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Paper short abstract:

Our paper brings a focus on intersecting inequalities in analysing how environmental crises are experienced by young refugees. It addresses a dearth of knowledge on the impact of climate change for displaced populations, particularly those who already face gender and age-related vulnerabilities.

Paper long abstract:

Due to climate change, the average temperature in Jordan has risen by 1.5-2 degrees in the last 30 years, and is expected to rise another 3.8 degrees by 2080. Jordan is the second most water scarce country in the world due to a combination of climate change and population growth. The impacts of intensifying environmental challenges are anticipated to acutely affect the country’s large refugee population, particularly adolescents and young people, who already lack access to education and other services, face serious economic precarity due to labour market restrictions placed on refugees and have limited protection due to precarious housing infrastructure.

Drawing on mixed methods research with vulnerable refugees (Palestinian, Iraqi and Syrian) aged 14-18 in Jordan, this paper examines the relationship between social and economic inequalities and risks of environmental challenges among adolescents affected by forced displacement. Quantitative data from over 4,000 adolescents provides background on experiences of household water insecurity. Using an intersectional lens, analyses explore similarities and differences between the experiences of refugee youth in adapting to climate change on the basis of age, gender, economic and geographical inequalities.

We find that overlapping forms of exclusion, injustice, and economic and institutional dynamics lead to further marginalisation of young people in the context of forced displacement; exacerbate gender inequalities; and impact their ability to cope with environmental challenges. As both climate and global refugee crises intensify, social-environmental systems which address structural barriers to climate resilience and adaptation are essential in ensuring that no adolescent is ‘left behind’.

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Paper short abstract:

Flooding induced resettlement has a significant impact on the affected people’s place attachment especially their livelihoods needs. However, the vulnerable group of people are significantly affected due to politics of power and non-inclusiveness during planning and implementation of resettlement.

Paper long abstract:

The impact of environmentally induced resettlement has been widely documented with the vulnerable groups of people being impacted most in the community. Globally, environmentally induced disasters such as floods and drought threaten human habitats, especially those of people living in fragile and susceptible areas. This increases the vulnerability of poor households in affected areas who do not have the capacity to adapt to the environmental change. Even though these disasters pose threats to human life, people continue to stay put because they have an attachment and bond to those areas (Anton and Lawrence, 2014). These issues of environmental change impacts and non-movement are of increasing concern to both policy makers and other stakeholders hence the implementation of resettlement as a resilience measure (Artur and Hilhorst, 2014). Therefore, this study used participatory approaches to establish the significance of the combined impact created by loss of both tangible and non-tangible resources. One significant result was the impact of people’s livelihoods whereby people with special needs like the elderly and people with disabilities were highly affected than the rest. Therefore, the study recommended inclusion of this group of people in planning and implementation of resettlement programmes to ensure that everyone’s needs are addressed during resettlement.

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Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the impacts of climate-related disasters on a highly marginalised and under-researched community - disabled people. Drawing on recent fieldwork in Ethiopia, the influence of institutions on the capabilities of disabled people affected by extreme droughts and floods is anaylsed.

Paper long abstract:

Capabilities, as conceptualised by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum, provide an apposite framework to examine the impacts of anthropogenic disasters, privileging individual freedom to exercise choice and providing a means to operationalise a rights-based discourse into development practices which centre humanity and sustainability. Within this framing, the social model of disability encourages examination of how institutional processes, ranging from legal and policy contexts to norms, attitudes and stigma, shape the development and expression of these capabilities.

This research draws on these concepts to explore the relationship between climate change, disability and capabilities. Data from 17 semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders in the disability sector in Ethiopia (disabled peoples organisations, international organisations, NGOs, donors and activists) and 25 structured interviews with disabled people in Dire Dawa, a part of Ethiopia which is subject to droughts and floods, undertaken in 2022, are analysed to explore the experience of disabled Ethiopians against the set of Nussbaum’s “central capabilities”.

Findings demonstrate that disabled people in Ethiopia experience restricted capabilities across this set and that climate change exacerbates this disadvantage. Institutions play a critical role in mediating and exacerbating this restriction, from stigmatisation within families and communities and limited awareness of disability amongst key actors through to policies, laws and processes which often fail to protect or reflect disabled people and their capabilities. This has a material impact on the vulnerability of disabled Ethiopians to weather-related disasters, denying them the material means, social support and livelihood options to develop resilience and adapt to changing conditions.

