A Better Conversation: Changing The Public Discourse About Refugees UNSW Kaldor Centre podcast

17:41

In 2027, governments are expected to adopt the world’s first-ever global treaty on the Protection of Persons in the event of Disasters — a landmark step toward strengthening international responses in a time of intensifying climate risks. Yet, the current draft of the treaty barely mentions displacement at all. Our latest Policy Brief explains why that must change — and how. Here, co-authors UNSW Kaldor Centre's Scientia Professor Jane McAdam AO and Dr Thomas Mulder discuss 'Foregrounding displacement and evacuations in the proposed treaty on the protection of persons in the event of disasters'. Recorded 20 May 2025 Read Policy Brief 17: Foregrounding Displacement and Evacuations in the Proposed Treaty on the Protection of Persons in the event of Disasters https://www.unsw.edu.au/content/dam/pdfs/law/kaldor/2025-05-policy-brief-foregrounding-displacement-treaty.pdf…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
Speed briefing - Countering misinformation about refugees and migrants: An evidence-based framework 30:42

11 weeks ago30:42

30:42

A recording of a speed briefing held on Tuesday, 11 March 2025, to learn more about how misinformation works and what to do about it. For those who want a truthful discussion, yet may sometimes struggle to respond to false claims, a new report is designed to help you know what to do and when: Countering misinformation about refugees and migrants: An evidence-based framework, find it here: https://www.unsw.edu.au/kaldor-centre/our-resources/legal-and-policy-resources/countering-misinformation With an easy-to-follow decision tree and how-to examples, this report can equip you to respond across a range of situations— and lays the groundwork for you to create responses aligned with your own aims. Co-authors Professor Daniel Ghezelbash (UNSW Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law) and Saul Wodak (Behavioural Insights Team) step through the framework, empowering you to create stronger, fact-based conversations.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
Speed briefing - Practical toolkit on climate and disaster displacement 34:18

11 weeks ago34:18

34:18

Learn more about a ground-breaking new global toolkit to guide legal practitioners and decision-makers faced with refugee claims involving the impacts of climate change and disasters. 'International Protection for People Displaced across Borders in the context of Climate Change and Disasters: A Practical Toolkit' is a clear, systematic guide to this issue (https://www.unsw.edu.au/content/dam/pdfs/law/kaldor/resource/2025-02-climate-protection-toolkit-full-eng.pdf). Listen to the speed briefing to quickly get an understanding of when, why and how existing refugee and human rights law can protect people forced to leave their homes in situations where climate change or disasters play a role. In this quick overview of the Practical Toolkit, hear from Professor Jane McAdam AO and Dr Tamara Wood, UNSW Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law (authors) and Dr Madeline Garlick, Chief of the Protection Policy and Legal Advice Section at UNHCR. This Practical Toolkit has been developed by the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at UNSW Sydney; the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, University of California College of the Law, San Francisco; and the School of Law and Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, in collaboration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and with support from Open Society Foundations.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
Judging Refugees: Narrative and Oral Testimony in Refugee Status Determination 42:31

13 weeks ago42:31

42:31

A recording of the celebratory launch of 'Judging Refugees: Narrative and Oral Testimony in Refugee Status Determination' held on 20 November 2024. This was a hybrid panel event co-hosted by UNSW's Centre for Criminology, Law & Justice, and the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, in conversation with Dr Anthea Vogl, Dr Tina Dixson, Associate Professor Maria Giannacopoulos and Professor Daniel Ghezelbash. In 'Judging Refugees', Anthea Vogl investigates the black box of the refugee oral hearing and the politics of narrative within individualised processes for refugee status determination (RSD). Drawing on a rich archive of administrative oral hearings in Australia and Canada, Vogl sets global trends of diminished and fast-tracked RSD against the critical role played by the discretionary spaces of refugee decision-making, and the gate-keeping functions of credibility assessment. About the author: Anthea Vogl is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). She teaches and researches in the fields of refugee and migration law, focusing on the social and legal categories of the refugee and non-citizen, executive decision-making, and the criminology of border control. Guest speakers: Dr Tina Dixson (she/her) is an early career academic, advocate, and social policy professional with experience in advancing LGBTIQA+ equality, refugee protection, and responses to gender-based violence. Tina has her own experience of queer displacement, having been forced to leave Ukraine with her partner Dr Renee Dixson due to their LGBTIQA+ activism. Dr Maria Giannacopoulos (she/her) is Associate Professor and Director of the Centre for Criminology Law and Justice at UNSW Sydney. She holds a BA(Hons) LLB (Hons) and a PhD in Cultural Studies and is a leading scholar in decolonising approaches to law and criminology. Dr Daniel Ghezelbash (he/him) is Professor of Law and the Director of the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at UNSW Sydney, and an Australian Research Council (ARC) DECRA Fellow. www.unsw.edu.au/kaldor-centre…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2024 Kaldor Centre Oration 1:21:50

