As islands sink, diplomats discuss...
By the year 2050, the World Bank predicts that over 200 million people around the world will have to migrate due to the effects of climate change. With the dire circumstances, one may ask: what rights would I have fleeing climate change? Do I have any? What is the UN doing? On this page of the website, we will be looking at the current status of climate refugees in regards to how they are identified/defined by the international community and the legal implications associated with climate refugees.
Legal Definitions
United Nations
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Definition of Refugee
Someone who "owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular special group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it.
There is no international legal category for refugees even though there are already millions of climate refugees.
The United Nations does not use the term “climate refugees” and does not have a “special” category for them. The only area/agreement where the issue of people fleeing from climate change is the 2018 Global Compact on Refugees which identifies that “climate, environmental degradation, and natural disasters increasingly interact with the drivers of refugee movements.”The UN’s refugee agency, UNHCR, only gives refugee status only if the “adverse side effects of climate change interact with armed conflict and violence.”
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The UN seems to only intervene in climate crises when they have already happened. Per the organization, they focus on “providing legal advice, guidance, and support to the international community to develop enhanced protection for refugees and other people displaced in the context of disasters and climate change, and catalyzing international discussions on their rights.” Although the UNHCR does not recognize “climate refugees,” the organization issued a new line of guidance regarding their legal protections. This occurred in a ruling in the case of Ioane Titiota, who applied for protection in New Zealand in 2013 on the basis that he and his family’s lives were endangered in his home country, Kiribati, due to the effects of climate change. Although he lost his case, the UN decided to make a statement about “climate refugees.” The UNHCR said that “refugees fleeing their native countries due to the effects of the climate crisis in future years may not be forced to return if their lives are in danger.” UNHCR argues that some individuals fleeing from the effects of climate change can be given refugee status on occasions “where climate change impacts intersect with violence and conflict in ways that give rise to credible refugee claims” because “the adverse effects of climate change are often worsened by factors such as poor governance, scarce natural resources, socioeconomic inequality, political and religious tensions, and xenophobia—many of which could give rise to claims of persecution.”
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Definition of internally displaced persons
“Persons or groups of persons who have been forced or obliged to flee or to leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized state border.”
But, this does not automatically give them “special legal status because IDPs, being inside their country, remain entitled to all the rights and guarantees as citizens and other habitual residents of the country.” Additionally, UNHCR gives directions for “planned relocation” for individuals facing “disasters and environmental change” but it is not similar to and as extensive as the “formal refugee resettlement process.”
Because those fleeing the effects of climate change cannot, for the most part, be given refugee status, they are not given the same rights and privileges which puts them at a great disadvantage in terms of legal protection. Some protection can be given to individuals if they can be given IDP status: IDPs “have the right ‘to receive protection and humanitarian assistance’ from their state’s authorities, and a state shall not arbitrarily refuse international humanitarian assistance." But, the UNHCR has gatekept these protections to IDPs “who, if they had breached an international border, would be refugees.” Additionally, the UNHCR’s scarce resources have made the organization claim that it “does not have a general competence for internally displaces persons,” meaning protections are guaranteed. The lack of a clear definition for persons fleeing the effects of climate change has other implications as well.
According to Professors Dr. Tayyar Ari and Faith Bilal Gökpinar at Bursa Uludag University, a “clear definition is crucial for two essential reasons: a proper definition would direct governments and international organizations to take the right actions [and] depending on the definition, reliable datasets can be provided.”
The International Organization for Migrants
The International Organization for Migrants (IOM) is a part of the United Nations System. They, like the UNHCR, do not support the term “climate refugee” and instead adopt the terms “environmental migrants/migration” and “climate migrants/migration.”
Definition of enviornmental migrant/migration
“Persons or groups of persons who, predominately for reasons of sudden or progressive change in the environment that adversely affects their lives or living conditions, are obliged to leave their habitual homes, or choose to do so, either temporarily or permanently, and who move either within their country or abroad.”
Definition of climate migrant/migration
"The movement of a person or groups of persons who, predominately for reasons of sudden or progressive change in the environment due to climate change, are obliged to leave their habitual place of residence, or choose to do so either temporarily or permanently, within a State or across an international border.”
