New Approaches to Refugee Crises in the 21st Century: The Role of the International Community
International summits and conferences in 2016 produced real pledges on refugee funding and resettlement. Translating them into sustained action remains the central challenge.
The worldwide sense of crisis surrounding the mass movements of refugees and migrants gave rise to an extraordinary series of international conferences and meetings in 2016, capped by the first United Nations summit convened to specifically address issues surrounding this migration.
With the three classic "durable solutions" for protection—repatriation, permanent integration in the country of first asylum, and resettlement—unable to match the needs of displaced populations, new approaches to protection are greatly needed.
The international summits and conferences convened in 2016 have reached for practical, concrete outcomes, such as new funding for humanitarian relief as well as pledges for new resettlement places and development projects. This conference cycle has also promoted broader rethinking of the relationship between development, mobility, and protection. Yet turning these commitments into reality presents a major challenge for international cooperation.
This policy brief aims to outline opportunities for cooperation, first examining existing interventions and then exploring the potential of international conferences to elevate—or even transform—these efforts.
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. Existing Interventions
A. Development Interventions and Humanitarian Response
B. Incorporating Mobility into Humanitarian Response
C. Use of Labor Migration Channels for Humanitarian Response
III. The Role of International Cooperation
IV. Conclusion
About the Transatlantic Council on Migration
Through rigorous research, high-level convenings, and tailored policy advice, the Council provides policymakers with essential analysis and cutting-edge policy recommendations to help tackle the most vexing policy questions.
About the Global Program
The Global Program bridges policy advice, research, and candid dialogue to design effective migration policies, drawing on global evidence and anticipating the forces reshaping how people move.