25 weeks ago1:21:50

1:21:50

A recording of the inaugural Kaldor Centre Oration, delivered by Kate Eastman AM SC and Zaki Haidari on 21 November 2024. The Kaldor Centre Oration is a new flagship lecture hosted by the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at UNSW Sydney, designed to enrich the public conversation on refugee issues by showcasing transformational ideas that can spark fresh thinking and action. It is a valuable opportunity to build shared understanding and positive solutions. The inaugural 2024 event builds upon the Kaldor Centre’s track record of thought leadership, stemming from more than a decade of principled, evidence-based contributions to the refugee debate. This recording is for anyone interested in creating a better future – be they people with lived experience of displacement, civil society, legal practitioners, policymakers, business leaders or community members. About the speakers: Kate Eastman AM SC is a Sydney barrister working in the fields in human rights, discrimination, employment, public and constitutional law. Over her 30 years practicing as a lawyer, Kate has been committed to human rights and equality. At Allens, she represented asylum seekers in detention in Port Hedland. She then worked at the Australian Human Rights Commission before joining the Bar in 1998. Between 2019 – 2023, she was Counsel Assisting the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability. She has taught human rights law at UTS, Monash University and the University of Sydney, and in Burma and Uganda. Kate is chair of the Australian Bar Association’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the Law Council of Australia’s Equal Opportunity Committee. In 2023, she was appointed a Commissioner of the New South Wales Law Reform Commission. Kate has received the Law and Justice Foundation’s Justice Award (2003), the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Human Rights Award for Law (2019), a Lifetime Achievement Award from Women Lawyers Association (NSW) (2022), and the Law Council of Australia’s President’s Award (2022). She was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the law, to human rights, and to professional organisations. Zaki Haidari is a 2020 Australian Human Rights Commission Human Rights Hero, an Ambassador for Refugee Advice and Casework Service (RACS), and works at Amnesty International Australia as a Strategic Campaigner. Zaki is also a highly respected commentator in the media on refugee rights. Zaki is himself a refugee. He fled Afghanistan at age 17, targeted by the Taliban after his father was ‘disappeared’ and this brother murdered. He survived a terrifying boat journey and arrived in Australia seeking protection in 2012. Since then, despite social, legal and financial obstacles, he has thrived. Having arrived with little English, in 2015, just three years after he came to Australia, he won the NSW Government’s International Student of the Year Award (2015). He has also completed a Diploma in Computing and a Diploma in Graphic Design. Zaki is a compelling human rights advocate. Even while he was on a temporary protection visa, and since he was granted permanent protection, Zaki has continually and courageously shared his experience and expertise with the media and the wider community, speaking out about the cruel regime of permanent temporariness faced by people like him who came to Australia by sea seeking safety.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
Speed briefing - Ensuring protection in humanitarian emergencies: A framework for Australia 29:09

35 weeks ago29:09

29:09

Scientia Professor Jane McAdam AO, explains why Australia needs a new emergency visa to respond to humanitarian crises, which she and her co-author, Dr Regina Jefferies, propose as part of a broader emergency response framework in their new policy brief. Having a framework that could be activated in a crisis would enable a more predictable, streamlined and effective response. In the context of people fleeing the war in Gaza, and reports that the government is considering creating a new emergency visa, the policy brief has vital importance for individuals, policymakers and advocates across the sector. Watch to quickly get an understanding of the evidence behind their proposals for a better approach – for all concerned. The Kaldor Centre’s Evacuations Research Hub is a five-year project established in July, funded by an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship, to analyse why and how evacuations are used; what legal standards govern their conduct; and when and how they come to an end. Scientia Professor of Law and Laureate Fellow Jane McAdam AO is its Director, and Dr Regina Jefferies is a Laureate Postdoctoral Fellow.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
A decade of determination: Jane McAdam on the Kaldor Centre's first 10 years 58:03

