Crystallizing the Territorial Infra-Assemblage

Abstract This study undertakes a conceptual journey—metaphorically mapped along a river—to explore the Innovative Learning Environments (ILEs) through the lens of assemblage thinking. By focusing on how these environments are built and organized, the research contributes to the broader discourse on the development of intra-active citizenship within ILEs from the perspective of new materialism. The aim is to reveal new synergies and build upon the existing body of literature in this field. Employing a comprehensive rhizomatic review, the study analyzed 45 documents using a Spinozist-Deleuzian toolkit grounded in new materialist thinking. The findings indicate a shift towards the idea of infra-assemblage, which plays a key role in how these environments come together. Using Hjelmslev’s linguistic model, the study explored how ideas move through four different research strata. The results highlight the need to consider social mobility when forming [minor] citizenship within ILEs, particularly in relation to gender, race, ethnicity, and physical ability. These factors are closely linked to how well educational institutions can adapt to larger social and cultural changes, especially regarding themes such as posthumanism and neoliberal influences. By introducing a new framework for understanding ILEs, this research provides valuable insights into the ethical and political aspects of knowledge creation and offers methods that are relevant to this field of study.