Closing the Gap: Climate Mobility in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Settings

The International Rescue Committee (IRC), CARE, and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) invite you to "Closing the Gap," a reception during Climate Week NYC to bring together the people working to close the gap on climate mobility in fragile and conflict-affected settings. These contexts are among the most exposed to climate-driven displacement, yet they remain largely absent from the conversations, financing, and evidence shaping the global climate mobility agenda. The gaps compound each other: ODA to fragile and conflict-affected states has fallen even as needs concentrate there, the dominant frameworks for understanding migration don't capture how mobility works in these settings, and the research base on climate-adaptive migration itself barely covers conflict-affected contexts. What's urgently needed now is investment in locally led approaches that expand people's choices and support communities to stay when they can, move when they must, and do both with dignity. This reception creates a space for the researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and funders working to close that gap to connect, find synergies, and spark the collaborations that move this work forward. We'll open with brief remarks from a few high-level speakers, then leave the rest of the evening open for networking. Featured Speakers: Michael Chapman, Strategist, Climate Displacement and Migration, ClimateWorks Foundation Ciarán Donnelly, Senior Vice President Crisis Response, Recovery and Development, International Rescue Committee Ayan Harare, National Climate Finance Unit Coordinator, Government of Somalia Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Dean Karlan, Former Chief Economist, USAID; Founder, Innovations for Poverty Action