Definitions Matter: Migrants, Immigrants, Asylum Seekers and Refugees

Migration, or movement of people, has been referred to as the third wave of globalization, following goods and capital. This phenomenon is growing in scope, complexity and impact. Human migration across borders is now at an all-time high, accounting for more than 258 million people or 3.4% of the population, a number that has doubled since 2000 and tripled since the 1970s. Human mobility is not, however, a new phenomenon. Migration has been constant in human history and has long been related to livelihoods, culture and disasters, with some of the earliest recordings demonstrated through petroglyphs in Azerbaijan, some 10 000 years old, depicting humans on the move...