RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Walter Kälin, July 16, 2008, ECOSOC Panel on Disaster Risk Reduction and Preparedness: Addressing the Humanitarian Consequences of Natural Disasters
Climate change is happening and one of its visible impacts is the increasing numbers of persons displaced by natural disasters. In the course of the past year, more than 400 natural disasters affected over 234 million persons, cost over 16,000 lives, and also displaced millions of people. According to Walter Kalin, the existing system is only partially equipped to deal with this challenge and it's necessary to develop appropriate humanitarian responses. Read More
VIDEO
Khalid Koser and Daljit Dhaliwal, July 03, 2008
A new United Nations report finds that in the past year the number of refugees worldwide has increased from 9 to 11 million. Khalid Koser, deputy director of the Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, discusses the causes behind this increase as well as possible implications if the number of refugees continues to climb.
PAST EVENT
Friday, June 27, 2008
2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Washington, DC
On June 27, the Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a discussion with representatives from the Sudanese government; Lynn Fredriksson, Africa advocacy director for Amnesty International USA; and Pamela Fierst, a member of the Sudan policy group at the State Department, to examine Sudan’s 2005 peace agreement and to explore the ways in which it has been successfully implemented and the areas in which challenges still exist. Read More
PAST EVENT
Monday, June 23, 2008
9:00 AM to 10:30 AM
Washington, DC
The resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan has complicated the displacement crisis in the country, as fighting continues to displace both new groups and IDP and refugee returnees. The Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a breakfast with Ewan McLeod, the Deputy Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Afghanistan to discuss the displacement sitaution for both IDPs in Afghanistan and refugees who have fled elsewhere. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Khalid Koser, June 17, 2008, The Brookings Institution
An estimated 80,000 migrants have been displaced by the recent wave of anti-immigrant violence in South Africa. While some have returned to their home countries, many still remain in temporary camps. The South African government aims to reintegrate them in the communities from which they fled. Throughout their displacement (and return), the government will need to take steps to protect the rights of these migrants who have been displaced. Read More
PAST EVENT
Monday, June 09, 2008
3:00 PM to 05:00 PM
Washington, DC
One of the most difficult challenges to achieving durable solutions for persons displaced by conflict arises where the homes and lands they left behind have been destroyed or occupied by others. The Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a round-table discussion on the opportunities and challenges posed by property issues in post-conflict displacement settings. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Walter Kälin, Spring 2008, Studies in Transnational Legal Policy, American Society of International Law
Since being adopted 10 years ago in 1998, the acceptance and use of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement has grown. As a way to mark the 10th Anniversary of their adoption, Walter Kälin, the Representative of the UN Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, drafted a second edition of the Annotations. In this edition, new legal instruments that refer to the Guiding Principles are included, intending to make the legal background for the Guiding Principles more accessible to policy makers at all levels. Read More
PAST EVENT
Monday, May 19, 2008
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Washington, DC
On May 19, the Brookings Institution-University of Bern Project on Internal Displacement explored the role of public diplomacy in humanitarian crises, assessing the benefits and costs for governments and other organizations when they offer relief assistance after large-scale disasters. Topics discussed included: the extent to which humanitarian response is shaped by foreign policy or institutional concerns; the lessons learned from previous experiences; ways to deliver humanitarian assistance both to meet the needs of the victims and to enhance the standing of governments providing assistance; and whether public diplomacy in humanitarian crises can have negative effects. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Elizabeth Ferris, May 15, 2008, The Brookings Institution
Images from the cyclone in Myanmar and the earthquake in China have dominated the news for the past week. But, as Beth Ferris observes, these victims of natural disasters are just a small portion of the over 200 million people each year who are affected by natural disasters. Although most of these disasters never make it onto the nightly news in America, their effects are felt by victims long after the TV cameras have moved on. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Elizabeth Ferris, May 07, 2008, National Conference of the Ethiopian Community Development Council
Darfur has been on the international agenda for the past four years despite the advocacy campaigns, the growing public awareness, the large and expensive relief operations, and (eventual) Security Council action. Despite these efforts, as Elizabeth Ferris points out, the war is far from over. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Jacquie Kiggundu, May 06, 2008, Ethiopian Community Development Council-Center for African Refugees and Immigrants Conference
The issue of land and land tenure systems is moving beyond the purview of legal analysts and on to the agenda of humanitarian practitioners. Jacquie Kiggundu says that addressing restitution, compensation and land reform issues are crucial to developing long-term solutions to displacement. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Spring 2008, Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement
Although disasters are quick to strike, their consequences can be long to remedy and can linger on for months and years. The extend to which their effects increase inequalities in life and society is a question of how governments and humanitarian actors integrate human rights into their disaster preparedness and response. The Brookings-Bern Project has just published a new field manual designed to accompany the Inter-Agency Standing Committee's Operational Guidelines on Human Rights and Natural Disasters and intended to help people in the field to understand the human rights dimensiosn of disaster response. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Khalid Koser, April 2008, Forced Migration Review
Resolving internal displacement is inextricably linked with achieving lasting peace. Read More
PAST EVENT
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
3:30 PM to 5:00 PM
Washington, DC
On April 23, the Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, for an address on the growth in scale, scope and complexity of global mobility and its effects on refugees. Senator Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) provided brief remarks and introduced High Commissioner Guterres. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Khalid Koser, April 23, 2008, The Brookings Institution
As prices for food continue to rise while supply diminishes throughout the world, Khalid Koser writes that the global food crisis is "likely to have a significant impact on those already displaced." He offers insight into the problem and notes that short-term solutions such as cash transfers, lowering of domestic food prices, and food for work schemes will benefit those who are displaced or poor. Read More