Forum: Issue: Student Officer: Position: General Assembly Fourth Committee Climate Change Refugees Samuel Gang Chair Introduction Climate change is not a new phenomenon. Hence, throughout the history of mankind, civilizations and societies have exhibited various efforts to adjust to climate fluctuations whether by migration, alteration of agricultural patterns, or by adaptation of economical facets. Such adjustments and adaptations proved to be both opportunistic (exploiting some positive properties of climate change) and protective (guarding against negative impacts of climate change). Over the long span of history, adaptation to climate has been successful in many cases. Scientists, historians, and anthropologists view humans as one of the most adaptable creatures on earth. However, the accounts of collapsed civilizations and societies indicate that coping with climate change has neither always been simple nor successful. Yet, many societies have been able to flourish despite their existence in extreme climate zones. Again and again, the adroit use of knowledge and technology allowed humans to adapt in almost every possible topography. However, that has not always been the case in the modern day as climate change deteriorates and global warming persists. As climate change persists, the number of environmental migrants, commonly known as climate change refugees, also grows proportionally. Environmental migrant refers to any people who migrates due to climate fluctuations or a sudden change to local environment such as, but not limited to, desertification, sea level rise, monsoons, and droughts. Often times, such refugees may either be internally or externally displaced based on their situation. Definition of Key Terms Climate Change Climate Change is the long-term shift in weather patterns mainly caused by human activities leading to an increased concentration of greenhouse gases in the planet s atmosphere. The term fundamentally covers precipitation, atmospheric conditions and temperature. Scientific curiosity regarding climate change has existed for decades, and now remains as a serious concern within the international society. Emerging scientific evidence clearly indicates that perennial growth in greenhouse emissions isthe cause that leads
to an eventual rise in sea levels, depletion of the ozone layer, persistent drought, extreme weather levels, ocean acidification, and deforestation. These malaises further impose a serious threat to food security and agriculture, disrupting efforts to eradicate poverty, achieve sustainable development and maintain human health principles. Furthermore, those are the root causes of climate change refugees. As the United Nations Secretary General has emphasized, it is the major, overriding environmental issue of our time, and the single greatest challenge facing environmental regulators. Global climates are changing in unprecedented and irreversible scale, and available tools must be applied imminently in order to mitigate the situation. Refugee The 1951 Refugee Convention designated a refugee as someone who leaves his country because persecution based of nationality, religion, race, social class, or political opinion and is unable to remain safe within his or her own nation or return to it. Previously, the term Refugee was not often associated with climate change or global warming. However, nowadays climate change refugees are also considered refugees on certain limited premises. There is a clear distinction between a refugee and a migrant. Although they may both travel in a similar way, they are fundamentals different. For that reason, migrants and refugees are different under international laws. Migrants in most cases choose to move in order to improve their livelihood while a refugee has no choice but to move in order to be free from persecution. Hence, climate change refugees are often referred as a migrant rather than a refugee. However, the lack of clear precise definition for environmental migrant persists; thus, there is an imminent necessity to clearly define the term internationally. Environmental Migrant As mentioned previously, there is a lack of clear definition for this term. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has defined Environmental migrants {as} persons or groups of persons who, for reasons of sudden or progressive changes in the environment that adversely affect their lives or living conditions, are obliged to have to leave their habitual homes, or choose to do so, either temporarily or permanently, and who move either within their territory or abroad. General Overview With millions of people displaced from their homes in the past few years, various international organizations and international communities has begun to designate the issue of climate change refugee as an urgent issue to resolve imminently. Hence, many nations, whether significantly affected by climate or environmental change or not, began to contribute in solving this issue. Previously, the issue of climate change refugee was one that was not commonly discussed or given sufficient attention. However, it should not be misunderstood that the issue was insignificant. The issue of environmental migrant and climate refugee is something that has been ongoing since the beginning of human race. In the year 2012
