The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) recorded that at the end of 2023, there were 117.3 million people forcibly displaced from their homes – on every continent except Antarctica.
Forced displacement is the involuntary migration of people due to any one or more of the following factors: internal or international conflict and war, violence and risk of mass atrocities or genocide, persecution and other human rights abuses, natural disaster or environmental crisis, economic hardship, and development and tourism. Unlike the legal definition of refugee which requires a person to cross an international border before they are recognized as a “refugee” – according to the UNHCR at least 2/3 of the people experiencing forced migration move to different parts of their own country and are thus neither counted nor recognized as refugees. This means the majority of people experiencing forced migration are ineligible for much of the international support or legal protection and are left out of most global conversations.
In this guide you will find resources that explore and examine the different reasons behind forced displacement, the impact of forced displacement on individuals and communities, as well as some of the work being done to assist people who have experienced forced displacement. You will note that there may be multiple causes behind a people or group’s displacement i.e.: climate change may be affecting a particular region but its affects on people differ based on ethnic discrimination, Indigeneity and/or gender.
We included a large amount of material discussing the growing reality of people forced to flee because of climate change, although they do not technically meet the United Nation’s definition of refugees. “Climate refugees,” defined by the World Economic Forum as “those forced to flee due to disasters and other weather events,” are in all parts of the world – in Northern Manitoba, in the South Pacific, in the Sahara and in Bangladesh – and their numbers are increasing every year. According to the UN half of the people who were forced to flee their homes in 2022 did so because of climate‐related issues. They are one of the most vulnerable and legally under protected groups of people who can no longer live safely on their land.