Climate Refugees

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Climate refugee is a person who has been forced to leave their home as a result of the effects of climate change on their environment. It can be sudden or long-term changes. Such changes are held to include increased droughts, desertification, sea level rise, and disruption of seasonal weather patterns. Due to that reasons climate refugees may choose to migrate to either within their country or abroad.

The International Organization for Migration has proposed three types of environmental refugees. They are,

1. Environmental emergency refugees: people who flee temporarily due to an environmental disaster. (Tsunami)

2. Environmental forced refugees: people who have to leave due to deteriorating environmental conditions. (Deforestation)

3. Environmental motivated refugees: people who choose to leave to avoid possible future problems.

In 2018 alone, 17.2 million new displacements associated with disasters in 148 countries and territories were recorded (IDMC) and 764,000 people in Somalia, Afghanistan and several other countries were displaced following drought (IOM). In January 2020, the UN Human Rights Committee ruled that "refugees fleeing the effects of the climate crisis cannot be forced to return home by their adoptive countries. Climate refugees face a lot of problems - one of which is not being protected by international laws.

Some of the challenges faced by people from refugee backgrounds in the world. They are: finding affordable housing, finding employment, language and communication barriers, racism and discrimination, community attitudes, impact of disrupted education on schooling and learning English.

There are several countries hosting the greatest numbers of refugees. They are, Bangladesh, Iran, Sudan, Germany, Lebanon, Uganda, Pakistan, and Colombia. Executive Director of UNEP, was claiming that 'as many as 50 million people could become environmental refugees' if the world did not act to support sustainable development. Refugee problems can only be solved in three different ways: - through voluntary repatriation, through resettlement overseas and through integration either in the country of present residence or in combination with intra-European migration. 

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