May 14, 2020 / Research Seminar #6 / Research Solidarity? Navigating Feminist Ethics

Research Solidarity? Navigating Feminist Ethics in Participatory Action-Research in Kathmandu, Nepal

Presented by Stephanie Butcher

Chaired by Kim Dovey

What does it mean to undertake international research that is ethically motivated, action-oriented, and undertaken in solidarity with locally-based organizations? More importantly: how can we navigate the inevitable tensions and dilemmas that emerge quite apart from these lofty ambitions, reflecting the complex set of power relations which shape the process of knowledge production? This presentation looks reflexively at the experience of fieldwork—undertaken internationally in Kathmandu, Nepal, in partnership with a locally based organization, and with informal settlement residents. It examines the notion of ‘research solidarity’, seeking to understand the contradictions and challenges of embedding research into action. In order to do so, it presents three moments within the fieldwork which challenged a straightforward conception of solidarity. This reflects on issues such as: building relationships with local partners, engaging moments of dissensus and plural voices in the research process, and navigating confidentiality and risk. Reflecting on these moments, it explores how solidarity— partial, situated, and strategic—was built through: the use of particular methods, through adopting particular framings, and, in some cases, from silence. In outlining these choices (and the sometimes-ambiguous outcomes), it reflects on the opportunities and challenges of undertaking collaborative action-oriented research, in the context of deep inequalities.

Thursday May 14, 2020

1-2 pm

Virtual Session in Zoom