A legal research and policy agenda for addressing climate-related human mobility in Asia and the Pacific in the context of interdisciplinary rights-based approaches.

International academic and policy circles have continued to give significant attention to human mobility in the context of climate change. Human populations would suffer if extreme weather events like heatwaves, typhoons, droughts, and floods occur more frequently and with greater severity. Extreme weather will likely lead to more water scarcity, food insecurity, and illness, as well as new vulnerabilities that might result in displacement and the creation of new migration patterns. This volume addresses climate-related human mobility in Asia and the Pacific using an interdisciplinary rights-based approach. A solid qualitative groundwork has been created by reviewing existing legal and policy frameworks and researching how these frameworks are applied in different climate-related human mobility situations. This groundwork has made it possible to identify areas that, from law and policy standpoint, require special attention. Some recognisable paths and possibilities seem very conducive to additional research.

Climate change-related human mobility will be a significant challenge for Asia and the Pacific’s sustainable prosperity and stability, and early coordinated action across sectors and governance levels is required to prevent, prepare for, and mitigate anticipated adverse impacts on the enjoyment of human rights by people who move, as well as people who are unable to move or otherwise choose to remain in areas exposed to hazards. Acknowledging the instant threat’s importance, the RWI and FLS-SAU have collaborated to produce this edited volume ‘Climate-related Human Mobility in Asia and the Pacific in the Context of Interdisciplinary Rights-based Approaches’ to enhance knowledge and understanding of the varieties of mobility patterns and the associated human rights impacts.

This edited volume compiles empirical and field-level research conducted by home grown researchers to provide the most current and thorough analysis of the phenomena in one of the most populated and disaster-prone regions of the world. This book places climate-related human mobility in the larger context of migratory dynamics focusing mostly on issues of droughts, floods, coastal erosion, cyclones, etc. The chapters do not argue that climate change creates a new class of migrants; instead, they consider how it interacts with existing social-ecological dynamics. Similarly, it acknowledges that mobility encompasses a broad range of responses to social-ecological dynamics unfolding in the context of climate change, including migration, displacement, planned relocation, as well as voluntary and involuntary immobility. This last chapter summarises the learnings gathered and offers recommendations for future legal research and policy propositions.

In the context of the Section on ‘Dimensions of Migration and Displacement: Experiences, Policies, Laws and State Practice’ the edited volume provides a conceptual background and covers a range of topics such as ‘Tropical Cyclones and the Mobility of Older Persons: Insights from Coastal Bangladesh’ by Abdul Malak and Nazia Khan Lin that examines how elderly people move across Bangladesh after major storms, emphasising the substantial effects on coastal populations; ‘To Move or Not to Move? Drought-related Internal Migration and Voluntary Immobility among the Hmong Forest Community in Chiang Rai, Northern Thailand’ by Reni Juwitasari discussing how the Hmong ethnic minority population in Chiang Rai is being impacted by the drought in Northern Thailand; ‘Sensitisation of Disaster Relief Operations towards Persons with Disabilities’ by Ishari Gunarathna and Priyadarshani Premarathne, which highlights how people with disabilities are sometimes marginalised in society, particularly in the wake of climate-related disasters; ‘Rising Waters, Stagnant Paths: Gendered Experiences of Flooding and Restricted Mobility in Can Tho City, Viet Nam’ by Danang Aditya Nizar and Ly Quoc Dang that describes how climate change has been included into Vietnamese legislation, acknowledging the connection between gender equality, mobility, and climate change; ‘Establishing a Human Rights-Based Approach to Climate Change-Induced Internal Displacement in the Regime of Bangladesh: Challenges and Way Forward’ by Md Abdul Awal Khan dealing with the impact and implications of climate change leading to internal displacement in Bangladesh; ‘Climate Change, Agriculture and Internal Mobility in the Bhutan Himalayas’ by Om Katel, Anooja Nair, Ugyen Yangchen, and Chogyel Wangmo, which traces the impact of climate change on agricultural livelihoods and associated rural–urban migration; ‘Climate Change-induced Disaster Displacement and Law in India: Positioning the Operationalization of Artificial Intelligence for Protecting Human Rights’ by Nafees Ahmad elucidating CiDD in India and other countries are causing human rights concerns requiring AI applications for anticipatory actions; and ‘Humanitarian Aid Distribution in the Context of Human Rights-Based Approach among Vulnerable Communities: Flash Floods and Climate Change in North Luwu, Indonesia’ by Dina Ruslanjari, Cahyadi Ramadhan, Inayah Bastin Al Hakim, and Feby Aulia Marsida dealing with the multi-dimensional consequences of a catastrophic flash flood that occurred in 2020 in South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia’s North Luwu Regency.

