Environmental migrant
In 1976, Lester Brown first proposed the term environmental refugee to describe people forced from their homes by ecological changes. By 1985, Essam El-Hinnawi of the United Nations Environment Programme offered a stricter definition involving marked environmental disruption that jeopardized existence or seriously affected quality of life. The International Organization for Migration later defined these migrants as persons obliged to leave habitual homes due to sudden or progressive environmental changes affecting living conditions. Critics argue these definitions overlook structural drivers like colonial legacies and racialized land use policies. Scholars in environmental justice studies emphasize that political factors shape who becomes displaced just as much as ecological ones do.
The International Organization for Migration distinguishes three primary types of environmental migration based on speed and nature of triggers. Environmental emergency migrants flee temporarily due to sudden disasters like tsunamis or hurricanes. Environmental forced migrants must leave because of slow deterioration such as deforestation or coastal erosion. The village of Satabhaya in Odisha, India serves as one of the foremost victims of coastal erosion and submergence due to rising sea levels. In Nepal, villages in the Sivalik Hills face mass migration reports driven by water scarcity. Environmental motivated migrants choose to leave to avoid future problems like declining crop productivity caused by desertification. A study between 2014 and 2018 found deltaic populations in Bangladesh cited economic reasons more often than environment reasons for moving.
Jodi Jacobson became the first researcher to calculate total numbers of environmental migrants in 1988, stating there were already up to 10 million refugees. She argued all forms of environmental refugees would be six times as numerous as political refugees under worst-case scenarios. By 1989, Mustafa Tolba proposed that the number could exceed 50 million people if sustainable development efforts failed. British environmentalist Norman Myers later claimed 25 million existed in the mid-1990s with figures potentially doubling by 2010. He hypothesized displacement amounts reaching 30 million in China and 30 million in India alone. More recently, Myers suggested the figure by 2050 might reach 250 million. Vikram Kolmannskog criticized these works for being inconsistent and failing to account for adaptation opportunities.
Over 65 million people spread across 39 Small Island Developing States live highly vulnerable to social and environmental changes. Islands like Kiribati, Vanuatu, and Fiji face immediate danger from rising sea levels threatening habitability. As of 2020, an estimated 11.5 million individuals originating from these states lived outside their country of birth. A significant portion of Caribbean environmental migrants have sought refuge in the United States, with over two-thirds residing there. Barbados has dealt with a significant rise in environmental migrants due to climate-related challenges. In September 2014, representatives met in Apia, Samoa to form the SAMOA Pathway addressing ten years of climate change faced by islands. Political figures like Mia Mottley emphasize the need for major increases in investment and global support.
In 2022, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report a code red for humanity regarding peace maintenance. When fights between farmers and herders broke out in Nigeria during 2018, over 1,000 casualties accounted for several times more than civilian deaths in Boko Haram conflicts. Two billion people live in areas where violence and instability threaten development. The Arctic zone may lose all its ice by 2035 as nations like China, Russia, and the United States plan control over new trade routes. Heatwaves killed 15,000 in France in 2003 while 356,000 were estimated to die from excessive heat in 2019. By 2070, one to three billion people will live in areas where average annual temperature exceeds 84 degrees Fahrenheit.
Environmental racism refers to systemic exposure of racialized and Indigenous populations to environmental hazards and exclusion from decision-making about land use. Oil extraction in the Niger Delta has led to severe pollution and displacement of local communities who are often Indigenous or Black. Small Island Developing States such as Kiribati and Tuvalu face heightened risks from sea-level rise despite contributing minimally to global emissions. Women, particularly Indigenous and Black women experience compounded exposure due to roles in caregiving and food production. This dynamic contributes to a global health hierarchy where gender, race, and class intersect to determine burden bearing. Addressing these inequities requires policies centering environmental justice and Indigenous sovereignty rather than purely technical solutions.
The notion of environmental migrant has been part of popular culture since The Grapes of Wrath, a 1939 novel by John Steinbeck. Documentary films have explored this theme extensively including Eco Migrants: The Case of Bhola Island released in 2013 directed by Susan Stein. Refugees of the Blue Planet appeared in 2006 with directors Hélène Choquette and Jean-Philippe Duval. The Land Between documentary movie followed in 2014 directed by David Fedele. These works document real-world stories while reflecting broader societal concerns about climate-induced displacement. The World Refugee & Migration Council published Solutions for the Global Governance of Climate Displacement in 2021 highlighting ongoing policy debates.
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Common questions
When did Lester Brown first propose the term environmental refugee?
Lester Brown first proposed the term environmental refugee in 1976 to describe people forced from their homes by ecological changes. Essam El-Hinnawi of the United Nations Environment Programme offered a stricter definition involving marked environmental disruption that jeopardized existence or seriously affected quality of life by 1985.
What are the three primary types of environmental migration defined by the International Organization for Migration?
The International Organization for Migration distinguishes three primary types of environmental migration based on speed and nature of triggers. Environmental emergency migrants flee temporarily due to sudden disasters like tsunamis or hurricanes, while environmental forced migrants must leave because of slow deterioration such as deforestation or coastal erosion. Environmental motivated migrants choose to leave to avoid future problems like declining crop productivity caused by desertification.
How many environmental refugees did Jodi Jacobson calculate existed in 1988?
Jodi Jacobson became the first researcher to calculate total numbers of environmental migrants in 1988 stating there were already up to 10 million refugees. She argued all forms of environmental refugees would be six times as numerous as political refugees under worst-case scenarios. By 1989 Mustafa Tolba proposed that the number could exceed 50 million people if sustainable development efforts failed.
Which Small Island Developing States face immediate danger from rising sea levels as of 2020?
Over 65 million people spread across 39 Small Island Developing States live highly vulnerable to social and environmental changes as of 2020. Islands like Kiribati Vanuatu and Fiji face immediate danger from rising sea levels threatening habitability. As of 2020 an estimated 11.5 million individuals originating from these states lived outside their country of birth.
What is environmental racism and how does it affect Indigenous populations?
Environmental racism refers to systemic exposure of racialized and Indigenous populations to environmental hazards and exclusion from decision-making about land use. Oil extraction in the Niger Delta has led to severe pollution and displacement of local communities who are often Indigenous or Black. Women particularly Indigenous and Black women experience compounded exposure due to roles in caregiving and food production.