More than 120 million people have been forcibly displaced worldwide. Refugee camps devised as “temporary” have evolved into quasi-permanent settlements. Drivers of displacement – war, conflicts and climate impacts – are increasing as international aid wanes.

As a result, there is an urgent need to better understand and provide for the energy needs of forcibly displaced  populations, which include refugees, internally displaced people, asylum seekers and forced migrants.  

To help address these issues, SEI Oxford is pursuing a new research agenda we call “Humanitarian Energy and Climate Transitions” – a phrase that outlines a course of work that seeks to better understand and underpin actions to address the following:

• how renewable energy solutions are supplied in refugee camps and contexts of forced displacement,
• how climate action policies and practices are being developed and implemented in humanitarian settings, and
• how injustices are created and reinforced within humanitarian energy supply and by climate action policies for forcibly displaced people.  

The ultimate aim of the agenda is to help increase ambition in and delivery of renewable energy approaches and climate change-related actions within the humanitarian sector.

Responding to calls for change

SEI’s new research begins as calls to radically reform the UN and humanitarian climate system are reaching the top of global agendas. Against this backdrop, new evidence is essential to help people living in these settings access clean cooking and electricity in a way that does not add to the climate crisis. For example, improved cookstoves can reduce emissions from firewood and charcoal fuels, and renewable electricity provided by solar panels can reduce emissions from diesel fuel-powered generators. This enables action on climate while also providing more access to energy.

“Inclusive change is at the heart of this research”, said Dr Sarah Rosenberg-Jansen, the SEI Oxford Senior Research Fellow who leads the work. “Our focus is on energy justice in a way that enables those living in refugee setting to access modern energy, and that does not place a further burden on future generations by reducing emissions from the humanitarian sector.”

Research started in May 2025, with initial analysis on the interplay of climate, energy, and forced migration. New evidence under the portfolio has already been published in “Business and financing models for PV-supported clean cooking as a critical climate technology for last mile communities”, a report by the UN Environment Programme.

The work under this agenda also seeks to provide new evidence and expert advice on private-sector investments; to inform accountability for action within UN institutions for the climate transition; and to reduce injustices for forcibly displaced people and those experiencing climate vulnerability.

Core subjects of research

SEI Oxford is pursuing three core avenues of research:    

• Investment – Understanding how private-sector humanitarian collaborations can contribute to scaling effective financing for the climate transition. This work examines how financial instruments, fiscal systems, private finance, blended finance, and green bonds can support humanitarian energy and climate investments in forced displacement and crisis settings.   

• Institutions – Providing evidence on how enhanced accountability can support donors in proactively addressing institutional effectiveness and boost commitments to provide sustainable energy and contribute to efforts to reduce fossil fuel emissions and their impacts in humanitarian contexts. The aim is to help accelerate energy transitions away from fossil fuels and towards renewables. The focus is twofold: understanding how development and humanitarian donors can work together to reduce emissions within the humanitarian sector, and examining aid effectiveness in delivering renewable energy and climate action for refugee and displaced communities. 

• Injustices – Analysing how inclusive approaches on climate and energy approaches can allow humanitarians to develop meaningful participation for refugees within their policies and practices, which in turn can lead to the strengthening of human security. This avenue of research focuses on systemic inclusion issues, global governance, and inclusive finance infrastructure within the humanitarian climate and energy sectors.   

The research links to the SEI-wide strategy impact areas and priorities for change on climate transitions and health & wellbeing, and SEI Oxford’s new Strategy Roadmap for 2025 to 2030. The work will build on SEI’s global expertise in sustainable finance, climate and mobility, and renewable energy.