In the context of the Section on ‘Planned Relocation, Resettlement, and State Responsibility’, the volume addresses topics such as ‘Climate Change-Related Displacement: Inter-Island and Rural–Urban Migration in the Solomon Islands: Options for a Viable National Resettlement Plan’ by Lovelyn K.M. Otoiasi, which deals with increased forced migration that is being brought on by climate change, especially from low-lying atolls in the Solomon Islands; ‘Impact of Climate Change and Accessing Services in Papua New Guinea’ by Dora Kuir-Ayius concerning Papua New Guinea’s susceptibility to climate change as a result of causes like increasing sea levels, changed rainfall patterns, and occurrences similar to El Niño; ‘State Responsibilities and International Obligations in Responding to Climate Mobilities: What should International Assistance Look Like? by Liam Moore demonstrating how creative policies have been devised in Fiji and Vanuatu, acknowledging the rights of those who are forced to relocate and the obligations of nations to protect these rights; ‘Marginalisation of Adat Communities: Intersectionality of Land Grabbing, Human Rights, Climate Adaptation and Human Mobility in Indonesia’ by James Reinaldo Rumpia discussing the vulnerabilities and marginalisation of indigenous peoples in Indonesia; and ‘Climate Change and Socio-Economic Issues in Sri Lanka: An Assessment of the Landslide-Induced Relocations in Aranayake’ by Dinushika M. Yapa Abeywardhana investigating the socio-economic ramifications of the landslides that caused major community relocations and displacement in Aranayake, Sri Lanka.

These chapters, focusing on a wide range of topics, shed light on the intricate link that exists between various types of human mobility and the consequences of climate change. The chapters acknowledge the effects of climate change, forcing individuals to relocate and seek new opportunities, and try to address human rights concerns and associated environmental planning and humanitarian operations issues to tackle climate change effects better. It looks for essential players, pertinent legal and regulatory frameworks and tools, and policy gaps relevant to climate-related human mobility, climate change, and displacement. According to the edited volume, paradigms and tools currently in use frequently overlook many of the interrelated aspects of human mobility and protection of people who move inside and across borders due to the effects of climate change. Although there are some procedures and instruments for displacement, planned relocation, and migration, they are not yet entirely in operation and are developing slowly. However, the few tools, currently in use, concentrate more on disaster risk reduction and adaptation strategies than on promoting human mobility, which is increasingly viewed by many nations as a security danger or, at the very least, as politically undesirable. The chapters, through case studies, underpin the local-level impact and climate mobility. Local communities that are impacted also have significant challenges in obtaining information, accessing international policy processes, and finding suitable financing sources. The above steps regarding collection of information and access to policies with fiscal backup are essential to creating localised, people-centred solutions. The volume’s focus on the lived experience of the affected populations is consistent with the research into climate change and mobility which has most typically been local, with in-depth cases using qualitative methods.Footnote 1

In summary, the book provides ground-level insights into lived experiences and international standards, highlighting the need for a more rights-based law, policy, and practice from local to international levels.

