Internal displacement is addressed directly or indirectly across a range of international frameworks in regimes as varied as human rights, international humanitarian law, disaster response, climate change and sustainable development, as well as the regime specifically addressing the situation of internally displaced persons (IDPs). This raises questions about whether these frameworks are coherent in terms of the norms and approaches relating to internal displacement. Ultimately, the paper argues that these other frameworks supplement those of the IDP regime in useful ways. It asks whether the time has come to update the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement in light of these broader norms and approaches.

Despite a growing body of research on forced displacement, the challenges faced by displaced women in the Sahel, where the gender equality index is the lowest in the world, remain understudied. This piece examines the gendered impacts of escalating forced displacement in the region, where pre-existing inequalities exacerbate the vulnerability of women. It calls for the adoption of gender-responsive policies anchored in human rights that prioritise women's participation in durable solutions to ensure their protection and empowerment.

The short piece introduces Researching Internal Displacement’s new series on ‘Internal Displacement in the Context of Organised Criminal Violence’. It also serves as the Preface to a collection of five articles in the series developed by experts at the Internal Displacement Research Programme (IDRP) of the Refugee Law Initiative in collaboration with the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons in relation to her 2025 Call for Inputs on this theme. You may download the collection by clicking on the “Download PDF Version” link near the bottom of the article page. We welcome new contributions to this series.

This paper explores how, with inclusive and transformative adaptation and mitigation planning and action, many of the losses and damages experienced in the climate change, rural livelihood and (im)mobility nexus can be reduced or avoided. It introduces a new guiding framework and toolkit developed for FAO by the authors.

This short paper draws attention to the plight of a community in Fiji displaced following Tropical Cyclones Yasa and Ana in late 2020 and early 2021. Highlighting applicable international human rights frameworks, the paper calls on the Fijian Government and state duty-bearers everywhere to fulfil their fundamental human rights obligations to people displaced in the context of climate change. The paper also recommends specific actions the Fijian government, humanitarian actors and other stakeholders should take in Nabavatu village and similar contexts, including the support for livelihood development and diversification, inclusive rights-based decision-making, and community-led relocation planning.

This fifth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in the Context of Organised Criminal Violence’ looks at internal displacement from criminal group violence in Ecuador, describing this relatively new and little-discussed form of injustice affecting tens of thousands of Ecuadorians per year. With little government acknowledgement of the problem, the needs of people displaced by criminal gang violence remain under-resourced and unaddressed. Most affected people have little recourse, lacking knowledge of how and where to seek protections and solutions.

This fourth volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in the Context of Organised Criminal Violence’ explores the role of the international anti-trafficking framework in addressing internal displacement resulting from organised criminal activity. In so doing, it first unpacks the definition of human trafficking before exploring the intersections with internal displacement and what this means for responses. Ultimately, the paper calls for legal and policy responses to internal displacement to incorporate anti-trafficking obligations so that effective protection can be achieved in practice.

This third volume in our series on ‘Internal Displacement in the Context of Organised Criminal Violence’ examines international law on the use of force in situations of violence linked to organised crime. Such violence can reach the thresholds for armed conflict, in which case international humanitarian law (IHL) applies, in addition to international human rights law (IHRL). While an armed conflict classification can activate international protection mechanisms, the application of IHL reduces the protections afforded under IHRL and may do more harm than good for IDPs and those at risk of displacement. The author calls for a reorientation of international protection mechanisms to ensure fuller protection of IDPs.