The relationship between these two terms entails “climate migration” being a type of “environmental migration” that specifically deals with the issue of climate change and how it changes an individual’s environment. The IOM uses the Cancun Agreements on climate change adaptation, adopted by States Parties to the UNFCC at the 2010 conference. This definition is also used at the World Bank. The Cancun Agreement outlines three specific types of movement due to climate change: planned relocation, disaster displacement, and human mobility/migration.
Definition of planned relocation
“A planned process in which persons or groups of persons move or are assisted to move away from their homes or place of temporary residence, are settled in a new location, and provided with the conditions for rebuilding their lives.”
Planned relocation “is generally used to identify relocations that are carried out within national borders under the authority of the State and denotes a long process that lasts in the new setting and no longer have needs or vulnerabilities stemming from the planned relocation."
Definition of disaster displacement
“Situations where people are forced to leave their homes or places of habitual residence as a result of a disaster or in order to avoid the impact of an immediate and foreseeable natural hazard.”10 The term is "mostly used to identify forced movements of people triggered by sudden-onset events in the environment."
Definition of human mobility
A “generic term” in that it “reflects a wider range of movements of persons than the term ‘migration’’’ and “is usually understood as also encompassing tourists that are generally considered as not engaging in migration.”
The Environmental Justice Foundation
The Environmental Justice Foundation is an NGO based in the United Kingdom that focuses its work to research and fight for environmental protection and justice efforts. They endorse the use of the term “environmental refugees."
Definition of environmental refugees
“Persons or groups of persons who, for reasons of sudden or progressive climate-related change in the environment that adversely affects their lives or living conditions, are obliged to leave their homes either temporarily or permanently, and who move either within their country or abroad.”
Although not explicitly mentioned, it seems as though the Environmental Justice Foundation uses definitions from a combination of scholars, journal articles, and existing definitions/international agreements such as the 1951 UN convention and the 1961 Convention of Statelessness.
Climate Refugees (NGO)
Another NGO, Climate Refugee, also endorses the use of “refugee.”
Definition of climate refugee
People who are “displaced and forced to migrate within and across borders as a result of climate change.”
The organization specifically uses the term “refugee” to “provoke conversation, emphasize the political responsibility of climate change, raise awareness of its ability to impact, one might even say, persecute some more than others, contribute, provoke and challenge policy, highlight need by giving voice to those affected and to help seek their legal protection… ultimately, to present this as a challenge to human right.”
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Current State Policies
New Zealand
New Zealand has been an outlier in the world in that they have, unlike most nations, openly discussed ways to give aid to peoples affected by climate change. In 2017, New Zealand’s minister for climate change James Shaw said that he was considering the implementation of an “experimental humanitarian visa category for Pacific Islanders displaced by the effects of climate change." Similarly, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said that she views the concept of accepting climate migrants as a “personal and national responsibility to do our part.”
But, this plan was not implemented because Pacific Islanders did not agree with this plan because they view fleeing to New Zealand as “the last resort.” As an alternative solution, they highlighted steps that the New Zealand government could take: “reduce emissions, support adaptation efforts, provide legal migration pathways and finally, if all fails, grant refugee status.” Under the umbrella of providing legal migration pathways are three sub-pathways: “bilateral/regional labor migration opportunities, humanitarian visas, and planned relocation/managed retreat.”
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Germany
Germany has been a central leading figure in European and global affairs, evident in its role during the 2008/2009 financial crisis. Therefore, any future policy recommendations should have German support in order to garner more support across European nations. Germany has expressed reluctance to accept climate refugees with the Bundestag stating in 2020 that the country would not “grant asylum to people claiming to be climate refugees.” But, the new Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has expressed making Germany more open to immigrants/making citizenship easier, and implementing extensive plans to combat the climate crisis.
The United States
It is important to understand the current laws of the US dealing with this subject area because it is a detrimental player in global affairs both formally and informally. The US does not provide “a formal way of resettling climate migrants even if they had formal status and, for the forcibly displaced among them, refugee-like status.” Those fleeing the effects of climate change might be given refugee status under US law but would have to “make a compelling case to an asylum officer and/or an immigration judge that the government in their home country cannot protect them if they return.” Under current US law, there are some laws that would allow individuals to get aid which include: Temporary Protected Status, Deferred Enforced Departure, Humanitarian Parole, and Compact of Free Association. All of these (except for CFA) give “temporary options to certain qualified people.” But, as CSIS points out, these provisions are not sufficient for the growing crisis of climate migrants and the US needs to update its legal framework in regard to climate migrants.