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Irna Hofman

@irnahofman.bsky.social
146 followers 92 following 39 posts

Rural Central Asia | Tajikistan | Global China | Critical agrarian studies | Everyday geopolitics | Ethnography | Labour | Cotton | Running | @unileiden.bsky.social‬ www.geog.ox.ac.uk/staff/ihofman.html

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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
Excited to see two of the four contributions to the Symposium "Beyond Paradigms: Eclectic Pathways of Agrarian Change" (co-edited with Michael Spies) in Agriculture and Human Values published! There is more to come. link.springer.com/article/10.1... and link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com
When agrarian imaginaries touch uncertain grounds: moving beyond paradigms in agroecological farmers’ visions of a desirable future in the Valle Inferior del Río Negro, Argentina - Agriculture and Hum...
Agriculture and Human Values - The rising number of people affected by hunger and the climate crisis underscore the urgent need to reimagine agricultural systems for sustainability. However,...
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Development and Change @devandchg.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Registration is now open for Daniela Gabor's lecture: www.iss.nl/en/events/seville-process-developmentalism-after-american-hegemony-2026-01-22 @danielagabor.bsky.social @powelljr.bsky.social @ingridhk.bsky.social @andrewmfischer.bsky.social @marsel.bsky.social @cacrisalves.bsky.social
iss.nl
The Seville Process: Developmentalism after American hegemony
A lecture by Professor Daniela Gabor, hosted by the journal Development and Change
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
(Though) the reality of/labour involved in silk wormbreeding in the region is harsh...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
@scwobservatory.bsky.social @lauchinainstitute.bsky.social @madeinchinajournal.com
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 09/10/2025
Written with passion, completed and shared with the usual anxiety: "Everyday Politics of Global China: Looking to, Reflecting on, and Enacting Authority in Rural Tajikistan" onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Everyday Politics of Global China: Looking to, Reflecting on, and Enacting Authority in Rural Tajikistan
The visible manifestations of Global China, and the responses these manifestations elicit, are at the centre of much of the scholarly literature on, and popular interest in, China's growing global pr....
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
Interesting dynamics here..:
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 23/09/2025
Thanks for posting! Might try to come ..
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 22/09/2025
US -aid? US delivered 75 tons of U.S.-manufactured food, "proudly produced" in Texas "'Our mutual goal is simple: to save lives, improve health, and make a real difference for Tajik families and communities,'” said Ambassador Micaller" tj.usembassy.gov/united-state...
tj.usembassy.gov
United States Delivers 75 Tons of Fortified Food Assistance to Support Vulnerable Populations in Tajikistan
September 17, 2025, Dushanbe, Tajikistan – The United States delivered 75 tons of U.S.-manufactured food worth $255,666 to support about 40,000 vulnerable
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
As lecturer, I look forward interacting and working with students and (new) colleagues, engaging with exciting and critical themes of political ecology, sustainability, belonging, diversity, and development
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
A new academic year, a new chapter! Happy to share I have joined Leiden University's Institute of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology
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Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · 05/08/2025
Over the past 2 decades, China has become Laos’s top investor, main creditor, and 2nd-largest trade partner. In a new report, @profjulietlu.bsky.social and I unpack Chinese investment across four land-intensive sectors: agriculture & plantations, mining, infrastructure & SEZs. tinyurl.com/kw5vteem
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Made in China Journal @madeinchinajournal.com · 29/07/2025
The new issue of Global China Pulse is now live! What does it mean to do fieldwork on Global China? This issue explores the methodological, ethical, and political challenges researchers face when studying China’s global presence from the ground up. Download here: globalchinapulse.net/download/glo...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
"Where did she come from? Whose side is she on?" Relating and Differentiating: Navigating Worlds and Negotiating Positionality in Research on Chinese Agribusinesses in Rural Tajikistan My contribution to the SI "Researching Global China" in Global China Pulse: globalchinapulse.net/relating-and...
globalchinapulse.net
Relating and Differentiating: Navigating Worlds and Negotiating Positionality in Research on Chinese Agribusinesses in Rural Tajikistan
‘I don’t understand her,’ the Chinese mechanic told my friend in Chinese, pointing at me. ‘We learned the Tajik language on the street; we didn’t take classes. She speaks the official language.’ The m...
