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How should nations adapt their immigration policies to address the growing issue of climate-induced displacement, given current legal limitations on refugee status?

Image courtesy of interviewee. December 9, 2024

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This video discusses the current definition of a refugee, which aligns with the UN definition and does not account for individuals displaced by environmental disasters or climate change. It emphasizes the need to reconsider this definition or create a complementary pathway for those permanently displaced by climate-related events, especially as climate change accelerates the frequency and severity of such disasters.

The speaker notes that existing legal frameworks like Temporary Protected Status (TPS) require individuals to already be in the U.S., which limits access for new arrivals affected by climate events. Humanitarian parole is temporary and requires Congressional action for permanent status, highlighting a lack of comprehensive support for climate refugees.

The international community is urged to take a multifaceted approach, including providing humanitarian assistance, building community resilience, and managing migration collaboratively. The argument points out the disproportionate impact of climate change on poorer nations, which often bear the brunt of the crisis despite being less responsible for its causes. As events unfold, it's suggested that developed nations have a particular obligation to assist these vulnerable countries.

Additionally, the text calls for policy changes to address the root causes of climate vulnerability, the need for political will in creating legal pathways for climate migrants, and broader discussions around immigration reform. It concludes that while wealthier nations are also affected by climate change, they have a unique responsibility to help less developed nations adapt and thrive amidst the crisis.

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Here are five key points from the video regarding the definition and implications of climate refugees and the broader convideo of migration due to climate change:

1. **Narrow Definition of Refugee**: The current UN definition of a refugee does not include individuals displaced due to climate change or environmental disasters. A refugee is defined primarily by persecution based on race, religion, nationality, social group, or political opinion.

2. **Challenges of Environmental Displacement**: Historically, environmental disasters were viewed as temporary setbacks, with affected communities expected to recover. However, in the face of accelerated climate change, recovery is becoming increasingly difficult, leading to the need for a reevaluation of what constitutes a refugee status.

3. **Existing Legal Frameworks Insufficient**: Current U.S. immigration mechanisms, such as Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and humanitarian parole, only offer temporary relief to individuals already in the country, highlighting the lack of pathways for individuals displaced by environmental factors to seek refuge before arriving in the U.S.

4. **International Cooperation Needed**: Nations must collaborate to provide humanitarian assistance and accommodate displaced populations, especially since poorer nations disproportionately bear the brunt of climate crises. There is a call for wealthier nations to assist in creating resilience in developing countries, addressing both adaptation strategies and structural injustices that have led to disproportionate vulnerability.

5. **Political Resistance and Reform**: Although there are calls for an expanded definition of refugees to include those displaced by climate change, there is significant political resistance, particularly in the U.S. The current political climate has stalled immigration reform efforts, and there is skepticism about recognizing human-induced climate change as a factor driving migration. Previous initiatives aimed at creating pathways for climate refugees have not gained traction in Congress.

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Here are some key quotes from the video you , focusing on the main themes regarding refugees, climate change, and international responsibility:

1. **Definition of Refugee**:
"Our current definition... defines a refugee as a person who has experienced persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion."

2. **Environmental Disasters**:
"Nowhere in that definition do you see any reference to environmental disaster or climate change."

3. **Need for Amendment**:
"In an era of accelerated climate change, we need to consider either amending our definition of refugee who have been permanently displaced from their homes."

4. **Temporary Protection Status**:
"The only track that we currently have on the books that allows people to have temporary protection is a status that is known as temporary protected status."

5. **Congressional Action**:
"In order to remain permanently in the United States, Congress would have to pass what is known as an adjustment act."

6. **Internal Displacement**:
"Right now, 80% of the world's displaced populations on account of climate are internally displaced."

7. **International Community's Role**:
"The international community needs to proceed on multiple tracks at once... to help communities adapt... so that they can exercise a basic human right to stay home."

8. **Burden Sharing**:
"The burden of accommodating displaced populations shouldn't just... It should be shared by the international community as a whole."

9. **Obligation of Developed Nations**:
"Wealthier nations who have a very large carbon footprint have a particular obligation to helping lesser developed nations adapt."

10. **Debt and Resources**:
"Many of them are so highly indebted that... they don't have the resources to implement those climate mitigation policies."

