Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant: Resource Conflicts in a Volatile Borderland

研究员塞尔坎·约拉坎在杜克大学的PI何恩森的指导下，将调查在资源冲突的背景下有助于跨国网络形成和维持的因素。这项研究将在阿塞拜疆进行，阿塞拜疆是一个拥有丰富石油储量的国家，也是一个吸引外国人竞争议程和项目的地区。研究人员分析了外部地缘战略竞争如何推动并与内部竞争纠缠在一起。虽然该州的一些团体通过石油驱动的商业网络和军事协议与西方结盟，但其他在政治和经济上更加边缘化的团体已经建立了区域网络。这些被边缘化的群体在国家公共空间中的可见度越来越高，这对该政权构成了挑战。这个项目旨在回答宗派主义与外部势力的冲突如何帮助他们在国内建立政治信心。它旨在探索维斯于国家精英动员的社交网络、历史叙事和文化资源。调查人员将进行多地点的人种学实地考察。研究包括（1）收集传记和家族史，（2）跟踪个人行程，（3）分析具有宗教意义的文本和口头故事以及演员自己对这些故事的解释。在探索流动性，连接和口述历史，研究人员希望投在中东和欧亚大陆中部主权分层景观新的光;有一个更好的洞察力在全球化的世界各地区的弹性背后的动态;并了解普通人在国际关系中的作用。本研究有助于人类学研究生的培养。此外，这项研究将帮助我们了解世界上对美国国家安全具有战略重要性的地区。

The researcher, Serkan Yolacan, under the direction of the PI, Ho Enseng of Duke University, will investigate the factors that contribute to the formation and maintenance of transnational networks in a context of resource conflict. The research will take place in Azerbaijan, a state with rich oil reserves off the shores and a region that attracts foreigners of competing agendas and projects. The investigators analyze how external geo-strategic rivalries are driving and becoming entangled with internal rivalries. While some groups within the state ally with the West through oil-driven business networks and military agreements, other more politically and economically marginalized groups have forged regional networks. The increasing visibility of these marginalized groups in the national public space constitutes a challenge to the regime. This project intends to answer how sectarian allegiances with external powers help them build political confidence at home. It aims to explore social networks, historical narratives, and cultural resources that are mobilized vis-à-vis the state elites. The investigators will undertake a multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork. The research comprises (1) collecting biographical and family histories, (2) following individual itineraries, (3) analyzing textual and oral stories of religious significance as well as actors' own interpretations of these stories. In exploring the mobility, connections, and oral histories, the investigators look to cast new light on the layered landscape of sovereignty in the Middle East and central Eurasia; to have a better insight into the dynamics behind the resilience of regions in a globalized world; and to understand the role of ordinary people in international relations. The research contributes to the education of a graduate student in anthropology. In addition, the research will help us understand an area of the world is strategically important to U.S. national security.