Congratulations to recent graduate Jessica Ebner-Statt (2020, Geography), who has won the 2023 Political Geography Research Group (PolGRG) Undergraduate Dissertation Prize.

Jessica was awarded the prize for her dissertation ‘Strategic Citizenship and the “Wandering Jew”: Emotion, Identity, and Memory in Brexit-Related Pre-Holocaust Citizenship (Re)clamation’

 

 

The PolGRG is the research group of the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) that brings together geographers, and others interested in a wide variety of issues connected with relationships between space and power. Research by group members reflects the diversity of the field, addressing topics such as: territoriality, states and the state system, nationalism, geopolitics, sovereignty, social movements, citizenship, political economy, political ecology, diaspora, elections, boundaries, globalization, imperialism, governance, peace, conflict and security. The mutual geographical construction of these phenomena with gender, race, class, sexuality and religion is a particular focus of interest.

The judging panel, consisting of members of the PolGRG Committee, praised Jessica’s work for its clear narrative and methodology, a deep understanding of the subject matter, and effective use of data. The citation reads:

“This well-argued essay presents a unique, timely, innovative case study of strategic citizenship considered through a well-structured research project. Ebner-Statt uses her own experience of re-claiming for Austrian citizenship as the descendant of Jewish refugees as an effective springboard for a clearly articulated research project that innovatively brings together citizenship studies and emotional geography, extending the disciplinary understanding of the operation of power within contemporary citizenship acquisition.

Each chapter is well-organised, with clearly developed arguments from the abstract to the conclusion. Its methodology demonstrates a considered approach that balances ethical and epistemological concerns with practical limitations. The data is used very effectively, and the discussion is insightful. It has a clear contribution to make, and is close to publishable quality. Overall, the panel was very impressed by the execution of this outstanding piece.”