Migration, immobility and displacement outcomes following extreme events

Black, R., Arnell, N. W. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2691-4436, Adger, W. N., Thomas, D. and Geddes, A. (2013) Migration, immobility and displacement outcomes following extreme events. Environmental Science & Policy, 27 (supp. 1). S32-S43. ISSN 1462-9011 doi: 10.1016/j.envsci.2012.09.001

Abstract/Summary

There is growing international concern at the rise in the severity of impact and frequency of extreme environmental events, potentially as a manifestation of global environmental change. There is a widely held belief that this trend could be linked with a future rise in the migration or displacement of human populations. However, recent approaches to migration influenced by environmental change call into question the notion that migration can be ascribed in a singular way to particular environmental causes or events. This paper undertakes a systematic review of evidence on population movements associated with weather-related extreme events. The paper demonstrates that in the face of extreme environmental events, it is important to distinguish between three outcomes – migration, displacement, and immobility – each of which interact and respond to multiple drivers. It also proposes a further insight: that both those who move, and those who do not move, may find themselves trapped and vulnerable in the face of such extreme events. A review of evidence suggests that short-term displacement that goes hand-in-hand with loss of life, destruction of property and economic disruption poses significant risks not because it is ‘environmental migration’, but because it represents a failure of adaptation to environmental change.