CLIMATE REFUGEES

TITLE PAGE

Abstract

Chapter one

Introduction

1.1 definition of climate refugees

1.2 Background on climate change and its impact

1.3 Research questions

Chapter two

The concept of climate refugees

2.1 Historical context: How climate change has linked to migration and displacement

2.2 A review of existing definitions and frameworks

Chapter three

Causes and consequences of climate displacement

3.1 Climate related hazards

3.2 Human rights implications

Chapter four

Case studies of climate displacement

4.1 Examples from around the world such as The Maldives and rising sea levels,
Hurricane Katrina and displacement in the United States, Drought and displacement
in the Horn of Africa

Chapter five
International law and policy responses

5.1 Overview of existing international frameworks: The 1951 Refugee Convention,

the 2015 Paris Agreement, and the Sendai Framework

5.2 Proposals for new or strengthened international responses to climate displacement

Chapter six

Humanitarian and Development responses

6.1 Overview of humanitarian responses to climate displacement: Emergency

assistance, shelter, and protection

6.2 Development responses: Climate-resilient infrastructure, agriculture and

livelihood support

6.3 Case studies of successful responses and lessons learned

Chapter seven

Conclusion

Recommendations

References
ABSTRACT

The scientific community has long urged for the broadening of the refugee term,
which remains identical since the 1951 Refugee Convention, despite strong evidence
showing connections between forced migration and climate change. Even though the
concept of climate and environmental refugees is not legally recognized, the
discussion concerning these definitions is increasing. Furthermore, with the
intensification of global climate change, a more specific subcategory of refugees
began to be popularized: climate change refugees.

This paper examines the ideological roots of these concepts in development theories
and policy narratives about demographically induced migration, environmental
refugees and environmental security1. A climate change refugee is any person who
has been forced to leave their home, or their country, due to the effects of severe
climate events, being forced to rebuild their lives in other places, despite the
conditions to which they are subjected.

INTRODUCTION

The term 'climate refugees' has been in the public discourse since 1985, when the UN
Environment Programme (UNEP) expert Essam El-Hinnawi defined 'environmental
refugees' as: 'those people who have been forced to leave their traditional habitat,
temporarily or permanently, because of marked environmental disruption (natural
and/or triggered by people) that jeopardized their existence or seriously affected the
quality of their life'.

This definition is also used for the term 'climate refugees'; whether there is a practical
difference between 'environmental' and 'climate' remains unclear. One of the key
challenges in securing protection for those affected by displacement due to climate
change lies in the complexities involved in defining the term 'climate refugee', while
also taking the pre-existing discourse surrounding the Refugee Convention and
previous attempts at defining 'environmental refugees' into account.

OVERVIEW OF CLIMATE CHANGE

1
Black R. 1998. Refugees, Environment and Development. Longman Publishers: New York.
Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Such shifts
can be natural, due to changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic eruptions 2. But since
the 1800s, human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to
the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas3.

BACKGROUND ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND ITS IMPACT

Climate change plays a crucial role in the formation of climate refugees. So, what
exactly is climate change? It poses a significant threat to human existence. It affects
the physical environment, subsequently affecting the health of those living within it.
These changes are driven by shifts in atmospheric composition.

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Such shifts
can be natural, due to changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic eruptions. But since
the 1800s, human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to
the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.4

Climate change is the defining issue of our time and we are at a defining moment.
Shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, rising sea levels that increase
the risk of catastrophic flooding, fires raging across vast expanses of forest and
extreme heat waves and drought, coupled with rapid biodiversity and ecosystem loss,
combining to create a mass extinction event that threatens or severely impacts all life
on our planet; the impacts of climate change are global in scope and unprecedented in
scale.

Scientists use observations from the ground, air, and space, along with computer
models, to monitor and study past, present, and future climate change. Climate data
records provide evidence of climate change key indicators, such as global land and
ocean temperature increases; rising sea levels; ice loss at Earth’s poles and in
mountain glaciers; frequency and severity changes in extreme weather such as
hurricanes, heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, floods, and precipitation; and cloud and
vegetation cover changes.

2
United Nations definition of climate change
3
https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/what-is-climate-change last accessed on 11/11/2024
4
United Nations Climate Action Report
A lot of natural events contribute to Climate change, such as volcanic eruptions, as
well as human activities, such as burning fossil fuels and cutting down forests.
Climate change has happened many times since earth was formed billions of years
ago.

“Climate change” and “global warming” are often used interchangeably but have
distinct meanings. Similarly, the terms "weather" and "climate" are sometimes
confused, though they refer to events with broadly different spatial- and timescales.

From 2011 to 2020, the planet was said to have experienced its hottest decade on
record5, with the global average temperature reaching 1.1°C above pre industrial
levels by 2019. Currently, human-induced global warming is accelerating at a rate of
0.2°C per decade.

While wealthy industrialized nations are responsible for the highest levels of
greenhouse gas emissions, low-income, developing countries contribute the least to
emissions but face the greatest risks. These nations often inhabit geographical areas
that render them more susceptible to climate-related challenges, such as deserts and
low-lying islands. Additionally, they have limited resources to prepare for climate
emergencies and to finance recovery efforts6.

A lot of families have been forced out of their homes leaving them with no shelter, the
standard of living of several families have been reduced to nothing as their jobs have
been claimed, several loses have been recorded as families have been subjected to
mourning their loved ones, children have been separated from their parents and
husbands from their wives, all these as a result of climate change resulting from
natural occurrences.

