Overview
Susan Banki’s book, The Ecosystem of Exile Politics, tells the story of a little-known refugee situation. It relays the events in Bhutan that led to the exodus of one-sixth of the population and then recounts the activism by Bhutan’s refugee diaspora that followed. It shows that activism functions like a physical ecosystem, in which hubs of activism in different locations interact to pressure the home country. Proximity to the homeland allowed for powerful oppositional action but rendered the activists quite precarious. Thus, proximity, the book shows, was a boon and a bane.
‘‘The Ecosystem of Exile Politics explores the power and precarity of physical proximity in diaspora mobilization. With rigorous fieldwork, beautiful prose, and conceptual sophistication, Banki has written a must-read text for anyone interested in the potential for political resistance by refugees.” Noelle Bridgen, Marquette University.
Susan Banki is Associate Professor at the University of Sydney and the Director of the Master of Social Justice. Susan’s focus is on the Asia-Pacific region, where she has conducted extensive field research in Thailand, Myanmar/Burma, Cambodia, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Japan on refugee and migrant protection, statelessness, and border control.
Location details: COMPAS Boardroom (not wheelchair accessible; limited seating), 58 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6QS
Speakers: Susan Banki (University of Sydney), Anita Fabos (Clark University), Nicholas Van Hear (University of Oxford)
Organiser: Nicholas Van Hear (University of Oxford)