1 Law and Policy Propositions Emerging from the Research

The various chapters in the volume highlight that climate mobility is a complex issue influenced by various factors, including economic, social, political, historical, and cultural circumstances. Factors such as attachments to one’s place, social networks, political forces, shifting economic conditions, and gender norms complicate these patterns. Similarly, the consequences of climate mobility vary across populations based on their context and conditions highlighting ‘vulnerability’ as a core element. To address how climate change and mobility impact people, policymakers must decrease forced relocation, safeguard relocated individuals, and provide new opportunities for those who wish to leave dangerous situations behind. In this regard, empirical studies from the chapters have highlighted instances where communities did not prefer to migrate. For instance, the elderly Hmong population is endeavouring to adapt their traditional forest management strategies in response to climate change despite the prevalence of drought. This underscores the point that while migration may be a strong coping or adaptive strategy which needs to be respected, it is equally important to respect the people’s right to stay and facilitate that discussion.

One of the underlying themes of the chapters is the recognition that an effective strategy addressing climate-related human mobility needs to address the inequality and vulnerability that already exists and makes individuals susceptible to the consequences of climate change. Because human mobility related to climate change is multi-causal, policy responses should take a holistic approach rather than concentrating on specific factors that influence migration. The more important concerns of what makes individuals susceptible and why some groups of people are more vulnerable than others should be taken into account by decision-makers when making plans for climate adaptation. The word ‘vulnerability’ is often used in development discourse, particularly for the impoverished, who are often portrayed as the most marginalised population. It involves exposure to stress and unforeseen circumstances and challenges in managing them. Chapters in this volume have highlighted the vulnerability of different groups of people including women, older persons, and persons with disabilities. It was seen that people who are disadvantaged due to their gender, age, class, mobility, indigeneity, or disability face distinctive challenges, both in terms of being able to move and particular adversity associated with being in situations of migration, displacement, or planned relocation. Assessing vulnerability from an interdisciplinary and multi-dimensional approach is beneficial and encouraging and can lead to a deeper understanding of mobility dynamics. The edited volume emphasises combining socio-economic and biophysical aspects to provide a more thorough evaluation of vulnerability.

Though there is still more to be explored, the gendered effects of climate change are well-explained by the available data. Vulnerabilities are gendered and appear differently for different groups of men and women. Gender largely determines an individual’s vulnerability level, but it is also shaped by the interaction of gender with other social segregations. Preconceived notions about gender as a homogenous group obscure disparities. The approach highlights the various social contexts and exogenous variables intersecting at a particular place and moment to shape gendered vulnerabilities. Gender simplification can overlook important details essential for successful adaptation policies. Asia and the Pacific nations must acknowledge that biophysical shifts determine the impact of climate change not only on the region but also on existing social, economic, and political systems. In short, endeavours to mitigate and adapt to climate change must also focus on lowering socio-economic and gender inequality. The chapters in the volume underpin that differentiated vulnerabilities and discrimination based on gender, class, ethnicity, citizenship, immigration status, age, disability, and other factors restrict people’s capacity to benefit from climate action. Hence, planning and implementation efforts must prioritise a human security-centred HRBA that acknowledges the intersectional implications of climate-related human mobility. This is important because while mobility can be a mechanism for people to reduce vulnerability and diversify livelihoods, such a right to move cannot and should not obliterate the complex interplay of power, gender, race, etc.Footnote 2

The edited volume does not explore the vulnerability only from a victimhood perspective, but it highlights the resilience shown by the vulnerable communities including the indigenous population and women and the need to include their perspective in the climate mobility discourse and while planning relocation. The chapters showcase that in increasing the resilience of communities that are already at risk, communities ought to be directed by the concepts of human rights and dignity. At the same time, the volume also highlights case studies which point to the overall satisfaction of people affected by disasters to the government responses. For example, in Indonesia, flash floods in Masamba and Baebunta sub-districts in July 2020 caused fatalities, damaged infrastructure, and destroyed homes. Despite a comprehensive humanitarian aid and logistics policy, challenges arose due to limited accessibility to affected areas. However, the point to be highlighted is that the community was mostly satisfied with the government’s performance in providing aid, with good coordination and no discrimination in aid distribution.