These changes compromise their well-being or livelihood, and include increased

drought, desertification, rise in sea level, and disruption of seasonal weather patterns.
Though there is no uniform, clear-cut definition of environmental migration, the idea
is gaining attention as policy-makers and environmental and social scientists attempt
to conceptualize the potential social effects of climate change and environmental
degradation, such as deforestation or over exploitation.

6
National Geographic Society on Environmental refugee
“Environmental migrants” and “climate refugees” are somewhat used interchangeably
with a range of similar terms such as, ecological refugees, environmentally displaced
persons (EDP), disaster refugees, ecologically displaced persons or environmental-
refugee-to-be (ERTB)7.

The number of people displaced due to climate change is increasing. In the previous
year, approximately 16.1 million individuals were uprooted because of climate-related
issues8. Projections indicate that by 2050, between 150 and 200 million people may be
compelled to abandon their homes due to desertification, rising sea levels, and severe
weather events9.

Currently, countless individuals in developing nations are experiencing unprecedented

droughts and windstorms, which are robbing them of essential food and basic
necessities.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. How do climate change narratives affect populations identified as likely

victims of climate change?
2. What are the legal and institutional frameworks governing climate
displacement, and how effective are they in protecting the rights of climate
refugees?

CHAPTER 2

THE CONCEPT OF CLIMATE REFUGEES

In the twentieth century, after the end of World War II, governments and institutions
worldwide had the urge to set guidance around the status and definition of migration
and refugees10. In 1948, the United Nations proclaimed the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights. For the first time, an international legal document stated that

7
Boano, C., Zetter, R., and Morris, T., (2008). environmentally Displaced Persons: Understanding the linkages
between environmental change, livelihoods and forced migration. Archived 12 November 2020 at the Way-back
Machine, Refugee Studio Centre Policy Brief No.1 (RSC: Oxford), pg.4
8
https://www.weforum.org/stories/2019/06/how-climate-change-exacerbates-the-refugee-crisis-and-what-can-
be-done-about-it/ last accessed on 07\11\2024
9
World Economic Forum
10
newman and Van Selm 2003
“everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from
persecution.”11

Lester Brown popularized the term “environmental refugees” in 1970, nonetheless the
discussion concerning the category started in 1985, when El-Hinnawi (1985)
published a paper on the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). He
claimed that environmental refugees are “those people who have been forced to leave
their traditional habitat, temporarily or permanently, because of a marked
environmental disruption (natural and/or triggered by people) that jeopardize their
existence12.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT: HOW CLIMATE CHANGE HAS LINKED TO

MIGRATION AND DISPLACEMENT

In 1990, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted that “the
gravest effects of climate change may be those on human migration as millions are
displaced by shoreline erosion, coastal flooding and severe drought”. 13 Subsequent
research has demonstrated that climate change will have increasingly dramatic
impacts on ecological and social systems. Pessimists have predicted dramatic
population movements, political instability, conflict, a vast level of human suffering
and intense pressure on receiving societies.

Debates around linkages between environmental degradation and forced migration

have led to the emergence of a range of highly contested terms, primarily
environmental refugee, but also environmental migrant, forced environmental
migrant, environmentally motivated migrant, climate refugee, climate change refugee,
environmentally displaced person (EDP), disaster refugee, environmental displacee,
eco-refugee, ecological displaced person and environmental refugee-to-be (ERTB).

11
United Nations General Assembly, 1948, Article 14
12
Issa Ibrahim Berchin, Isabela Blasi Valduga, Jéssica Garcia, José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra,
Climate change and forced migrations: An effort towards recognizing climate refugees, Geoforum, Volume 84,
2017, Pg 147-150
13
Created by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in
1988, the IPCC assesses scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant to understanding the risk of
human-induced climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation.
These terms have no accepted place in international refugee law 14, for environmental
conditions do not constitute a basis for international protection. They are descriptive
terms, not a status that confers obligations on States. Debate about their validity is
often shaped by simplistic judgments and preconceived definitions. The lack of a
precise definition of these terms brought about the emotionally-charged issue of
migration.

Evidence that climate change and extreme environmental events (EEEs) are causes of
migration is somewhat still debatable. However, there is growing concern about the
need to develop responses to prevent environment-induced migration and the potential
problems involved. Predicting the complexity and scale of the environmental
migration problem is fraught with difficulty because of the causalty involved in forced
migration.

It is therefore important to investigate the extent to which environmental degradation

is a root cause for migration and conflict, to urgently address the issue of
environmentally-induced migration and to develop consistent policies supported by
scientific and academic research. There is the need to create policies that highlight the
question of vulnerability to changes in environmental, economic and political factors,
and which link questions of humanitarian protection and development squarely with a
policy framework which promotes resilience, livelihoods and adaptation within a
sustainable development framework.

A REVIEW OF EXISTING DEFINITIONS AND FRAMEWORKS

In the last decade, various terms have been used to refer to individuals and groups of
people leaving their homes and places of residence due to catastrophic climate events
that have already occurred or are imminent. These various terms include “climate
refugees”15, “climate migrants”16, “environmental refugees”17, “environmental

14
Boano, C., Zetter, R., and Morris, T., (2008). environmentally Displaced Persons: Understanding the linkages
between environmental change, livelihoods and forced migration. Archived 12 November 2020 at the Way-back
Machine, Refugee Studio Centre Policy Brief No.1 (RSC: Oxford), pg.6

