Institutional Expansion

Abstract

The focus of this chapter is to situate climate induced displacement into the realm of governance. With climate induced displacement being a newer phenomenon, it has no governance structure of its own, but there are IGOs which govern migration and displacement in alternative contexts. Before the constraints on such organizations can be understood, governance structures must be situated within the broader international relations literature. While their unique inner workings and expansion will be discussed in the case studies in the next chapter, this chapter will serve as a conceptual background as to how governance at the intergovernmental level is currently understood (in the broadest sense) and what should be expected from it. Additionally, it identifies the functions of international governance organizations, how they develop, and why they are used. Finally, the chapter provides an overview of several institutional expansion theories and elaborates on how they can and do creep into various additional issue areas beyond their original mandates.