Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides a link between ideas of place and embodiment by arguing that the lived experiences of pregnant graduate students are strongly influenced by the particularities of academic institutions and the hierarchies of student/supervisor relationships. It considers how the former Yugoslav republics targeted women's bodies as key strategic sites for the application of biopolitical concerns over ethnic and national power. The book emphasises how the places and spaces of reproductive activity have strong symbolic meaning. It suggests that attention to place is critical to understanding the changing territories of people’s reproductive lives. The book focuses on the politics of reproduction as a key way in which space is navigated and renegotiated. It highlights the spatial elements of fertility, birth and maternal and child health through the lens of geo- and ecological politics.