Manuel Marques Pereira has served as Head of Division for Migration, Environment, Climate Change and Risk Reduction at IOM headquarters since August 2021. Prior to his current appointment, Manuel served in IOM Bangladesh from 2018-2021 as Deputy Chief of Mission and Head of Office in Cox Bazar for the Rohingya Refugee Response. Manuel’s previous postings with IOM include, National CCCM Cluster Coordinator in Iraq during the Mosul Response, Regional Programme Manager on Displacement Capacity Building for Governments in six Southern Africa countries and Humanitarian Shelter Operations in the Philippines after Haiyan Cyclone. Prior to that he also worked with Shelter, Displacement Management and Early Recovery Programmes in Pakistan for several years and served in Timor Leste with IOM, UNDP and the Portuguese Embassy, he started his career in the private sector. Manuel is a Portuguese national and holds a master’s degree in Emergency Practice and Development from the Oxford Brookes University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Engineering from a Portuguese University. He speaks Portuguese, English, Spanish, French and Tetum.

María José Maldonado is an MSc candidate in International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies at the London School of Economics & Political Science. Also, she is a Non-Resident Research Fellow in Peace & Security at the Global Governance Institute. Her research and work are focused on peacebuilding and international development, countering organised crime and terrorism, violent extremism, the risks and impact of misinformation and disinformation, and forms of governance of non-state armed groups. Previously, she was the Programme Manager of the Institute for Economics & Peace for Europe, Middle East, and North Africa. With over 5 years of experience in workshop and event coordination, she is an experienced public speaker, workshop facilitator, and moderator in topics related to international security, development, peace, and humanitarianism (ex. One Young World Munich Summit 2021). She holds a BA in Global Communication with a Minor in European Peace and Security Studies and a BA in International Affairs from Vesalius College – Brussels School of Governance in Brussels, Belgium.   

Natalie Jade Catanach is completing her MSc in International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies. Previously, Natalie studied Politics, Law and Economics at IE University in Spain. Natalie's previous experience has been in environmental and cultural mediation, refugee assimilation, public relations and politics, and advocacy. She has a particular interest in the consequences of environmental degradation for both displaced peoples and international organizations. Natalie is passionate about understanding these issues from a humanitarian lens, while looking towards an international legal framework for solutions. 

Freya Thompson is an MSc Development Studies student in the Department of International Development at LSE. She previously did her BSc in Politics and History at LSE, and during this time she volunteered with the WONDER Foundation as a research and policy intern. She is passionate about upholding refugee rights, promoting gender equality, and protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights (SHRH) for all. 

Olivia Darby is Chief Programmes Officer at the WONDER Foundation. She has previously undertaken a range of policy and project management work for a number of civil society organisations. She has extensive volunteer experience, which includes setting up and leading projects for women and young people nationally and internationally. She holds the APMP project management qualification.  

Yanis Amirat is currently a student in Conflict Studies at LSE. He is interested in debates around the refugee regime, conflict resolution, and diplomacy. Yanis had the chance to take a deeper interest in the issue of so-called "Climate refugees" and even recorded a podcast on the subject while he was doing his Bachelor's in Geneva.  

Maud Guibert is currently studying Conflict Studies at LSE. She previously worked with the Institut Montaigne, a French think-tank on French public policy issues, in which she oversaw the podcast production. She is interested in refugee issues and conflicts outcomes on displaced populations. 

Katherine Velastegui Córdova (she/her) is an Ecuadorian MSc. Student in International Migration and Public Policy at the LSE. She holds a BSc. in Political Science and International Relations by Universidad de Las Américas (Ecuador) graduating with a full scholarship on academic merit. Her research looks at multiculturalism, migrant communities’ representation, sense of belonging, decolonial studies, and Latino diasporas. Her recent publications include Decolonial Feminism and Intersectionality: a political practice in Ecuador’s feminist movement. 

Rebecca Huggett (she/her) is the Head of Sales and Brand Development for NEMI Teas and founder of Islington-based Trampoline Café. Trampoline’s latest news publication can be found here: BBC: How barista training opens doors for refugees Evening Standard: The Islington Cafe helping solve the refugee crisis. 

