Discussion on the Situation of Colombian Refugees in Panama and Ecuador Representatives from a November 2010 trip to the region — Shaina Aber, Associate Advocacy Director for Jesuit Refugee Service/USA and Melanie Nezer, Senior Director for US Policy and Advocacy at the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society — present the findings from their trip, along with Andrea Lari, Regional Director at Refugees International. The event will be moderated by Kathleen Newland, Director of MPI’s Migrants, Migration, and Development, and Refugee Policy Programs. March 23, 2011 Watch Video | Listen to Event Audio
	Potential Reforms to the US Refugee Resettlement Program Breakfast briefing with Kate Brick, MPI Associate Policy Analyst; Robert Carey, Vice President of Resettlement and Migration Policy, International Rescue Committee; and Kathleen Newland, MPI Director of Refugee Policy and Migrants, Migration, and Development Programs. July 16, 2010 Watch Video | Listen/Download Event Audio | Read Report
	7th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference The conference, co-sponsored by Georgetown Law, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and the Migration Policy Institute, focused immigration and refugee law and policy. Panels included: Current Topics in Immigration Law and Policy; Reforming the U.S. Immigration Court System; Humanitarian Relief, Access to Protection, and U.S. Asylum Policies; and Enforcement of Immigration Law. Eric P. Schwartz, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, U.S. Department of State spoke on US policy on international migration. June 24, 2010 Georgetown University Law Center View Video | Read Assistant Secretary Schwartz's remarks
	Discussion on Possible Solutions for Refugees and IDPs Breakfast briefing with T. Alexander Aleinikoff, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees; Demetrios G. Papademetriou, MPI President; and Kathleen Newland, MPI Director of the Migrants, Migration, and Development, and Refugee Policy Programs. Wednesday, June 9, 2010 9:00 am to 10:30 am MPI Conference Room 1400 16th Street, NW Suite 300 Washington, DC 20036 Listen/Download Event Audio
	Discussion on the Situation of Refugees and IDPs in Sudan and Chad A briefing by Stefano Severe, the UNHCR Representative in Chad, and Peter de Clercq, the UNHCR Representative in Sudan, on the latest developments and challenges concerning refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the region. Moderated by Kathleen Newland, Director of MPI's Refugee Policy Program. April 20, 2010 View Powerpoint
	The 30th Anniversary of the 1980 Refugee Act: What the Refugee Program's History Suggests for a Better Future Briefing with Representative James McGovern, Third Congressional District of Massachusetts, Representative Anh "Joseph" Cao, Second Congressional District of Louisiana; António Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); Kathleen Newland, Director, Refugee Policy Program, Migration Policy Institute; Kay Bellor, Vice President, US Programs, International Rescue Committee; and Tara Magner, Senior Counsel, Office of Senator Patrick Leahy, Chairman, US Senate Committee on the Judiciary. March 15, 2010 US Capitol Building, Room HC-6, Washington, DC

For details and video/audio of events, click here.

MPI has developed substantial expertise relating to the law and practice of protecting refugees and internally displaced people in areas of conflict as well as in the industrialized countries.

The program on refugee protection and humanitarian assistance works to assess emerging issues and controversies, to promote secure solutions, and to enlarge the international consensus on provision of protection and assistance. It has also taken a leading role in the debate over effective institutional arrangements for comprehensive protection.

In the next few years, MPI will continue to focus on emergencies within the developing world through to understand not only the nature of these conflicts, but also looking at failed refugee policies, economic issues, and the limited opportunities for protection through third country resettlement and asylum.

Another important element of MPI's ongoing protection work is analyzing how developed states can assist in building the capacity to protect refugees and IDPs in regions of origin, while still meeting their obligations to asylum seekers in their own territories.

Additionally, MPI will continue its effort to link research, practice, and policy. A focus will continue to be the positive development of the protection regime to provide more secure protection for internally displaced people (IDPs) and for mass arrivals of people fleeing armed conflict. Finally, MPI will continue to work on strengthening the institutional framework for protection of refugees and IDPs.

More on MPI's policy research....

