Education in emergencies research partnerships through the looking glass

In this paper, and as a team of researchers/practitioners spanning the globe, we reflect on the historical and ongoing legacies of (neo)colonialism and imperialism in education in emergencies (EiE) research and practice using collaborative auto-ethnography. Specifically, we explore how we’ve experienced hierarchies of power, positionality and privilege, and how we’ve benefited and/or been victims of this in the past. We then move to explore how we are striving to realise authentic and meaningful co-production in ACCESS (Accelerating Change for Childrens’ and Youths’ Education for Systems Strengthening), a 44-month research-practice partnership that aims to improve education provision for out-of-school children and youth. We identify both opportunities and challenges to doing this and highlight how decolonising EiE research/practice is an ongoing process rather than finite, singular actions.