15
Balesh, R., Submerging Islands: Tuvalu and Karibati as Case Studies Illustrating the Need for a Climate Refugee
Treaty, Environmental and Earth Law Journal, Vol. 5, 2015, pp. 78-112
16
Marinică, C. E., The European Union Climate Neutrality and Climate Migrants, Law Review, Vol. XI, No. 2, 2021,
pp. 2-13
17
Myers, N., Environmental Refugees: a Growing Phenomenon of the 21st Century, Philosophical Transactions:
Biological Sciences, No. 357, 2002, pp. 609-613, p. 609
migrants” (“eco-migrants”)18, “survival migrants”19, or compound words such as
“climate-change refugees”, “climate induced migration” (or “climate induced
migrants”)20, “climate change-related migration”21, “environmentally displaced
persons”22 (or “environmentally related displacement”23), “victims of environmental
harm”24, and even terms like “persons displaced by climate change” 25, “persons
displaced by the environment”26, “people displaced by climate change”27, “trapped
populations”28 and “forced climate migrants”29

CHAPTER 3

CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE DISPLACEMENT

The climate crisis is amplifying displacement and making life harder for those already
forced to flee as extreme weather events and environmental conditions worsen with
global heating, they are contributing to multiple and overlapping crises, threatening
human rights, increasing poverty and loss of livelihoods, straining peaceful relations
between communities and, ultimately, creating conditions for further forced
displacement.

Displaced populations frequently have no option but to live in remote locations, in

overcrowded camps or informal settlements, with limited access to basic services or
infrastructure and where they are highly exposed and vulnerable to climate hazards
like floods, drought, storms and heatwaves. In addition, the climate crisis is disrupting

18
Compton, B., The Rising Tide of Environmental Migrants: Our National Responsibilities, Colorado Natural
Resources, Energy & Environmental Law Review, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2014, pp. 357-386
19
Betts, A., Survival Migration: A New Protection Framework, Global Governance, Vol. 16, No. 3, 2010, pp. 361-
382.
20
Francis, R. A., Migrants Can Make International Law, Harvard Environmental Law Review, Vol. 45, No. 1, 2021,
pp. 99-150
21
McLeman, op cit., note 6, p. 17
22
Balesh, op. cit., note 47, p. 80, McCormack, C. B., America’s Next Refugee Crisis: Environmentally Displaced
Persons, Natural Resources & Environment, Vol. 32, No. 4, 2018, pp. 8-12;
23
Collyer, op. cit., note 49, p. 5
24
Docherty, B.; Giannini, T., Confronting a Rising Tide: a Proposal for a Convention on Climate Refugees,Harvard
Environmental Law Review, Vol. 33, 2009, pp. 350-403, p. 361.
25
Hodgkinson, D. et al., “The hour when the ship comes in”: A Convention for Persons Displaced by Climate
Change, Monash University Law Review, Vol. 36, No. 1, 2010, pp. 69-120
26
Moberg, op. cit., note 55, p. 1114
27
McLeman, op. cit., note 6, pp. 1-18
28
Global Implications of Development, Disasters and Climate Change Responses to Displacement from Asia
Pacific, Routledge, New York, 2016, pp. 21-40, p. 30
29
Brown, O., Migration and Climate Change, International Organization for Migration, Geneva, 2008, p. 15
livelihoods and making it more difficult for displaced people to become self-
sufficient30. Climate impacts can also increase conflicts over vital resources like
water, fuel and arable land, threatening peaceful coexistence between displaced
populations and host communities.

CLIMATE RELATED HAZARDS

Hazards are defined as “a process, phenomenon or human activity that may cause loss
of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, social and economic
disruption or environmental degradation”31

Climate hazard refers to the potential occurrence of climate-related physical events or

trends that may cause damage and loss. Climate and climate-related hazards such as
floods, storms, and droughts have served as trigger events for more than 75% of the
disasters that have occurred globally over the past decade 32. These disasters affect the
least developed countries most intensely, proving to be especially harmful to poverty
stricken populations33.

Climate related risks are created by a range of hazards. Some are slow in their onset
(such as changes in temperature and precipitation leading to droughts, or agricultural
losses), while others happen more suddenly (such as tropical storms and floods).

Rises in global temperatures could raise concerns about the impacts of climate
hazards on the energy system. It could affect hydropower generation by accelerating
snow and glacial melt and raising evaporation losses from reservoirs. It could also
decrease electricity generation from thermal power plants and solar PV by derating
capacity and causing difficulties in cooling.34

In the future, a changing climate is likely to exacerbate these effects and could make
development unsustainable in many places. It is necessary to develop the capacity of
all countries to combat hazards so that they do not become disasters. The international

30
UN Refugee Agency on effects of climate change
31
United Nations 2016
32
Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews, Volume 1, Issue 6
33
Diamond J. Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. New York: Viking, Penguin Group; 2005, 575
34
IEA (2022), Climate Resilience Policy Indicator, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/climate-resilience-policy-
indicator, Licence: CC BY 4.0
framework connects climate change and development, mainly within the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change.

HUMAN RIGHTS IMPLICATIONS

Although climate change is already understood as an environmental problem and also

as an economic one,35 the social and human rights implication of climate change are
given little discussion.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights(UDHR), the International Covenant on

Civil and Political Rights(ICCPR), and other human rights instruments require States
to guarantee effective remedies for human rights violations. Climate change and its
impacts, including sea-level rise, extreme weather events, and droughts have already
inflicted human rights harms on millions of people.36

These human rights instruments impose upon States the duty to cooperate to ensure
the realization of all human rights. Climate change is a human rights threat with
causes and consequences that cross borders; thus, it requires a global response,
developed by international solidarity. States should share resources, knowledge and
technology in order to address climate change. 37

Pursuant to relevant human rights principles, climate assistance should be adequate,

effective and transparent, it should be administered through participatory, accountable
and non-discriminatory processes, and it should be targeted toward persons, groups,
and peoples most in need. States should engage in cooperative efforts to respond to
climate-related displacement and migration and to address climate-related conflicts
and security risks.

