"Most current international crisis-related discourse is concerned with the coronavirus pandemic, yet in the decade prior to the appearance of Covid-19, a much larger global crisis has been unfolding. By the time a person finishes reading this, over one hundred people will have been compelled to leave their homes. Nearly half of those will become stateless as well – displaced not only within their countries, but forced to migrate across borders. The causes are numerous and complicated: natural and ecological disasters, development projects that claim or contaminate land and water, and primarily, violent conflict. Unspeakable horrors that need immediate attention and action.
Columbia University and Columbia Global Centers affirm that, as an institution with global reach, we are determined to help meet the needs of our global society. The haphazard results of leaving the response to international crises up to individual states has only underscored the necessity of unified strategies and shared information that respect our human connections across borders. We are committed to research into the myriad issues involved in forced migration, and to engaging meaningfully in providing solutions.
Columbia Global Centers and the Committee on Forced Migration have launched a year-long series of webinars to provide opportunities to explore these issues from within different disciplines and contexts. We will examine the history of anti-immigrant racism, issues of density and urban living in a post-Covid world, and the role of journalism in humanitarian crises. We will explore a globalized economy as a contributing factor to forced migration, and we will survey literature of the migrant experience.
Safwan M. Masri, Executive Vice President for Global Centers and Global Development
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Columbia University Scholarship for Displaced Students
This Scholarship supports displaced students from anywhere in the world who are unable to complete their higher education. These students will receive up to full tuition, housing, and living assistance while pursuing undergraduate or graduate degrees across all 18 Columbia schools and affiliates, reflecting Columbia’s full institutional commitment to addressing this global crisis. As the first-ever Columbia-wide scholarship, and the world's first scholarship of its kind, this program will commit up to $6 million annually in support, per cohort, for up to 30 students each year, every year.