Introduction

Abstract

This special theme examines the process of creating places from the perspective of refugee economies. Refugee economies are not only a specific and concrete aspect of refugees' lives but also formal and informal intermediaries that bridge their daily life with local communities, nations, and the transnational world. Previous studies critically considered the image of the dependent refugee through the lens of refugee economies. These studies focused on the ways in which refugees can be reconfigured into the existing economic and social order. By contrast, this study discusses places that are created with contradictions and tensions, including interactions with non-humans. This study examines refugee places from three perspectives: uncertainty and placemaking, places without consensus, and places created from devastation. In this introduction, the authors also focus on the existence of non-human agents to approach refugee studies from a cultural anthropological viewpoint.