Those affected, now and in the future, must have access to meaningful remedies
including judicial and other redress mechanisms. The obligations of States in the
context of climate change and other environmental harms extend to all rights-holders
and to harm that occurs both inside and beyond boundaries. States should be
accountable to rights-holders for their contributions to climate change including for

35
The Arctic Climate Impact Assessment Report released by the US in 2004, and the Nicholas Stern report
released by the UK in 2006
36
Human Rights and Climate Change, UNHR.
37
Human Rights and Climate Change on international cooperation, UNHR
failure to adequately regulate the emissions of businesses under their jurisdiction
regardless of where such emissions or their harms actually occur.

CHAPTER 4

EXAMPLES FROM AROUND THE WORLD SUCH AS THE MALDIVES

AND RISING SEA LEVELS, HURRICANE KATRINA AND
DISPLACEMENT IN THE UNITED STATES,DROUGHT AND
DISPLACEMENT IN THE HORN OF AFRICA

An expert report to the UK government in 2005 recommended that the IDP concept
be limited to persons displaced by violence because the causes and remedies of
conflict- induced and disaster induced displacement were different, making it
“confusing” to include both in the IDP definition. 38 In the case of governments, some
have been reluctant to call persons uprooted by natural disasters IDPs because they
basically perceive IDPs as those displaced by conflict.39

In Aceh, Indonesia, for example, the government preferred labeling those uprooted by
the tsunami ‘homeless,’ presumably to distinguish them from the more politicized
‘conflict IDPs’ to whom the government had barred access.40

Maldives, an island nation in the Indian Ocean, is perhaps the country most threatened
by sea-level rise. Maldives rises only 2.4 meters (8 feet) above sea level at its highest
point. Sea-level rise will likely create climate refugees because of changes in
both habitat and economy.41

The unique ecosystem of Maldives supports many of the economic sectors of the
country. Fishing is the nation’s second-largest industry, and Maldivians eat more fish
per day than any other population in the world. The supply of fish in Maldives is

38
S. Castles and N. Van Hear, ‘Developing DFID’s Policy Approach to Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons,
Volume I: Consultancy Report and Policy Recommendation’, Refugee Studies Centre, Oxford, February 2005, at
12.
39
S. Albuja and Cavalier I. Adarve, ‘Work in Progress towards Protection in Natural Disasters: Challenges from a
Conflict/Disaster Context’, Paper prepared for Refugee Studies Centre/Humanitarian Policy Group’s Conference
on Protecting People in Conflict and Crisis: Responding to the Challenges of a Changing World, University of
Oxford, September 2009
40
M. Couldrey and T. Morris, ‘Post-tsunami Protection Concerns in Aceh’, Special Issue, Forced Migration Review
28 (2005).
41
National Geographic Society of Environmental Refugee
however being threatened by rising ocean temperatures, which has occurred as a
result of the oceans absorbing the excess heat caused by global warming.

When water temperature rises, particular types of fish leave for cooler waters, and
food sources, such as coral, die. There could be up to 75 percent fewer fish caught in
Maldives by 2100. This would not only devastate the local economy, but also cause
food scarcity and other problems.42

The top industry in Maldives, tourism, is also under threat, because it depends on the
ecology of the islands. Tourism supports around 30 percent of the Maldivian
economy. But the islands’ popular white, sandy beaches and serene ocean views are
already being affected by climate change. Climate change creates unstable weather
patterns that make storms more volatile. These storms cause increased flooding and
more damage to the Maldives.

Sea-level rise may also sink all 1,200 islands of Maldives. This would force all
Maldivians to find new places to live. Though the Maldivian government has
considered buying land in neighboring countries, like Sri Lanka, India, and Australia,
so that Maldivians can move there, as of 2023, the government is committed to
keeping the islands habitable by reclaiming land. Though it does help the island stay
above water, land reclamation projects can damage the environment. These projects
have damaged coral reefs, destroyed mangrove forests, and harmed island
communities’ way of life and culture.43

For example, traditional dishes in the Maldives are based on locally produced crops,
like coconut and breadfruit. This part of their cultural heritage could be lost without
the islands. Another issue is financing these projects. The Maldivian government has
asked countries with high emissions that are the biggest contributors to climate
change, like China, India, and the United States, for funds. Maldives only contributes
0.003 percent of the world’s emissions but faces complete destruction due to the
emissions of other countries.44

42
Ibid
43
Ibid
44
Ibid
Hurricane Katrina hit the United States Gulf Coast in 2005 and resulted in the
evacuation or displacement of approximately 1 million people. 45 Many have termed
the disastrous situation in New Orleans following the hurricane ‘unnatural’ or ‘man-
made.’46 When New Orleans’ levees failed, 80 percent of the city was flooded.

Although evacuation rates from New Orleans do not vary greatly across demographic
groups, the probability of returning varies significantly by demographic group. 47 More
than a million people in the Gulf Coast were displaced, 600,000 of which remained
displaced a month after the storm. A year after the hurricane, the city was at half its
previous population. Since then it has been rising; the 2014 population was 79 percent
of the 2000 population.48

pastoralism is a way of life centered on raising livestock and provides a critical means
of survival for 15 to 20 million people in the Horn of Africa (the largest grouping of
pastoralists in the world). Due to a reliance on natural resources, pastoralist
communities are particularly vulnerable to natural and human-caused disasters. Even
without climate change factors in, reduced land and water availability (linked to
desertification), bush encroachment, soil erosion, population growth, and political and
economic marginalization challenge the livelihoods of pastoralist communities.

