Through the looking glass: Coloniality and mirroring in localisation

Auteurs

  • Nazanin Zadeh-Cummings Deakin University

DOI :

https://doi.org/10.21153/thl2022art1693

Mots-clés :

localisation, colonialisation, North Korea

Résumé

What assumptions underpin the concept of ‘localisation’ as employed by the mainstream, international humanitarian sector? This paper offers a partial answer to this multi-faceted question. It first considers the meaning(s), or lack thereof, of localisation. It presents coloniality and ‘mirroring’ as two concepts important to understanding the limitations of localisation. It then considers locally led aid in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, or North Korea), using the example of the Eugene Bell Foundation (EBF). The paper argues that assumptions around the actors involved in local response, as well as assumptions around the existence of NGOs and the normative belief that non-state actors could and should play major roles in response, demonstrate the limits of localisation.

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Biographie de l'auteur

  • Nazanin Zadeh-Cummings, Deakin University

    Nazanin is a Lecturer in Humanitarian Studies at Deakin University and the Associate Director of Research at the Centre for Humanitarian Leadership. She earned her PhD in 2019 from the City University of Hong Kong. She holds a joint MA in International Humanitarian Action from Ruhr-Universität Bochum/Université catholique de Louvain, and an MA (Hons) in International Relations from the University of Edinburgh. Nazanin’s current research projects explore humanitarian aid in North Korea, humanitarian training and education, and transitional justice.

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A pole with multiple American and UN flags hangind from it is positioned in front of a building with a reflective facade. The reflection of a city skyline is displayed on the building.

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2022-11-21

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« Through the looking glass: Coloniality and mirroring in localisation » (2022) Le Leader Humanitaire, p. Working Paper 031, Nov 2022. doi:10.21153/thl2022art1693.

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