Forum on the Promotion of Refugee Law for Academics and Specialized Trainers

30 October – 23 November 2023
 

Live sessions of the Forum will be held from 2.00 pm to 4.00 pm, Rome time (CET). A useful time zone Converter can be found on this link. 

The Course will be delivered in English.

Registration Form
Programme

Description

The world is facing unprecedented numbers of forcibly displaced persons. The number of forcibly displaced persons around the world according to UNHCR has crossed the 100 million mark in 2022. To address this, all of society needs to be called into service to contribute to providing forcibly displaced persons access to durable solutions and ensuring the effective protection of their rights. This includes particularly academics and persons who deliver training to disseminate knowledge on refugee law.
 
The Annual Forum on Promotion of Refugee Law for Academics and Specialized Trainers convenes an international audience of practitioners who teach and conduct training on refugee law and aims to foster the creation of effective training programmes, tailored initiatives and academic curricula on international refugee law and forced displacement, to amplify the role of academia and capacity building in refugee protection.
 
Participants will have the opportunity to learn and exchange best practices with their peers and work with other academics and trainers from all over the world in practical workshop-based discussions.
 
This event is part of the pledges made by the Department at the Global Refugee Forum to support the capacities of governments, academic institutions, civil society and international organizations in the promotion of international refugee law and the implementation of the Global Compact on Refugees.
 
Important Notice: The Forum does not focus on the content of International Refugee Law itself, but on the best methods and means used to disseminate and promote its principles and content through academic and capacity building initiatives. Therefore, individuals interested in learning more on refugee protection are advised to consult the Department’s Calendar of Activities [link].

Objectives

The overall goal of the Forum is to galvanize the community of academic teachers, trainers and researchers in pursuing projects that benefit refugees and facilitates the cooperation and sharing of best practices.
 
The main objectives of the Forum are to empower trainers and academics to:
  • Raise awareness on and advocate for the sustainable and coordinated proliferation of academic and capacity building initiatives on international refugee law at universities and training centers around the world;
  • Enhance and develop sound and up-to-date training programmes, in methodology and structure;
  • Promote the objectives of the Global Compact on Refugees through advocating for their integration in the design of teaching and advocacy initiatives on refugee protection;
  • Foster the exchange of best practices and experiences among participants, practitioners and learning experts;
  • Identify areas of cooperation between institutions represented at the Forum.

Application deadline, Scholarships opportunities and Official Certificate 

Candidates are invited to register to the Forum by 25 September 2023.
 
At the end of the Forum, an official Certificate of Academic Ambassadorship of International Refugee Law will be awarded to those who attend the Forum in full.
 

Target audience

The Forum is developed primarily to benefit the following profiles of participants:

1. Training officers from public training centers and academies involved in the capacity-building of:

  • Refugee status determination eligibility officers;
  • Border officials of public and national security background;
  • Judges and other members of the judiciary;
  • Attorneys and other legal professionals. 
2. University professors and other academic staff involved in
  • Teaching refugee law or other related areas of law;
  • Managing legal clinics at the undergraduate or postgraduate level;
  • Organizing moot court competitions;
  • Conducting research on refugee-related issues; 

3. Training specialists from civil society and international organizations, such as:

  • Members of international organizations with mandates specialized to refugee issues;
  • Members of civil society organizations engaging in training of government officials, students, legal professionals and other similar audience profiles.
Participants have previous knowledge of International Refugee Law and other related bodies of law. Based on the experience the participants bring, the Forum will create an environment of exchanging best practices to identify concrete ways to teach and promote international refugee law.  

Structure and Methodology  

The Forum focuses on advocacy and creating the maximum impact off the expertise of the participants. It is delivered through a participatory and creative methodology, aimed at facilitating the learning process and implementing the knowledge gained throughout the training.

 
The Forum is structured as a four-week virtual event, with up to three weekly sessions, each in the duration of 120 minutes. The Forum aims at facilitating the creation of professional connections and therefore contributions from the selected participants will be integrated into each of the individual sessions in the agenda.
 
At the end of the Forum, participants will be invited to submit initiatives for which there is a need and that would produce impact in their own context. The Sanremo Institute will facilitate access to best practices for similar initiatives done in other countries.

Adminstrative information

Participation quota amounts to € 750. It must be remitted before the start of the Course by bank transfer. Visa and/or Mastercard are also accepted on the website of the Institute.
 
Queries on the Course registration and administrative questions should be directed to: admission.unit@iihl.org.