However, pastoralism has been adapted to climate variability for hundreds of years
with mobility used as a response to fluctuations alongside other strategies such as
increasing herd size and raising a range of livestock breeds. Pastoralists are vulnerable
to food insecurity and conflict.

Climate change is predicted to escalate armed conflicts in pastoralists’ areas and

potentially double this number. Strategies that have served drought-affected
communities for many decades are becoming inadequate in light of the frequency and
intensity of droughts and other extreme weather events, in particular floods and
mudslides. Shortages of resources (water and pasture) are leading to increased conflict
between agricultural and pastoral groups, as well as between competing pastoralist

45
McLeman, Climate and Human Migration: Past Experiences, Future, 95
46
Robert D. Bullard and Beverly Wright, "Introduction," in Race, Place and Environmental Justice After Hurricane
Katrina, ed. Robert Bullard and Beverly Wright. (Boulder: Westerview Press, 2009) 2
47
Jeffrey A. Groen and Anne E. Polivka. “Going Home after Hurricane Katrina: Determinants of Return Migration
and Changes in Affected Areas.” Working Paper 428. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2009). 15.
48
Allison Plyer, “Facts for Features: Katrina Impact.” Last modified August 28, 2015, datacenterresearch.org
communities. Years of inappropriate and untargeted interventions and programming
in pastoral areas are intensifying the humanitarian challenges in these

CHAPTER 5

INTERNATIONAL LAW AND POLICY RESPONSES

People fleeing regions for environmental reasons do not meet the strict definition of
refugee from the 1951 Convention. The commonly used term ‘climate refugee’ is
therefore flawed. However as McAdam notes, while the law defines ‘refugee’ in a
particular way, this does not mean that displaced people who do not fit the definition
are unworthy of refugee protection or even necessarily denied it.49

Climate change itself is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon. It raises physical,

scientific, economic, social, political and cultural issues along with legal ones. 50 All
these problems and challenges brought by climate change have led to the need to
adopt international treaties and other documents that regulate this matter. In the
context of climate change, states, according to present international law, have three
types of obligations, i.e., mitigation, adaptation and protection.51

Mitigation related obligations include the task of mitigating the degree of climate
change, in particular by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 52 Adaptation implies
finding the best ways to adapt to the challenges and threats that climate change brings,
while protection is understood as the obligation to secure the rights and address the
(humanitarian) needs of people affected by negative effects of climate change. 53 The
obligation to reduce climate change and adapt to the challenges they bring still fails to
enable people to stay in threatened areas. In this context, the issue of state obligations
in the area of protection of the rights of people affected by negative effects of climate
change becomes particularly important.

49
McAdam, Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law, 97
50
Brunée, J. et al., Introduction, in: Lord, R. et al. (eds.), Climate Change Liability – Transnational Law and
Practice, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2012, pp. 3-7, pg 3.
51
Kälin; Schrepfer, op. cit., note 1, p. 17.
52
Ibid.
53
Ibid.
The 1951 Convention and the following 1967 Protocol are used today to cover the
world’s vast number of refugees fleeing persecution

OVERVIEW OF EXISTING INTERNATIONAL FRAMEWORKS: THE 1951

REFUGEE CONVENTION, THE 2015 PARIS AGREEMENT, AND THE
SENDAI FRAMEWORK

The 1951 Convention provides the internationally recognized definition of a refugee

and outlines the legal protection, rights and assistance a refugee is entitled to receive.
In the aftermath of the First World War (1914 - 1918), millions of people fled their
homelands in search of refuge. Governments responded by drawing up a set of
international agreements to provide travel documents for these people who were,
effectively, the first recognized refugees of the 20th century.

Their numbers increased dramatically during and after the Second World War (1939-
1945), as millions more were forcibly displaced. In response, the international
community immediately created a set of guidelines, laws and conventions aimed at
protecting the basic human rights and treatment of people forced to flee conflict and
persecution. The process, which began under the League of Nations in 1921,
culminated in the 1951 Convention which consolidated and expanded on previous
international instruments relating to refugees and continues to provide the most
comprehensive codification of the rights of refugees at the international level.The
cornerstone of the 1951 Convention is the principle of non refoulement contained in
Article 33. According to this principle, a refugee should not be returned to a country
where they face serious threats to their life or freedom. Other rights contained in the
1951 Convention include:

 The right not to be expelled, except under certain, strictly defined conditions54
 The right not to be punished for irregular entry into the territory of a
contracting State55
 The right to non-discrimination56
 The right to decent work57
 The right to housing, land and property, including intellectual property58

54
Article 32
55
Article 31
56
Articles 3 and 5
57
Articles 17,18,19 and 24
58
Articles 13,14 and 21
  The right to education59
 The right to freedom of religion60
 The right to access to justice61
 The right to freedom of movement within the territory62
 The right to be issued civil, identity and travel documents63
 The right to social protection64.

The 1951 Convention only protects persons who meet the criteria for refugee status.
Certain categories of people are considered not to deserve refugee protection and
should be excluded from such protection. This includes persons for whom there are
serious reasons to suspect that: they have committed a crime against peace, a war
crime, or a crime against humanity; they have committed a serious non-political crime
outside their country of refuge prior to the admission to that country as a refugee; or
they are guilty of acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Any State that is yet to sign the 1951 Convention into its treaty can do so at any time
by depositing an instrument of accession with the Secretary-General of the United
Nations. The instrument of accession must be signed by the Foreign Minister or the
Head of State or Government. States wishing to accede to the 1967 Protocol should
follow the same procedure. States may also accede simultaneously to both the
Convention and Protocol, and most States choose to do so.

