandemic on international students in Ireland, Ireland: National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, available: https://hub.teachingandlearning.ie/resource/the-international-student-experience-impact-of-the-covid...

Blog Articles:
Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) 'Bilateral agreements: a tool for enhancing social protection for migrant workers', socialprotection.org, 12 May, available: https://socialprotection.org/discover/blog/bilateral-agreements-tool-enhancing-social-protection-mig...

Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) 'Social protection for migrant workers: costs and frameworks', socialprotection.org, 26 Aug, available: https://socialprotection.org/discover/blog/social-protection-migrant-workers-costs-and-frameworks

Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) 'The overseas workers welfare fund in Sri Lanka', socialprotection.org, 28 Oct, available: https://socialprotection.org/discover/blog/overseas-workers-welfare-fund-sri-lanka

Rodrigues, P. L. (2019) 'The Overseas Workers Welfare Association in the Philippines: social protection provision for migrant workers', socialprotection.org, 2 Dec, available: https://socialprotection.org/discover/blog/overseas-workers-welfare-association-philippines-social-p...

Research Projects

	Project	Start Date	End Date
	Understanding Race Equality in the South East
	Rural Villages, Migration, and Intercultural Communication (VICO)

Peer Reviewed Journals

	Year	Publication
	(2019)	'Book Review: Olena Fedyuk and Paul Stewart (eds), Inclusion and Exclusion in Europe: Migration, Work and Employment Perspectives' Rodrigues, P.L. (2019) 'Book Review: Olena Fedyuk and Paul Stewart (eds), Inclusion and Exclusion in Europe: Migration, Work and Employment Perspectives'. Work Employment And Society, 34 (5):961-962 [Details]

Book Chapters

	Year	Publication
	(2023)	''Here it's Good But it's Bad, There it's Bad But it's Good': Experiences of Precarious Work and Life Among Brazilian Migrants in Rural Ireland' Rodrigues, P. L., O'Brien, H. and Boland, T. (2023) ''Here it's Good But it's Bad, There it's Bad But it's Good': Experiences of Precarious Work and Life Among Brazilian Migrants in Rural Ireland' In: Labour Migration in the European Union: Current Challenges and Ways Forward. Italy: Cnr Edizioni. [Details]

Conference Publications

	Year	Publication
	(2014)	*The 18th International Conference of the ACEI* Rodrigues, P.L. (2014) The Construction of Cultural Softpower and Nation Branding through the Promotion of Language: The cases of the American Binational Centers and Chinese Confucius Institutes The 18th International Conference of the ACEI [Details]

Published Reports

	Year	Publication
	(2024)	Energy Hardship for People with Palliative Care Needs at Home: Understanding Issues and Promoting Actions. Denieffe, S., Gooney, M., Hunt, P., Prendergast, M., Rodrigues, P.L., Rabbitte, M., Nevin, M., May, P., and Denny, M. (2024) Energy Hardship for People with Palliative Care Needs at Home: Understanding Issues and Promoting Actions. Irish Cancer Society, Ireland. [Details]
	(2021)	International Student Report 2021: Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Overall International Student Experience in Ireland. Hearne, B. and Rodrigues, P.L. (2021) International Student Report 2021: Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Overall International Student Experience in Ireland. Irish Council for International Students, Ireland. [Details]
	(2021)	The International Student Experience: Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on International Students in Ireland. Hearne, B. and Rodrigues, P.L. (2021) The International Student Experience: Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on International Students in Ireland. Irish Council for International Students, Ireland. [Details]

Professional Associations

	Association	Function	From / To
	European Sociological Association (ESA)	Member - Sociology of Migration Research Network	/
	Sociology Association of Ireland (SAI)	Member - Race and Ethnicity Study Group	/

Employment

Employer	Position	From / To
South East Technological University	Research Assistant	/
University of Galway	Postdoctoral Researcher	/
South East Technological University	Teaching Assistant	/
International Organization for Migration (IOM - UN Migration)	Consultant	/
Irish Council for International Students (ICOS)	Research and Project Assistant	/

Education

	Year	Institution	Qualification	Subject
	2023	South East Technological University	PhD	Sociology

Languages

	Language
	Portuguese
	French
	Spanish
	English

Consultancy

	Client	Description
	International Organization for Migration (IOM - UN Migration)	Dr. Rodrigues worked as a Consultant for the Research and Publications Division of the United Nations Agency for Migration (IOM), in their headquarters in Geneva.