The book highlights that governments and subnational authorities have started addressing the intricate connections between climate change and human mobility in planning and policy procedures, such as NDCs and NAPs, as awareness of these connections has grown. According to the volume, many countries see migration as a risk, difficulty, or issue, but some have embraced its advantages (e.g. migration as an adaptive technique). The volume highlights best practices that can improve the integration of human mobility in various priority policy sectors for adaptation, loss, and damage through case examples. The authors have stressed the necessity of sufficient funding, institutional capabilities, and data to advance human mobility integration into policy framework. At the local, national, and regional levels, there is a need to recognise and comprehend possible policy interventions, evaluate their effects, and map out potential collaborations. In short, in light of the difficulties presented by climate-related human mobility and disasters in the region, the edited volume intends to provide the ground for safe, orderly, and regular migration to craft an adaptation strategy to confront climate change and envision aid and protection for the impacted people and look for durable solutions.

The volume also points that climate change poses a danger to regional and international security, and it needs to be tackled as such, utilising intersectional analysis and resources that consider the situated expertise of those most impacted. The contributors to this volume are scholars from Asia and the Pacific who have witnessed the damage caused by climate-related human mobility, displacement, and relocation during the past decades. The learnings from these studies may aid in framing pre-emptive steps to speed up action to prevent another disaster. The foundation of such global and regional action on climate change must be cooperation, solidarity, and shared responsibility for a disaster that will have catastrophic effects on all of us.

Despite the focus on solidarity, cooperation, and shared responsibility, international conventions on development and climate change have taken quite varied approaches to and considerations of climate-related mobility caused by the climate.Footnote 3 The national governments attempting to adopt these frameworks under their respective development objectives are misled by their ambiguity. Addressing the needs of climate-related mobility and displaced populations on the move presents a significant opportunity as pertinent national and international policy contexts change. However, there is a growing integration of mobility and climate change into various legal and policy frameworks across multiple spheres, such as disaster risk reduction (Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction), migration (Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration (GCM)), and climate change (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Task Force for Displacement). The Inter-Agency Standing Committee Operational Guidelines for Protection in Disasters, the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, and the Guidance on Protecting People from Disasters and Environmental Change Through Planned Relocation are other extremely pertinent tools. Similarly at the regional level, the UN Pacific Strategy, the Framework for Pacific Regionalism, and the Framework for Resilient Development in the Pacific: An Integrated Approach to Address Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management are some regional frameworks that direct the development of climate mobility policies in the Pacific Islands. The Pacific Climate Change Migration and Human Security Programme (PCCMHS) and the recently completed Pacific Climate Change and Migration Project are two examples of regional activities in the Pacific Islands.Footnote 4 These are based on the protection of displaced persons and human security principles, but they also emphasise voluntary movement as a means of adapting to climate change.Footnote 5 However, there is a need for more ground-level research to implement the framework in local stettings. Ground-level studies can be instrumental in developing toolkits which ensure community participation in promoting an inclusive, gender-responsive strategy for involving all relevant actors, including the public, private, and third sectors, as well as indigenous peoples, migrants, displaced populations, and communities affected by displacement for addressing human mobility concerns in the context of climate change at all levels, from local to global.

2 Considerations for Further Research

Despite the three decades of international climate law developments, a significant deficiency in international law is the absence of ‘hard’ law, as there are currently no specific laws that apply to migrants and displaced individuals affected by climate change. The Paris Agreement, however, expressly recognises the rights of all people who are vulnerable, including migrants, and it requires nations to uphold, advance, and consider human rights while implementing climate change policies. In addition, it is noteworthy how much attention and visibility this topic has received at the UNFCCC’s COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. During COP28 negotiations, human mobility has been recognised as one of the most extensive effects of climate change on people and communities.Footnote 6 A good compromise between the interests of so many different nations can be found in the decision text language of the first global stocktake agreed in Dubai. It is an extensive evaluation of the world’s progress on climate action and an updated roadmap to raise ambition to fulfil the goals of the Paris Agreement. It is encouraging that the global stocktake explicitly mentions displacement from the standpoint of human mobility. In addition to acknowledging the efforts already made to respond to displacement and the unique vulnerability of displaced populations, it calls on governments and pertinent institutions to move forward in preventing, minimising, and addressing loss and damage, including through measures pertaining to migration, relocation, and displacement.

