OUR BLOG
Ukraine. Support for displaced children 2023 © UNHCR/Andrew McConnell
Researching Internal Displacement offers a platform for publishing short pieces of writing, artistic productions and other research outputs, policy briefings and think pieces on internal displacement from our networks and others in a conversational and informal setting. We hope that the posts will be engaging and insightful, and welcome comments on the pieces.
HOW TO CONTRIBUTE
Researching Internal Displacement publishes engaging and insightful short pieces of writing, artistic and research outputs, policy briefings and think pieces on internal displacement.
We welcome contributions from academics, practitioners, researchers, officials, artists, poets, writers, musicians, dancers, postgraduate students and people affected by internal displacement.
We welcome contributions from academics, practitioners, researchers, officials, artists, poets, writers, musicians, dancers, postgraduate students and people affected by internal displacement.
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By Marius Olivier | Apr 30, 2026
In this tenth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’, the author argues that there is a need to move beyond the narrow confines of the traditional life-cycle orientation of the social protection concept, which refers to, among others, health care needs, unemployment and retirement. Social protection should also be able to respond to climate change-related social, economic and climate risks, such as the loss of assets and livelihood opportunities, food insecurity and malnutrition, psychosocial support, and social and productive services. This is particularly important in low- and middle-income countries that often have weak social protection systems and which, despite the heterogeneity and diversity of their systems, continue to bear the brunt of displacement due to climate-related disasters.
By Marie Courtoy | Apr 28, 2026
This ninth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’ argues that international law is currently ill-suited to making human movement part of the solutions to climate change. It remains trapped in a palliative approach in the face of foreseeable risks, with a negative understanding of movement that limits the potential for positive adaptation. However, promoting adaptive mobility could minimise forced movement. Adaptive mobility can be individual, through sustainable solution options for those who decide to leave, or planned with the support of public authorities, subject to certain considerations and safeguards. The article proposes a conceptual evolution of human movements in international law to promote adaptive mobility and thus avoid displacement, while emphasising the need to consider the context in any (im)mobile adaptation measure.
By Igor Paulo Ubisse Capitine, Álvaro Marcela Manhiça, Willy Susse de Jesus Monjane, Ivan da Costa Tomás Jr and Paulo Salvador da Silva Tembe Jr | Apr 21, 2026
As global humanitarian funding declines and nationalist agendas gain prominence, internally displaced populations (IDPs) face growing health and social risks. Using Mozambique as a central case, this eighth paper in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’ examines how shifting political and financial dynamics are reshaping the social determinants of health for IDPs in contexts of recurrent displacement. In Mozambique, where conflict, climate-related hazards, and structural poverty make displacement predictable rather than exceptional, humanitarian assistance has been critical in saving lives but remains predominantly short-term and crisis-driven, failing to address the structural drivers of displacement, leaving many exposed to cumulative health and social vulnerability once emergency responses subside. The paper argues for a transition toward resilient, nationally led systems that integrate IDPs into inclusive health, social protection, and climate adaptation agendas, reframing displacement as a core health equity and development challenge rather than a temporary humanitarian concern.
By Thomas Mulder and Jane McAdam | Apr 17, 2026
Countries around the world are currently negotiating the first-ever global treaty dedicated to protecting people affected by disasters. The treaty on the Protection of Persons in the Event of Disasters—due to be adopted in 2027—aims to improve how States prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters. At the most recent negotiations in New York in April 2026, States signalled their broad support for the treaty’s objectives, including respect for human rights, disaster risk reduction and cooperation to assist countries most affected by climate-related hazards. However, there is a significant omission: disaster-related displacement. This is concerning given that displacement is often one of the most serious and lasting impacts of disasters, which are occurring with greater frequency and intensity. In this blog post, Thomas Mulder and Jane McAdam explain why failing to address displacement risks leaving the treaty out of step with reality. If the treaty is truly to protect people in disasters, it must confront displacement directly—not treat it as an afterthought.
By Kadidjatou Sawadogo, Paula Gaviria Betancur and Davina Saïd | Apr 14, 2026
Humanitarian funding cuts are increasingly shaping the realisation of rights for internally displaced persons (IDPs). Drawing on evidence from Haiti and South Sudan, this seventh volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’ examines how reductions in humanitarian assistance translate into operational trade-offs that affect access to food, healthcare, and protection. In many displacement contexts, humanitarian assistance functions as the system through which basic rights are realised in practice. The authors call for a rights-based approach to humanitarian financing that prioritises and protects funding for essential services in displacement contexts.
By Carolien Jacobs, Delu Lusambya and Patrick Milabyo Kyamusugulwa | Apr 9, 2026
This sixth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’ looks into the impact of the DRC conflict and the shift in powers on the provision of selected basic public services for Congolese IDPs in the east of the country, most notably security, justice and education. We show that basic service provision by state and non-state actors is often inadequate, yet this does not necessarily create a void. Congo’s (civil) society is often stepping in and serving as the first humanitarian actors, responding to the most urgent needs of IDPs and other fellow citizens.
By Peter de Clercq | Apr 7, 2026
This is the fifth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’. In it, the author draws on his long experience within the United Nations to reflect on the approach to internal displacement. The piece argues that historical and current efforts on localisation have been primarily driven from a humanitarian and external perspective. Rather than considering it as an exit strategy, by engaging development and peace actors - and somewhat of an afterthought - localisation should be pursued as a pre-emptive and adaptive objective, anchored in full national ownership and principled ‘sovereignty as responsibility’.
By Adam Lichtenheld and Abbey Steele | Mar 26, 2026
This is the fourth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’. It examines how state policies addressing internal displacement have evolved since the Cold War, analysing 588 policies across 86 countries adopted between 1989 and 2022. The authors find that policy adoption surged during the peak of the liberal international order, particularly in the 2000s and 2010s, driven by major displacement crises, international advocacy, and normative frameworks like the 1998 UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, the 2006 Kampala Convention, and the IASC Durable Solutions Framework. While most countries address displacement through broader vulnerable population frameworks, the content of IDP-specific policies has shifted over time. Provisions establishing camps and granting formal IDP status have declined since 2018, whereas service provision guarantees expanded dramatically between 2003 and 2018, likely reflecting state-building efforts in conflict-affected nations. As the liberal international order weakens, the authors question whether policy adoption will slow without international pressure and normative consensus, while suggesting that existing policies may serve as valuable tools for domestic advocates to hold governments accountable.
By Deborah Casalin | Mar 23, 2026
This is the third volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’. It argues that in the face of escalating pressures on international cooperation, resources and norms – which in turn aggravate the situation of IDPs and their societies – it is crucial to keep consolidating the internal displacement legal regime, as well as strengthening and building on it further to address the growing and evolving challenges of internal displacement situations. The first part outlines some features of the internal displacement legal regime which may be leveraged to safeguard existing progress. These include its foundations in international human rights law and international humanitarian law; its multi-level anchoring; and its broad contextual relevance. The second part indicates some ways in which this legal regime can be reinforced and developed in the longer term: in particular, by consolidating existing protections at different levels; clarifying and further elaborating norms where needed; and gathering and analysing relevant legal data to track evolution and application of the internal displacement legal regime, as well as how this may still need to develop.