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Institutional Change and Climate Change in UNHCR and IOM

This study by Nina Hall examines how the UNHCR and IOM adapt to climate change beyond their mandates, exploring changes in rhetoric, policy, structures, and operations through a qualitative approach. It delves into the response of the organizations to climate-related displacement, identifying obstacles to change and proposing a vision for the future. The research covers the period from 2000 to 2011 and addresses the need for further academic inquiry into the intersection of climate change and migration politics.

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Institutional Change and Climate Change in UNHCR and IOM

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  1. Institutional Change and Climate Change in UNHCR and IOM Nina Hall DPhil (PhD) Candidate International Relations High Commissioner for Refugees and IOM Director General UNFCCC Summit 2009, Copenhagen

  2. Contribution and Aims • Focus on the political dimension • Empirical: no literature on these organisations’ responses • Theoretical: how IGOs adapt to new issues outside their mandate

  3. Structure • Research Questions • UNHCR and IOM mandates • Typology of Change • Research methods • UNHCR’s response to climate change • IOM’s response to climate change • Where to from here?

  4. Research Questions • Do IGOs evolve? • How do they evolve and engage with new issues outside their mandate? • Why do they evolve?

  5. UNHCR mandate UNHCR established post WWII (1950) with a narrow mandate Legal authority for protection of European refugees. “A well founded fear of persecution based for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside his country of nationality and is unable or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country” (1951 Refugee Convention) Not intended for natural disaster or ‘climate change’ displacement

  6. IOM Mandate IOM established with a broad mandate to facilitate migration from Europe. to make arrangements for the transport of migrants, for whom existing facilities are inadequate, or who could not otherwise be moved, from European countries having surplus populations to countries overseas...’ (Constitution 1953) Not intended for natural disaster or ‘climate change’ displacement.

  7. Typology of Change Change in rhetoric Change in policy Change in structure Change in operations Each given a score from 0 (no change) to 1 (complete transformation).

  8. Research Methodology • Qualitative research • Fieldwork conducted in Geneva, New York, Copenhagen, Kenya, Oslo. • 120 interviews with UN, donors, NGOs and government • Primary and secondary literature review

  9. UNHCR: Rhetoric Change • 2007 Executive Committee Speech • climate change causing massive displacement • High Commissioner “strong belief that climate change was new phenomena that must be dealt with” (Personal Interview with UNHCR staff member) • 2009: Copenhagen • “Climate Change is expected to unseat conflict as the main driver of mass migration” • Need for a new convention Score: 0.6 High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres

  10. UNHCR: Policy Change • 2008 First policy paper • ‘climate refugee’ misleading term • Climate change will lead to internal displacement • Protection gaps for those displaced internationally 2008 IASC Working group 2011: Bellagio and Nansen - Call for new ‘guiding framework’ for those displaced internationally by fast-onset climate change Score: 0.7

  11. UNHCR: Structure Change Little structural change • Few new positions created • Focal point passed around like ‘hot potato’ • Now staff in protection and operations Score 0.3 UNHCR Headquarters, Geneva

  12. UNHCR: Operational Change • HQ: No changes in operations. “No concrete plans to operationalise climate change…in our programmes or works in the field” (Interview with UNHCR HQ staff member) • Kenya: no protection gaps due to ‘climate change displacement’ (Interviews with UNHCR staff Kenya) • Pacific anomaly? Score: 0.0 UNHCR Camp registration Kakuma, Kenya

  13. IOM: Rhetoric Change • 2008 Director General: ‘The International Organization for Migration has an obvious role in addressing the linkages between environmental degradation, climate change and migration’. • 2009 DG at Copenhagen: the international community should ‘accept the principal of people who must migrate, temporary or permanently, in order to adapt or to survive climate change’. Score: 0.6 IOM Director General, William L. Swing

  14. IOM: Policy Change • 2007: Bangkok conference • 2008: IASC working group • 2009: Policy Paper on Migration, Climate Change and the Environment. Score: 0.7

  15. IOM: Structure Change • ‘Loose focal points’ • Research focus Score: 0.4

  16. IOM: Operations Change • Projectised organisation • Funding for more than 500 projects on environmental migration. • Compendium on Climate Change, environment and migration • Kenya relabeling of livelihood project to adaptation Score: 0.7

  17. Summary of Change (2000 – 2011)

  18. Where to from here? Obstacles to change Staff resistance ‘in a rush of enthusiasm to push the boundaries of thinking about forced displacement, refugee concerns can be too easily eclipsed by the popular topics of the day – climate change displacement being one’ – Erika Feller, UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner Protection, 2010 Member state resistance - UNHCR Standing committee 2011 against expansion

  19. Stepping back Policy: What is the long-term vision? Academic: Further research on politics of climate change and migration

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