Browsing by Subject "vulnerability"

Climate change is the most pressing and dangerous crisis that the world faces today, as it concerns not only the lives of our generation but the future of the world. Especially the so-called small island nations have been viewed as particularly vulnerable to climate change in international climate change discourse. However, these views, both in academia and political negotiations, have often ignored the views of islanders themselves. There is a need for a better understanding of how islanders conceptualize vulnerability and other types of agencies such as resistance in order to create better policies to battle climate change. In this thesis, I set out to find answers to three questions: how island representatives conceptualize their vulnerability and resistance to climate change, how these concepts have changed during the years following the influential Paris Agreement in 2015, and whether there are differences between how islands talk about the concepts. In this thesis I analyzed 40 speeches by nine Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) countries in five Conference of Parties (COP) -meetings from 2016 to 2021. The transcripts of speeches were collected from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) website and analyzed using critical discourse analysis, with the help of decolonial theory to interpret the results. Firstly, island representatives conceptualized climate vulnerability as a phenomenon caused both by climate change and colonial systems. Islanders both recognized themselves as vulnerable, but also used the concept to criticize colonial systems that both cause these vulnerabilities and prevent finding solutions to them. Thus, climate vulnerability is both a real threat to the islanders and a way to criticize colonial systems. Secondly, by using the concept of resistance, island representatives demonstrated the complex, varied ways of existing on the islands by presenting themselves as moral leaders and large ocean nations. Thus, islanders have the capability to be both leaders and followers, small and large, and vulnerable and resistant – one must not simplify the complex island experiences using only one term, vulnerability. Thirdly, both vulnerability and resistance as concepts have undergone changes throughout the six-year period studied, as urgency to find solutions has grown. These changes imply that the ongoing phenomenon of climate change is affecting the ways islanders understand and perform their vulnerability and resistance in the international arena. Thus, researchers and policymakers need to pay attention to more possible changes in the future. Finally, there are both similarities and differences between AOSIS countries in how they conceptualized climate vulnerability and resistance, proving that the diversity of island experiences should not be simplified in academia or climate negotiations.

Climate migration raises both justice and human rights concerns, yet no existing treaty explicitly addresses it, leaving climate migrants in a legal limbo. This study assesses how the European Union's international protection system can evolve to effectively mitigate the vulnerability of climate migrants. The analysis incorporates the principle of non-refoulement from the European Convention on Human Rights and the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities in climate agreements. Using a legal doctrinal approach, the study analyses existing legal frameworks, uniquely integrating the perspective of vulnerability theory. This ethical framework emphasizes the universal vulnerability of individuals and seeks strategies to reduce vulnerability, rooted in societal structures and legal constructs. The study applies vulnerability theory specifically to the context of climate migration. Vulnerability analysis reveals that both the vulnerabilities driving migration and the uncertain legal status of climate migrants are products of the international community necessitating a collective response. The study centers on the 1951 Refugee Convention and the interpretation of the principle of non-refoulement by the European Court of Human Rights. It examines the right to life in the context of environmental disasters and its application to socio-economic rights. The research investigates the compatibility of the European Union’s international protection residence permit system with the non-refoulement principle and climate agreement burden-sharing principles. Relevant sources include recommendations from the United Nations Refugee Agency, decisions from the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union, along with existing scholarly literature. The Qualification Directive (2011/95/EC) mirrors the refugee definition of the Refugee Convention. The study reveals that individuals seeking international protection due to the adverse effects of climate change may have legitimate fears of persecution when addressing climate change's adverse effects in the broader social policy framework. Additionally, the study argues that adopting a vulnerability-based approach, especially under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, can broaden the scope of the non-refoulement principle in the context of climate change and enhance substantive equality, addressing climate migrants' material deprivation in their countries of origin. However, the European Convention on Human Rights does not regulate residence permits; instead, they fall under European Union law. The Court of Justice of the European Union has clarified that subsidiary protection necessitates the deliberate infliction of severe harm by a specific actor and cannot be attributed to general deficiencies in the country of origin. This perspective diverges from the interpretation of the European Court of Human Rights. To bridge the gap in current protections, the European Union should introduce a new category of residence permits for climate migrants, humanitarian protection, recognizing the connection between human rights and the environment. Such humanitarian protection would reflect fair burden-sharing, safeguard against refoulement, and address the vulnerability experienced by climate migrants within the framework of international human rights law.

