Talk:
“(Re)imagining, (re)interacting, (re)constructing nationalisms: A comparative analysis of politician discourse during the post-disaster scenes of Belgium, Turkey and United States”
by
Ebru Akgün
Political Science and Sociology
Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the University of Antwerp
Ebru.Akgun@vub.be
Date and Room Info
Thursday, February 26, 2026, 12:30 p.m.
A-129B
Abstract
Disasters generate extensive disruptions and uncertainty in social order; prompting political, social, and material forces to converge in the recovery process. As part of this restorative process, the idea(s) of nationhood is often mobilised to make sense of the situation and improve the efficacy of organising the recovery. Unlike the subtle and everyday manifestations of nationhood, post-disaster contexts provide a stage for the explicit and deliberate performance of nationhood. Within this, political discourse becomes a critical tool for the interaction and reconstruction of the contesting symbols and narratives tied to the imagined nation. By implementing critical discourse analysis (CDA), this doctoral research explores the competing idea(s) of nationhood being (re)imagined, (re)interacted and (re)constructed through political discourse in the post-disaster contexts of the flooding in Wallonia, Belgium, 2021, earthquake in Southeastern Turkey in 2023, and the wildfires in Hawaii, USA in 2023.
Short Bio
Ebru Akgün studied Political Science and Public Administration in Bilkent University. She later studied two Master’s degrees in Social and Cultural Anthropology and Sustainable Development in KU Leuven. She is currently doing a joint PhD degree in Political Science and Sociology at Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the University of Antwerp, focusing on politician discourse and nationalism after disaster events. She has also worked as social worker in an NGO in Brazil, and has worked as sustainability lobbyist in several Brussels-based organisations. She is currently preparing for her position at the European Commission Directorate General Environment Communications unit.