Forced migration
The interrelationship between forced displacement and civil wars is a crucial topic for the interplay between societal change and organized violence. BICC conducts empirical research on internally displaced people's and refugees' mobility- and survival strategies as well as on their transnational networks. We 'follow' the refugees in our research, focusing on displaced people in regions of civil war (Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, Afghanistan/Pakistan), in zones of transit as well as in Germany. We also look into causes of displacement, forced immobility and approaches to protracted displacement. In the framework of these topics, BICC also conducts research on topics, such as the nexus between humanitarian aid and development cooperation, on border regimes and governance as well as the political economy of forced displacement, integration and employment. Our insights gained in this field are based on intensive fieldwork that captures the prospects and practices of refugees.
Furthermore, the nature of our applied research is characterized by transdisciplinary interaction with researchers, politicians and practitioners. In our work, we not only contribute to academic debates but give direct advice to policymakers in our analyses and recommendations.
The perspective of forced migrants–One focal point of BICC’s research (Folder, pdf, in English)
Ein Forschungsschwerpunkt des BICC – Die Perspektive von Geflüchteten (Folder, pdf, in German)
Current Projects
- Attitudes and Practices in Minority Returns after Conflict-induced Displacement (RE-MIG)
- Trajectories of reintegration. The impacts of displacement, migration and return on social change
- Transnational Figurations of Displacement: Connectivity and Mobility as Solutions to Protracted Refugee Situations (TRAFIG)
- Forced Migration and Refugee Studies: Networking and Knowledge Transfer
Events
May 2022: Brown Bag Lecture \ Deprovincialising Kurdish Politics: Forced Migration and Activism Across Kurdistan, Turkey and Europe, 17 May 2022 (online)
May 2022: Final TRAFIG Conference: “Nothing is more permanent than the temporary?” Understanding protracted displacement and people’s own responses", 3 May 2022 (hybrid: in Brussels and online)
March 2022: Brown Bag Lecture with Professor Dr Maria Koinova ”Book launch for Diaspora Entrepreneurs and Contested States”, 29 March 2022 (online)
March 2022: "Zooming in on Migration and Asylum" webinar #14: "Labour market integration of people fleeing war in Ukraine: Expectations, challenges and opportunities", 29 March 2022 (online)
February 2022: Brown Bag Lecture with Anila Noor “Nothing about us without us”, 1 February 2022 (online)
January 2022: "Zooming in on Migration and Asylum" webinar #12: "Ties that bind? Opportunities and pitfalls of migrants’ international networks", 18 January 2022 (online)
December 2021: Brownbag Lecture with Ahmed Mohammed Abdou"Return, Remigration and Emigration: Understanding Uncertainty in the Context of Sinjar (Iraq), 16 December 2021 (online)
December 2021: Brown Bag Lecture with Franzisca Zanker “Hosting refugees as a political instrument: South African and Ugandan perspectives”, 15 December 2021 (online)
December 2021: "Zooming in on Migration and Asylum" webinar #11: "Revisiting protracted displacement – policies, mobility and agency", 14 December 2021 (online)
December 2021: International scholarly FFVT workshop „Forced Migration and Dynamics of Political Mobilisation: Conceptual Approaches, Comparative and Case Studies”, 7 December 2021 (online)
December 2021: FFVT Webinar „Contestation over migration and rights in the context of forced displacement – How do we study it?”, 6 December 2021 (online)
December 2021: Brown Bag Lecture with Eda Gemi and Anna Triandafyllidou “Book Launch Rethinking Migration and Return in Southeastern Europe”, 3 December 2021 (online)
November 2021: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr Ester Serra Mingot and Carlos Alberto González Zepeda “Protection on the move. Transnational social protection trajectories of African migrants in Mexico”, 25 November 2021 (online)
November 2021: Presentation and discussion of TRAFIG research findings: “Wir bleiben in Kontakt! Wie Geflüchtete in Deutschland Verbindungen aufrechterhalten“, 15 November 2021, VHS Bonn (in German)
November 2021: Brown Bag Lecture with Hussam Rekani „Iraqi returnees from abroad between reintegration, alienation and "in-betweenness”, 9 November 2021 (online)
November 2021: Workshop “Challenges of and Prospects for the Reintegration of Returnees – Insights from Research and Practice”, 3 November 2021, University of Belgrade
September 2021: CHREN/FFVT online discussion „Flucht und Migration in den Bundestags-Wahlprogrammen“, 13 September 2021 (in German)
June 2021: "Zooming in on Migration and Asylum" webinar #10: "Investing in refugee networks to strengthen complementary pathways", 29 June 2021 (online)
June 2021: Brown Bag Lecture with Professor Michaela Pelican “Mbororo Perspectives on the Anglophone Crisis in Cameroon”, 24 June 2021 (online)
June 2021: Brown Bag Lecture with Verena Gantner and Dr Angela Heucher “Supporting gender equality in post-conflict contexts: Results of a DEval evaluation”, 17 June 2021 (online)
December 2020: Brown Bag Lecture with Talitha Dubow "Preliminary Findings from Albania", 16 December 2020, BICC, Bonn
December 2020: "Zooming in on Migration and Asylum" webinar #6: "Refugee responses to ongoing displacement", 15 December 2020 (online)
June 2020: "Zooming in on Migration and Asylum" webinar #1:"Doing research on migration and asylum. Responsibilities and limits", 30 June 2020 (online)