11. **Political Challenges**:
"You have one group of politicians who... call climate change a hoax."

12. **Resistance to Immigration Reform**:
"There was a bill that was introduced in Congress, but it's been held hostage for political reasons."

13. **Historical Convideo of Refugee Definitions**:
"As early as 1969, for example, the African Union developed a much more expansive definition of refugee status."

14. **Displacement in the U.S.**:
"In the United States, there are 170 coastal communities that have reached the threshold for chronic inundation."

These quotes encapsulate the key points about the current refugee definition in relation to climate change, the inadequacy of existing protections, the responsibility of the international community, and the ongoing political and historical challenges surrounding these issues.

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Our current definition,

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which is based on the UN definition of refugee,

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defines a refugee as a person who has been, who,

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has experienced persecution on account of race, religion,

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nationality, membership in a particular social group

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or political opinion.

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And so, nowhere in that definition do you see any reference

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to environmental disaster or climate change.

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So, so yes, we definitely need to, in an era

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of accelerated climate change, we need

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to consider either amending our definition of refugee

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or creating a complimentary track for admission for those

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who have been permanently displaced from their homes.

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I think for a long time,

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environmental disaster was considered as a,

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as a one-time temporary event, you know, that,

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communities were affected, say by an earthquake

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or by drought, or by a hurricane, but then they recovered.

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Uh, but in an era of accelerated climate change,

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recovery will become increasingly difficult.

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Um, especially if, if you're experiencing back

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to back disasters at a, you know, at a rapid clip,

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as many islands in the Caribbean are experiencing,

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for example, at present, there's, there's just no,

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no track for admission.

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Um, the only track that we currently have on the books,

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that allows people to have temporary protection is a status

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that is known as temporary protected status.

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It was created by the 1990 Immigration

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Act, but there's a catch.

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In order to receive TPS, you already have

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to be in the United States, either as a student

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or as a merchant, as a tourist, even

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as an undocumented worker.

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Um, you could, under some qualifying conditions,

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be allowed to live and work in the United States

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for up to 18 months.

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And, and sometimes that status is renewable,

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but again, as I said, you have

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to already be in the United States.

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You can't migrate to the United States in order

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to receive TPS.

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Those are tracks that could be available to in the future.

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Um, if the United States does not want

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to amend its refugee law,

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and does not want to create a, a complimentary track

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for admission specifically for climate refugees,

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it does have other legal instruments available at,

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at its disposal, and one of them is humanitarian parole.

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But again, humanitarian parole is permanent,

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is not permanent.

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It's temporary. And in order

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to remain permanently in the United States,

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Congress would have to pass what is known

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as an adjustment act in order to, allow, those, with

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that temporary status to remain permanently in the us.

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Congress has done something like that in the past, not

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for climate refugees,

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but for, for people who were experiencing,

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political upheaval.

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So for example, during the Hungarian crisis of 56,

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during the Cuban Revolution, many,

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people from those two countries were admitted

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as humanitarian parolees, and then Congress passed

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Adjustment acts to normalize their status.

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But we've never done that for somebody who has been,

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displaced, be for environmental reasons, historically,

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we have considered environmental disruption to be temporary.

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And people adapt. They either move internally within their

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own countries, or they adapt and, and they rebuild and,

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and they recreate their communities.

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And, and that's been the pattern in the past.

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And you know, right now, 80% of the world's,

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displaced populations on account

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of climate are internally displaced.

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But if the projections hold, we can expe expect

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to see more cross border migration as, more

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and more communities are, are disrupted.

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I mean, right now it's a small island states

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that are the most obvious examples of, of communities

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that are at the threat of,

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of being permanently displaced from their homes

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because of climate disruptions.

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The international community needs

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to proceed on multiple tracks at once.

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So we need to, as an international community, continue

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to provide humanitarian assistance.

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I mean, that's always been the response,

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and that needs to be, to continue to be a response.

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We also need to work together

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to help communities be resilient to the re to,

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to the realities of climate change.

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We need to help communities adapt in their infrastructure

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and their housing and their agriculture so

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that they can exercise a basic human right to stay home.

