Displaced by Climate, Marginalized by the State: Afro-Colombians in Medellín

This talk will explore the intersection of climate change and forced migration in conflict settings through the lens of Afro-Colombian internally displaced people (IDP). Drawing on original PhD fieldwork conducted between 2023 and 2024, Mr. Ruprecht's research examines how climate change-induced environmental degradation in Colombia’s Pacific coastal regions is accelerating violence-triggered internal displacement, in particular among Afro-descendant IDPs displaced from the rural areas of the Chocó Department to the marginalized periphery of Medellín, Colombia.

Michael Nabil Ruprecht is a fourth-year PhD Candidate in political science and international public law. He is pursuing his PhD at University College London (UCL) and is currently conducting research at Yale as a Visiting Scholar. Prior to his PhD, he worked for 10+ years with state institutions, UN agencies, international organisations, NGOs and academia. He holds a BA in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Melbourne, Australia; an MA in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Geneva, Switzerland, as well as an LLM in International Public Law from Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain.