Events

Past Event

A System Under Strain: Can Refugee Protection Keep Pace with Global Displacement?

April 14, 2026
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Virtual

Join Columbia Global Center Amman for an online event examining the relevance of the international refugee protection framework — particularly the 1951 Refugee Convention — in a global context increasingly defined by large-scale and protracted displacement. While the Convention remains the normative cornerstone of refugee protection, the realities of contemporary displacement have strained its original assumptions of temporary displacement and shared international responsibility. Using Jordan and Lebanon as a regional lens, the webinar will consider how non-signatory states engage with and shape the international refugee protection regime in practice. The discussion will reflect on lessons from these experiences and will also explore what sustainable approaches exist, and how international commitment to equitable and predictable responsibility-sharing can be renewed.

Those who are in New York can attend an on-campus watch party, providing Columbia students with the chance to engage with these discussions in their community. 

About the Series

This event is part of a global series, Displacement in a Changing World: Global Dialogue Across Campus and Continents, a year-long initiative convened by Columbia Global to explore the evolving realities of displacement around the world. Through regional events hosted by Columbia Global Centers and cross-campus dialogues in New York, the series brings together scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and students to examine the drivers of displacement, emerging policy responses, and the future of global protection frameworks. Explore the full series and sign up for upcoming events here.


Featured Speakers

Elora Mukherjee (Moderator), Jerome L. Greene Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic at Columbia Law School, Columbia University

Lina Abou-Habib, Director of the Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship at the American University of Beirut

Mariam Abu Samra, Head of the Renaissance Strategic Center at the Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD)

Rana G. Ksaifi, Assistant Representative for Protection at UNHCR Jordan