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By Evan Easton-Calabria

The cover of the book Refugees, Self-Reliance, Development, plus the quote “Two things stand out about this book: the clear, jargon-free language, and the historical insights into the widely promoted humanitarian goal of self-reliance with its focus on earning income. Evan brings a critical but fair perspective, and a wealth of experience.” Karen Jacobsen, Tufts University

About the book

Evan Easton-Calabria’s critical history of refugee self-reliance assistance brings new dimensions to refugee and international development studies.

The promotion of refugee self-reliance is evident today, yet its history remains largely unexplored, with good practices and longstanding issues often missed. Through archival and contemporary evidence, this book documents a century of little-known efforts to foster refugee self-reliance, including the economic, political, and social motives driving this assistance.

With five case studies from Greece, Tanzania, Pakistan, Uganda, and Egypt, the book tracks refugee self-reliance as a malleable concept used to pursue ulterior interests. It reshapes understandings of refugee self-reliance and delivers important messages for contemporary policy making.

Bristol University Press, June 2022

Media

Should self-reliance still be a key aim of the international refugee regime?, Bristol University Press blog, 20 June 2022

The introduction 'Why Refugee Self-Reliance?' is available Open Access