Climate Change and Refugee Law funded PhD opportunity

Published: 29/04/2021

Nottingham Law School is one of the leading providers of academic and professional legal education in the country with an established record of delivering innovative and transformational courses.

We are one of the largest law schools in the UK, offering a range of undergraduate degrees, academic and practitioner taught postgraduate courses and a strong research degrees programme.

Research is central to the School’s overall mission that enables our work to have an impact upon lives and society locally, nationally and globally. We enjoy a vibrant, inclusive and sustainable research environment, underpinned by a strong research infrastructure. In conjunction with Paragon Law, the School is advertising a fees-only PhD studentship to research the intersection between climate change and refugee law.

Climate change, along with the human displacement and the forced migration this creates, has increasingly demanded global attention in recent years. Since 2008, it is estimated that an average of 22.5 million people a year have been displaced by extreme weather events alone. Countless more are displaced due to the consequences of drought, salinization making soil infertile for crop production, and rising sea levels. In 2018, the United Nations Refugee Agency recognized that ‘climate, environmental degradation and natural disasters increasingly interact with the drivers of refugee movements.’

At the same time, the internationally accepted definition of a Refugee (Art 1A Refugee Convention 1951) does not easily apply to those fleeing the consequences of climate change. It is arguable that there is little difference between the position of climate change refugees and those fleeing extreme poverty or economic disadvantage. It is understood that most of those impacted by climate change will be displaced in countries or regions of origin, adding to global inequality and instability. International instruments have tended to focus on resilience and capacity building in these regions. The place of refugee law as part of the solution to such climate change-induced displacement is therefore uncertain and demands scrutiny.

As the issue becomes ever more pressing, Nottingham Trent University (NTU) and Paragon Law have agreed to co-sponsor a PhD student undertaking a study researching the intersection between climate change and refugee law. Both partners have agreed to provide 50% of the funding each for a Home/EU Full-Time student fee to support a PhD on the topic at hand, commencing in October 2021.

Find out more about this opportunity, entry requirements and how to apply.

Application deadline is 21 June 2021, so don't miss out.