alone, approximately 33 million people were forced to flee their homes due to natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and storms. Such incidents continue to claim thousands of lives and cause forced migration. In 2006, the government of the Maldives organized a meeting consisting of other national governments, NGOs and United Nations agencies in order to debate the question of protection and resettlement of climate refugees. For a small island country such as the Maldives, this question was vital to discuss for the sake of its national security and in the strongest terms, the survival of the Maldives. Not only the Maldives, but also other island nations who are endangered by climate change and sea rise have begun to express concern and have taken the issue to an international level. Moreover, it is most likely for low- lying islands to be the first to suffer from global warming. Already, many atolls began to disappear and became inhabitable. Even worse, climate change related migration may escalate into a bigger, global crisis which will be beyond the threats that has previously been limited to few island nations. Many estimations concluded that approximately up to 150 million people may be displaced by the year 2050 due to climate and environmental change under the current status quo. However, such estimations may be incorrect under certain terms as it altercates on population growth, temperature increase, and economic development assumptions. Although such prediction may or may not be accurate, most scenarios agree that in this century, global warming will forcefully displace millions of people especially in Africa and Asia. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change s 2007 assessment has revealed that at the worst scenarios, by 2080, the global temperature will increase one to two degrees and that storms could negatively impact around 100 million people each year. Furthermore, such drastic temperature increase may cause gradual sea- level rise which will endanger low- lying coasts. Hence, tens of thousands of small islands will be at risk with the possibility of being flooded. In cases that sea level rises more than 1 meter, island nations such as Tuvalu, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, and the Maldives will steadily become uninhabitable. Even worse, the global warming will cause droughts and significantly increase water scarcity. Multiple researches predict that a rise of 1-2 degrees in temperature could possibly lead to water shortages for approximately 1 billion people. The population of Latin America, Africa, and island states are the most susceptible to become climate change refugees. Asia is vulnerable primarily because of its highly and densely populated areas which include low- lying coastal areas. Moreover, such areas are also vulnerable to highly damaging monsoons and tropical cyclones. On the other hand, in river deltas in Africa of Nigeria and Egypt are also susceptible to sea- level rise. Furthermore, drought and water scarcity will also negatively impact millions of Africans, and even worse, already fourteen African countries are currently experiencing water scarcity. In the Western Hemisphere, in Uruguay and Venezuela,
thousands of people reside in areas where risk of flooding is extremely high; meanwhile, millions of Mexicans and Guatemalans are facing increasing droughts. Although climate continues to fluctuate and migrants increase, most environmental migrants and climate change refugees are expected to remain in the premises of their home countries since climate change, in most cases, does not affect the entire country. However, recent studies indicate that such migrants could possibly cross international boundaries and borders. For example, the Development, Concepts and Doctrine Centre Global Strategic Trend Programme of the United Kingdom s Ministry of Defense expects large climate change migration from sub- Saharan Africa towards the Middle East, the Mediterranean and even into Europe. Furthermore, other studies project mass migration to the United States from Central America and from the Caribbean islands. Major Parties Involved United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) The UNHCR is the major UN agency dedicated and mandated to support and assist refugees. It was established in December 1950 with its headquarters located at Geneva, Switzerland. According to UNHCR its role is to provide, on a non-political and humanitarian basis, international protection to refugees and to seek permanent solutions for {refugees}. Since the UNHCR deals with more than 10 million refugees, it is doubtful whether this agency has the potential to fully protect environmental migrants and those who claims to be climate change refugees. In addition to that, its current mandate only covers political refugees and those who are dislocated and flee their countries because of persecution based on religion, political outlooks, gender, and race. In order to challenge this, the Maldives proposed an amendment to the 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, in order to include environmental migrants as refugees. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Since the establishment of the UN, it has been heavily involved in alleviating environmental and climate crisis. In order to coordinate its environmental activities, the United Nations Environment was established in June 1972 and has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. The agency aims to cover a variety of issues regarding the ecosystem, atmosphere, adaptation to climate changes, and environmental governance and green economy. Furthermore, it has played a vital role in promoting environmental science and in developing international environmental conventions. Moreover, UNEP heavily influences the policy makings regarding climate change and adaptation. To create awareness of climate change adaptations, UNEP continues to utilize concurrent knowledge and practical policies at both national and global levels. Such works include the Global Adaptation network (GAN) and its regional networks. More importantly, UNEP directly engages with LEDCs (Least Economically Developed Countries) to assist in integrating adaption into national planning progresses. The involvement includes charting institutional and political factors in adaptation s mainstreaming and assessing country specific vulnerability and economic analysis.
