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Human mobility and environmental change: a survey of perceptions and policy direction

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Abstract

Research concerning human mobility in the context of environmental change is primarily focused on analyses of the nexus itself. We have taken a less-travelled route, focusing on those who take an interest in the issue, engage with it professionally or seek to address the multitude of social, economic and political dimensions associated with it. We used an online survey to examine perceptions of the human mobility/environmental change nexus amongst those who work with or within it (n = 262 respondents), situating our findings within the policy development they often seek or help to propel. We outline respondents’ overall characteristics, their conceptualisation of the human mobility/environmental change nexus and, finally, their policy preferences or priorities. We find, overall, that respondents are concerned with mobility approaches that promote equity as well as economic opportunity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Law and Justice, University of Canberra, Canberra, ACT, 2617, Australia

    Fanny Thornton

  2. School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, 4072, Australia

    Karen E McNamara & Purevdulam Lkhagvasuren

  3. School of Geography, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Australia

    Carol Farbotko & Olivia Dun

  4. School of Geography and Sustainable Communities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia

    Olivia Dun

  5. College of Engineering and Computer Science, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia

    Hedda Ransan-Cooper

  6. UMR CNRS 6042 GEOLAB, University of Limoges, Limoges, France

    Emilie Chevalier

  7. School of Geosciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia

    Emilie Chevalier

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  1. Fanny Thornton
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  2. Karen E McNamara
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  7. Purevdulam Lkhagvasuren
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Correspondence to Fanny Thornton or Karen E McNamara.

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Thornton, F., McNamara, K.E., Farbotko, C. et al. Human mobility and environmental change: a survey of perceptions and policy direction. Popul Environ 40, 239–256 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11111-018-0309-3

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