Canada and the World, Ep. 24: Seeking refuge in Canada

Prompted by the welcome on January 12 of Saudi teenager Rahaf Mohammed, this episode discusses broader migration policy: what Mohammed’s case says about the need for a special refugee designation for women and girls; what kinds of barriers women and girls face when seeking asylum; what recent trips to the Mexico-US border and Colombia reveal about the needs of migrants; and what the shortcomings of the current global refugee system are. The episode also discusses the signing of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration in December. What value does the compact have and what happens next? Additionally, guest Lloyd Axworthy shares a preview of recommendations from a soon-to-be-released report from the World Refugee Council, spearheaded here in Canada.

Our host

Bessma Momani is professor at the Balsillie School of International Affairs and University of Waterloo and a senior fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation. She’s also a non-resident senior fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington, D.C. and a Fulbright Scholar. She has been non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. and a 2015 Fellow at the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. She’s a frequent analyst and expert on international affairs in Canadian and global media.

This week’s guests

Lloyd Axworthy has had a distinguished career in the public service, holding several cabinet positions, notably minister of foreign affairs. He has been the president and vice-chancellor of the University of Winnipeg and is now the first chair of the World Refugee Council with the Centre for International Governance Innovation.

Jenna Hennebry is an associate professor at Wilfrid Laurier University as well as the Balsillie School of International Affairs. She is an expert in issues of international migration and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular migration. She is also co-founder of the International Migration Research Centre at the BSIA.

Allison Petrozziello is a PhD candidate in Global Governance at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, in association with Wilfrid Laurier University. She specializes in global social governance with a focus on gender, equality and migration.

Canada and The World is produced and edited by Matthew Markudis. Each episode can be found on iTunes and other podcast applications.