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The Institute of Global Affairs (IGA) at the London School of Economics and Political Science has joined leading global universities in a pledge to directly apply their research and engagement activities to tackle the ongoing refugee and migration crisis.
As creator and lead member of the Alliance of Leading Universities on Migration (ALUM), the IGA was the organiser of the drafting and part of the signatories of the ‘Beirut Declaration on the Role of Universities in the Refugee Crisis’. This is a commitment from universities to develop responses to the needs of those forcibly displaced, and to respond directly to the effects the crisis has had on their native societies.
The Declaration also emphasises universities’ role as social mediators around migration and refugees processes, and pledges to offer open and safe places for deliberations on the issue. Additionally, signatories committed to make evidence and best practice readily available to the media and public.
The Declaration was announced earlier this month at the fourth conference ALUM in Beirut, which was focused on Universities Responding to the Refugee Crisis. The IGA were joined at the ALUM conference by academics from 21 universities from across Europe, Africa, the Americas and the Middle East where they discussed the challenges facing refugees and innovative and practical policy proposals.
The agenda at the conference featured roundtables on the role of academia in advocacy and influencing policy, how the private sector can contribute to addressing the refugee crisis, and the challenges refugees faced in accessing education.
Professor Erik Berglöf, Director of the IGA and one of the organisers of the ALUM conference, said; “The Beirut Declaration is unique as it brings together the commitment of academia of Europe, the Middle East and even the Americas.”
Dr Nasser Yassin, Director of Research at the Issam Fares Institute at the University of Beirut (AUB) and head of the AUB4Refugees initiative, said: “It is our natural role as universities to reassure societies, to reassure our communities and actually stand with those most vulnerable and disenfranchised.”
The IGA is a lead founder of ALUM, created in 2015 to help bridge the gap between research and policy in the management of the current migrant and refugee crisis.