Practicing Relationality in the International Relations Academy: a Pacific Framing

Abstract

As International Relations (IR) embarks on a relational turn, we held concerns about how IR engages with relationality beyond the scholarship advanced through Global IR. We pose that changing the way in which discussions about relationality are held shapes the outcomes. This paper depicts our conversations and practices in imagining, designing, planning and delivering a relational workshop to engender discussions about relationality in the context of peace, security and justice. Focusing on the Pacific Islands region, known for its practices of “deep relation”, we highlight the importance of contextually grounded relational approaches in IR. We outline three key methodological aspects for future relational research and adult education in IR: space, sharing, and flexibility. While acknowledging that no workshop or learning situation can exactly replicate this methodology, as it was designed specifically for participants with particular lived experiences and interests in a particular location, we aim to provide insights for other scholars seeking to incorporate different practices of relationality into their IR scholarship without co-option or misuse, and hope that our experience offers valuable insights for fostering IR in a different relational form.