Furthermore, the UNEP has begun to address the issue of climate change refugees and has begun proposing solutions to ameliorate the status quo. Greenpeace Greenpeace is a non- governmental environmental organization that is widely regarded as the most independent NGO as it does not accept any donations from corporations and governments but heavily relies on individual supporters. It is notable that Greenpeace utilizes lobbying, direct actions, and research to achieve its goal. After its establishment in the early 1970s, Greenpeace heavily contributed to the fight against climate change by creating awareness and promoting environmental safe measures to adapt to such changes. The Greenpeace believes that reducing carbon dioxide emissions and stopping global warming is the first step solution in ameliorating the issue of climate refugees. Nowadays, Greenpeace has been working extensively to accurately predict the numbers of climate change refugees. International Organization for Migration- The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a nongovernmental organization that was established in 1951 with the purpose to resettle people displaced during the World War II. Nowadays, this organization with its 157 member states is dedicated to provide assistance and services to migrants. The IOM is also dedicated in alleviating the issue of climate refugees. It once stated that Climate refugees fall through the cracks of asylum law. This strongly suggests that currently existing regulations and conventions regarding refugees fails to cover climate change refugees. The Maldives The Maldives is an island nation that is located southwest of Sri Lanka. As the flattest country on Earth, the Maldives is susceptible to rising sea level and faces the threat of its land to be inundated by the end of this century. As a method of preventing such occurrence, the Maldivian Ministry of Home Affairs has identified possible solutions. Some of them include increasing rainwater harvesting, protecting groundwater, and increasing the elevations of infrastructures. In the year 2008, the president of the Maldives proposed to purchase a new homeland elsewhere. The Republic of Kiribati The Republic of Kiribati is an island nation located in the Pacific Ocean. It has long been predicted that the rising sea level will make the island uninhabitable in the next thirty to sixty years. In the year 2007, a man named Ioane Teitiota from Kiribati moved to New Zealand and overstayed the duration of his given visa. The Kiribati man moved to New Zealand claiming that his island back home was unsafe for him and his family. He has made a bid to become the world s first climate change refugee. However, his efforts went futile as the New Zealand s Supreme Court rejected the bid and deported him. Unrelated to this event, in 2014 the president of the Republic of Kiribati stated that he never encouraged any of his people to become refugees. He further emphasized the importance to acknowledge the reality of the rising sea and that the islands cannot accommodate all of his citizens. Hence, Kiribati people have to
relocate in the future, but not as refugees. Previous Attempts to solve the issue - Relevant Treaties, Resolutions and Events Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement The principles were written to address the need of internally persons (IDP). Furthermore, the document clarifies the rights and protections of IDP. It also discusses the issue of return and resettlement of such people. Within the document, it clearly states that an IDP has the right to leave their country to seek safety and protection. Since an environmental migrant is not considered as a refugee under international law, there needs to be clear clarification whether an IDP who has been affected by climate change has the right to seek protection as a refuge in a different country. Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (1951 Refugee Convention) This United Nations multilateral treaty was created to define the definition of a refugee and who qualifies as a refugee. At the article 1 of the convention, a refugee is defined as: A person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it. Hence, the definition of the term is not extended to environmental migrants. For the past decades, debates arose over the definition whether to include environmental migrants as refugees or not. Possible Solutions The current UN refugee regime is restrictive of its definition of migrants and refugees, and even worse, the UNHCR alone deals with more than ten million refugees worldwide. It is highly unlikely that the UN, relevant international organizations, and government will extend the definition to environmental migrants. If it does so, the UNHCR and other organizations will have to oversee more than twenty times the population of currently existing refugees. Furthermore, extending the UNHCR s mandate and UN s definition will cause unnecessary tensions between currently recognized refugees and the newly accepted climate refugees. In some premises, it is quite impractical to extend the UN definition of refugee. Since the suggestions to expand the definition misses the core values and features of climate refugee crisis. It is essential to note, that a climate refugee does not relocate or in most cases does not leave their country s border because of persecution or corrupt government. Generally, they do enjoy human rights and protection from their home
governments. The protection of climate refugee requires both long term and long scale planned resettlement and often time reintegration programs within each nation. These programs must work along with mitigation programs for people who are likely to be threatened by natural disasters. For example, such programs may include strengthening coastal defenses and building dams. On the issue of programming, the World Bank and the UNDP will be able to work coherently with the UNHCR and the UN Special Political and Decolonization Committee. Others may propose that filling the missing points of currently existing international agreements is vital. People affected by climate change who decides to cross an international border are unable to prove that they are victimized by political persecution in their country of origin. Thus, the asylum law does not apply to them. In the current situation, there are several possibilities to fill the gaps of definition regarding refugees. The first is to revise the 1951 Refugee Convention to include climate and environmental refugees and to offer them protection similar to those who flee from political and societal oppression. The UNHRC is opposed to this plan as such change may bring about misleading interpretations of climate and environmental migrants. Once, a senior policy adviser at UNHRC argued that there is no need to change and amend the definition of refugees since there are already existing terminology and protections for displaced persons. The second solution would be to create a new convention or agreement, one which will entitle protections and specific rights to environmental migrants. However, this step is very complex in nature as there is a distinction between a person who migrates voluntarily and who is forcefully dislocated. In situations of slow- onset disasters including, but not limited to, agricultural degradation and droughts, the difference is very difficult to determine. It is also difficult to determine whether a particular natural disaster occurred because of climate change or not. There has to be a specific consensus on what the new term of climate change refugee will encompass. Therefore, without specific responsibilities and determinations of international community, it will be problematic to find a common ground and negotiate. The third would be to adhere the 1998 Guiding Principal on Internal Displacement and develop on the currently existing international legal mechanisms. This option is more likely to be non-binding but universally agreed which can include principles that will protect environmentally displaced people. The issue of climate change refugees is one that is very complex and difficult to resolve without reaching a specific consensus. Thus, delegates are expected to represent their national stances well and remain in character. Furthermore, delegates must work extensively to find common ground with other delegates.
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