The global stocktake’s use of terminology related to displacement establishes a ‘hook’ to motivate and assist nations in reporting on their progress in responding to human mobility. It also encourages states to make more robust promises and measures to prevent, reduce, and deal with displacement and associated losses and damages in the upcoming round of NDCs due by 2025. On the first day of COP 28, a monumental agreement was reached to operationalise the Loss and Damage Fund and include displacement and displaced people within its purview.Footnote 7This would enable the Fund to offer funding to assist vulnerable developing nations in implementing human mobility-related policies and initiatives, particularly by strengthening evidence and filling data gaps. The implementation of these initiatives at the ground level and its challenges is worth exploring.

Numerous subjects have been addressed in the volume in relation to climate-related mobility. Nevertheless, it was not possible to thoroughly examine all of the nuanced intersectionality and complicated interplay of concerns in the context of climate mobility. For example, problems related to heat waves and their generated mobility could not be investigated. Similarly, the issue of children and their vulnerability concerning climate mobility was not investigated. Climate change and its related problems are among the most urgent issues endangering the rights of children. Children who are forced to move in under these circumstances are particularly vulnerable. It is only in recent times, the policies pertaining to migration and children have started incorporating environmental and climate change considerations. International organisations, civil society organisations, and local and national governments who engage with children on the move in the context of climate change are encouraged to utilise the Guiding Principles for Children on the Move in the Context of Climate Change.Footnote 8 These Principles are predicated on operational rules or frameworks that have been formulated by several parties, in addition to extant international law. The Principles are not compelling and do not establish any new international legal duties; rather, they are taken from the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Challenges of climate-related human mobility in response to seasonal labour movement, drought and food poverty, and various health possibilities and dangers need diversifying livelihoods across climate-vulnerable locales. These difficulties add to the scant empirical evidence of health risks associated with climate-related mobility, such as changed eating habits, impaired access to healthcare, income loss, hazardous employment, unhygienic urban environments, changed exposure to infectious diseases, disrupted social networks, and loss of place attachment. Another aspect is the emotional and physical well-being of both stationary and mobile populations. These challenges require more in-depth research, with robust conceptual frameworks, methodological innovations, and comparative approaches for understanding a multitude of factors, including family and individual characteristics, socio-political and economic circumstances, and environmental dangers. One way to focus on these research areas is through analysing the linkage of climate change and SDGs, informed by normative guidance on the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.

Similarly, there is a need for disparate research focusing on country-specific volume or thematic volume in Asia and the Pacific region, for instance, floods or droughts, for pragmatic comparison or similarity among Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, etc. Other areas of research focus could be food production in the region that will be threatened by the adverse effects of global warming on the present scale of increasing temperatures, which will lower human and land productivity. Considerable harm will be caused by erratic rainfall and an escalation in the incidence of extreme weather occurrences. Land pressure, habitat degradation and biodiversity loss, water shortages and pollution, air pollution, global warming, and climate change require country-specific research volumes.

International policy largely ignores cross-cutting areas like water, food, energy, seas, ecosystems, and interlinkage of social issues in the context of human mobility and climate change. For instance, the inability of financing agreements and mechanisms such as the Grand Bargain or the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to specifically include human mobility about climate change in their overarching goals impede efforts to finance large-scale action. Nonetheless, there are positive indications of some existing GCF projects showing some project-level integration of human mobility features.Footnote 9 This development needs to be further explored. Though, several avenues for cross linking issues connected with climate-related human mobility are provided by the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, these cross-connections may need to be more clearly stated and need to be researched to influence global policy and can be taken forward in future research.

