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IDM Second Session 2023 - Think about Tomorrow, Act Today: The Future of Human Mobility and Climate Change
The global response to climate change and human mobility is at a crossroads. The direct impacts of climate change, combined with slow-onset secondary effects such as declining agricultural productivity, could lead to the internal migration of up to 216 million people by 2050, depending on the emissions scenario. According to the World Disasters Report 2020, an estimated 200 million people per year could require humanitarian assistance by 2050 due to the combined effects of climate-related disasters and the socioeconomic impacts of climate change.
In order to break this vicious cycle of instability, vulnerability and displacement, efforts should focus on looking at how crisis risk is generated and how disaster risk reduction, humanitarian assistance and sustainable development efforts can adapt to changing and complex realities. During the International Dialogue on Migration (IDM) session in New York in March 2023, it was highlighted that more action is urgently needed to tackle climate change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The second session of the 2023 International Dialogue on Migration, which takes place on 5-6 October in Geneva, will build on the outcomes of the Kampala Declaration and the SDG Summit, and provide input to discussions at the Twenty-eighth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) and other key upcoming events, in particular the United Nations Summit of the Future in 2024 and the regional reviews of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration. It will promote cross-thematic and cross-regional linkages, highlighting challenges, opportunities and good practices to help place climate mobility high on global and regional agendas.
Many opportunities exist to broaden the range of solutions available to States, communities and other stakeholders to address human mobility in the context of climate change, from scaling up existing measures that have proven effective, learning from one another and identifying the different contexts in which solutions have been successful, to promoting cooperation to develop further solutions.
- WHAT IS THE AIM OF THIS SESSION?
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To bring together a wide range of stakeholders, including States, United Nations system organizations, civil society, the private sector, youth, and migrants and their communities to foster multi-level understanding, cooperation and trust among participants, create opportunities for collaboration on common climate change-related challenges and identify effective solutions to climate mobility.
- WHAT ARE THE EXPECTED OUTCOMES OF THE SESSION?
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- The formulation of key messages for upcoming major events and high-level United Nations processes, such as COP28, to accelerate the development and implementation of solutions to climate mobility.
- To learn which solutions work in contexts, and to foster collaboration to scale up future solutions.
IDM PROGRAMME
Welcome Session
5 October, 2023 | 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. (CET)
Amy PopeDirector General, International Organization for Migration (Keynote Speaker)Ms. Amy E. Pope of the United States of America began her five-year term as the eleventh Director General (DG) of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on 1 October 2023. She is the first woman Director General of IOM.
DG Pope is a dynamic leader with demonstrated experience in addressing complex migration issues and bringing transformative change across organizations. Prior to her historic election, DG Pope was IOM’s Deputy Director General (DDG) for Management and Reform. During her tenure as DDG, Ms. Pope implemented a series of budgetary, management and administrative reforms to optimize IOM’s field delivery and risk management, enhance internal justice outcomes and operational results, and strengthen coordination with the United Nations system.
Director General, International Organization for Migration (Keynote Speaker)Amy Pope
Michal RutkowskiRegional Director for Human Development for Europe and Central Asia, The World Bank (Keynote Speaker)Michal Rutkowski is the Regional Director for Human Development for Europe and Central Asia (ECA). Previously, he was the Global Director for Social Protection and Jobs from 2016-2023, where he oversaw the World Bank’s work to protect the poorest and vulnerable from crises and shocks, while supporting private sector-led growth.
Mr. Rutkowski’s published work covers issues on labour markets and social security. He was a core team member of the World Development Report “Workers in an Integrated World” – the World Bank’s annual flagship research publication – in 1995.
Mr. Rutkowski holds an MSc and PhD from Warsaw School of Economics and finished his post-graduate studies at the London School of Economics. He also graduated from the Executive Development program at the Harvard Business School in 1999, and from the Leadership for Collective Intelligence program run by Dialogos in 2010.
Regional Director for Human Development for Europe and Central Asia, The World Bank (Keynote Speaker)Michal Rutkowski
Khouloud Ben MansourAfrican Youth Ambassador for Peace, African Union (Keynote Speaker)Fueled by her dedication to Gender Equality and Diplomatic Relations, Khouloud Ben Mansour is an activist dedicated to advocating for women and children’s rights in Tunisia. She holds a BA in Chemical Sciences and was the recipient of a US State Department scholarship to study Leadership & Conflict Resolution at Cal State. Khouloud was recognized for her activism through multiple awards now works with several INGOs. She is a UNDP SDG Camp Alumna, and a UN Women Peace Builder/Mediator. Khouloud is recently appointed as the African Youth Ambassador for Peace with the African Union for North Africa.