In this thesis I focus on a novel disaster response and preparedness mechanism called forecast-based financing. The mechanism is linked to the changing paradigm of humanitarian response that calls for more localized and more resilience building solutions to addressing and preventing humanitarian crisis. It is also in the core of the anticipation agenda which argues that waiting for disasters to happen is not a sustainable option and that forecast data and pre-agreed triggers and actions should be used in order to prevent both loss of lives and mitigate the cost and impact of disasters. Main hypothesis is that climate related hazards to livelihoods and food security seems to be the sector where forecast-based financing could have most potential for increasing resilience and sustainability. Slow onset crises with long lead-time allow for better targeting and more variety of actions. As the lifetime of the action is longer, there is less chance of action which is in vain. Furthermore, the actions which are more localized, for example direct support to farmers, can decrease their vulnerabilities. I aim at taking a critical approach to assessing this potentiality associated with the forecast-based financing mechanism through case study. The three cases (Mongolia, Kenya, Zimbabwe) were selected from pilots implemented by the main actors: the Red Cross, World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Start Network. This thesis uses a combination of evaluative and heuristic approach to qualitative case study analysis. To answer the first research question, 1) is the forecast-based financing mechanism successful in prioritization of actions in a way that best address the needs and resources of vulnerable populations, I aim at finding out if mechanism is effective (or potentially effective) in delivering impact. For the second research question, 2) are the actions sustainable and do they bring socio-economic benefits that go beyond meeting acute humanitarian needs, I will see if new pathways are found for confirming the defined hypothesis. I am using heuristic approach in terms of finding new links e.g. between actions and needs of either donors, actors or beneficiaries. I asses and analyse available reports and evaluations (secondary data) of the selected operations. I conducted eleven (11) semi-structured key informant interviews (primary data) using practitioner’s perspective for retrieving qualitative data, for further understanding and for triangulation. All key informants were affiliated to the cases. My analysis show that the potentiality for development impacts and long-term transformation of the forecast-based financing is there but it is not utilized in the cases reviewed nor is it perceived in a same way across practitioners of different backgrounds. Currently the mechanism is used more for effective response, not for addressing the root causes of vulnerability. In general, the entitlement or empowering of a person who is affected by disaster currently does not go beyond securing bridge over lean season, avoiding negative coping mechanisms or e.g. better yield or survival of livestock. Sustainability potential of the forecast-based financing seems to be currently underutilized and international funding envelopes do not offer an alternative to the humanitarian funding launched case-by-case. Most of the practitioners interviewed were clearly in favour of linking and using forecast-based financing in some way to long-term programming, thinking outside of the framework of humanitarian response, extending lead time significantly and adding positive reinforcement inputs. I argue that with a lead time that goes long in advance, towards development actions, the mechanism needs to be reframed for the donors and the sources of funding might need to be reconsidered. To implement meaningful resilience actions in slow onset cases, triggers need to be early enough and actions in two phases: 1) anticipatory and benefiting from forecast and 2) early response. At beneficiary level the actions should be geared up to better address underlying socio-economic vulnerabilities and take advantage of the long lead time.

Human trafficking is a fast growing crime and a fundamental offense against human rights. Human trafficking is linked, inter alia, to social, economic and cultural factors; and the impact on individuals, societies and nations is destructive. Trafficking has been studied increasingly in the recent years. Though only few primary research has been conducted of human trafficking in Kenya, where trafficking is a widely spread problem. Furthermore, vulnerability towards human trafficking and reintegration of its victims has been studied more extensively on international level, but the research done on Kenyan context is very limited and the main focus stays on economical factors. Only a few studies have focused on experiences of vulnerability and reintegration of trafficking victims. Therefore, the objective of this research is to provide more information and study the complexity of victims’ experiences by the following research question: What factors former victims of trafficking have experienced as causes to their vulnerability towards trafficking and what difficulties former victims of traf- ficking have faced during their reintegration process after trafficking in Kenya? The aim of this research is to provide information that can be utilized in the development of contra human trafficking programmes in Kenya. This study is a qualitative research. The research material, 12 semi-structured interviews with former victims of human trafficking, was collected during a six-month period in 2015- 2016 in Kenya. The method used for analysing the data was qualitative content analysis. In- tersectionality was also used as an analytical tool. The experiences of vulnerability towards trafficking were mainly in relation to social problems within families, financial difficulties and obligations towards family members. The experiences of reintegration were also hampered by financial difficulties, obligations towards family members and social problems; stigmatization, blame and discrimination. This study suggests dynamics within families and communities, when allied with other factors, may become significant intersectional factors, for individuals, of vulnerability and reintegration. The findings were consistent with previous research, even though the findings cannot be generalized to larger populations. However, this research provides important pieces of information that can be utilized in relating research and in the development of contra trafficking programmes in Kenya.

The impact of political strategies aimed to reduce and eradicate homelessness are shaped by the ways in which we conceptualise the problem itself. This study aims to analyse the framing in which the homeless are considered vulnerable in order to uncover possible ways in which this allows for gatekeeping of solutions for homelessness eradication. Building on existing research, the study aims to highlight the dominant problematisations of homelessness and the limitations that they pose on provision of services by local authorities in England. The study focuses on the changes between the newly introduced legislation of the Homelessness Reduction Act 2018 and the Housing Act of 1996 in order to highlight naturalised narratives on homelessness that have been reinforced, and possible shifts in framing that allow for possible change. Analysis of the accompanying code of guidance policy documents using the What is the problem represented to be? methodology allows to compare the framing of homelessness and the proposed solutions in order to better understand whether policy changes creating increasingly accessible service provision or remains selective in whom it helps. The results indicate that the legislative change has widened the parameters of who is to be considered vulnerable; and there is a shift in focus towards prevention allowing for more people to access services. However, the continued use of categorisation and assessment of the homeless on basis of vulnerability, localisation and focus on intentionality of homelessness ultimately maintains gatekeeping of resources. The results indicate possible narratives which may allow for shifts in problematisation of homelessness especially during the current COVID-19 crisis which has created unprecedented shift in homelessness strategies. Further research is necessary to understand better resilience of the legislation during crisis, and how to shift narratives on homelessness into empowering and inclusive instruments.