The latest issue of the Journal of Refugee Studies looks in detail at refugee self-reliance. The issue is co-edited by Evan Easton-Calabria (RSC) and Claudia Skran (Lawrence University), who write in their introduction: “Although not new topics in the field of refugee studies, self-reliance, livelihoods and entrepreneurship have recently taken on a heightened emphasis. However, critical questions remain regarding how and by whom self-reliance is defined and measured, and the intended and unintended outcomes of historical and contemporary efforts to foster it.”
The aim of the special issue is to critically examine the concept of refugee self-reliance, and to assess its relationship with the broader topics of livelihoods and entrepreneurship for refugees. It seeks to contribute to the existing body of literature critically assessing the provenance, practice and implications of refugee self-reliance and efforts to foster it.
The issue stems from a workshop on refugee self-reliance held in June 2017 (sponsored by the RSC), and includes diverse perspectives on the practice, theory and history of refugee self-reliance.
Authors include several RSC members – Alexander Betts, Naohiko Omata, Olivier Sterck and Evan Easton-Calabria herself – writing on topics such as self-reliance and social networks, Afghan refugees in Pakistan, and the Kalobeyei settlement in Kenya (which aimed to support self-reliance for refugees and greater refugee–host interaction).
Read the special issue here: https://academic.oup.com/jrs/issue/33/1