Borderland Battles is based on extensive fieldwork: more than 600 interviews in and on the Colombia-Venezuela and Colombia-Ecuador border regions. Applying a "borderland lens" to security dynamics, her focus has been on the convergence of armed conflict and organised crime in these regions: how groups compete for territorial control, how they cooperate, and how they fill governance gaps by playing roles that states normally do. Dr. Idler’s work offers a more holistic and nuanced understanding of “people-centered security” than has been available so far. It has also given her detailed knowledge of the Colombia-Venezuela border zone, which is suffering important consequences of Venezuela’s crisis.
Dr. Idler's presentation will be followed by two discussants:
Magali Alba Niño, Director of the Social Work Faculty, Simon Bolivar University Cúcuta, Colombia
Prof Laurence Whitehead, Senior Research Fellow in Politics at Nuffield College, Oxford University
Following the presenter and discussants, there will be an open Q&A time to promote engaging discussion on the subject.
The event is co-sponsored by Oxford University's Changing Character of War Centre, the Latin American Centre, the Centre for International Studies, and the Oxford Network of Peace Studies (OxPeace).