African Youth Ambassador for Peace, African Union (Keynote Speaker)Khouloud Ben Mansour
Nelufar HedayatJournalist and Television Host (Master of Ceremonies)Nelufar Hedayat is an award-winning journalist and presenter whose work focuses on environmental issues and cultural upheaval. Born in Afghanistan, she went to the United Kingdom as a refugee, an experience that has informed her reporting and instilled a passion for telling the stories of fringe and marginalized communities. Working across broadcasters in written and TV media, she has created self-authored series and documentaries and moderated talk shows and other events for news outlets such as National Geographic, Doha Debates, Vice, The Guardian and the BBC.
Journalist and Television Host (Master of Ceremonies)Nelufar Hedayat
Panel Videos
International Dialogue for Migration 2023 - Day 1 Morning Session
International Dialogue for Migration 2023 - Day 1 Side Event
International Dialogue for Migration 2023 - Day 1 Afternoon Session
International Dialogue for Migration 2023 - Day 2 Morning Session
International Dialogue for Migration 2023 - Day 2 Afternoon Session
His Excellency Carlos Alvarado, Global Centre for Climate Mobility Special Envoy and Former President of Costa Rica (Moderator)
President Carlos Alvarado is the Special Envoy of the Global Centre for Climate Mobility and the 48th President of the Republic of Costa Rica. He is a professor, politician and author. President Alvarado is an expert in communication, public policy and public-private partnerships with five years of experience in political communication and parliamentary advisory. He has taught communication at the School of Social Science at the University of Costa Rica and the Latina University of Costa Rica. He also served as an advisor to the Citizen Action Party's group in the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica from 2006 to 2010.
Eric White, Head of Climate Adaptation, World Economic Forum
Eric White is the Head of Climate Adaptation at the World Economic Forum. Prior to this position, he acted as head of Systems Adaptation, facilitating peer communities for executives of the world's largest technology firms, helping them tackle common challenges. He previously led the Forum's Internet for All project, including its global executive group and its country-level work in Argentina, Jordan, Rwanda, and South Africa. Prior to the Forum, he spent nearly a decade at the intersection of technology and development in the USAID ecosystem and at the World Bank. A former US naval officer, Mr White holds an MPA in International Development (MPA/ID) from Harvard Kennedy School, and a BA in Economics from the University of Virginia.
Bob Natifu, Deputy Climate Change Commissioner, Government of Uganda/African Kampala Ministerial Declaration on Migration
Bob Natifu serves as the Deputy Commissioner in the Climate Change Department of the Ministry of Water and Environment in Uganda. His contributions have been pivotal in shaping Uganda's climate change policies, including the 2015 National Climate Change Policy. He also served as the Lead Rapporteur for the Kampala Ministerial Declaration on Environment Migration and Climate Change and as Uganda's focal point for the Kampala Ministerial Declaration on Migration, Environment and Climate Change (KDMECC-AFRICA). Bob serves as Uganda's lead negotiator under the UNFCCC processes and co-chairs the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), representing recipient countries since 2020. He holds an MSc in Climate Change and International Development from the University of East Anglia, UK, and has accumulated over eight years of work experience in the field of climate change.
Irací Hassler Jacob, Mayor, Municipality of Santiago, Chile
Irací Luiza Hassler Jacob is a Chilean politician and economist who currently serves as the Mayor of the Municipality of Santiago since 2021. Through her leadership, the city of Santiago has shown a strong commitment to strengthening its migration governance structures. Prior to her appointment as mayor, Ms Hassler Jacob was appointed president of the Gender Commission and vice-president of the Education Commission in the Santiago City Council. Prior to that, as head of the movement Avancemos, Hassler Jacob ran unsuccessfully for the presidency of the Student Federation of the University of Chile.
Ranjan Kishor Panda, Steering Group Member, Climate, Migration and Displacement Platform (CMDP), Convener, Water Initiatives
Ranjan Kishor Panda has extensive work experience spanning more than three decades in the fields of climate change, disasters, migration, displacement, water, sanitation, river basin management, agriculture, livelihoods, food and nutrition security, IFIs/MDBs and related areas starting from grassroots to South Asia levels.
Musonda Mumba, Secretary General, Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Moderator)
Musonda Mumba is a Zambian-born environmentalist with over 25 years of global experience in environmental management and sustainable development. She previously worked for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), leading UNDP’s engagement as a Strategic Collaborating Partner in the Decade, and as Director for the Rome Centre for Sustainable Development, with a focus on climate change, sustainable development and nature protection. Prior to joining UNDP, Musonda worked at the global headquarters of the UN Environment Programme for 12 years in different functions, including as Head of the UNEP Terrestrial Ecosystems Programme. Musonda is the founder of the Network of African Women Environmentalists (NAWE) and she has received numerous accolades for her work, including being named one of the 100 most influential African women.
