Summary of Climate Displacement and Human Rights: Rectifying the Current Legal Protection Lacuna Through International and Regional Solutions
While climate-induced displacements are rapidly increasing, the international legal protection framework is still unclear. This paper analyzes the legal gap in protecting climate-induced displacement, which the Convention Refugee definition does not cover, and proposes alternative strategies.
Scholars of Excellence Workshop – Complex migration motivations: Venezuelan pathways in Latin America and the Caribbean
January 17, 2024 from 1:30 PM EST-4:00 PM EST Hybrid event hosted by TMU and CERC
Summary of Who Counts as a Climate Migrant?
This article defines climate migration and describes challenges associated with having an overbroad definition. To classify persons displaced by natural disasters and climate change, researchers have made a new migratory category interchangeably known as environmental migrants, climate refugees, and climate migrants. These terms have no legal meaning and offer no protection. As people choose to move or not move in response to these threats, the question remains which migrants should count as climate migrants?
Summary of Efforts to Manage Climate Migration Are Slowly Growing but Their Focus Is Often Indirect
The article provides an overview of these programs, both completed and ongoing, categorizing their goals as “helping people stay, helping individuals move, and assisting those who are already on the move”. Most projects focused on the first two, while projects assisting those on the move were the least common.
Policy and Legislation: Family Reunification of Refugees in Germany
This digest contains a factual summary of the relevant law and policy to date (April 2024) on Family Reunification of Refugees in Germany. The summary is followed by key points from third-party commentary and analysis
Summary of How Can We Protect “Climate Refugees”?
Climate change is increasingly a source of migration, and those numbers are predicted to grow as global warming causes more extreme weather events. Currently, there are no enforceable legal mechanisms under international law to protect individuals displaced by climate change other than a patchwork of frameworks and processes available between different actors.
Summary of Understanding the Evolving Nature of Refugee Sponsorship in Canada: A preliminary investigation into the rise of family-linked sponsorship
The ability to name refugees for private sponsorship has largely transformed Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program (PSRP) into a program characterized by family reunification, creating an echo effect phenomenon. This preliminary study surveys family-linked sponsorship and its impact on newcomer integration. It finds that nearly 95% of PSR sponsorships since 2002 have been family-linked and that integration experiences differ depending on the sponsor and sponsorship types.
Summary of Temporary Protection in Times of Crisis: The European Union, Canada, and the Invasion of Ukraine
The authors compare he EU Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) and the Canadian Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET) in terms of their date of activation, eligibility, visa policy, length of protection, ability to work or study, settlement and integration needs, any caps, long-term access to residence, financial assistance offered, and any costs or fees associated with accessing temporary protection. The authors conclude by considering the unprecedented utilization of temporary protection mechanisms and how this precedent will impact the long-term dynamics in immigration policy.
Summary of a Tale of Two Contexts: the Ukrainian and Afghan Refugee Crises in Canada and the UK
This report provides a comparative study of Canada’s and the United Kingdom’s (UK) responses to Ukrainian and Afghan refugees and how these countries classified them as deserving or undeserving of protection. The authors call for more research into identitarian characteristics, caution against the conflation of these characteristics, and call for deeper exploration of geopolitical considerations in assessing refugee welcoming responses.
Summary of Confronting Compassion Fatigue: Understanding the Arc of Public Support for Displaced Populations in Turkey, Colombia, and Europe
The report tracks the lifeline of public support for refugees in Turkey, Columbia, and Europe where solidarity with newcomers bloomed at the start of the displacement, but gradually diminished over time. This report considers some of the common characteristics in the communities and identifies issues that policymakers must consider to combat this trend.
Summary of Expanding Protection Options? Flexible Approaches to Status for Displaced Syrians, Venezuelans, and Ukrainians
This report examines responses by host governments in Turkey, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the European Union (EU) to understand why these governments prioritized temporary immigration measures over refugee or asylum-based measures. It further examines how the chosen measures fulfilled the normative and practical requirements of providing protection.
Summary of the University Corridors for Refugees (UNI.CO.RE) Program in Italy (2019-2023) Evaluation Report
This report evaluates the editions of the University Corridor for Refugees (UNICORE) program from 2019-2023. UNICORE aims to provide education pathways for refugee students and thereby contribute to the alternative protection pathways for refugees aspired by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and as enshrined in several international commitments.