UNU Migration Network First Conference- International Migration and Current Challenges: Transforming the Debate on Human Mobility

On 28th January the United Nations University Institute on Globalisation, Culture and Mobility hosted the first UNU Migration network conference on International Migration and Current Challenges: Transforming the Debate on Human Mobility at their beautiful office in the Sant Pau Pavilion. It was a great event that featured presentations from across the UNU Migration Network, including several projects from UNU-GCM and UNU-Merit. A key discussion in the conference was the importance of language and the terms that we use in migration. We were able to share how different academics use different terms such as undocumented migrants versus irregular migrants, or even the use of refugees and migrants. If we in academic are not even using the same terms, how do we have comparative debates across sectors such as policy, academia and civil society? As migration issues become even more prevalent it is important to reflect on the terms we use and why and how to find a common language in migration. Thanks UNU-GCM for raising these issues and hosting a great event!