Kjersti Gravelsæter Berg
English
Arbeidsfelt:
Kjersti G. Berg is a Middle East researcher and historian working on the Palestine-Israel conflict. Key research interests include forced migration, refugee camps, UNRWA, humanitarianism and international aid, Jerusalem.
Kjersti is the author of Palestine. Facts on the ground (Scandinavian University Press 2023). With Are J. Knudsen, she co-edited the book Continental Encampment. The Genealogy of humanitarian containment in the Middle East (Berghahn 2023). She co-curated the photo exhibition More than the humanitarian gaze. Jørgen Grinde’s photography from the Middle East in the 1950s at the University of Bergen (2023). Her articles have been published in various journals, such as Jerusalem Quarterly and the Journal of Refugee Studies.
The title of her PhD dissertation (University of Bergen 2015) is "Unending Temporary. United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the politics of Palestinian refugee camps."
Kjersti has led and contributed to numerous reports commissioned by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and to the United Nations.
Between 2019-2023 Kjersti co-managed the research project “Super Camp: Genealogies of humanitarian containment in the Middle East (Norwegian Research Council). She currently contributes to the ongoing research project "Invisible Ceiling: Muslim Immigrant Entrepeneurs Navigate Norway’s Financial Environment".
Kjersti participates in the project "Palestine and Israel in Norwegian schools" (UiB, Raftostiftelsen, NLA), is the editor of "Palestine", Store Norske Leksikon and a member of prize comittee, The Rafto Foundation for Human Rights.
Courses taught include human rights, migration, Israel-Palestine. She also teaches writing courses (BA and Master) and qualitiative methods and methodology (oral and written sources).
- FoU og publikasjoner
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Peer reviewed
Berg (2025) “Sheikh Jarrah and Beit Qad: The history of two UNRWA out-of-camp housing schemes”, Journal of Refugee Studies, 2025. Special Issue: Camp histories. New Studies of Palestinian Migrations (accepted for publication)
Berg og Jørgen Jensehaugen (2025) “Skyggekrigen mot UNRWA etter 7. oktober 2023 [The Shadow War against UNRWA after 7. October 2023], Babylon - Nordic Journal of Middle East Studies, 1, 2025
Berg (2024) "Evig statsbygging? Den norske Palestina-bistanden 1993-2023" [Perpetual State Building? Norwegian Aid to Palestinians 1993-2023, Internasjonal politikk, Vol. 82, nr. 2. Fokus: Norge, Israel og Palestina
Berg (2023) Palestina. Fakta på bakken. [Palestine], Universitetsforlaget [Scandinavian University Press], 2022, 1-105.
Are John Knudsen and Kjersti G. Berg (2023) Continental encampment. A Genealogy of Humanitarian Containment in the Middle East and Europe, New York, Oxford: Berghahn books.
Berg & Are Knudsen (eds.) (2023): “Introduction”in SuperCamp: Genealogies of Humanitarian Containment in the Middle East, Berghahn Series: Humanitarianism and Security.
Berg (2023) “A necessary evil. A history of Palestinian refugee camps, UNRWA and Jordan”, in Berg & Knudsen SuperCamp: Genealogies of Humanitarian Containment in the Middle East, Berghahn Series: Humanitarianism and Security
Berg (2021) “Mu’askar and Shu’fat: Retracing the Histories of Two Palestinian Refugee Camps in Jerusalem”, Jerusalem Quarterly, Issue 88, Winter 2021.
Berg (2020) «Evig og midlertidig. UNRWA og det palestinske flyktningspørsmålet» [Unending temporary. United Nations Relief and Works Agency and the Palestinian refugee question], Babylon - Nordic Journal of Middle East Studies, 1, 2020, 35-49.
Berg (2014) “From chaos to order and back. The construction of Palestinian refugee camps 1950-1970,” in UNRWA and Palestinian refugees. From Relief and Works to Human Development, eds. Sari Hanafi, Leila Hilal & Lex Takkenberg, London & New York: Routledge, 109-128
Berg (2008) “Gendering Refugees. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the Politics of Relief,” in Interpreting Welfare and Relief in the Middle East, eds. Nefissa Naguib & Inger Marie Okkenhaug, Leiden: Brill, Social, economic and political studies of the Middle East and Asia, 2008, 149-173.
