This article considers how a group of migrant women in the town of Shepparton, Australia, understand their futures in the spaces created by globalising forces. Shepparton is a "case study" of globalisation, at the centre of the movement of peoples, skills and capital globally. The issues it faces are compounded by profound climate change. The project uses collective biography to explore women's experiences of working and learning in that place, and to scrutinise contemporary narratives of transnationalism and of the knowledge economy. The article reflects on the implications of the frameworks employed for feminist scholarship and social justice in lifelong learning.