Academy in Exile recognizes that authoritarianism and exile are no longer just local, temporary perturbations. Climate change, environmental degradation, conflict, and authoritarianism are driving ever more people from their homes, with refugee flows anticipated to grow exponentially. Increasingly, this confluence seems to constitute the new normal in the global system. Fixing What’s Broken calls for approaches that offer viable and long-term solutions to refugee flight. What novel approaches might be found for representing and interpreting exodus in its myriad forms? We ask how initiatives involving cooperation between diverse stakeholders can contribute more imaginatively and sustainably to the future wellbeing of all of us.

Eligible for Academy in Exile’s artist in residence program are cultural producers who advocate on behalf of human rights, democracy, and the pursuit of free expression and/or who have been displaced from their homes because of their professional work. The three artists in residence will be associated with Academy in Exile’s Critical Thinking Program at Freie Universität Berlin and work in dialogue with its fellows from Turkey, Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Palestine, Libya, Syria, Ukraine, Serbia, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Hong Kong, Myanmar, and India. An international jury will evaluate the applications according to artistic merit, risk assessment, civil society advocacy, and willingness to engage in Academy in Exile’s program offerings.

Academy in Exile, hosting threatened scholars since 2017, provides support for people at risk because of their professional and personal commitment to the values of civil society. Through fellowships, mentoring, publishing, teaching, and other opportunities afforded by Academy in Exile’s funders and consortium partners—Universität Duisburg-Essen, Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut, Forum Transregionale Studien, and Freie Universität Berlin—displaced intellectuals are able to live in safety and resume their work in Germany. Academy in Exile also mobilizes broad public and institutional attention. By advocating on behalf of exiled scholars, journalists, and cultural producers, Academy in Exile aims for policy change that addresses the interconnectedness of forced migration, climate change, armed conflict, and the growing threat of authoritarianism.