120 million people are forcibly displaced worldwide today.
It’s a shocking figure. When the UN Refugee agency, UNHCR released their updated Global Trends Report recently in June, the updated displacement figures were overwhelming.
So why are the figures continuing to rise?
Conflicts in Sudan, Gaza and Myanmar are creating new displacement which UNHCR says requires urgent resolution. Millions remain displaced due to ongoing fighting in Myanmar and Sudan while estimates suggest 75% of Gaza’s population are displaced. Syria holds the unenviable position of still being the world’s largest displacement crisis, with 13.8 million people forcibly displaced in and outside the country.
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| A child in a refugee camp in Jordan. Credit: Joel Pratley/Act for Peace | |
According to The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, the combination of persecution and violence with other factors such as climate change is impacting population movement and further impacting displacement. “It [climate change] can be a driver of conflict, and hence of displacement, especially when the very scarce resources of poor communities become even scarcer,” says Grandi. “Then because of climate change that drives conflict.”
With such stark figures and a global displacement crisis that only seems to get worse every year, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Grandi suggests improved cooperation and concerted efforts to address conflict, human rights violations and the climate crisis are key to reversing rising displacement figures.
Grandi also says the solutions are there. “Refugees and the communities hosting them need solidarity and a helping hand,” he says. “They can and do contribute to societies when they are included.”
That’s a sentiment Act for Peace echoes to address the displacement crisis, focusing on investing in local organisations and joining forces to create lasting change.
Act for Peace believes amplifying the voices of those individuals whose lives have been uprooted by conflict and disaster is essential to confronting human injustices and forming long term displacement solutions. The solutions are here, and progress is possible, but we must continue to advocate for systemic change. When we care for humankind together, we’re acting for peace in the world.
Save the date
This year we celebrate 75 years of giving hope to people forced to flee their homes due to conflict and disaster through the Christmas Bowl. In our 75th year we welcome your church community to take part. Join us for a Blessing of the Bowls celebration online on 17 November at 6.30pm and in person at the St Peters Eastern Hill Church in Melbourne on Sunday 24 November at 2.30pm.
More details to come. Follow Act for Peace on social media to stay up to date on all the activities for this year’s Christmas Bowl.