There was the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with regard to the issue of
climate refugees as a result of climate change. The summit brought about the Rio
Conventions: the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC)65, the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)66 and the 1994
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNC-CD) 67. All three of them
embrace the concept of sustainable development. Since

59
Article 22
60
Article 4
61
Article 16
62
Article 26 and 31(2)
63
Article 12,27 and 28
64
Articles 23 and 24(2-4)
65
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), United NationsTreaty Se-ries, Vol. 1771,
p. 107
66
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), United NationsTreaty Series, Vol. 1760, p. 79.
67
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or
Desertification, Particularly in Africa, United NationsTreaty Series, Vol. 1954, p. 3
The Paris Agreement68 was adopted at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21)
held in Paris on 12 December 2015. The Paris Agreement is a legally binding
international treaty on climate change that aims to strengthen the global response to
the threat of climate change in the context of sustainable development and efforts to
eradicate poverty, by:

(a) holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above
pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C
above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks
and impacts of climate change,
(b) increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster
climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development, in a manner that
does not threaten food production, and
(c) making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas
emissions and climate resilient development.69

In the context of climate change, the following global agreements should also be
mentioned: the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030) 70, the
Addis Ababa Action Agenda (2015)71, the New Urban Agenda (2016) 72, the Kigali
Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer
(2016)73, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2015)74. If achieved,
these agreements would reduce climate change and its impacts on health, well-being,
migration and conflict75.

The Sendai Framework advocates coherence and mutual reinforcement of policy

decisions, monitoring mechanisms and implementation arrangements aimed at
reducing disaster risks. It further calls for a multi-sectoral, multi-disciplinary and

68
Paris Agreement, 12 December 2015, United NationsTreaty Series, Vol. 3156.
69
Article 2 of the Paris Agreement
70
General Assembly Resolution: Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, 3 June 2015,
A/RES/69/283.
71
General Assembly Resolution: Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing
for Development (Addis Ababa Action Agenda), 27 July 2015, A/RES/69/313
72
General Assembly draft resolution:New Urban Agenda, 21 November 2016, A/71/L.23
73
Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, 15 October 2016, United
Nations, C.N.872.2016.TREATIES-XXVII.2. f
74
General Assembly Resolution: Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, 25
September 2015, A/RES/70/1
75
Synthesis Report on the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR 6), Longer Report, Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change, 2023, p. 18.
preventive disaster risk reduction strategy, which goes beyond the traditional single
hazard, response focused approach. It sets as first priority for action the understanding
of disaster risk in all its dimensions. Disaster risk is the combination of three crucial
components: i) hazard: natural processes that may causes loss of life, health impacts,
property damages and environmental degradation; ii) exposure: human, economic, or
environmental assets located in hazard prone areas; and iii) vulnerability: the
susceptibility of people, economic/environmental assets to the impacts of hazards. 76

PROPOSALS FOR NEW OR STRENGTHENED INTERNATIONAL

RESPONSES TO CLIMATE DISPLACEMENT

In light of this looming climate migration crisis, the current refugee protection regime
of the United Nations seems poorly prepared. At present, the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) deals with merely 10 million refugees. 77 It is
doubtful, without major reforms, whether this institution can protect and support a
stream of refugees that is possibly twenty times larger. Moreover, its current mandate
covers only individual political refugees who flee their countries because of state-led
persecution based on race, religion, political opinion, or ethnicity.78

As a result, delegates at the Maldives meeting in 2006 proposed an amendment to the

1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees that would extend the
mandate of the UN refugee regime to include climate refugees. 79 Yet such an
amendment does not promise to effectively resolve the emerging climate refugee
crisis.

The UN refugee regime is already under constant pressure from industrialized

countries that seek restrictive interpretations of its provisions. It is highly unlikely that
these governments will agree to extend the same level of protection to a new group
twenty times larger than those currently under UN oversight and equal to half the
population of the European Union.80 Moreover, extending the current UN refugee
regime to include climate refugees will raise difficult moral issues. It will create
76
UNISDR, 2009. United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). (2009). Terminology on
Disaster Risk Reduction
77
UNHCR, 2006 Global Trends: Refugees, Asylum- seekers, Returnees, Internally Displaced and Stateless Persons
(Geneva: UNHCR, 2007), 4–5.
78
J. McGregor, “Climate Change and Involuntary Migration: Implications for Food Security,” Food Policy 19, no. 2
(1994): 126;
79
Republic of the Maldives, note 1.
80
Myers and Kent, note 2, pages 151–53; and McGregor, note 23, page 128.
unnecessary tensions between the persons protected today under the Geneva
Convention and the new additional streams of climate refugees.81

The protection of climate refugees is therefore essentially a development issue that

requires large- scale, long-term planned resettlement programs for groups of affected
people, mostly within their country. Often this will be in alignment with adaptation
programs for other people who are not evacuated but still needs protection, for
instance, through strengthened coastal defenses. From this standpoint, then,
international agencies such as the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the
World Bank are better equipped than the UNHCR to deal with the emerging problem
of cli- mate refugees.

CHAPTER SIX

HUMANITARIAN AND DEVELOPMENT RESPONSES

In August 2006, the government of the Maldives organized a meeting with

representatives of different governments, environmental and humanitarian
organizations, and United Nations agencies on the issue of the proteins resettlement of
climate refugees82 which had until then, been large outside the climate policy debate.
For a small Island nation like Maldives which is located only a few meters above sea
level, the need for this protection is very crucial for its national security and possibly,
its national survival.

