Climate Migration
The Climate Migration, or Environmental Migration, is the mass relocation of people due to climate change and environmental disasters.
Who is at Risk?
Many of the people and communities that are becoming a part of the current climate migration are racial or ethnic minorities in low income or developing countries. Rising sea levels and extreme weather conditions are forcing many people to leave their homes and communities. Because climate change increases the average global temperature and melts glaciers, the sea level rises and floods coastal communities. Climate change also causes more frequent and intense extreme weather events, including hurricanes, tsunamis, cyclones, wildfires, and droughts.¹ These events can deplete resources, destroy habitats and infrastructure, contaminate water, destroy crops, and more. All of these force people to relocate.²
Global Climate Migrants by 2050
The map below indicates the number of people in vulnerable areas who could be displaced due to climate change by the year 2050. A study projected the range of climate migrants expected in each region labeled in the map below. The lower value represents the migrants expected "best case scenario", which predicts the population of migrants if our global population manages to reduce our green house gas emissions. The higher value represents the "worst case scenario", which predicts the population of migrants represents if we maintain high emissions. Based on these values, the world may see over 170 million climate migrants by the year 2050.¹⁷
Every year, climate change causes an average of 20 million people to leave their homes. This crisis is also affecting refugees. Internationally displaced people often live in Climate Change Hotspots, or undesirable areas that are more vulnerable to environmental hazards. Because of this, it could be harder for refugees to return back to their homes or they may be forced to relocate again. The process to move individual families and entire communities is long, expensive, and traumatic.²
What Can I Do?
There are many ways to help reduce climate migrations. Here are some examples:
Reduce your personal emissions and waste by finding more sustainable alternatives.
Vote for and support sustainable waste management practices.
Volunteer with disaster relief organizations or donate money and supplies.
Pressure the government and corporations to establish stricter regulations on emissions and reduce the use of non-renewable fossil fuels.
Support programs to expand the opportunities of refugees and other displaced individuals.
Sources
Lustgarten, Abrahm. “Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration.” ProPublica, 15 September 2020, https://www.propublica.org/article/climate-change-will-force-a-new-american-migration. Accessed 9 August 2021.
The UN Refugee Agency. “Climate change and disaster displacement.” UNHCR, 2021, https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/climate-change-and-disasters.html. Accessed 9 August 2021.
CNN. “These Americans may become 'climate refugees.'” YouTube, 29 March 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TicvZPYuFfg. Accessed 2 August 2021.
Martin, Amy. “An Alaskan village is falling into the sea. Washington is looking the other way.” The World, 22 October 2018, https://www.pri.org/stories/2018-10-22/alaskan-village-falling-sea-washington-looking-other-way. Accessed 3 August 2021.
Cohen, Ari, and Elizabeth Hutchinson. “Colonizing the Inupiat in Alaska: Trade, Economy, Education, and Missionization.” Columbia, November 2015, https://edblogs.columbia.edu/AHISG4862_001_2015_1/iii-class-research/the-inupiat-world-in-the-1890s/colonizing-the-inupiat-in-alaska-trade-economy-education-and-missionization/. Accessed 4 August 2021.
United States General Accounting Office. ALASKA NATIVE VILLAGES: Most Are Affected by Flooding and Erosion, but Few Qualify for Federal Assistance. December 2003, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-04-142.pdf. Accessed 4 August 2021.
Robinson, Mary. Climate Justice: Hope, Resilience, and the Fight for a Sustainable Future. 1 ed., Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018.
Stutter, John D. “Tragedy of a village built on ice.” CNN, March 29 2017, https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/29/us/sutter-shishmaref-esau-tragedy/index.html. Accessed 4 August 2021.
Jordan, James W. “Human and Economic Indicators - Shishmaref.” Arctic Change, December 2016, https://www.pmel.noaa.gov/arctic-zone/detect/human-shishmaref.shtml. Accessed 4 August 2021.
United States General Accounting Office. ALASKA NATIVE VILLAGES: Limited Progress Has Been Made on Relocating Villages Threatened by Flooding and Erosion. June 2009, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-09-551.pdf. Accessed 4 August 2021.
Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. “Shishmaref Relocation Road Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) Study - NFHWY00352.” The Great State of Alaska, 2021, https://dot.alaska.gov/nreg/shishmaref/. Accessed 4 August 2021.
United Nations. “Kiribati: Battling for Survival (Rising Sea Levels).” YouTube, 7 November 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW9EAkqu6aY. Accessed 4 August 2021.
Wikipedia Contributors. “Kiribati.” Wikipedia, 4 August 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiribati. Accessed 8 August 2021.
Bowers, Mike. “Waiting for the tide to turn: Kiribati's fight for survival.” The Guardian, 22 October 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/23/waiting-for-the-tide-to-turn-kiribatis-fight-for-survival. Accessed 4 August 2021.
Iberdrola. “Kiribati, the first country rising sea levels will swallow up as a result of climate change.” Iberdrola, 2021, https://www.iberdrola.com/environment/kiribati-climate-change. Accessed 4 August 2021.
Jeelani, Mehboob. “He leads the country that could drown.” Fortune, 16 June 2014, https://fortune.com/2014/06/16/interview-with-president-of-kiribati/. Accessed 8 August 2021.
Clement, Viviane, et al. Groundswell Part 2 : Acting on Internal Climate Migration. 13 September 2021, https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/36248. Accessed 12 January 2022.