In Episode 2, we trace how Syria’s 2011 uprising moved from broadly inclusive, peaceful protests rooted in demands for dignity, economic opportunity, and basic freedoms into a prolonged and devastating civil conflict. 

The conversation also looks at displacement across the region including in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and Iraq and how host country policies and approaches shaped refugee experiences. Throughout the episode, we draw explicit lessons from Iraq as a cautionary tale about the dangers and long-term damage of sectarian narratives.

1. Wendy Pearlman (2017), We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled: Voices from Syria
2. Robin Yassin-Kassab & Leila al-Shami (2016), Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War
3. Christopher Phillips (2016), The Battle for Syria: International Rivalry in the New Middle East
4. Kelley et al. (2015), “Climate change in the Fertile Crescent and implications of the recent Syrian drought”
5. World Bank (2015), The Welfare of Syrian Refugees: Evidence from Jordan and Lebanon
6. Fanar Haddad (2011), Sectarianism in Iraq: Antagonistic Visions of Unity
7. Nikolaos van Dam (2017), Destroying a Nation: The Civil War in Syria