Grace Malie, Rising Nations Initiative: Tuvalu Youth
Grace Malie is a youth climate activist and storyteller from the big blue ocean state Tuvalu. Seeing the direct impacts of Climate Change on her people and nation, Grace, with the support from her family and community, joined the fight and fiercely advocated on the impacts of Climate Change. Grace is also passionate about singing and dancing Tuvalu traditional chants as a form of intergenerational storytelling.
This resulted in her joining the COP27 and becoming a Tuvaluan youth representative in the Rising Nations Initiative. Grace is a confident public speaker and during her free time, she enjoys engaging with the local community and youths, playing music by the beach, learning about her culture and island history and spending quality time with her family.
Robin Bronen, Executive Director, Alaska Institute for Justice, Senior Research Scientist, University of Alaska Fairbanks
Robin Bronen works as a human rights attorney and has been researching and working with communities forced to relocate because of climate change since 2007. Her research has been publicized by CNN and the Guardian, among others. She has worked with the White House Council on Environmental Quality to implement President Obama’s Climate Change Task Force recommendation to address climate displacement as well as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Climate Change Office. She is a senior research scientist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and co-founded and works as the executive director of the Alaska Institute for Justice, a non-governmental organization that is the only immigration legal service provider in Alaska.
Qahir Dhanani, Managing Director and Partner, Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
Qahir Dhanani is a member of the leadership team for Boston Consulting Group’s Public Sector practice. He leads the firm’s work in global development for North America. Qahir is an expert in agile transformations in public sector institutions as well as in global economic and social development. His work at BCG focuses on advising senior executives and officials in the public, private, and social sectors on operational issues and on policy and programmatic issues (including competitiveness, infrastructure, innovation, entrepreneurship, jobs, and poverty alleviation). Prior to joining BCG, Qahir served as an advisor to the CEO at the World Bank and before that, he held various positions within the Aga Khan Development Network.
Michele Klein Solomon, Regional Director for Central and North America and the Caribbean for the International Organization for Migration (Moderator)
Michele Klein Solomon, a national of Switzerland and the United States of America, is Regional Director for Central and North America and the Caribbean for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), based in San Jose, Costa Rica. She assumed this position on 31 August 2020. She provides advice to governments in all regions of the world and to regional, intergovernmental and non-governmental entities on a wide range of migration policy matters.
From 2016-18, she was Director, Global Compact for Migration at IOM, leading IOM’s support to States and partners in the development and implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration.
Rose Kobusinge, Migration, Environmental and Climate Change advocate
Rose is a passionate and driven Climate Action advocate hailing from Uganda, with a strong focus on driving individual, political, and non-state stakeholders to take action against climate change. Her mission is centred on amplifying underrepresented African voices in climate action and enhancing the resilience of vulnerable communities, including refugees, children, and youth.
Rose is also the driving force behind the YOUNGO Climate and Migration working group and serves as the point of contact for the group, which focuses on the nexus between climate change and human mobility, including displacement, migration, and relocations. She was also recently selected as YOUNGO representative to the WIM Task Force on Displacement (TFD). Her dedication and commitment make her a valuable asset to any projects related to climate action, climate mobility, and environmental sustainability.
Khouloud Ben Mansour, African Youth Ambassador for Peace, African Union
Fueled by her dedication to Gender Equality and Diplomatic Relations, Khouloud Ben Mansour is an activist dedicated to advocating for women and children’s rights in Tunisia. She holds a BA in Chemical Sciences and was the recipient of a US State Department scholarship to study Leadership & Conflict Resolution at Cal State. Khouloud was recognized for her activism through multiple awards now works with several INGOs. She is a UNDP SDG Camp Alumna, and a UN Women Peace Builder/Mediator. Khouloud is recently appointed as the African Youth Ambassador for Peace with the African Union for North Africa.
Eddy Frank Vásquez-Sánchez, Young Leader for the Sustainable Development Goals
Eddy Frank Vásquez-Sánchez is a youth climate and oceans advocate from the Dominican Republic. With a background in Psychology, Eddy has helped promote youth participation within climate action and oceans conservation. In 2016, with other youth fellows, he created ‘’Juventud Sostenible’’, a platform for youth advocacy to help achieve sustainable development and ensure that young people are actively included in the process of creating the Dominican Republic’s Nationally Determined Contributions as part of its commitments to the Paris Agreement. Eddy was also recently assigned as Country Director of Parley for the Oceans in the Dominican Republic, where he manages more than ten projects related to marine litter prevention in the Caribbean Sea through education, policy, innovation and direct impact.
Hemavathi S Shekhar, Founder of ENACT and YOUNGO Global South Focal Point
Hemavathi S Shekhar is a lawyer, researcher and an academic. She is a part of the Policy Team of YOUNGO and a member of the Global Coordination Team and also the Liaison for COY17. Being someone with a legal background, she works to creatively use laws towards upholding the rights of vulnerable communities that are impacted by climate change.
