Education, Conflict and Displacement

Learn more about how this theme explores the complex relationship between education, conflict and mass displacement.

This theme explores the complex relationship between education, conflict and mass displacement. Questions we address include the role of education systems and actors in contributing to both war and peace, and how state, non-state, national and international institutions can contribute to educational provisions in contexts of conflict and protracted crisis.

Since the mid-1990s, the relationship between education, conflict and international development has risen up the global development agenda. The focus on education in conflict-affected states was initially prompted by a realisation that reaching the international “Education for All” targets was impossible without addressing conflict-affected states where 50 per cent of the world’s out-of-school children lived.

There was also recognition of the particularity of delivering education in conflict-affected states, requiring new policies and approaches. This impetus was further consolidated after the events of 9/11 when powerful northern governments became increasingly focused on the relationship between zones of conflict and their own (in)security.

The number of forcibly displaced people has more than doubled over the past decade and now stands at over 120 million. Ensuring access to quality education is a critical part of humanitarian and development responses to crises. While the majority of displaced people continue to be located in countries neighbouring conflict, increasing numbers are located in the global north. The education of refugees and asylum seekers, and the perceived challenges of social cohesion and integration are pressing issues in both the global north and south requiring multi-agency responses.

It is also increasingly recognised that climate change can be a driver of both conflict and displacement – and inversely that conflict and displacement can exacerbate the impact of climate change.

Research within this theme explores the complex relationship between education and conflict:

What role can education systems play in contributing to both war and peace? What role does education play prior to the outbreak of conflict, during conflict, in the immediate aftermath of conflict, and in long-term post-conflict reconstruction?
What roles do state, non-state, national and international actors play in the global governance of education in conflict affected states - and how can we ensure that they contribute to long-term, sustainable peacebuilding?
In what ways do conflict, climate-ecological crises and education interact?
How can we strengthen the voice and role of civil society to promote more peaceful and socially justice societies?
How is education for refugees and internally-displaced peoples funded, organised and implemented?
How can we ensure access to quality education for refugees and internally displaced people which enables them to navigate pathways to sustainable livelihoods
How do refugees and refugee communities experience and navigate life and education in exile?

Since 2010, this had led to a series of research projects on the relationship between education and peacebuilding, supported by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and UNICEF. We have also undertaken studies of the role of teachers in peacebuilding and social cohesion, funded by ESRC/DFID, in Rwanda and South Africa. Other research has focused on the securitization and militarization of aid to education in conflict affected contexts (funded by the Open Society Foundations) and more recently, we have secured a major grant from the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council, to carry out research on Social Movement Learning and Knowledge Production in the Struggle for Peace with Social Justice, with case studies in Colombia, Nepal, South Africa and Turkey.

We also have a strong focus on Refugee Education in both the global north and south. Research has examined refugee resettlement and structures of exclusion in the north. For example, ‘Optimising Refugee Resettlement in the UK. A Comparative Analysis’ (see details and project papers on the Research Projects web page) is an ESRC funded project (2014-18) which explored the outcomes for refugees resettled to the UK five or more years after arrival.

Professor Linda Morrice has been awarded a new ESRC project ‘The Role of Digital Technology in Social Networks and Wellbeing of Unaccompanied Young Refugees’ (2024 – 2026).

Professor Yusuf Sayed and Dr Nimi Hoffmann led a project on Refugee Education in Ethiopia and Somalia and funded by the European Union (see details under the project 'Safe and Quality Education for Girls and Boys in Displacement Situations in Ethiopia and Somalia').

Professor Linda Morrice led a project on Refugee Education in Jordan and funded by the Queen Rania Foundation (see details under ‘Assessment of Education Strategies and Interventions Adopted in Jordan’). 

In 2020, Professor Mario Novelli, was awarded a major GCRF Network Plus Grant (2020-2024) to develop work on the Political Economy of Education in Conflict Affected Contexts – the PEER Network.

The research theme is co-led by Professor Mario Novelli and Professor Linda Morrice, with engagement from Dr Birgul Kutan, Dr Nimi Hoffmann, Dr Gunjan Wadhwa and other colleagues in CIE. We also have a lively and critical mass of doctoral researchers carrying out research in this important field.