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Paper short abstract:

The paper aims to share the conceptual and empirical evidence to justify the positive link between a well-functioning Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) strategy and the well-being of Disabled people. It will show that this link is one of the important determinants of economic growth to reduce poverty.

Paper long abstract:

Disability has become a global issue, as Disabled people are not only discriminated by society but also by policymakers (Häyry & Vehmas, 2015). WHO (2005) report earlier estimated that 14% of the total population of Bangladesh is disabled (Malek, 2010). Therefore, this study has explored the intersectionality of disability with other socioeconomic factors, including land access, gender, and social capital. This study has revealed a wide variety in the experiences and vulnerability of physically disabled people in the context of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) mechanisms and rehabilitation efforts in two different districts in Bangladesh at risk of and in fact subject to frequent cyclone floods. This study has revealed that, contrary to widely held belief, disabled people are not helpless but victims of an inaccessible society. The findings have addressed the implementation gap of policies and programs targeted at the disabled in Bangladesh. Therefore, it has explored the concepts used in the policies developed and the programs introduced to support Disabled people, such as those in Bangladesh, affected by climate change. This study has discussed how the ineffectiveness of DRR policies and services has affected the well-being of persons with disability at risk of disaster and also affected the progress of the national development agenda. This study encourages the policy and practice action points to make effort on solutions to some of the problems identified. This study followed a qualitative research approach and visual data to generate evidence on the current state of implementation of disability-inclusive DRR in Bangladesh.

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Paper short abstract:

Impacts of climate change are not gender-neutral and are likely to be heightened for displaced women. This research unpacks the gendered and differentiated impacts of climate change on forcibly displaced people and explores the root causes of inequality and marginalisation.

Paper long abstract:

The Arab States have been experiencing unprecedented changes to weather and environmental patterns, which are predicted to only worsen in the coming decades. Climate change is a 'threat multiplier'. Within the fragile and vulnerable state of the region, climate change is amplifying and expected to further amplify pre-existing challenges around food and water security, and broader development challenges such as poverty, displacement, health, employment, and gender inequality. And thereby, climate risks should be looked at within the context of wider intersectional issues the region faces. While women experience disproportionate impacts from climate change - the impacts are not uniform and climate risks are more likely to be acute for at-risk women, including those living in displacement. This study, carried out in partnership with the UNDP's Regional Bureau for Arab States, aims to investigate the differentiated impacts of climate change on men and women, with a specific emphasis on people living in displacement in four Arab nations: Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen. Data was obtained from a variety of sources, including reports, peer-reviewed articles, evaluations, presentations, news articles, and statistics, covering topics related to climate change, gender, and migration/displacement. To supplement the available information and provide new insights, FGDs were held with displaced men and women in Iraq, and KIIs were conducted with frontline and field workers to generate new evidence on the unique challenges facing and the experiences of forcibly displaced people.

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Paper short abstract:

This study examined the impact of the post COVID-19 return migration on the migrant’s life trajectory and the required measures (e.g., resilience from informal economies in periods of complex crises) most beneficial for such return migrants in Bangladesh.

Paper long abstract:

This study focused on the international migrants who came home in the context of COVID-19 global crises. Due to workplace shutdown amongst few other reasons, about half a million Bangladeshi workers returned home during 2020-2022. Abrupt return and associated loss of income affected the migrant families’ food security, social protection and coping mechanism. This study explored return migrants in Noakhali, one of the top five foreign remittance recipient districts in Bangladesh. This coastal district is comprised of both low lying mainland and islands, which are frequently affected by natural hazards such as cyclone, flood and riverbank erosion. Primary data was collected at two consecutive stage. Firstly, a spatial distributions of return migrants was identified by local key informants. This helped to rank households of the return migrants situated in environmentally high, moderate and low vulnerable locations. Secondly, in depth interviews with return migrants and their household members, 10 from each of the identified vulnerability category were conducted, thus 30 households were interviewed. Qualitative interviews investigating the impact of return migration on the migrant’s life trajectory and the required measures (e.g., how informal economies can be a source of resilience in periods of complex crises) most beneficial for such return migrants were conducted. Moreover, how to extend such components to the migrants voluntarily returning at the end of their natural migration cycle – was unpacked throughout the empirical fieldwork. The outcome of this study provides greater nuance on involuntary return migration and will have implication in other similar contexts.

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Paper short abstract:

This paper analyses the involvement of government and non-government institutions in building a collaborative disaster response. Drawing on fieldwork in Indonesia, this paper analyses the barrier and opportunities in collaborative disaster response.

Paper long abstract:

Fours' perspective becomes the underpinning concept of this research, such as public administration, network theory, collaborative governance, and disaster management. The government increasingly adopts and encourages collaboration as the public administration paradigm shifts from old public administration to new public governance. The actors have tied each other in a formal and informal network trying to solve complex problems, including disasters. Collaborative governance in disaster management faces challenges, shared authority, power imbalance, trust, and other contextual factors such as government capacities, communities' resilience, social and political context, the geography of the location, type of disaster, and impact of the disaster. This research aims to explore the collaborative disaster response between government and non-government organisations and investigate the enabling and challenges in developing a collaborative approach during disaster response. This research focuses on various actors' collaboration in disaster response and looks closely at the snapshot of health cluster collaboration.

This paper analyses the involvement of government and non-government institutions in building a collaborative disaster response. Drawing on fieldwork in Indonesia, this paper analyses the barrier and opportunities in maintaining a reliable disaster response and balance in working with various institutions. Indonesia has adopted cluster management and encouraged the involvement of multiple actors in disaster management, as stated by The Sendai Framework. As a disaster-prone developing country, Indonesia is the ninth country with a greater risk based on multi-hazard average annual loss and the fourth country with the most significant risk considering the country's geographical risk (UNESCAP, 2019).

This research explores the collaborative practice during the disaster response stage in the West Nusa Tenggara Province Earthquake in Indonesia in 2018 by conducting a semi-structured interview. Sixty-six informants were interviewed during fieldwork in the West Nusa Tenggara Province and DKI Jakarta Province in 2022. The informants are stakeholders who had a role and involvement during the disaster response in 2018 that represent the central government, provincial government, regency or city government, academicians, non-government organisations, and faith-based organisations.

This research found that formal and informal collaboration appears during disaster response in health clusters. The government initiated a collaborative platform followed by government and non-government organisations. The third sector also seems to have a strong relationship and developed informal collaboration among the non-government organisations. Findings demonstrate the development of an informal partnership was motivated by the concern over the speed of distribution or distrust of government bureaucracy. The research found a bureaucratic and administrative capacity that, on the one hand, enables a collaborative and reliable disaster response and hinders the collaborative process. For example, provincial and national governments' organisational capacity to disburse funding schemes for emergencies/disasters enables health service delivery in all areas.

On the other hand, the financing bureaucracy and the funding flexibility limit the capacity to fund health service delivery fully. The different capabilities of non-government actors and cultures also, on the one hand, become incentives for collaboration and, on the contrary, may invite distrust. Moreover, the disparity of health systems, particularly health workers and health facilities, appear as obstacles during disaster response. In addition, disaster management capabilities, such as the strong relationship among various institutions to support medical and non-medical logistics, increase disaster response speed. Although the government has encouraged collaboration and disaster management has provided a formal path of cooperation and information, the relationship between actors (government and non-government institutions) is not entirely harmonious and affects power and conflict during the process of providing disaster aid.

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Paper short abstract:

The host communities' perception of the refugees is vital in managing humanitarian disasters. This study offers empirical evidence on perceptions towards and of Syrian refugees in Jordan in demonstrating how host-refugee interactions can be improved to promote inclusive resilience in the host states

Paper long abstract:

Understanding the perceptions and experiences of the host community is vital in enacting policies for economic integration, social cohesion, and harmonious coexistence between refugees and the host community. To date, little is known that directly addresses the (mis)perceptions of the host community on refugees, which can facilitate marginalisation and social exclusion of the refugees. This study expands on the extant literature by engaging with host communities and refugees to assess the perceptions of the host community of Al-Mafraq, Jordan towards Syrian refugees. In doing so, this research offers empirical evidence collected through five focus groups consisting of Syrian refugees, Jordan residents and humanitarian workers. The arguments also include the responses of an online survey (n=596) carried out to discern Jordanians' experiences with refugees.

In a fragile state of the economy and amid regional unrest, it is essential that Jordan creates and maintain an environment that promotes solidarity, diversity, and respect toward positive host-refugee relations. As previous studies have shown, when encouraged and when their needs are considered in development planning and services, refugees can contribute to positive socio-economic changes. The perceptions of the Jordanian host community can challenge some dominant misconceptions towards refugees allowing space for effective integration as well as promoting inclusiveness in Jordan. This would also highlight the needs and resilience of all marginalised individuals (e.g. Jordanians and refugees) in national planning process. This will also facilitate capacity building of the host country to achieve sustainable development in the context of an increasingly protracted displacement situation.