Dalia Fernanda Márquez Añez, CEO and Founder, Juventud Unida en Acción
Dalia Fernanda Márquez Añez is a lawyer from Venezuela. She is passionate about defending Human Rights, promoting gender equality, peacebuilding, and is an environmentalist focused on raising her voice for the defense of the environment. She is the founder of the NGO “Juventud Unida en Acción”, an institution in which for nine years she has been developing education and training programs to empower people as agents of change in their community, empower women, promoting the culture of peacebuilding, and developed social programs in vulnerable communities. Currently, she is Co-Chair of the UNEP Women’s Major Group and a member of the Steering Committee of the Global Youth Biodiversity Network.
Ugochi Daniels, Deputy Director General for Operations, International Organization for Migration (Moderator)
Ugochi Daniels is a Senior Executive with over 27 years of diverse managerial experience with donor and United Nations entities, academia, as well as private sector institutions. Ugochi Daniels was named a (S)hero of the United Nations for championing women’s health needs in humanitarian emergencies. (S)heroes defend the vulnerable and fight for human rights, command forces and build coalitions for peace and take on the world’s toughest challenges. She is proud to be part of a global community that builds partnerships for peace and development to solve global problems. She is an advocate for justice, equality and equity and believes in the importance of identity and being fully grounded in community. She has a strong passion for advocacy and funding for the specific needs of women and girls, especially in humanitarian settings.
Andreas Marschner, Vice President of Europe Amazon Transportation Services (ATS) and Worldwide Operations Sustainability, Amazon
Andreas Marschner joined Amazon in 2017 and has built Amazon’s Middle Mile operations across Europe connecting Amazon’s Fulfillment Centers to all Last Mile carriers across Europe. Today, ATS uses all modes of transportation (Road, Rail, Sea and Air) and operates dedicated sortation nodes to provide for more efficient network flows. Prior to joining Amazon, Mr Marschner spent 10 years with Deutsche Post DHL and more than five years as a consultant with McKinsey & Company and the International Finance Corporation (World Bank Group).
Sherwin Das, Co-founder and Managing Director, Energy Peace Partners
Sherwin Das is a co-founder and managing director of Energy Peace Partners, where he integrates his experience in international conflict resolution and peacebuilding with expertise in the transformative potential of renewable energy in fragile states. He was a Senior Fellow in the Program on Conflict, Climate Change and Green Development at UC Berkeley’s Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory. He spent more than a decade working on peace and security issues as a United Nations international civil servant in the Balkans, Eastern Europe and the Central Africa region.
Johann Harnoss, BCG Henderson Fellow, CEO Imagine Foundation
SIDE EVENT (5 October, 1:10 p.m.- 3:00 p.m. CET) | Data Frontiers: Understanding Human Mobility in the Context of Disasters, Climate Change and Environmental Degradation
This side event, organized by the Platform on Disaster Displacement (PDD), will mark the official launch of the “CLIMB Database: Human Mobility in the Context of Disasters, Climate Change and Environmental Degradation Database”, which is hosted on the UN Network on Migration’s Hub. It will convene policymakers, experts, civil society and Member States to highlight key findings from the evidence collected in the database, to demonstrate the innovative features of the database intended for a policy and research audience, and to reflect on the data, including its implications and potential to inform decision-making and priority action for the future.
The side event seeks to:
- Highlight progress and gaps in current policy implementation, related to the GCM and beyond, in the area of human mobility in the context of disasters, climate change and environmental degradation;
- Provide a live walk-through of the database's advanced features, visual analytics, and user-friendly interface that cater to both policymakers and researchers;
- Discuss the evidence within the database, exploring its implications and its potential to inform future priority actions in policymaking and research.
PERFORMERS
The Second Session of the 2023 IDM celebrates cultural diversity as well with inspiring performances by Senegalese singer-songwriter and producer Julia Sarr, and multicultural band Ayom.
Julia Sarr, Senegalese-born singer-songwriter and producer
Julia Sarr is a Mezzo-soprano born in Dakar (Senegal). As one of the most sought-after backing vocalists, she has worked with prominent artists over the years, including Miriam Makeba, Youssou N'Dour, Salif Keita, Marcus Miller. She pursues a solo career with songs rooted in her Wolof culture and West African polyrhythm.
Ayom, a multicultural band with members from different countries
Ayom is a multicultural band with members from Brazil, Angola, Italy and Greece. Ayom employs a mix of Brazilian, tropical, Afro-Latino and Afro-Lusophone sounds played with an irresistible swing. Their name, Ayom, refers to the “Lord of Music”, a figure from Afro-Brazilian mythology who lives in the tambour and taught humans to play music and sing. Blending centuries-old traditions with the black and rhythmical language of Lusophone cultures, Ayom provides a hot-stepping voyage across the African diaspora.