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Till Mostowlansky @mostowlansky.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Commentary with @adoolotkeldieva.bsky.social on how Chinese mining companies in Kyrgyzstan have worked to adapt to a state court system in which compliance as such is an impossibility. @gvagrad.bsky.social carnegieendowment.org/posts/2025/0...
carnegieendowment.org
How Chinese Miners Adapt to Kyrgyzstan’s Legal Compliance
Negative public perception about Chinese expansion into Kyrgyzstan, along with an unpredictable regulatory environment, has profoundly shaped Chinese business practices inside Kyrgyzstan. Despite comm...
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SCWObservatory @scwobservatory.bsky.social · 23/07/2025
Follow us on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/seco...
linkedin.com
Second Cold War Observatory | LinkedIn
Second Cold War Observatory | 6 followers on LinkedIn. Research collective committed to understanding how great power rivalry shapes societies, economies & ecologies worldwide | The Second Cold W...
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Made in China Journal @madeinchinajournal.com · 17/07/2025
How do you do ethnography in places of suspended sovereignty? Richard Nyelade draws on his fieldwork in Taiwan to explore how researchers navigate legal ambiguity, geopolitical tension, and fragile alliances, proposing 'ethnographic diplomacy' as a mode shaped by silence, suspicion, and performance.
globalchinapulse.net
Ethnography in the Shadow of Suspended Sovereignty: Navigating Geopolitical Tensions and Indigenous Claims in Taiwan
What does it mean to conduct ethnographic fieldwork in a territory where sovereignty is not only contested but suspended—where diplomatic ambiguity, imperial entanglements, and historical wounds satur...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
This article is part of a forthcoming Special Issue "China in Compliance", edited by, and many thanks to, @matthewserie.bsky.social @scwobservatory.bsky.social @beltandroadpod.bsky.social @madeinchinajournal.com
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
Publication alert! Happy to share my recently published article in Regulation & Governance:
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Haroon Akram-Lodhi @ahakram-lodhi.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
"This is ... about the remaking of (domestic and international)law." An excellent essay www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
theguardian.com
The destruction of Palestine is breaking the world | Moustafa Bayoumi
The rules of the institutions that define our lives bend like reeds when it comes to Israel – so much that the whole global order is on the verge of collapse
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
While I wouldn't talk of plantations in Central Asia, my thoughts resonate with Sarah Besky's, who questioned whether a plantation can be fair.
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
European firms increasingly look to Central Asia for sourcing agricultural commodities, and markets play a role in setting standards #shiftinggeographiesofproduction. Yet can we talk of fair trade where/if farmers are subject to production plans, as (still) happens in parts of the region?
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
Fairtrade now also introduced in.... Turkmenistan shorturl.at/4fSKl
shorturl.at
Fairtrade NAPPs Strategic Engagement in the International Sustainable Conference in Turkmenistan to Foster Sustainable Agricultural Collaboration
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Kati Piri @katipiri.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
Rode lijn acties om genocide in Gaza te stoppen. Na 1,5 jaar vroeg kabinet om ‘onderzoek’. EU-onderzoek: Israël volledig over de schreef. Toch trekt kabinet geen enkele consequentie. Diep teleurstellend hoe coalitie meewerkt aan straffeloosheid van Netanyahu’s misdaden.
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 21/06/2025
Another great initiative!
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
Join us this Thursday (5 June) at the International Institute of Social Studies: Shifting geopolitical fault lines and global food security www.iss.nl/en/events/sh...
iss.nl
Shifting geopolitical fault lines and global food security
This international workshop brings together academics and societal organizations to discuss food security in the current geopolitical turbulence
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
AI & Academia. Aw.
