What are the Experts Saying about Climate Refugees

The Refugee Studies Center's Forced Migration Online posted an interesting podcast by Radio Netherlands broadcasting from the Hague Debates in May 2008. Jump to minute 10 of the podcast to begin: ‘When home gets too hot: Human Displacement and Climate Change in International Law’

http://www.forcedmigration.org/podcasts/hague-climate-debate/

The Brookings Institute provides researches on some of the most pressing topics in International Relations. Walter Kälin, Representative of the Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons and Co-Director,Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement produced an interesting document in 2008 analyzing the nexus between climate change and the displacement of people.

Here is a link to the document: http://www.brookings.edu/papers/2008/1016_climate_change_kalin.aspx

Kälin concludes 3 major points from his research that I would like to share with you:

1. Persons affected by the effects of natural disasters and other effects of climate change should be considered as being forcibly displaced and thus, in principle, of special concern of the international community if:

• As persons displaced inside their country, they cannot return to their homes for factual or legal reasons or cannot reasonably be expected to do so because of a lack of security or sustainable livelihoods there. They are persons internally displaced as a consequence of the effects of climate change or other environmentally related reasons. They should be assisted and protected within the framework of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement.

• As persons displaced across internationally recognized state borders, they cannot return to their country of origin for factual or legal reasons or cannot reasonably be expected to do so because of a lack of security or sustainable livelihoods there. They are persons displaced across internationally recognized borders as a consequence of the effects of climate change or other environmentally related reasons. They should be granted admission to and temporary – and in some cases (e.g. sinking island states) even permanent – stay in the country concerned. The exact scope of their entitlements to assistance and protection needs to be further determined.

2. Persons affected by the effects of natural disasters and other effects of climate change but not falling into any of these categories are not victims of forced movement and thus should not, in principle, be of concern to the international community as a special category even if their movement is triggered by such effects. Nevertheless, they may profit from protection and assistance available under general human rights law, including in particular provisions addressing the specific needs of migrants, and the exact scope of these entitlements needs to be further determined.

3. Persons displaced inside or across internationally recognized state borders by armed conflicts over resources becoming scarce as a consequence of climate change, are internally displaced persons, refugees or persons under temporary protection regimes and their entitlements to assistance and protection are determined by the respective normative regimes (Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement; refugee law; etc.).