We canâ€t continue to ignore the links between climate change and migration – Inside track

This post is by Ben Margolis, consultant for Unbound Philanthropy.

Very few delegates will be thinking about immigration as they attend the 29th UN Climate Change Conference in Baku (COP29). Their minds, and mandates, will be on carbon and – this year in particular – on finance.

Yet, as early as 1990, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned that “the gravest effects of climate change may be those on human migration as millions are displaced by shoreline erosion, coastal flooding and severe droughtâ€.

And, today, we are seeing the devastating reality of this impact with communities being displaced by climate-related environmental impacts from as far afield as the Carteret Islands, Louisiana and Fairbourne in Wales.

Yet, climate change and migration continue to be discussed largely as two separate issues by NGOs and funders leading to opportunity costs for shared approaches to policy, advocacy, organising and communications.

Over the past 12 months, Ruth Grove-White and I have been mapping the growing landscape of work at the intersections of the climate crisis and migrant justice in the UK for our report Building Common Ground in which we have identified pathways and priorities for more connections and joint work.

Impact on migration is variable and complex
The impact of climate change on migration patterns is highly variable, context specific and often unpredictable. Sudden natural disasters, and slow onset environmental changes, are part of a complex set of factors including conflict, poverty and political instability which can force people to leave their homes in search of safety or opportunity.

Migration is increasingly recognised as a form of climate adaptation with people moving to respond to, or to mitigate, the risks and uncertainties associated with climatic changes. The vast majority of those displaced due to sudden, or slow onset, environmental factors remain within their own country, putting cities and urban areas at the forefront of the response to some of the challenges and pressures this can create.

For those forced to leave their home countries, most will move to a neighbouring country, whilst a tiny minority will seek sanctuary further afield, including in the UK. This has not prevented fears of vast numbers of ‘climate refugees†being used as part of the anti-immigrant playbook in the UK and elsewhere, a situation not helped by inaccurate reports predicting up to a billion ‘climate refugees†by 2050.

Why isnâ€t there a focus on this issue?
Our research uncovered five reasons that climate-focused NGOs, funders and think tanks (with some very notable exceptions including Climate Outreach and the Climate Justice Coalition) have not developed domestic policy or campaigning platforms on climate-related migration. These can be summarised as:

1. Lack of knowledge and expertise within organisations, leading to a reluctance to become involved due to the complexity and perceived risks of actively engaging on the issue of migration.
2. Historical tension between the climate and migration sectors in the UK, based in part on the lack of a justice-focused approach by climate NGOs
3. Lack of political space for influencing climate (and even more so, migration) policy over the past 14 years has limited the potential for cross sector working and common approaches.
4. Complexity of the intersections between climate and migration and a lack of ‘easy fixes.†Domestic policy options are complex and under-researched and there are no easy legal pathways or international treaties to be signed.
5. Underpinning all of this is the severe lack of funding to develop expertise and programmes.

Important opportunities must not be missed
This has led to some NGOs – and many politicians – to decide there is little to be gained from a focus on climate-related migration. However, that is to ignore the reality that people are already being forced to move due to the climate crisis, and that the domestic political landscape will continue to be shaped by the political space available for responses to immigration and climate change.

We risk missing an important window of opportunity to advocate for domestic and foreign policy interventions that will benefit both the climate and migrant justice agenda. In the UK, the new government has recognised the connections between climate justice and racial justice for the first time, whilst internationally there are opportunities for the UK to engage with the Platform on Disaster Displacement and to show leadership on climate-related migration through the Loss and Damage negotiations at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, amongst Commonwealth countries and elsewhere.

Many of those in the climate sector we spoke to for our report recognised the need for a shared approach with the migration sector to a rights-based agenda that meets the needs of both people and planet. As well as shared narratives and joint advocacy, there are several policy priorities being developed, including for legal pathways for those displaced due to environmental factors, and calls for massive increases in financing through, for example, the Loss and Damage fund, to support countries facing the costs of climate-driven disasters, including the displacement they cause.

A more joined up approach is needed
Over the next 12 months we will be working with Climate Outreach, who have pioneered work in this space, Green Alliance and others to develop a better understanding of the policy and political landscape around climate-related migration and opportunities for the climate and migrant justice sectors to work together.

Alongside this, we are in discussion with several funders about how to support and encourage more investment at the intersections of climate and migration, without undermining critical funding requirements in other areas.

If you are interested in this work and would like to find out more, please contact Ben Margolis at [email protected] or Ruth Grove-White at [email protected].

To find out more about climate-related migration at COP29 see https://climateoutreach.org/cop29/