In 2023, the IASFM (International Association for the Study of Forced Migration) issued an invitation to its members to establish an international research cluster to address a key migration challenge. In doing so, bring together people with diverse backgrounds and expertise, to identify key issues and creative ways to address them through research. Statistics tell us that an estimated 117.3 million people in the world have been forcibly displaced and 47 million (40%) of them are children, aged under 18 (UNHCR, 2023). This number rises year on year, reflecting the continuity of displacement due to lives disrupted by conflict, persecution, and climate emergencies. People are not just displaced from their homes, but schools, colleges, and universities.
With this in mind, the IASFM’s invitation led us to create the ‘Education, Displacement & (Im)mobility’ research cluster. We invite you to join us as a member or get to know us during the IASFM20 conference in Indonesia (21st – 23rd January 2025). Complete this form or visit the website: https://iasfm.org/edi/ for further information.
As a research cluster we view education in displacement through the lens of ‘Lifelong Learning,’ in that it should be accessible to everyone across ages, abilities, and at all levels from language acquisition to primary, secondary, tertiary and higher education. Our aim is to explore connections between education, displacement, and how responses from nation states and local education providers, can both mobilise and immobilise access for students experiencing displacement.
To date, our collaborative platform has brought together members hailing from every continent – working, studying, and volunteering within a wide range of institutions, networks, and organisations, with expertise in research, advocacy, operational practice and / or lived experience of displacement. We welcome individuals from all backgrounds to join us – whether you are an academic at any stage of your journey (undergraduate, master’s student, PhD candidate, seasoned researcher), a practitioner, an activist, and / or someone with personal experience of forced displacement, your perspective is invaluable. The research cluster creates opportunities for meaningful discussions, foster reflection, and inspire action that promotes the autonomy of people experiencing displacement. We endeavour to explore lessons that can be learned at the global level from local actors, bringing together multiple perspectives rooted in diverse knowledge and experience.
We are hosting several events during the IASFM20: a double panel (8 x presentations) beginning with an exploration of the impact of bordering and racialisation on access to higher education, drawing on case studies in the UK, Brazil, Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon. We then move to explore the crucial role played by displaced individuals in shaping access to and opportunities in higher education, exploring grassroots activism across the UK, Canada, US, Ghana and Nigeria. ‘Stories of Displacement’ will be exhibited throughout the conference, showcasing creative projects produced by young people with experience of displacement and advocating for opportunities to belong in education: ‘(Re)imagining the Higher Education Border’ (UK) and ‘Growing Leaders’ (US).
We look forward to meeting you online or in person at the IASFM20.