The Centre for Refugee Studies is delighted to announce that Dheman Abdi has received the 2023 Anthony Richmond Scholarship. This scholarship recognizes promising graduate student research on the intersections of forced migration and environmental changes, such as climate change, flooding, drought, forest fires, and land or sanitary degradation.
Dheman Abdi is a Political Science MA student who is dedicated to exploring the intricate connections between the politics of migration and anthropogenic climate change. In the pursuit of her master’s degree, and as a first-generation Somali Canadian student, researching the Horn of Africa holds personal significance for her. Nations in this region bear the brunt of anthropogenic climate change, making the research not only academically relevant but also a matter of personal concern.
She aims not only to delve into the broader research landscape but also to evaluate the geopolitical nuances in the Horn of Africa as exacerbating factors. She seeks to highlight the urgency of addressing climate change as a predominant cause of forced migration and displacement, emphasizing that the traditional associations of political instability and persecution are now accompanied by the pressing impact of environmental factors.
The focus on the Horn of Africa region is a deliberate choice. Despite the alarming rates of displacement and forced migration due to climate change in this region, there is a notable dearth in the literature.
Dheman’s goal is predominantly to fill a gap in the discourse by further comparing displacement in the Horn of Africa with ECOWAS states. This comparative analysis will hopefully provide a comprehensive understanding of the impact of climate change on migration in different African regions, contributing valuable insights to the broader discourse. Her commitment is to address this gap in knowledge and understanding the intricacies of climate change migration in this region.
