Available post-doc on refugee rights, status and vulnerability
Would you like to do independent research on refugee rights, status, and vulnerability, as well as to contribute to policy-oriented outputs and policy-engagement? We are currently inviting applications for a 28-month, full-time post-doctoral research fellowship within the Global Asylum Governance and European Union's Role (ASILE)-project, funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 870787.
The ASILE project studies the interactions between emerging international protection systems and the United Nations Global Compact for Refugees (UN GCR), with particular focus on the European Union’s role and contribution. It examines the characteristics of international, country-specific and EU asylum governance instruments and arrangements, their gender and age specific impacts on individuals, and the sharing of responsibility from the perspective of their effectiveness, fairness and consistency with international and regional human rights and refugee law standards. ASILE is led by Dr. Sergio Carrera at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) in Brussels and includes leading scholars and practitioners in the field of International Refugee Law from 12 institutions.
The Faculty of Law, University of Oslo, implements the work package Refugee Recognition, Self-Reliance and Rights. It is led by me in collaboration with Professor Cathryn Costello (University of Oxford/University of Oslo) and Dr Lewis Turner (Arnold-Bergstraesser-Institut, Freiburg). The work package aims to facilitate a better understanding of how refugee protection is allocated and the rights enjoyed by refugees, in particular by providing critical insights into institutional practices employing the concepts of ‘vulnerability’ and 'self-reliance'. It will provide knowledge on Refugee Status Determination (RSD) practices in six case study countries, and in-depth comparative case study on the refugee recognition regimes in Jordan and Bangladesh. The post-doctoral researcher will play a lead role in the in-depth work on Bangladesh and must have relevant methodological skills to conduct qualitative field research in Bangladesh.
In our work package, particular focus will be given to RSD, its links with resettlement, and the risks that refugee protection will be undermined by treating refugees instead as ‘vulnerable migrants’, or rationing refugee protection only to those deemed 'vulnerable'. Given the focus on self-reliance and work rights, the links between these issues and 'vulnerability assessments' will be explored in the case-studies. Questions that will be explored include: How does having the right to work, and obtaining work, potentially both mitigate and create exposure to different harms? How is this different for refugees of different genders, nationalities, skill levels, and class statuses, who all often experience different conditions, rewards, and harms at work? How do refugees themselves understand ‘vulnerability’ and the gains and harms that might accrue from the right to work?
Does this sound like something you are interested in being a part of? See the full ad here and be in touch! Deadline April 2, 2020.