48 weeks ago58:03

58:03

UNSW's Kaldor Centre was established as the Abbott government came to power with its “stop the boats” campaign; the Centre showed the power of starting with hope, becoming the world’s first centre dedicated to the study of international refugee law. For a decade, Jane McAdam AO has steered the Centre as an authoritative, non-partisan voice of reason, playing a unique and valued role among those seeking a better approach to refugee issues in Australia, the region and internationally. Here McAdam shares stories from her time at the helm of UNSW's Kaldor Centre.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2023 Conference Keynote: Will International law still be relevant? 17:00

48 weeks ago17:00

17:00

A recording of the closing keynote address at the 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference: 'Learning from the future: Foresight for the next decade of forced migration' held on 20 November 2023. Kaldor Centre Director, Scientia Professor Jane McAdam AO, reflected on the day’s discussions and the implications of future megatrends for international refugee law. Will international refugee law still have relevance a decade from now? What role can – and should – it play as the adverse impacts of climate change, enhanced technological surveillance and increasing automation of decision-making influence who is able to move across borders, and how they are treated when they arrive?…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2023 Conference Panel: Will refugees be welcome? 1:22:44

48 weeks ago1:22:44

1:22:44

Recording of Panel Session 3 at the 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference, 'Learning from the future: Foresight for the next decade of forced migration' held on 20 November 2023 at UNSW Sydney. Speakers: Peter Lewis, Executive Director, Essential Media Amanda Tattersall, Associate Professor of Practice, Sydney Policy Lab Lenore Taylor, Editor, Guardian Australia Shabnam Safa, Chairperson, National Refugee-led Advisory and Advocacy Group Chair: Lauren Martin, Communications Manager, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law As the Kaldor Centre embarked on its 10th anniversary, our flagship conference harnessed strategic foresight to inform the agenda for the decade to come. The 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference took participants 10 years into the future, to explore the forced migration challenges we may face in the decade to come. The purpose was not to predict the future, but to help us to be better prepared to shape the future we want to see and to help us think afresh about what we might need to do today to ensure protection for displaced people in the decade to come.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2023 Conference Panel: How will we identify people in need of protection? 1:25:22

48 weeks ago1:25:22

1:25:22

Recording of Panel Session 2 at the 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference, 'Learning from the future: Foresight for the next decade of forced migration' held on 20 November 2023 at UNSW Sydney. Speakers: Cathryn Costello, Professor of Global Refugee & Migration Law, University College Dublin Niamh Kinchin, Acting Dean of Law, University of Wollongong Edward Santow, Director, Policy & Governance, Human Technology Institute, University of Technology Sydney Shahyar Roushan, Senior Member, Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Migration & Refugee Division Chair: Daniel Ghezelbash, Deputy Director, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law As the Kaldor Centre embarked on its 10th anniversary, our flagship conference harnessed strategic foresight to inform the agenda for the decade to come. The 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference took participants 10 years into the future, to explore the forced migration challenges we may face in the decade to come. The purpose was not to predict the future, but to help us to be better prepared to shape the future we want to see and to help us think afresh about what we might need to do today to ensure protection for displaced people in the decade to come.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2023 Conference Panel: Will people in need of protection be able to access it? 1:16:15

