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Transforming Humanitarian Partnerships
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28 July 2026

This book examines how global humanitarian systems shape partnerships in education in emergencies. Focusing on the Syrian refugee crisis and the education response in Lebanon, it reveals how colonial legacies, structural racism and the marketization of aid enable Global North actors to dictate policies and practices, while marginalizing local voices and knowledge. Yet in moments of crisis, community-led initiatives and smaller partnerships prove to be agile and responsive.
Rather than offering celebratory accounts of “partnership,” the book draws on rigorous research to foreground the structural inequities that constrain them—while also pointing to possibilities for more just, community-driven alternatives. A vital resource for scholars, practitioners and policy makers, it offers concrete pathways for reshaping humanitarian practice to support sustainable, responsive education for refugee learners.
"Critical, transformative, and participatory, this book offers a vital contribution to refugee education and a powerful alternative to mainstream humanitarianism." Rabie Nasser, Director of the Syrian Center for Policy Research
“Against the backdrop of the current humanitarian reset, this book offers vital insights into how we might shift a system that is grounded in colonial and racial hierarchies.” Ritesh Shah, University of Auckland
Zeena Zakharia is Associate Professor of International Education Policy in the College of Education, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, US.
Francine Menashy is Associate Professor in the Department of Leadership, Higher and Adult Education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Canada.
Maha Shuayb is Director of the Centre for Lebanese Studies and British Academy Bilateral Chair of Education in Crisis at CLS and at the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge, UK.
1. Introduction
2. The Humanitarian Industry and Education in Emergencies
3. Humanitarian Hierarchies in Global Education Partnerships
4. Partnerships and Policy Networks in Refugee Education
5. Constructing Partnerships Amid the Syrian Refugee Education Response in Lebanon
6. Transformative Partnership Practices in Lebanon
7. Conclusion: Dismantling Colonial Legacies for Refugee Education Futures