Berg & Ismael Sheikh Hassan (forthcoming): “Construction, Destruction, and Reconstruction of Palestinian Refugee camps,” in Reconstructing Oxymorons. Palestinian Refugee camps and the case of Nahr el Bared ed. Ismael Sheikh Hassan, SUN academia, Exploration series.
Non peer reviewed
Jensehaugen, Jørgen; Kjersti G. Berg & Lex Takkenberg (2025) Consequences of the Israeli UNRWA Ban, MidEast Policy Brief, 1. Oslo: PRIO.
Berg (2024) «Gaza-krigen (2023-)» [The Gaza-war 20213-) Store norske leksikon, august.
Berg, Jørgen Jensehaugen & Åge Tiltnes (2024) “UNRWA’s funding challenges and services on the West Bank and in Jordan, with reflections about UNRWA and the Gaza war”, Brief to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign AffairsBerg, Olaf Knarvik, Synnøve Vik & Mezna Qato (2023) “[More than the humanitarian gaze. Jørgen Grindes photography from the Middle East in the 1950s”: More than the humanitarian gaze University Library of Bergen
Berg, Jørgen Jensehaugen & Åge Tiltnes (2022) “UNRWA, funding crisis and the way forward” CMI report, 4, September 202
Berg (2021) Booknote “Political Economy of Palestine. Critical, Interdisciplinary and Decolonial Perspective”(London Palgrave 2021, by Alaa, Dana & Seidel, Journal of Peace Research
Berg (2020) ”The Evolving Infrastructure of Palestinian Refugee Camps. Perpetuating the Temporary”, Encyclopedia article, Palestinian Journeys, Beirut/Washington: Institute for Palestine Studies.
Berg (2014) «Palestinske utfordringer" [Palestinian challenges], Norsk statsvitenskapelig tidsskrift, 4, 289-293 (book review).
Berg & Janne B. Bøe (2004) "Fra Yeshiva til det israelske militæret. Det ultraortodokse samfunnet i Israel i endring" [From the Yeshiva to the Israeli Army. Changing trends among the Ultraorthodox], Babylon - Nordic Journal of Middle East Studies, 1.
Berg (2004) «Vatn og Palestinakonflikten» [Hydropolitics in Palestine-Israel], Babylon - Nordic Journal of Middle East Studies, 2, 42-52.
Berg & Terje Tvedt (2001): Norsk utenrikspolitikk og vann i Midtøsten [Norwegian Foreign Politics and Water in the Middle East], Centre for Development Studies Report, University of Bergen.
Berg (2003) "Islam, kvinner og menneskerettar i Iran" [Islam, Women and Human Rights in Iran] i Hvor hender det, NUPI nr. 11, 24. nov. årgang 2003-2004.
Berg (2001) Fredsbygging i krigstid. Palestinarane og det norske People-to-People programmet 1995-2002[Peacebuilding during war. The Palestinians and the Norwegian People-to-People Programme 1995-2002], Bergen: Bergen skrifter i Midtausten- og Afrikaforsking, 2003, 1-165.
Berg (2000) «Vi skulle bygge et nytt Jerusalem. Intervju med Håkon Lie” [We were building a new Jerusalem. Interview with Håkon Lie], Replikk. Tidsskrift for human- og samfunnsvitskap, 10, 19-26.
- Utdanning
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- Undervisning
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Emneansvar:
IKF 225 "Intercultural approaches to Human rights"
IKF 224 "Flyktninger. Tvungen migrasjon og integrasjon"
IKF 105 "Regional spesialisering. Palestina og Israel"
IKF 290 "Bacheloroppgave i interkulturell forståelse"
Foreleser på emner:
IKS Master, REL214, IKS 101, IKS 102, IKS 104, IKS219.