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
www.linkedin.com/posts/jobbew...
linkedin.com
Wageningen trekt een rode lijn. Dit kabinet staat niet voor de waarden die… | Jobbe Wijnen
Wageningen trekt een rode lijn. Dit kabinet staat niet voor de waarden die we op 5 Mei vieren. Daarom was er een subtiel, maar niet te missen protest tijdens het startschot van het Bevrijdingsfestival...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 27/04/2025
I was delighted to speak at the seminar on water challenges in Central Asia at @clingendael.bsky.social on 17 April. What are (some of) the everyday water challenges encountered at the microlevel? Were you interested but unable to attend? Watch the recording: www.youtube.com/watch?v=mV6g...
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Temur Umarov @tumarov.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
The Central Asia gang in the Hague ☀️ @irnahofman.bsky.social @plovism.bsky.social
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 15/04/2025
Looking forward to discuss water challenges in Central Asia at @clingendael.bsky.social coming Thursday. Join us in person or online!
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European Consortium for Political Research @ecpr.bsky.social · 28/03/2025
📍 Are you preparing for #fieldwork in a conflict, post-war, or closed political setting? ⬇️ Get hands-on training on ethical & practical aspects, covering: ⚠️ Risk assessment & mitigation 🔎 Common #ResearchMethods 📈 Managing your #data 💻 12–16 May 👩‍💻 Vera Axyonova #ecprms #methodsky #polisky
buff.ly
Doing Fieldwork in Challenging Environments, Online, 12–16 May 2025
Learn to plan, prepare, and conduct field research in conflict, post-war, and closed political settings.
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 07/04/2025
Great funding opportunity!
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 06/04/2025
Sometimes it is better to focus on the things you can control
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 10/03/2025
It was a real pleasure talking with Seth Schindler and Jessica DiCarlo on Tajikistan's cotton fields as geopolitical sites:
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
And this Friday (the 7th), Yan Hairong speaking at IIAS, don't miss it! www.iias.asia/events/chine...
iias.asia
Chinese Capital Accumulation and the Belt and Road Initiative | IIAS
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Hans Steinmüller @steinmuller.bsky.social · 02/03/2025
Vacancy: LSE Fellow in the Anthropology of China (fixed term, 2 years), deadline for applications is 31 March jobs.lse.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/...
jobs.lse.ac.uk
LSE Fellow in the Anthropology of China
LSE Fellow in the Anthropology of China, , <p style="text-align: center;"><em><span>LSE is committed to building a diverse, equitable and truly inclusive university</span></em></p> <p><strong><span st...
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Transnational Institute @tninstitute.bsky.social · 27/02/2025
Are we in a second Cold War? @iliasalami.bsky.social, @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social, @steverolf.bsky.social and @sethschindler.bsky.social argue that the current conflict focuses on controlling global economic networks rather than ideology or territory. www.tni.org/en/article/t...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 25/02/2025
Great new initiative: The IIPPE Agrarian Change Working Group announces its first online conference held on 11-12 Jun, 2025. Deadline for submission, 17 March 2025. Details and updates on: iippe.org/agrarian-cha...
iippe.org
IIPPE
NEW: First Online Conference. This is in addition to the annual in-person conference. See Below The IIPPE Agrarian Change Working Group (ACWG) aims to bring together researchers interested in a...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 22/02/2025
@scwobservatory.bsky.social
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 22/02/2025
"Today, contract farming usually involves a choice between Chinese & Western capital, ...often depicted as being in competition... Instead, I found that Chinese & Western investors play complementary roles in Zimbabwe’s tobacco market." Interesting read: www.sixthtone.com/news/1016702
sixthtone.com
Digging Deep Into China’s Zimbabwean Tobacco Business
Zimbabwe’s tobacco industry turnaround is sometimes portrayed as a triumph of Chinese influence. The truth is more complicated.