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Um, but when, staying home is not possible,

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then the nations need to work together to help

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to manage migration so that there's burden sharing.

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Um, you know, the, the, the burden of accommodating,

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displaced populations shouldn't just

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fall on just one nation.

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It should be shared, by the international community

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as a whole, because we've all played a role in creating the

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climate crisis, especially the more developed nations,

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the wealthier nations

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who have a very large carbon footprint.

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They have a particular obligation to helping,

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lesser developed nations, adapt.

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Um, we also need to address the behaviors

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that have accelerated climate change in the first place.

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You know, climate change is a fast moving train,

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and it's gonna take a while to slow that fast moving train.

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So we need to address those behaviors,

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that have accelerated climate change in the first place.

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And, and then also, you know,

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and this is a much harder conversation, we also need to

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examine those policies that have impoverished and,

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and indebted nations,

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and left some on the front lines of a climate crisis

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that they did not create.

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So right now it's the poorer nations of the world

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that are on the front lines of the climate crisis.

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And, and many of them are so highly indebted that,

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any income that they generate goes

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to just servicing the debt,

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and they don't have the resources

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to implement those climate mitigation, policies

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that would help their, their populations be

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resilient. So I think, you

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Know, that's a, a much harder conversation that we need

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to have about, you know,

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what policies have created this crisis in the first place,

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members of one party who are very hostile

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to even recognizing that cl

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that human behavior has accelerated climate change.

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I mean, it's very common to hear among some,

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some politicians that yes, the climate has always changed

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and, and, you know, what's the big deal?

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But, you know, at what other time in human history have we

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had 8 billion people on the planet all contributing

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to behaviors that are accelerating changes

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that in the deep past occurred over millennia

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rather than decades, right?

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Um, so, so you have one group of politicians who,

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who just call the, climate change a hoax.

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And, and so when you have that kind of perspective,

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there is a resistance, to even considering

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creating a complimentary track for admission for, for,

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climate displaced persons.

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Right? But you know, also,

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there are many politicians right now who,

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who have been sitting on immigration reform as a whole.

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I mean, we're all in recognition here in,

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in the United States that we need

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to have immigration reform.

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It's long overdue.

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We haven't passed, a major piece

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of immigration reform in decades.

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And so it's time for one.

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And there was a bill that was introduced in Congress,

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but it's been held hostage for political reasons, right?

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Um, because, immigration and,

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and mi, the migration crisis along the US Mexico border in

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particular, has become one of the big rallying points

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for, for people on the right.

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There are many people, who have been discussing this

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for quite some time.

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So, for example, the U-N-H-C-R, the IOM, a

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a number of international non-governmental organizations

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have been, leading the cry or, or, or,

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or re reminding us

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that this is a collective responsibility

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and that we, we need to work together.

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Um, but, but even, you know, long

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before, the U-N-H-C-R took up,

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the issue of climate change, you had, other kind

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of regional, bodies, addressing,

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other forms of displacement.

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They, they recognized that our definition

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of refugee was much too narrow

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and didn't, take into account the multiple forms

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of vulnerability that require people to move internally and,

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and across borders.

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So, as early as 1969, for example, the African Union,

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developed a much more expansive definition

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of refugee status that took into account,

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how a generalized climate of disruption or, or,

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or violence can,

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or events seriously disturbing the public order can,

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can force people to migrate.

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Likewise, in 1984, the Garena declaration in response

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to the upheaval in Central America, also recognized

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That there were events

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that seriously disturbed the public order that,

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so they attempted to create a much more

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expansive definition of refugee.

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And then now, in, in, since then as the U-N-H-C-R

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and the IOM and other international organizations have,

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you know, rung, rung the bell, you know, tried to,

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to put climate change on the agenda,

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they have also called

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for creating complimentary tracks for admission.

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I think there's some resistance

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to amending the refugee definition as it exists for fear

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that it will weaken protections,

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for the politically displaced.

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And so I think most international bodies or,

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or agencies are now calling

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for a complementary track for admission.

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Um, but, but there's, there's resistance.

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I mean, here in the United States, the first attempt

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to create that complementary track

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for admission occurred in 2019.

