The IDC expresses deep gratitude for the work of Barbara Harrell-Bond, who died at age 85 in July.
Barbara was an active member of the IDC since it began in 2008. She consistently shared resources and her deep knowledge about immigration detention and alternatives to detention.
Barbara’s legacy will continue to improve the lives of refugees worldwide. She is remembered for founding the Refugees Studies Center (RSC) at the University of Oxford and founding the African and Middle East Refugee Assistance (AMERA Egypt), an organisation dedicated to providing quality legal services to refugees and asylum seekers. She established the Refugee Law Project at Makerere University in Uganda, the Forced Migration and Refugee Studies Program at the American University in Cairo, and Africa Middle East Refugee Assistance (now AMERA International) to provide legal aid to refugees and ensure young people were able to study refugee law. She was a founding member of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network.