Assistance and protection policies that grant the same rights to individuals who are displaced or compelled to move, regardless of their location and based on need rather than status, must be agreed upon to address climate mobility. The policies should support long-term solutions, primarily local integration and relocation, comparable to those required for refugees and individuals displaced permanently due to irreversible environmental change. It should also support policies that encourage voluntary migration as a tactic for adaptation. This would involve actions to promote local integration, such as easy access to public services that benefit the community’s public sector and way of life. This is possible if there is an integration of the language and commitments already made in the SDGs and climate and disaster policies, bringing these together under an HRBA for climate-induced human mobility. Consistent with the political sensitivities, bringing all of this together in a single global agreement is a tall order and will probably take some time. The way out could be through regional cooperative mechanisms.

The coordination and networking among the Pacific countries under the PCCMHS could be an example to inspire states in Southeast Asia and South Asia to develop regional frameworks for addressing climate-related human mobility. In this context, during the 52nd Meeting of Pacific Islands Forum Leaders in the Cook Islands in November 2023, the Pacific Governments approved a Regional Framework on Climate Mobility.Footnote 10 The framework acknowledges the pressing need to improve knowledge, coordination, and collaboration regarding human mobility related to climate change and to set up sufficient mechanisms for responding to and supporting people at risk based for addressing climate mobility and enhancing resilience and well-being in the Pacific. One of its distinctive features is the framework’s categorical recognition of the Pacific people’s right to remain in their homes as a paramount urgency. It attempts to guide governments on how to deal with particular legal, policy, and practical concerns related to staying put, displacement, migration, planned relocations, and stranded migrants that would come from increased climatic mobility with a regional initiative on PCCMHS that would also provide support. Similar strategies can be explored at other regional levels like South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Climate change impacts individuals and groups differently. Due to societal variables and different risk perceptions, migration may not be permanent calling for different adaptation approaches such as permanent, temporary, or no migration. This is challenging as the local effects of climate change are uncertain, and their extent, magnitude, and social reactions are complex. Human mobility as a coping strategy requires significant expenditure and the creation of bilateral and multilateral institutions to promote organised planning, reduce socio-economic effects, and prevent conflicts. Many emerging countries are unprepared to handle demographic shifts. The potential function of migration as an adaptation mechanism will also be influenced by gender considerations, with marginalised populations and impoverished women often facing the danger of climate effects in their current environment. Therefore, addressing the impacts of climate change requires a comprehensive approach that considers local and global factors.

Human mobility can be a valuable tool for adaptation and risk reduction, reducing vulnerability. However, barriers to adequate protection pose risks to migrants, including exploitation and human rights breaches. The international community must protect those negatively impacted by climate change, support adaptation efforts, and deal with loss and damage. Climate change has led to climate hazards, displacement, and migration, but anticipatory action in the context of human mobility remains relatively unexplored. Frameworks capable of understanding and predicting climate hazards, anticipating climate change-related human mobility, disaster-induced displacement, and migration, and its implications for vulnerable populations in Asia and the Pacific have gained new focus.

Therefore, responses to human mobility should be implemented within development frameworks and integrated into efforts for mitigating climate change. Migration choices should be made available to the most vulnerable groups, allowing them to relocate to safer environs or stay where they are and adapt. More public funding for social protection, urban investment, disaster risk reduction, and livelihood development is needed, while the private sector may also play a significant role in lowering risk. Supporting governments and at-risk populations in averting future displacement and better managing the consequences of those who have already moved is crucial to addressing the needs of displaced people and communities hosting them in an age of climate change. All tiers of government and regional and international organisations must take immediate action to influence human mobility development in future, promoting sustainable solutions, resilience, and protection of communities affected by climate change in the Asia–Pacific region and beyond.