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The Refugee Studies Centre hosted this international conference to reflect on the role that Refugee Studies can play in the world

Watch conference highlights

RSC Conference 2017

Thursday 16 March and Friday 17 March 2017

Keble College Oxford

The Refugee Studies Centre hosted this major international conference in March 2017, thirty-five years after the RSC was founded. Its purpose was to reflect on the role that Refugee Studies can play in the world. In the context of profound changes in the nature of forced displacement, the conference assessed what kinds of knowledge, evidence, and concepts are needed to understand and respond to contemporary challenges.

Over the past two years, the so-called European refugee crisis has created unprecedented public interest in forced displacement, as well as a demand for research. Yet despite a series of policy-oriented conferences, there have been few spaces in which to reflect on the state of Refugee Studies and to explore the extent to which we have the academic tools necessary to think about and respond to a changing world.

Against this backdrop, this conference seeks to reinvigorate scholarly debate on ways in which we can conceive of Refugee and Forced Migration Studies. By bringing together a range of reflective thinkers and their work, alongside policy-makers and practitioners, our hope is to develop a research agenda and scholarly community that can engage meaningfully with the long-term challenges of forced displacement.

Download the CONFERENCE PROGRAMME.

Podcasts

Listen to audio podcasts of conference sessions here >>

CALL FOR PAPERS

Download the Call for Papers

Annual Elizabeth Colson Lecture

The Annual Elizabeth Colson Lecture is held in Trinity term. It is named after Professor Elizabeth Colson, a renowned anthropologist.

Annual Harrell-Bond Lecture

The Annual Harrell-Bond Lecture is named in honour of Dr Barbara Harrell-Bond, the founding Director of the Refugee Studies Centre. It is held each year in Michaelmas term.

Public Seminar Series

Each term the RSC holds a series of public seminars, held on Wednesday evenings at Queen Elizabeth House. Click here for details of forthcoming seminars.

Connect with us

To keep up to date with our events and activities, sign up for email alerts from the RSC and Forced Migration Review, and connect with us on social media.

Forthcoming events

Fragments of Home: Refugee Housing and the Politics of Shelter (Book Launch)

Wednesday, 16 October 2024, 5pm to 6pm @ Seminar Room 1, Oxford Department of International Development, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TB

TBC

Wednesday, 23 October 2024, 5pm to 6pm @ Online

Refugee Afterlives: Home, Hauntings, and Hunger

Wednesday, 06 November 2024, 5pm to 6pm @ Seminar Room 1, Oxford Department of International Development, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TB

Conflict Refugees: European Union law and Practice

Wednesday, 13 November 2024, 5pm to 6pm @ Seminar Room 1, Oxford Department of International Development, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TB

NGO Refugee Advocacy: Strengths, Weaknesses and Challenges

Wednesday, 20 November 2024, 5pm to 6pm @ Seminar Room 1, Oxford Department of International Development, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TB