Jasmin and Oliver are both studying for an MSc in Development Studies at the LSE. Having become engaged in the issues surrounding forced migration and displacement, they were intrigued to delve deeper into the debates surrounding humanitarian assistance and NGOs in support of forcibly displaced people. Jasmin, during her undergraduate degree, volunteered with SolidariTee (https://www.solidaritee.org.uk/), raising funds that contributed to legal aid grants, as well as leading awareness-raising events and sponsorships.

Johana is an MSc student in the IDHE programme specializing in the humanitarian impacts of climate change and works as an analyst for a think tank focusing on these issues. Being French, she was especially aware of her governments’ role in treating and hosting refugees, especially in the chaos of Calais. She wants to understand more about the role of government in handling asylum seekers and wants to work towards improving refugee hosting efforts. 

The Calais Food Collective: https://calaisfood.wixsite.com/calaisfood  

Sveto is an Afghan women’s rights activist, Afghanistan’s first Schwarzman Scholar, and is currently pursuing a degree in Gender, Development and Globalisation at LSE. The experience of living mostly as a refugee in 6 different countries and witnessing the negative assumptions about life in Afghanistan inspired Sveto to create a storytelling platform, Chadari (https://chadariproject.com/), which gives an opportunity for Afghan women to express their perspectives, talk about their achievements, and to show the world that Afghanistan is much more than what can be seen in the media. Sveto proudly represents Afghanistan on national and international platforms, including the British Red Cross, UNHCR, and UN Women, and recently gave a TEDx talk at LSE promoting unheard experiences of Afghan women.

Sydney Stevenson is in the International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies programme at the LSE. During her bachelor’s degree Sydney volunteered with organizations in Montreal, Canada which seek to secure status and resettle refugees. Sydney also is passionate about climate change and climate migration and has worked on multiple research projects surrounding such topics. Madison Jansen is also in the IDHE program at the LSE. Upon completion of her bachelor’s degree in Global Studies and Spanish, Madison moved to Ukraine with the United States Peace Corps where she lived and worked in a small town outside Kyiv. It was in Ukraine where she befriended Olena, and where she became further inspired to pursue a career in international development. Following her time at the LSE, Madison aims to apply her education and passion for Ukraine to aid in the humanitarian response to the war.  

Bio 

Yujia Zhang is an MSc student in International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies. Prior to LSE, Yujia worked in the communication team of Common Future Foundation, a China-based NGO which assists refugees in Lebanon, where she had the chance to encounter the two guest speakers and their organizations featured in this podcast. During her work, she and her team worked closely with partner organizations and produced dozens of interviews and stories, a comic book, and a board game on the topic of displacement.  

Additional Info 

The Manara Centre, Lighthouse Peace Initiative: https://lpicorp.org/manara-center/.

Molly is an MSc student in the Development Studies program. While completing her undergraduate degree in Florida, Molly immersed herself in the local migrant and refugee community through various volunteering efforts. In 2019, Molly volunteered with Chios Eastern Shore Response Team, an emergency response organization in Chios, Greece, where she met Sam. Molly hopes to continue her work with refugee communities after graduation from LSE. 

Leah hails from the US Virgin Islands and is completing the Health and International Development programme at LSE. Leah is also the US Virgin Islands’ first Marshall Scholar and is also a Truman Scholar. At LSE, Leah focuses on the intersection of climate change and health in the Caribbean, a topic she began researching following her junior year in undergrad. Her most recent work looks at forced migration due to climate change and its impacts on youth mental health.

In the first part of the podcast, Durable Solutions Consultant for the Municipality of Mogadishu, Amun Osman, speaks with Research and Report Officer for the UN Secretary-General's High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement, Mark Yarnell (speaking in his personal capacity), about the practical challenges, opportunities, and daily realities of addressing the needs of IDPs in the lively and dynamic metropolis. From providing relief to victims of forced evictions to navigating sensitive relationships with "gatekeepers,” Amun's hands-on perspective depicts the nitty gritty reality of implementing positive change for some of the city's most vulnerable residents.

In the second part of the podcast, LSE MSc Conflict Studies student, Ben Grazda, speaks with Mark about the ins and outs of the High-Level Panel's work during the pandemic, what it takes to incorporate the perspectives of thousands of displaced persons, how climate change is making urban development an even more urgent priority, and ways that researchers and academics can currently contribute to the UN's work.