January 2020: Brown Bag Lecture with Cindy Horst "Co-creating knowledge approaches to policy relevant research", 15 January 2020, BICC, Bonn
January 2020: Brown Bag Lecture with Aida Ibričević "The road less travelled: Voluntary return migration to Bosnia and Herzegovina - Motivatioin, obstacles, strategies and sustainability", 9 January 2020, BICC, Bonn
November 2019: Talk and discussion with Prof. Narayanan Ganesan "Appraising the Ethnic Peace Process in Myanmar", 19 November 2019, BICC, Bonn
October 2019: Talk and discussion with Prof. Dr. Sandra Joireman "Post-conflict property restitution: Challenges in law and practice", 29 October 2019, BICC, Bonn
September 2019: Brown Bag Lecture with Tatjana Baraulina "Rückkehr und Reintegration empirisch untersuchen: Wie verlässlich sind Ergebnisse der Befragungen von Zurückgekehrten?", 18 September 2019, BICC, Bonn
June 2019: Brown Bag Lecture with Marika Sosnowski "Local ceasefires in Syria as strangle contracts: Destruction, displacement and citizenship", 25 June 2019, BICC, Bonn
May 2019: Policy Roundtable "What solutions for Protracted Displacement?", 22 May 2019, BICC and International Centre for Migration and Policy Development (ICMPD), Brussels
May 2019: Brown Bag Lecture with Lazarus Kubasu Nolasco "Recurring post-election violence in Kenya and how partners can help stabilise the country", 15 May 2019, BICC, Bonn
December 2018: Lecture and discussion "The Berbers or Imazighen in the Maghreb - Folklore or political factor?", 11 December 2018, BICC, German Maghreb Association (DMaG) and Center for Middle Eastern Studies / Politics of the Middle East of the University of Marburg, Bonn
December 2018: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Christoph Kohl "Repatriierte Flüchtlinge in Angola: Ein erfolgreich abgeschlossenes Kapitel?", 11 December 2018, BICC, Bonn
November 2018: International Conference "Breaking Cycles of Displacement", 28-29 November 2018, Bonn
November 2018: Workshop "Gewaltprävention und Konfliktbearbeitung im Kontext der Unterbringung von Geflüchteten", Verein für multikulturelle Kinder- und Jugendhilfe - Migrationsarbeit (IFAK e.V.), Bochum, BICC, Bonn
October 2018: International Academic Conference "Stabilization - For Whom and to What Ends?", 20 November 2018, Bonn
February 2018: Brown Bag Lecture with Tabea Scharrer "Leaving the camp behind? The case of Somalian refugees in Kenya", 14 February 2018, BICC, Bonn.
December 2017: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Sarah Tobin "Sectarianism and Identity among Syrian Refugees in Jordan", 13 December 2017, Bonn
November 2017: Bohnet, Heidrun: Protracted refugee situations and durable solutions, Presentation at the cross-area conference “Transregional Migration, Mobility and Forced Displacement: Moving Beyond Methodological Nationalism”, CrossArea e.V., Arnold Bergstraesser Institute, 9 November 2017, Freiburg.
August 2017: Rudolf, Markus: Coping with continuous conflict and diminishing aid– Case studies from Myanmar`s borderlands, Panel: Development Beyond Economic Growth: Societal Challenges in Contemporary Asia - Development Challenges in Myanmar, 23 August 2017, EADI, Bergen.
July 2017: Brown Bag Lecture with Kees Kingma "Current challenges for post-war demobilization and reintegration in East and Central Africa", 6 July 2017, BICC, Bonn.
June 2017: Bohnet, Heidrun: "Between Conflict and Cohesion. Refugee-Host Relationships in the Southeast of Turkey". Presentation at International Conference ISA, University of Hong Kong, 15-17 June 2017, Hong Kong.
June 2017: Brown Bag Lecture with Thomas R. Eimer "Why benefit-sharing is not enough: International biodiversity politics and the dispossession of indigenous groups", 14 June 2017, Bonn
May 2017: Bohnet, Heidrun, “(Re)Integration”, at Network International Cooperation in Conflicts and Disasters, Workshop on “Coping with Forced Migration”, 16 May 2017, Berlin.
March 2017: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Mathijs van Leuween & Dr. Lotje de Vries "Claiming Land, Reclaiming Identity – Land Tenure Insecurity and Reform in Situations of Protracted Displacement", 30 March 2017, Bonn.
March 2017: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Carolin Jacobs "Everyday Justice for Internally Displaced Persons: Not Just a Humanitarian Problem", 14 March 2017, Bonn.
March 2017: Brown Bag Lecture with Prof. Dr. Mirjam de Bruijn "Marginality, Mobility, Communication: Case Studies from the Sahel Region", 1 March 2017, Bonn.
March 2017: Bohnet, Heidrun: Panel discussion „Target-Group Specific Dimensions of Reintegration“, expert forum on “Return and Reintegration in the Migration Context”, 1 March 2017, Eschborn.
February 2017: "Der Friedens- und Demokratisierungsprozess in Myanmar: Hoffnungen und Enttäuschungen für die Lösung jahrzehntelanger Vertreibung", lecture by Markus Rudolf and Clara Schmitz-Pranghe in cooperation with Burmainitiative der Stiftung Asienhaus, 9 February 2017, BICC, Bonn.
February 2017: Dr. Michael Rohschürmann: "Regionale Konflikte und politischer Islam", 7 February 2017, BICC, Bonn.
Winter semester 2017/2018: "Rückkehr und (Re-)Integration von Geflüchteten", Seminar at the University of Bonn by Heidrun Bohnet and Elke Grawert.
December 2016: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Florian Krampe "Towards Sustainable Peace: Understanding the linkages between social, political, and ecological processes in post-war countries", 21 December 2016, Bonn.
December 2016: Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Cüneyt Gürer "Conflict and Crisis in Syria: Refugees, Camps and Security in Turkey", 13 December 2016, Bonn.
November 2016: BICC Annual Conference “Fleeing Conflict – Trajectories of Displaced Persons”, 3 November 2016, Bonn.