According to some estimates, more than 200 million people might have to give up
their homes due to climate change by 2050.83 Such estimates have a large margin of
error3 and depend on underly- ing assumptions about population growth, economic
81
G. Kibreab, “Environmental Causes and Impact of Refugee Movements: A Critique of the Current Debate,”
Disasters 21, no. 1 (1997): 21.
82
Republic of the Maldives Ministry of Environment, Energy and Water, Report on the First Meeting on Protocol
on Environmental Refugees: Recognition of Environmental Refugees in the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol
Relating to the Status of Refugees (Male, Maldives, 14–15 August 2006, on file with authors).
83
N. Myers, “Environmental Refugees: A Growing Phenomenon of the 21st Century,” Philosophical Transactions:
Biological Sciences 357, no. 1420 (2002): 609 and 611; and N. Myers and J. Kent, Environmental Exodus: An
Emergent Crisis in the Glob- al Arena (Washington, DC: Climate Institute, 1995), 149. The 2006 Stern Review
maintains that the 150–200 million estimate in Myers and Kent (above) “has not been rigorously tested, but it
remains in line with the evidence presented throughout this chapter that climate change will lead to hundreds of
millions more people without sufficient water or food to survive or threatened by dangerous floods and
increased disease.” See N. Stern, The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change (London: UK
Government, 2006)
development, temperature increase, or the degree and timing of climate change
impacts such as sea-level rise. And yet most scenarios agree on a general trend: in this
century, global warming may force millions of people mainly in Asia and Africa to
leave their homes and migrate to other places.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s 2007 assessment indicates that

climate change will likely include regional increases in the severity and frequency of
extreme weather events.84 In some worst-case scenarios, by 2080, with a global
temperature increase of merely 1–2 degrees, storm surges could affect approximately
103 million people each year.85

Gradual sea-level rise, another major effect of climate change, will threaten low-lying
coasts and further increase the damage caused by storm surges. 86 Thousands of small
islands will be at risk, and many possibly flooded. 87 If sea levels rise by 1 meter,
storm surges could make island nations such as the Maldives, the Marshall Islands,
Kiribati, or Tuvalu largely uninhabitable.88

OVERVIEW OF HUMANITARIAN RESPONSES TO CLIMATE

DISPLACEMENT: EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE, SHELTER, AND
PROTECTION

Climate change is already having significant humanitarian impacts, although the link
between these impacts and climate change is not always immediately visible. It has
been suggested that the cumulative impact of these trends will lead to a doubling of
the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance.89

While it is not possible to determine the impacts of climate change on humanitarian

need with any accuracy,90 an increase of this order seems entirely possible. What,

84
M. L. Parry, O. F. Canziani, J. P. Palutikof, P. J. van der Linden, and C. E. Hanson; Climate Change Impacts,
Adaptation and Vulnerability
85
Warren, N. Arnell, R. Nicholls, P. Levy, and J. Price, Understanding the Regional Impacts of Climate Change,
Tyndall Centre Working Paper 90 (Norwich, UK: Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, 2006), 67.
86
R. J. Nicholls, F. M. J. Hoozemans, and M. Marchand, “Increasing Flood Risk and Wetland Loss- es Due to Global
Sea-Level Rise: Regional and Global Analyses,” Global Environmental Change 9 (1999): 72.
87
Ibid., page 81
88
German Advisory Council on Global Change, note 4, pages 46 and 50.
89
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) 2019
90
Partly because of the difficulty of modelling very complex events with very few previous examples from which
to extrapolate (see Allen et al., 2012; Tanner et al., 2019) and partly because much will depend on the success of
actions taken to stop global heating and to make people less vulnerable to the effects of climate change (IPCC,
2014; Romanello et al., 2021).
then, is the humanitarian system doing to respond in the present, and prepare for the
future?

Building on UNHCR's Strategic Framework for Climate Action, their Strategic Plan
for Climate Action 2024-2030 details a global roadmap for prioritized action in
support of governments and in collaboration with a wide range of partners to realize
the following ambitious goal: That by 2030, increasing numbers of forcibly displaced
and stateless people fleeing from climate-fueled crises and/or living in climate-
vulnerable countries find solutions, are protected and resilient to the impacts of
climate change, and have the means to live self-sufficient lives.91

UNHCR is working to increase the understanding of international protection

entitlements arising for people displaced in the context of climate change and
disasters and to increase the technical capacity of state institutions and other partners
to respond to asylum claims of people displaced in these contexts.

States are also being assisted to protect and support their citizens in situations of
internal displacement and supporting the development of laws and policies relevant to
internal displacement in the context of climate change. Hence, forcibly displaced and
stateless people and their hosts can access services that promote the sustainable use of
natural resources and a clean and healthy environment.

UNHCR is further engaging with displaced communities to preserve and rehabilitate

the environment, transition to renewable energy and increase displaced people’s
access to climate-smart water and sanitation services so that such displaced people
and their hosts can prepare for, withstand, recover and be protected from the impacts
of climate change.