For more information visit the Durable Solutions Unit (DSU) under the leadership of the Mayor of Mogadishu and Governor of Benadir Region of Somalia: https://dsu.so/ and the UN Secretary-General's High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement: https://www.un.org/internal-displacement-panel/

Paul is from Nigeria and, since 2014, he has been living in Sankt Poelten, a city in Lower Austria near the Austrian capital Vienna, Nour is from Syria and she has been living in Vienna since 2017. Their experiences of refugeehood are very different and yet, in a way, very similar. Not only because they are both very well integrated into the Austrian society, but also because being a refugee deeply marked their lives. However, despite the traumatic experience they both went through, Paul and Nour remain hopeful and have a message for governments and politicians: believing in the human capital of refugees and in their potential is the first step to creating a more just, open, tolerant and inclusive society for all. 

Victoria talks us through how Seenaryo came to be and how the organisation continues to navigate the different crises in the country. She also explores the issue of NGOs focusing solely on the refugee population and how it can risk intensifying tensions between host and refugee communities. 

Fida talks to us about how her involvement in Seenaryo’s theater projects allowed her to learn about the stories of other asylum seekers in Lebanon and to share her own story. She also tells us about how through the different theater projects, her voice was amplified, and she could openly express her experiences with different issues including single motherhood. 

Emily Churchill-Zaraa is the Coordinator of Refugee Week, an arts and cultural festival celebrating the contributions of refugees. This year the festival is being held 14 to 20 June. Refugee Week UK is a partnership project coordinated by Counterpoints Arts, which is a charity that supports and promotes the arts by and about refugees and migrants. 

Usman Khalid is the founder and director of HAVEN Coffee. Founded in February 2019, HAVEN Coffee is a social enterprise serving ethically sourced, fair-trade, organic cups of specialty coffee with a social mission of breaking the false narratives about refugees in society.  

Purchase tickets to the Laff-Uccino comedy event with HAVEN Coffee on 19 June here: https://refugeeweek.org.uk/events/laff-uccino-2/ 

Learn more about HAVEN Coffee on their website: https://www.havencoffee.co.uk/ 

Follow HAVEN Coffee on Instagram and Twitter @haven_coffee and on Facebook @havencoffeeuk. 

Find out more about Counterpoints Arts on their website: https://counterpointsarts.org.uk/ 

The nature of forced migration and the drivers of migration have changed drastically since the end of World War Two. Today, climate change is considered the ‘biggest issue on the forced displacement agenda’, yet its consequences are felt disproportionally across the world. Since 2020, fragile states have been impacted by the so-called Triple C—Climate Change, Conflict and COVID-19—whereby each acts as a threat multiplier. 

Despite more people being displaced because of disasters relative to conflict, there is no explicit mention of ‘climate refugees’ in the 1951 Refugee Convention. Andrew Harper addresses highly debated questions of whether the UNHCR’s mandate and the legal definition of who constitutes a refugee should be expanded by referring to developments in international protection. In particular, he highlights the applicability of international refugee law through the UNHCR’s legal considerations on climate- and disaster-induced cross-border displacement, and touches upon the role of regional legal instruments governing the protection of refugees, such as the Kampala Convention and the Cartagena Declaration. 

What remains clear is the international obligation to provide protection to those who had to flee their homes at no fault of their own. Doing so in the context of climate change and human mobility requires humanitarian agencies to shift their workings from a reactive to a proactive approach, bearing in mind that the most vulnerable are those who are unable to flee. 

In this episode, MSc student in International Migration and Public Policy Sarah Phillips spoke with two LSE alumni: Niklas Sievers, a former student in the MSc in International Migration and Public Policy program, and now a Data Innovation Analyst at GMDAC; and Marzia Rango, a former student in the MSc in Development Studies program, and now the Data Innovation and Capacity-Building Officer at GMDAC. Their work at GMDAC centers around their mission to improve the data on migration globally while emphasizing the statistics are more than just numbers: they represent real people in need of protection, rights, and help.  

In addition to discussing the role of GMDAC in the field of migration studies, this episode highlights a few of the key issues, as identified by our guests, present in the field that affect forced migrants and refugees. Other topics covered include: Trusting Big Data and Policy-making; Ethical Concerns and Responsible Use of Data; and the Impact of Big Data on Migration.