Emerging Perspectives 
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AFTERWORD 
 

All the contributors to this special issue offered their insights on the impact of the 
International Doctoral Seminar (IDS) in their journey as doctoral students. More than this, their 
collaborative work demonstrates how the participants attained the primary interest of the seminar, 
which is to promote research collaborations by engaging in collaborative, interdisciplinary, 
scholarly activities. Reading the manuscripts in this Special Issue, we were honoured to be 
participants ourselves. We witnessed how authors selected essential details of their transcultural 
experience and perspectives, reflected on them, and gave them an order to thereby make meaning 
of what constitutes their international journey. Beyond what these manuscripts tell us about 
transculturalism, the importance lies in the multiple ways in which they worked through dialogue 
and collaborative work. Undoubtedly, papers presented in this Special Issue have helped to shed 
light on the positive impact this seminar has for doctoral students.  

Through our collaborative work in putting these papers together, many questions arose 
concerning future cycles of the seminar and possible ways to further reinforce collaborative 
research. In considering the future of IDS, we would like to see similar partnership opportunities 
with this journal and beyond. To accomplish that, there is a mutual impetus to analyze strategies 
to involve a greater level of participation and to open the conversation to more specific topics 
behind transculturalism. From the lessons we have learned as editors in facilitating this Special 
Issue, we would like to reflect on the impact of sharing experiences and the ways authors managed 
to see themselves in the Other. We want to thank the authors for agreeing to share their 
perspectives, arguments, topics and ideas with our audience. 

We hope that you, the reader, have also found these articles transformative in shaping your 
understanding and your future work. We encourage those who can, to apply to the IDS and take 
part directly, and, regardless of whether you can participate or not in the IDS, to continue these 
important conversations. We appreciate you taking the time to read this Special Issue and now the 
collaborative circle expands to encompass you, and your experiences—Thank you! 
 
Sincerely, 
 
Gina Ko, Jon Woodend, and Lena Barrantes 
Special Issue Editors