UNHCR is working with authorities and local responders to strengthen social

protection services for displaced people affected by climate shocks and disasters. We
also provide sustainable and climate-resilient shelter to shield displaced people from
heavy rains and floods, as well as cash assistance. Work is also being done to
strengthen climate-resilient livelihoods, early warning systems and preparedness
measures, and social protection programs in displacement settings.
91
Strategic considerations in shelter responses; UNCHR
https://emergency.unhcr.org/emergency-assistance/shelter-camp-and-settlement/shelter-and-housing/
strategic-considerations-shelter-responses Last access 26/11/2024
CASE STUDIES OF SUCCESSFUL RESPONSES AND LESSONS LEARNED

Legal and policy frameworks including disaster laws can help in addressing the
complex issues raised by climate-related displacement. In Fiji, after Tropical Cyclone
Winston devastated the country in 2016, the need to strengthen and update the
country’s disaster law became clear. The government requested the Fiji Red Cross
Society and the IFRC to assist in the review of existing disaster law. Fiji’s National
Disaster Management Office is now working towards an integrated approach that also
addresses displacement and planned relocation.92

Also, in a very small village, Ndem, counting about 300 inhabitants, situated in the
Diourbel region of Senegal, throughout the 1970s and 1980s, this area experienced
very severe droughts which triggered a massive rural emigration. Hundreds of farmers
who were unable to sustain agriculture in a climate of rising temperatures and rainfall
deficit, decided to abandon the fields to look for alternative livelihoods in large urban
centres such as Dakar, Diourbel and Touba.

This situation changed in 1985, when the spiritual guide Serigne Babacar and his
French wife Sokna Aissa Cisse returned from Europe to Ndem and founded the
“ONG des Villageois de Ndem”. Over the following years, this small textile NGO
was able to employ hundreds of people from the region, export art crafts both
nationally and internationally, and ultimately create a solid system resilient to climate
uncertainties. Nonetheless, the setting of the NGO was only the beginning of the
adaptation process of the village, which in the last few decades managed to establish
sustainable agroforestry practices, create organic products and fertilizers through the
composting of waste, replace coal through the use of biofuels obtained from peanut
shells and cope with desertification through a program donating children trees to
garden and guard throughout their lifetime to foster reforestation.93

All of these adaptation practices boosted the living conditions of Ndem, which today -
besides current water and electricity - has a primary and a secondary school, a health
centre, a library, a sustainable garden and a “water castle” capable of providing water
to 16 of the neighboring villages in the region. Not only these measures were capable

92
IFRC and Fiji Red Cross; A new era for humanitarian system 2019
93
Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre on Climate change, migration patterns and vulnerability: the case of
Ndem, Senegal
of contrasting the rural exodus, but they also managed to reverse its trend: Ndem
today is a reference point for in-migration flows from all over Senegal.

CHAPTER 7

CONCLUSION

This research paper has examined the complex and multifaceted issue of climate
refugees, with a focus on the causes, consequences, and challenges associated with
climate-induced displacement. It has highlighted the alarming scale and scope of
climate displacement, with millions of people already displaced or at risk of
displacement due to climate-related hazards and slow-onset changes.

It also underscored the critical need for a comprehensive and coordinated approach to
addressing climate displacement, one that prioritizes the rights, dignity, and well-
being of climate refugees. This requires a fundamental transformation of the global
response to climate change, from one that focuses primarily on mitigation and
adaptation to one that also prioritizes climate justice, human rights, and sustainable
development.

Further emphasis was made on the importance of recognizing climate refugees as a

distinct category of forcibly displaced persons, with specific needs and vulnerabilities
that require tailored responses. This includes the need for climate-specific protection
frameworks, climate-resilient infrastructure, and climate-informed development
planning.

To address the challenges posed by climate displacement, some recommendations

have been proposed, including the need for:

1. Enhanced international cooperation and coordination on climate displacement,

including the development of a global climate displacement framework.
2. Increased funding and support for climate change adaptation and resilience-
building initiatives, particularly in vulnerable and climate-affected
communities.
 3. Strengthened protection frameworks for climate refugees, including the
development of climate-specific protection policies and guidelines.
4. Climate-informed development planning and decision-making, including the
integration of climate change considerations into national and local
development plans.
5. Enhanced climate change awareness and education, particularly among
vulnerable and climate-affected communities.

Therefore, the issue of climate refugees represents a pressing global challenge that
requires immediate attention and action. By prioritizing the rights, dignity, and well-
being of climate refugees, and by working together to address the root causes of
climate displacement, we can help to build a more just, equitable, and sustainable
future for all.

RECOMMENDATIONS

To address this issue, it is important that governments, international organizations,

and the society at large work together to develop and implement effective solutions.
Governments and international organizations must develop and implement policies
and programs to address the root causes of climate displacement. This includes
providing support for climate change adaptation and resilience-building initiatives,
particularly in vulnerable and climate-affected communities. Governments and
international organizations must also provide protection and assistance to climate
refugees, including ensuring their access to basic necessities such as food, water,
shelter, and healthcare.

Furthermore, it is essential that governments and international organizations

strengthen international frameworks and agreements to address the issue of climate
refugees. This includes the development of a global compact on climate displacement,
which would provide a framework for international cooperation and action on this
issue. Additionally, governments and international organizations must work to
strengthen and expand existing international frameworks and agreements, such as the
Paris Agreement and the Global Compact on Refugees.
In addition to these policy and programmatic recommendations, it is also essential
that governments and international organizations support research and development
initiatives aimed at addressing the issue of climate refugees. This includes supporting
research on the causes and consequences of climate displacement, as well as the
development of new technologies and strategies for addressing this issue.
Additionally, governments and international organizations must support the
development of early warning systems and climate information services, which can
help to alert communities at risk of climate displacement and provide them with the
information and resources they need to adapt and respond.

Finally, it is essential that governments and international organizations work to

promote community engagement and participation in addressing the issue of climate
refugees. This includes supporting community-based adaptation and resilience-
building initiatives, as well as promoting the participation of climate refugees in
decision-making processes related to their displacement and resettlement. By working
together with climate refugees and their communities, governments and international
organizations can help to ensure that their needs and concerns are addressed, and that
they are able to adapt and respond to the impacts of climate change.

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