Birgitte Holst

Dr. Birgitte Holst is a Research Fellow at the Leibniz Centre for Modern Oriental Studies (ZMO), focusing on the sociopolitical dynamics of Syrian refugees in Germany and Denmark. Her work examines how memories of life under Syria's authoritarian regime influence refugees' subject-formation in host societies, particularly their interactions with legal and political frameworks.

Her research conceptualizes mechanisms like comparison, exemplification, and framing to analyze how Syrians navigate new contexts. Funded by the Carlsberg Foundation, the project employs ethnographic fieldwork to explore refugee agency and identity construction.

Dr. Holst collaborates within the ZMO's 'State and Society' research program, contributing to interdisciplinary studies on transregional dynamics and Southern Theory. Her work bridges anthropology and political science, addressing contemporary issues of displacement and memory in transnational settings.