48 weeks ago1:16:15

1:16:15

Panel session recording from the 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference, 'Learning from the future: Foresight for the next decade of forced migration' held on 20 November 2023 at UNSW Sydney. Speakers: Magdalena Arias Cubas, Red Cross Red Crescent Global Migration Lab Louis Everuss, Centre Coordinator, Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence, University of South Australia Adama Kamara, Deputy CEO, Refugee Council of Australia Nikolas Feith Tan, Senior Researcher, Danish Institute of Human Rights Chair: Madeline Gleeson, Senior Research Fellow, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law As the Kaldor Centre embarked on its 10th anniversary, our flagship conference harnessed strategic foresight to inform the agenda for the decade to come. The 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference took participants 10 years into the future, to explore the forced migration challenges we may face in the decade to come. The purpose was not to predict the future, but to help us to be better prepared to shape the future we want to see and to help us think afresh about what we might need to do today to ensure protection for displaced people in the decade to come.…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2023 Conference Keynote: Thinking about the future of forced migration 36:02

48 weeks ago36:02

36:02

How do we start thinking about the future of forced migration? A recording of the opening keynote address from the 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference, 'Learning from the future: Foresight for the next decade of forced migration'. A dynamic day-long program that challenged participants to step out of today’s set agenda to look forward to 2033 and consider, is the international protection regime capable of providing protection amid the seismic shifts underway? How can we ready law, policy and public debate to ensure protection for those who need it? Keynote presenter Aarathi Krishnan brought her vast experience in humanitarian and development foresight to steer us on our journey into the future – and how we can prepare for it today. A Harvard scholar, TED favourite and one of ‘100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics’, Krishnan was Strategic Foresight Advisor at the United Nations Development Programme–Asia Pacific. Recorded 20 November 2023 by the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
2023 Kaldor Centre Conference: Opening Remarks 6:22

48 weeks ago6:22

6:22

A recording of the opening remarks from the 2023 Kaldor Centre Conference, 'Learning from the future: Foresight for the next decade of forced migration' to set the scene for the day long event. The conference took participants 10 years into the future, to explore the forced migration challenges we may face in the decade to come. The purpose was not to predict the future, but to help us to be better prepared to shape the future we want to see. The keynote presentations set out big trends and questions to spark longer term thinking. The panel sessions discussed three distinct future scenarios set in 2033. These were intended to provide a 'sandpit' within which to explore the challenges and opportunities before us, to help us think afresh about what we might need to do today to ensure protection for displaced people in the decade to come. Speaker: Frances Voon, Executive Manager, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law Recorded on 20 November 2023…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
After NZYQ – Community Safety Orders 1:11:55

1 year ago1:11:55

1:11:55

NZYQ v Minister for Immigration (NZYQ) changed the landscape for immigration detainees in Australia. It led to the release of at least 149 people from indefinite immigration detention where there was no real prospect of removing them from Australia in the 'reasonably foreseeable future’. It also led to the rapid passage of new legislative provisions that could be used to restrict the freedom of those released. Under this legislation, the Commonwealth can seek Community Safety Orders if those released are considered to pose an ‘unacceptable risk of seriously harming the community by committing a serious violent or sexual offence’, allowing re-detention or the imposition of other restrictive conditions. Continuing detention orders have been accepted by the High Court of Australia as valid for people convicted of serious violent, sex or terrorism crimes in Australia. Community Safety Orders, however, differ from continuing detention orders in important ways, and they have not yet been tested in Australian courts. This fully subscribed event was held on 3 April 2024, and sought to examine Community Safety Orders in detail, explaining what they are and what you should do if the Commonwealth seeks to issue one to your client. It also sought to examine the broader ramifications of NZYQ, including the conditions that people are being released under. Speakers included: Scientia Professor George Williams, UNSW Law, leading Australian constitutional scholar, who can advise on the possible constitutional ramifications of NZYQ and follow up cases. Paul Coady, NSW Public Defender, who has ample experience responding to continuing detention orders under state and territory legislation and can provide insight into how the existing system operates. Sanmati Verma, Acting Legal Director at the Human Rights Law Centre, who represents a number of clients in immigration detention and, along with the Kaldor Centre, intervened as amicus curiae in NZYQ v the Minister for Immigration. Sanmati will explain how NZYQ has impacted on immigration detainees since it was determined and what the future might hold for them. Chair: Anna Talbot, Affiliate and Strategic Litigation Network Coordinator, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law…

UNSW Kaldor Centre

1
Global perspectives on resettlement and complementary pathways 1:21:47

1 year ago1:21:47