RESEARCHING INTERNAL DISPLACEMENT

Researching Internal Displacement connects researchers, practitioners, policy-makers, students, artists and people from displacement-affected communities with cutting-edge research, analysis, creative materials and other resources on internal displacement. It aims to raise the profile and understanding of internal displacement and the situations faced by IDPs globally.

El Salvador. Climate change in La Danta Mocha 2024 © UNHCR/Markel Redondo

Researching Internal Displacement is also a central hub for linked international research networks on internal displacement: Internal Displacement Research Programme (IDRP); Global Engagement Network on Internal Displacement in Africa (GENIDA); Middle East Research Network on Internal Displacement (MERNID); Latin American Network on Internal Displacement (LANID); and the Health and Internal Displacement Network (HIDN).

The site provides the networks with a shared webspace and facilitates sharing, reviewing and disseminating the latest research, writing and creative materials by their membership and by others interested in internal displacement. Each network is open to new members and promotes engagement with different aspects of internal displacement research, particularly by people living in countries affected by internal displacement. All networks host regular events, promote research and publication, and feed into policy and practice

Researching Internal Displacement is an independent site managed by the leads of each network working jointly with the editors on the website Coordination Team.

LATEST PUBLICATIONS

By Adam Lichtenheld and Abbey Steele | Mar 26, 2026
This is the fourth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in a Changing World Order’. It examines how state policies addressing internal displacement have evolved since the Cold War, analysing 588 policies across 86 countries adopted between 1989 and 2022. The authors find that policy adoption surged during the peak of the liberal international order, particularly in the 2000s and 2010s, driven by major displacement crises, international advocacy, and normative frameworks like the 1998 UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, the 2006 Kampala Convention, and the IASC Durable Solutions Framework. While most countries address displacement through broader vulnerable population frameworks, the content of IDP-specific policies has shifted over time. Provisions establishing camps and granting formal IDP status have declined since 2018, whereas service provision guarantees expanded dramatically between 2003 and 2018, likely reflecting state-building efforts in conflict-affected nations. As the liberal international order weakens, the authors question whether policy adoption will slow without international pressure and normative consensus, while suggesting that existing policies may serve as valuable tools for domestic advocates to hold governments accountable.
By Tomy Ncube and Una Murray | Mar 12, 2026
As climate impacts intensify, planned relocation is increasingly deployed as an adaptation strategy, yet outcomes for relocated communities remain consistently adverse. This paper argues that these failures stem from the treatment of planned relocation as a short-term, projectised disaster response rather than as a long-term developmental intervention. Drawing on social protection theory, this paper reconceptualises planned relocation as a form of social assistance, capable of delivering durable solutions. It demonstrates that planned relocation inherently performs preventive, protective, promotive, and potentially transformative social protection functions by minimising future climate risks, providing non-contributory transfers such as land and housing, and enabling livelihood reconstruction. However, when implemented outside formal social protection systems, these functions may collapse, often resulting in impoverishment and protracted displacement.

Our Funders

This platform was established with support from the UK Research
and Innovation Global Challenges Research Fund (AH/T005351/1).

IDP TRAINING

Our free course in ‘Internal Displacement, Conflict and Protection’

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IDRP

Internal Displacement Research Programme

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HIDN

Health and Internal Displacement Network

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GENIDA

Global Engagement
Network on Internal Displacement in Africa

Find out more

LANID

Latin American Network on Internal Displacement

Find out more

MERNID

Middle East Research Network on Internal Displacement

Find out more

IDP TRAINING

Our free course in ‘Internal Displacement, Conflict and Protection’

Find out more

IDRP

Internal Displacement Research Programme

Find out more

HIDN

Health and Internal Displacement Network

Find out more

GENIDA

Global Engagement
Network on Internal Displacement in Africa

Find out more

LANID

Latin American Network on Internal Displacement

Find out more

MERNID

Middle East Research Network on Internal Displacement

Find out more