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Temur Umarov @tumarov.bsky.social · 19/02/2025
Reuters are seeking a correspondent to cover Central Asia careers.thomsonreuters.com/us/en/job/JR...
careers.thomsonreuters.com
Central Asia Correspondent - Reuters in Almaty, Kazakhstan | News & Editorial Careers at Thomson Reuters
Apply for Central Asia Correspondent - Reuters job with Thomson Reuters in Almaty, Kazakhstan. News & Editorial Careers at Thomson Reuters
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Jennifer Clapp 🇨🇦 @jennifer-clapp.bsky.social · 18/02/2025
Today is publication day! I explain how agricultural inputs - which weren't even widely traded market goods 200 years ago - have become giant industries dominated by just a handful of transnational firms today. mitpress.mit.edu/978026255170... Many thanks to those who helped me along the way!
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Matthew Erie @matthewserie.bsky.social · 08/02/2025
Yup. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/f...
theguardian.com
US cedes ground to China with ‘self-inflicted wound’ of USAid shutdown, analysts say
Sudden suspension of aid funding a ‘perfect opportunity’ for Beijing to fill the gap and grow its own soft power
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Temur Umarov @tumarov.bsky.social · 06/02/2025
2 weeks after opening an election observation mission in Tajikistan, the OSCE ODIHR announced that it had cancelled the mission & its plans to observe the country’s upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for March. www.osce.org/odihr/electi...
osce.org
Lack of accreditation by Tajikistan less than a month before elections makes continuation of OSCE observation mission impossible
WARSAW, 4 February 2025 – The lack of assurance by the authorities of Tajikistan that international observers will be accredited has regrettably made it necessary to cancel the observation of the coun...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 04/02/2025
CfP for an exciting workshop! www.ifw-kiel.de/institute/ev...
ifw-kiel.de
China in the Global South: Consequences for Economic Development
Joint Hong Kong-Kiel-Göttingen Workshop on China in the Global South: Economic Transformation, Global Governance, & Development Pathways.
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Haroon Akram-Lodhi @ahakram-lodhi.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
Horrific call from the friend of a friend who works at USAID. All of their staff was put on leave. Then all of their bosses were put on leave. They were then instructed to scrub the website of certain words. Workers came in and took down all the photos on the wall. Then their bosses were fired
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Made in China Journal @madeinchinajournal.com · 31/01/2025
||NEW PROFILE|| The Great Stone China–Belarus Industrial Park has been advertised as a flagship BRI project. Yet, despite high expectations, its development has been facing significant challenges due to the pandemic, political unrest in Belarus, and geopolitical turbulence, writes Maryia Danilovich.
thepeoplesmap.net
Great Stone China–Belarus Industrial Park - The People's Map of Global China
Great Stone China–Belarus Industrial Park, located near the Belarusian capital, has been widely advertised as a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative. Established as an intergovernmental co...
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Irna Hofman @irnahofman.bsky.social · 31/01/2025
Delighted to be among the recipients of the Delta on the Move Foundation's small grant! Among other activities, I will use the grant to undertake fieldwork in Central Asia, and organise a workshop on China's role in agri-tech and smart agriculture (later this year). Stay tuned!
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Temur Umarov @tumarov.bsky.social · 25/01/2025
A Chinese language course has officially been launched at the Vocational and Technical College in Istiqlol, a northern city in Tajikistan. This course is organized by the Chinese Language Workshop of the Tajik-Sino Mining Company. asiaplustj.info/en/news/taji...
asiaplustj.info
Tajik-Sino Mining Company opens Chinese Language course at Istiqlol-based Technical College | Tajikistan News ASIA-Plus
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Made in China Journal @madeinchinajournal.com · 23/01/2025
On Chinese construction sites in Ghana, language barriers often cause misunderstandings. However, using a new language, referred to locally as ‘Chinese English’, Chinese supervisors and local construction workers can communicate and even create opportunities for jokes, writes Costanza Franceschini.
globalchinapulse.net
‘Chinese English’ Interactions, Jokes, and Frictions on Chinese Construction Sites in Ghana
‘You walawala ta guolai [Tell him to come here]!’ When I first started conducting research at a construction site run by a Chinese state-owned construction company in the Western Region of Ghana, I fo...
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