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Um, when, representative Ni Velasquez

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and Senator Ed Markey introduced the first climate migration

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bills of the 21st century, those bills died in committee.

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And so since then, you know, we haven't, received,

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you know, Congress has refused to act.

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The Biden administration,

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instead has focused on addressing the root causes

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of migration and trying to develop, resiliency.

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And so that led, for example, to the,

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Los Angeles declaration where 22 nations came together

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and agreed, that they would try to,

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create opportunities for people to stay home

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to become resilient, to, you know,

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multiple conditions including climate change

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that are displacing them,

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and then also they pledge to work together

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to manage migration.

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We're also, at least, here in the United States,

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the Biden administration has, secured,

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commitments from industry, from private industry,

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for example, to, to create job opportunities

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to assist with infrastructure development and, and the like.

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Um, so they've been working on multiple fronts to,

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and not just provide aid,

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but also to provide the technologies to provide the,

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the scientific knowledge, and,

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and also to create the jobs, that will convince people

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to that, that there are opportunities in their homeland.

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So, and so they'll, they'll, they'll be more likely to,

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exercise that right to stay home.

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I think we're all in agreement that,

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that climate change is a fast moving train

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and we are nowhere, meeting the targets

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of the Paris Agreement.

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And that is indeed worrisome.

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And, and I do think that the wealthier nations

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have a particular obligation

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to the lesser developed nations.

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I mean, the, you know, it,

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it's the lesser developed nations

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that are currently on the front lines, of,

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of the climate crisis, right?

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And many of them are former colonies whose wealth

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Was extracted for the benefit of the wealthier nations.

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Um, as I said, they're highly indebted.

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Um, they're, many of them, are experiencing

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intense levels of criminal violence,

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political violence.

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And so, so I think we have a particular obligation to,

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to these lesser developed nations.

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But, but every nation is experiencing,

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you know, the climate crisis.

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We're not immune from from it here in the United States.

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I mean, we just experienced two back to back hurricanes,

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hurricanes, Helene and,

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and Milton, which were devastating, right?

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And, you know, already we,

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and within the United States have internal migration

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of our own, where people from California, for example,

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long affected by the wildfires, are moving elsewhere

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because,

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because they've had to, you know,

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people in Florida are no longer able to afford,

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the insurance on their homes because of flooding,

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because of coastal erosion,

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because of back-to-back hurricanes.

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And many of them, are also having to move elsewhere.

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So right now, in the United States,

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there are 170 coastal communities

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that have reached the threshold for chronic inundation,

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and over half of them are communities of the underserved.

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So poor communities.

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And so, so yeah, you know,

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even wealthy nations are affected by the climate crisis.

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But I think, but even so,

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I think we have a particular obligation

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to the lesser developed nations.

Redefining Refugee Status in a Changing Climate

00:00:00 - Our current definition, which is based on the UN definition of refugee, defines a refugee as a person who has been, who, has experienced persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion. And so, nowhere in that definition do you see any reference to environmental disaster or climate change. So, so yes, we definitely need to, in an era of accelerated climate change, we need to consider either amending our definition of refugee

00:00:34 - who have been permanently displaced from their homes. I think for a long time, environmental disaster was considered as a, as a one-time temporary event, you know, that, communities were affected, say by an earthquake or by drought, or by a hurricane, but then they recovered. but in an era of accelerated climate change, recovery will become increasingly difficult. especially if, if you're experiencing back to back disasters at a, you know, at a rapid clip,

00:01:06 - for example, at present, there's, there's just no, no track for admission. the only track that we currently have on the books, that allows people to have temporary protection is a status that is known as temporary protected status. It was created by the 1990 Immigration Act, but there's a catch. In order to receive TPS, you already have to be in the United States, either as a student or as a merchant, as a tourist, even

Temporary Protections and Climate Refugees

00:01:37 - you could, under some qualifying conditions, be allowed to live and work in the United States for up to 18 months. And, and sometimes that status is renewable, but again, as I said, you have to already be in the United States. You can't migrate to the United States in order to receive TPS. Those are tracks that could be available to in the future. if the United States does not want to amend its refugee law,

00:02:09 - for admission specifically for climate refugees, it does have other legal instruments available at, at its disposal, and one of them is humanitarian parole. But again, humanitarian parole is permanent, is not permanent. It's temporary. And in order to remain permanently in the United States, Congress would have to pass what is known as an adjustment act in order to, allow, those, with that temporary status to remain permanently in the us.

