An International E-Conference was held from 2-5 November, with the theme on ‘Migration, Diasporas and Sustainable Development: Perspectives, Policies, Opportunities and Challenges’. It was jointly organized by Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism [GRFDT] in New Delhi, CISAN in Mexico and Migrant Forum Asia [MFA] in the Philippines. On Day 4 of the conference, Plenary Session II focused on the topic of climate change and migration that was moderated by Ms Evalyn Tennant, Associate and Executive Coordinator of the Global Migration Policy Associates [GMPA].
Road to Recognition for Climate Change
The session began with Mariam Traore Chazalnoel who is an expert on Migration, Environment and Climate Change in the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Mariam explains that IOM conceptualizes climate migration as all forms of movement, whether temporary or movement, that happens directly or indirectly due to adverse climate impacts. She notes the changes in policy frameworks, approaches and operational responses to climate change issues throughout her work at the UN agency and highlights the increased awareness of these particular issues that were otherwise unheard of in the past. “When I first started, I myself was not aware of the linkage between climate and its changes. Where does it take place? How does it happen?” she reflects .Now, there is a growing understanding and acceptance of climate change as a priority on the political agenda. Mariam stresses how it is easier to talk about climate change now because of reasons such as remobilization of society, vulnerable countries experiencing climate impacts and political efforts to rally, mobilize and share knowledge. IOM is one of the many exemplary organizations that is collecting and sharing evidence for policymakers to access and analyse. Today, as they are being developed, climate polices serve as global guidelines to be employed at multilateral governance structures albeit non-binding.
Climate Displacement in the Bangladeshi context
The next speaker, Professor Tasneem Siddiqui from the University of Dhaka delved into the Bangladesh as one of the climate hotspots for migration and displacement. Her study provided statistical insights on how Bangladesh ranked 6th among 135 countries that experienced displacement in 2017, mainly due to voluntary labour migrants who use climate migration as an adaptation tool for their family members who are left behind. Along with their desire to seek livelihoods, it was found that these household members who migrate provide a better income and financial situation to migrants compared to non-migrants. Hence the need to understand that in Bangladesh particularly, displaced populations are not homogenous groups with socioeconomic and environmental risks varying according to demographic features such as gender, ethnicity, geographic location etc. “Climate change does not displace people directly; it exacerbates various forms of vulnerability which then contributes to displacement/migration” Professor Tasneem concludes.
Climate Change influences Movement in Fragile Environments
Professor Stephen Adaawen of the University of Groningen, the Netherlands then took the floor with a West African angle on the session’s topic. His intervention focused on the fragility of the Sahel region and its issues on climate and environmental degradation that include desertification and frequent droughts. These semi-arid conditions that Sahel countries experience affects the livelihoods of populations who are dependent on rain and consequently find themselves disoriented and displaced. Prof Stephen notes that unforeseeable weather makes it difficult to predict the onset of rainfall in order to align the coping calendars of farmers. Furthermore, as migration itself is already part of the social organization of people, he reinforces that “It is difficult to single out how far environment and climate change factors is influencing movement”. This is because of the complex interplay of social, economic and political factors in the region. He finishes his segment with an example on the friction between pastoralists and farmers who are in fierce competition over scarce, natural resources due to the changing climate.
The Persistent Disconnect in the Climate Migration and Rural Development Agenda
Ms Xóchitl Bada from the University of Illinois, USA began to delve into the narrative of climate migration and how it is important to advance from the conceptualization of who happens to be a migrant. She spurs the dialogue on indecisiveness in terminology regarding certain groups of people as refugees versus environmental migrants as a persisting problem because it is an artificial creation of boundaries about who is a migrant or not. In terms of deciding who belongs or who does not belong, Ms Xóchitl underscores that we need to advance beyond classifying people as those who constitute as migrants and those who do not. At the end of the day, classification issues like this brings us back to the problems of the international community in gelling migration, development and rights agendas together – climate migration as a subgroup of the issues in the migration-development nexus is very relevant, just that it is more recent than other categories. For this reason, the climate migration narrative should not be separated from the agendas of migration and development.
“It is important to understand the links between Migration and Development…Yet it has been very challenging in trying to construct a proper, analytical framework to understand this relationship”
Why is this the case? It is because the study of climate migration and the study of development have evolved on parallel tracks that rarely intersect. Scholarship onrural communities’ livelihoods and their collective action to claim rights is rare, alongside decision-making about whether to move to other areas or countries. The decision of where or how to migrate is made without addressing the prospects of sustainable rural livelihoods and collective action on how to fight for alternatives to migration. We should consider for example, how rarely rural development journals include studies on migration and how migration journals rarely include studies on rural development. As a result, what is produced is a set of two different analytical frameworks that study their own dimensions and signals when in fact rural communities are constantly exercising their right to exit i.e. displacement. Ms Xóchitl Bada concludes from these realities that we need a more productive conversation where these two agendas of migration and rural development intersect. More importantly, these artificial boundaries (refugees vs environmental migrants) needs to be broken to allow for more freedom of movement – boundaries that are very often created for the convenience of nation states, because they want to make distinctions of who is what and justify the closure of borders, leading to further migration crises.
How to Conceptualize the Issue of Climate Migration?
Shannon Gleeson from Cornell University, USA proceeded to close the session on exploring the research questions that emerge from the phenomenon of climate migration. She probes on whether the phenomenon is new or recasting old questions, and what are the flows of migrants that emerge from the climate refugee context, and how to define that? Shannon poses a central question in this area of research – is there an equalizing force a broad natural disaster has in terms of who is able to leave or do we continue to see a highly stratified population who are able to migrate as a form of exit? To elaborate, “Asking people why they move, is in and of itself a methodological quandary because it is not the case that migrants necessarily have that sorted out in their minds” They are not going to make claims against the climate solely, therefore it is understood that climate change is not a proximate decision for migration. Shannon then further cautions that when research programmes are set up around issues of climate and environmental migration, we must be careful not to overly focus on climate as a primary factor but rather, focus on the collection of factors that might be driving economic deprivation in some cases.
The session wrapped up conclusively on the consensus that climate migration is induced by climate change impact and environmental degradation, wherein the understanding of its effects cannot be advocated based on climate factors alone.
Tashryn is an avid rock climber, who loves the thrill of heights. When she is not climbing, she is gushing over babies and hanging out in book cafes.