MultiHub Forum

I've been working with communities in the Pacific Islands and coastal regions of South Asia, and the reality of climate change refugees is already here. We're not talking about some future scenario this is happening right now.

Entire villages are being relocated because of sea level rise, saltwater intrusion into freshwater supplies, and increased storm intensity. But there's no legal framework to protect these climate change refugees. The 1951 Refugee Convention doesn't cover environmental displacement.

I've met families who've lost everything to climate impacts but have no pathway to resettlement or assistance. They're often called "migrants" rather than refugees, which denies them the protections and support they desperately need.

What kind of international agreement or framework do we need to address climate change refugees? And how do we balance the responsibility of countries that have contributed most to climate change with the needs of those most affected?

The legal gap for climate change refugees is indeed a huge problem. I've interviewed people displaced by climate impacts who fall through every crack in the system. They're not considered refugees under international law, but they also don't qualify for most migration pathways.

Some countries are starting to develop specific visas for climate change refugees, like New Zealand's proposed humanitarian visa for Pacific Islanders. But these are ad hoc and limited in scope.

What we really need is a new international framework that recognizes climate change refugees as a distinct category with specific rights and protections. The UN Global Compact on Migration mentions climate change, but it's nonbinding and doesn't create legal obligations.

The economic dimensions of climate change refugees are massive but rarely discussed. When people are displaced, they lose not just their homes but their livelihoods, social networks, and often their cultural heritage.

I've done economic analyses showing that planned relocation is far cheaper than emergency response after disasters. Yet there's little funding for planned relocation, while billions are spent on humanitarian aid after disasters occur.

We need mechanisms for climate change refugees that include compensation for losses, support for integration in new locations, and ideally, options for return if conditions improve. The current approach of treating displacement as temporary often leaves people in limbo for years or decades.

The health impacts on climate change refugees are severe and often overlooked. I've worked in camps where people displaced by climate impacts face malnutrition, infectious diseases, mental health issues, and lack of access to healthcare.

But calling them climate change refugees" is important for more than legal reasons. It recognizes that their displacement is not voluntary and that they have specific needs related to trauma, loss, and uncertainty about the future.

We need health services designed for climate change refugees, including mental health support for the trauma of displacement and loss of homeland, and preventive care for the health risks associated with crowded temporary settlements.