Abstract

This paper reflects on contemporary studies of and responses to disasters, highlighting the importance of historical, spatial, and intersectional modes of analysis, and draws on the author's ongoing research on Southern‐led and local community responses to displacement in the Middle East. Acknowledging the plurality of ‘international communities of response’, it begins by critiquing the depiction of selected responses to disasters as ‘positive’ ‘paradigm shifts’, including in reference to the ‘localisation of aid, and the United Nations’ Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan for Syria. Next it turns to three key themes that are central to disasters studies: migration; forced displacement; and Southern‐led responses to disasters. Among other things, the paper argues that exploring the principles and modalities of South–South cooperation, rather than promoting the incorporation of Southern actors into the ‘international humanitarian system’ via the localisation agenda, presents a critical opportunity for studies of and responses to disasters.

Highlights

  • In this article - based on a keynote lecture offered at the Disasters 40th Anniversary Conference - I offer a reflection on the current state of studies of and responses to disasters

  • I argue that a focus on Southern-led responses must transcend identifying and offering support to specific actors from the global South; instead, it invites us to consider what role diverse modes of South-South cooperation may play in terms of responding to disasters, and what role the principles and modalities of both formal and informal South-South cooperation might have in reconceptualising existing, and formulating new or hybrid forms of response, including responses that challenge structural inequalities

  • Concluding Remarks: looking forward As I have noted throughout this article, there are different ways of imagining and implementing responses to disasters, including models based on principles of South-South cooperation and horizontal learning that can provide longer-term responses to emerging and protracted displacement scenarios

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Summary

Introduction

In this article - based on a keynote lecture offered at the Disasters 40th Anniversary Conference - I offer a reflection on the current state of studies of and responses to disasters.

Results
Conclusion
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