- Formidling
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Selected op-eds and blogs
Berg, Jensehaugen & Lex Takkenberg (2025) "The Consequences and Prospects of Israel's Ban of UNRWA", The Cairo Review of Global Affairs, winter 2025 https://www.thecairoreview.com/essays/the-consequences-and-prospects-of-israels-ban-of-unrwa/
Berg & Jørgen Jensehaugen (14.11.2024) «Israel har trappet opp sin skyggekrig mot UNRWA. Hva skjer nå?» [Israel has escalated its shadow war on UNRWA. WHat will happen?]https://www.aftenposten.no/meninger/kronikk/i/XjzV7g/israel-har-trappet-opp-sin-skyggekrig-mot-unrwa-hva-skjer-naa
Berg & Jørgen Jensehaugen (5.2.2024) «Skuffende om UNRWA i Aftenposten» [Dissappointing about UNRWA in Aftenposten], Aftenposten. Skuffende om Unrwa i Aftenposten
Berg & Jørgen Jensehaugen (21.10.2023) «Israels svar vil endre Midtøsten» [Israel’s response will change the Middle East] – Israels svar til Hamas i Gaza vil endre Midtøsten (bt.no) 21. oktober 2023
Berg (2023) «Palestina-bistanden – som å kjøre på motorveien i mørket uten lys» [Aid to Palestine- like driving along the highway in the dark without light] Palestina-bistanden – som å kjøre på motorveien i mørket uten lys (panoramanyheter.no) Bistandsaktuelt, september
Kjersti G. Berg in Dag og tid, September 2023 – Skapar meir motstand - DAG OG TID og Svar til Holtet - DAG OG TID
Berg, Jørgen Jensehaugen & Are Knudsen (7.6.2021) “Gazastripen etter våpenhvilen» [«Gaza after the ceasefire»], Dagens Næringsliv
Berg & Sarah Tobin: “Okkupasjonen på gateplan” [14.5.2021) «The street level occupation, East Jerusalem»], Klassekampen
Berg & Jørgen Jensehaugen (2.2.2021) «The politics of refugee relief. UNRWA and the ongoing funding crisis”, Blog post, Norwegian Centre for Humanitarian Studies
«Korona i Israel og Palestina: «Ett virus, tre systemer» [«Corona in Israel and Palestine. One virus, three systems»] Bistandsaktuelt (25.3.2020)
Berg & Are Knudsen: “SuperCamp: Genealogies of Humanitarian Containment in the Middle East”, Blog post, Norwegian Centre for Humanitarian Studies, 2020.
Berg, Maja Janmyr, Jørgen Jensehaugen, Erling Lorentzen Sogge (21.9.2018) «Trump straffer de svakeste palestinerne» [Trump punishes the weakest Palestinians], Dagbladet
«Ingen trygg havn for palestinske flyktninger fra Syria» [No Safe Harbour for Palestinian Refugees from Syria] Infofada, 2014.
«Raseri i Jerusalem» [Rage in Jerusalem] Bergens Tidende (27.12.2014)
«Det humanitære paradokset» [The Humanitarian Paradox], Bergens Tidende (14.1.2009)
«Bistand til Hamas?» [Aid to Hamas?] Bergens Tidende (27.4.2006)
«Ingen palestinsk stat» [No Palestinian state], Bergens Tidende (30.9.2004)
forskerblikk på Gaza. Fortid og fremtid, Universitetet i Bergen https://www.uib.no/aktuelt/168883/gaza-forskerblikk-p%C3%A5-n%C3%A5tid-fortid-og-fremtid
Selected Book talks
Litteraturhuset i Bergen: https://www.facebook.com/events/822873685882865/?ref=newsfeed
Kapittelfestival samtale https://www.facebook.com/events/3567626683483586/?ref=newsfeed
Boklansering «Continental encampment» https://www.facebook.com/events/310553314783487/?ref=newsfeed
Boklansering «Fakta på bakken»: https://www.facebook.com/events/1182052439144332/?ref=newsfeed
Utstillingsåpning. «Mer enn det humanitære blikket» https://www.facebook.com/events/1169660637010068/?ref=newsfeed
Frokostsamtale «Mer enn det humanitære blikket» https://www.uib.no/digitallab/159683/frokostprat-om-%C2%ABmer-enn-det-humanit%C3%A6re-blikket%C2%BB
Akademisk dugnad for Gaza: https://www.facebook.com/events/356700420053130?ref=newsfeed
Occupied Life. A conversation with Raja Shehaden and Penny Johnson
Brannen i Moria: Grenser, migrasjon og politikk
Hotel Shatila: Architectures of encampment in Sabra, Beirut
Are Knudsen,
- Prosjekter
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