Emergent Design

Abstract

Unions seeking cross-border alliances need research that identifies allies, analyzes the economic and political terrain, and clarifies the issues that unify workers. The International Research Network on Autowork in the Americas (IRNAA) is analyzed as one such effort that began as an academic enterprise and evolved into a clearinghouse for cross-border union communication and from there into a national forum for Mexican auto unions. This unanticipated evolution and the eventual disappointment of IRNAA's ambitious goals suggests that labor-oriented academics can make a substantial contribution to initiating cross-border links between unions but cannot sustain them independently of other necessary conditions for international solidarity. IRNAA's experience also demonstrates both the strengths and the weaknesses of personal networks in initiating cross-border collaboration. The narrative and analysis depends primarily on the authors' “insider account” as cofounders and coordinators of this undertaking.