The conference series ‘Conferencias Kapuściński sobre Desarrollo’, named after the polish journalist and author Ryszard Kapuściński (1932-2007), are organised by the European Commission, the United Nations Programme for Development and a network of associated universities and think-tanks. The conferences offer students the chance to learn about and debate on questions such as climate change, economy, energy transition, effectiveness of aid, relations between Europe and Africa and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Conferences are broadcasted live through their webpage (https://kapuscinskilectures.eu) and through social media. Since 2009, more than 40,000 participants, live and online, have attended 130 different conferences.

Cathryn Costello is full university professor of International Human Rights and Refugee Law at the Sutherland School of Law of the University College of Dublin. She previously was full-time university professor of Fundamental Rights and co-director of the Centre of Fundamental Rights of the Hertie School (2020-2023), while still being visiting lecturer at the Hertie School. She was also Andrew W Mellon University Lecturer of International Human Rights and Refugee Law at the Refugee Studies Centre of the University of Oxford (2013-2023).

Costello is an outstanding scholar of refugee law and migration, and, in her work, she also explores the relation between migration and labour law. Currently, she is Principal Investigatorat RefMig, a five-year research project that explores mobility, the recognition and rights of refugees, and the AFAR (Algorithmic Fairness for Asylum Seekers and Refugees) project, financed by the Volkswagen Foundation. She has also conducted research for ACNUR, the Council of Europe and the European Parliament. She is doctor in Law by the University of Oxford.