Transnational Figurations of Displacement. Conceptualising protracted displacement and translocal connectivity through a process-oriented perspective (TRAFIG Working Paper 1/2019).

Please find the Working Paper here . TRAFIG aims to contribute to the development of alternative solutions to protracted displacement that are tailored to the needs and capacities of displaced persons. This working paper contains our central concepts and key terms. We make use of the concept of social figurations as the theoretical foundation for our research. We understand figurations as dynamic social constellations between interdependent individuals that are produced in and through interactions and transactions. On this basis, we re-define protracted displacement as a figuration, in which displaced people’s capabilities and opportunities are severely limited for prolonged periods of time. Multiple structural forces constrain them from using their capacities and making free choices: enduring displacing forces hinder return; marginalising forces prevent local integration; immobilising forces block chances to seek a future elsewhere.