Kathleen Newland
Director, Refugee Protection Policy Program

Recently redesigned for easier navigation through its varied offerings, the MPI Bookstore presents a selection of publications – from topics such as migrants and the recession, migration management, national security, refugee protection, and immigrant integration. As well as being in-depth, nonpartisan reading, the books are excellent material for academic use, staff trainings, strategic planning, program evaluation, board and donor education, advocacy efforts, and other migration-related work.

Visit the bookstore here.

Improving the Governance of International Migration
Contemporary states are ambivalent about the global governance of migration: They desire more of it because they know they cannot reach their goals by acting alone, but they fear the necessary compromise on terms they may not be able to control and regarding an issue that is politically charged. Currently, there is no formal, coherent, multilateral institutional framework governing the global flow of migrants. While most actors agree that greater international cooperation on migration is needed, there has been no persuasive analysis of what form this would take or of what greater global cooperation would aim to achieve. The purpose of this book, the Transatlantic Council on Migration's fifth volume, is to fill this analytical gap by focusing on a set of fundamental questions: What are the key steps to building a better, more cooperative system of governance? What are the goals that can be achieved through greater international cooperation? And, most fundamentally, who (or what) is to be governed?
Purchase a Copy

Climate Change and Migration Dynamics
By Kathleen Newland
Climate change is a new driver of human migration, and is expected by many to dwarf all other factors in its impact. But while there is growing concern about climate change, far less agreement exists about what kinds of effects will be felt where, by whom, and precisely when. Human displacement is a result of a complex mix of factors, and some of the more commonly repeated predictions of the numbers of people who will be displaced by climate change are not informed by a full understanding of the dynamics of migration. This report analyzes the salient mechanisms of displacement: sea level rise, higher temperatures, disruption of water cycles, and increasing severity of storms. It also examines the ensuing migration responses and proposes recommendations to offset the severity of displacement.
Download Report

The Faltering US Refugee Protection System: Legal and Policy Responses to Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Others in Need of Protection
By Donald M. Kerwin
While generous in many respects, the US refugee protection system has become less robust over the last two decades amid heightened security reviews, inadequate coordination between government and NGOs, and unresolved policy tensions between the goals of protecting the most vulnerable and of refugee integration. This report examines US legal and policy responses to those seeking protection in the United States and addresses the barriers, gaps, and opportunities that exist in the refugee protection regime.
Download Report | European Asylum Report

2011 E Pluribus Unum Prizes Honoring Exceptional Immigrant Integration Initiatives
MPI’s National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy is pleased to announce the winners of the 3 rd annual E Pluribus Unum Prizes awarded to exceptional immigrant integration initiatives: Hispanic Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City, the International Rescue Committee in San Diego, Project SHINE headquartered at Temple University in Philadelphia, and the San Francisco-based Welcome Back Initiative. This year, for the first time, a Corporate Leadership Award was bestowed, given to Marriott International for its Global Language Learning initiative. The Prizes seek to reward exemplary efforts that uphold and update the ideal of "out of many, one" and inspire others to take on the important work of helping immigrants and their children join the mainstream of US society as well as build stronger ties between immigrants and the native born.
Press release | Prizes website | Video of winners

Data on Asylum Seekers Around the World
Between 1980 and 2004, 9.9 million applications for asylum were lodged in 39 countries in Europe, North America, Oceania, and Asia. This Data Tool allows you to analyze the numbers and origins of asylum seekers over 24 years.

Refugees and Asylees in the United States
August 23 — In 2010, the United States granted humanitarian protection to nearly 95,000 immigrants, including some 73,000 refugees and 21,000 asylum seekers. MPI's Monica Li and Jeanne Batalova take a detailed look at the most recent refugee and asylum data in the United States.

Refugee Resettlement in Metropolitan America
Since 1983, the United States has resettled more than 1.6 million refugees.
In a March 2007 Source article, Audrey Singer and Jill H. Wilson of The Brookings Institution present the first report on US metropolitan destinations, where the vast majority of refugees were placed between 1983 and 2004.

Haitian Immigrants in the United States
The 535,000 Haitian immigrants residing in the United States in 2008 accounted for 1.4 percent of all US immigrants and the fourth-largest immigrant group from the Caribbean. MPI's Aaron Terrazas examines their socioeconomic characteristics, where they live, and the size of the Haitian-born unauthorized population.

More Source articles on refugee protection...