Translating the camp: fieldwork and positionality along the refugee Western Balkan Route

This contribution reflects on methodological challenges regarding language and translation we experienced during our fieldwork in the multilingual and ‘messy’ research context of makeshift refugee camps along the Balkan Route. In this setting, there were constant methodological and ethical considerations surrounding translation, including how to communicate across linguistic barriers (with or without interpreters), the use of English as a lingua franca, the presence of ‘community leaders’ that spoke on behalf of others, and the ‘camp politics’ that inevitably hindered or facilitated our interactions, often in ways we could not understand. Our embodied presence (as white, Western academics) was also a matter of ‘translation’ in the camps, as refugees’ perceptions of us impacted the kinds of interactions we were able to have and required us to adapt our methodological approaches on the ground. In exploring the opportunities and challenges of research in this multilingual context, this contribution demonstrates how individuals may assert agency and resistance within their roles as research subjects and may offer insights for performing more ethically aware and humble work in the field.