Dace Dzenovska

Dr. Dace Dzenovska is an Associate Professor in the Anthropology of Migration at the University of Oxford and a Fellow at Kellogg College. She serves as the Principal Investigator of the EMPTINESS project, which examines emptying places in Eastern Europe and beyond. Her work bridges political anthropology, postsocialist studies, and migration studies, focusing on sovereignty, capitalism, and spatial transformation.

Education: Holds a doctoral degree and master’s in Social Cultural Anthropology from UC Berkeley, and an interdisciplinary MA in Humanities and Social Thought from NYU.

Research interests include sovereignty dynamics, migration patterns, and the political implications of spatial emptiness. She explores how capital and political authority reshape territories in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, particularly in Latvia, Armenia, Russia, and Ukraine.

Recent publications analyze sovereignty conflicts, post-socialist spatial dynamics, and theoretical frameworks of 'emptiness.' These works contribute to debates on rural depopulation and evolving political liberalism in Europe.

Scientific Awards: Fellow at Kellogg College. Collaborations include Riga Stradiņš University.

Advising: Supervises DPhil students researching migrant care work, displacement in Ukraine, and personal filmmaking. Former advisees have become academics and advocates, including founding the Work Rights Centre.

EMPTINESS project collaborations focus on interdisciplinary ethnography and documentary filmmaking, extending research to the UK, Italy, and Germany.