00:02:39 - for climate refugees, but for, for people who were experiencing, political upheaval. So for example, during the Hungarian crisis of 56, during the Cuban Revolution, many, people from those two countries were admitted as humanitarian parolees, and then Congress passed Adjustment acts to normalize their status. But we've never done that for somebody who has been, displaced, be for environmental reasons, historically,

Adapting to Climate Displacement: Community Resilience and International Responsibility

00:03:12 - And people adapt. They either move internally within their own countries, or they adapt and, and they rebuild and, and they recreate their communities. And, and that's been the pattern in the past. And you know, right now, 80% of the world's, displaced populations on account of climate are internally displaced. But if the projections hold, we can expe expect to see more cross border migration as, more

00:03:42 - I mean, right now it's a small island states that are the most obvious examples of, of communities that are at the threat of, of being permanently displaced from their homes because of climate disruptions. The international community needs to proceed on multiple tracks at once. So we need to, as an international community, continue to provide humanitarian assistance. I mean, that's always been the response, and that needs to be, to continue to be a response. We also need to work together

00:04:15 - to the realities of climate change. We need to help communities adapt in their infrastructure and their housing and their agriculture so that they can exercise a basic human right to stay home. but when, staying home is not possible, then the nations need to work together to help to manage migration so that there's burden sharing. you know, the, the, the burden of accommodating, displaced populations shouldn't just

Global Responsibility in Addressing Climate Crisis

00:04:43 - It should be shared, by the international community as a whole, because we've all played a role in creating the climate crisis, especially the more developed nations, the wealthier nations who have a very large carbon footprint. They have a particular obligation to helping, lesser developed nations, adapt. we also need to address the behaviors that have accelerated climate change in the first place. You know, climate change is a fast moving train, and it's gonna take a while to slow that fast moving train.

00:05:17 - that have accelerated climate change in the first place. And, and then also, you know, and this is a much harder conversation, we also need to examine those policies that have impoverished and, and indebted nations, and left some on the front lines of a climate crisis that they did not create. So right now it's the poorer nations of the world that are on the front lines of the climate crisis. And, and many of them are so highly indebted that,

00:05:46 - to just servicing the debt, and they don't have the resources to implement those climate mitigation, policies that would help their, their populations be resilient. So I think, you Know, that's a, a much harder conversation that we need to have about, you know, what policies have created this crisis in the first place, members of one party who are very hostile to even recognizing that cl that human behavior has accelerated climate change. I mean, it's very common to hear among some, some politicians that yes, the climate has always changed

Political Resistance to Climate and Immigration Reform

00:06:20 - But, you know, at what other time in human history have we had 8 billion people on the planet all contributing to behaviors that are accelerating changes that in the deep past occurred over millennia rather than decades, right? so, so you have one group of politicians who, who just call the, climate change a hoax. And, and so when you have that kind of perspective, there is a resistance, to even considering creating a complimentary track for admission for, for,

00:06:51 - Right? But you know, also, there are many politicians right now who, who have been sitting on immigration reform as a whole. I mean, we're all in recognition here in, in the United States that we need to have immigration reform. It's long overdue. We haven't passed, a major piece of immigration reform in decades. And so it's time for one. And there was a bill that was introduced in Congress, but it's been held hostage for political reasons, right? because, immigration and,

00:07:25 - particular, has become one of the big rallying points for, for people on the right. There are many people, who have been discussing this for quite some time. So, for example, the U-N-H-C-R, the IOM, a a number of international non-governmental organizations have been, leading the cry or, or, or, or re reminding us that this is a collective responsibility

Revising Refugee Definitions in the Context of Climate Change

00:07:54 - but, but even, you know, long before, the U-N-H-C-R took up, the issue of climate change, you had, other kind of regional, bodies, addressing, other forms of displacement. They, they recognized that our definition of refugee was much too narrow and didn't, take into account the multiple forms of vulnerability that require people to move internally and,

00:08:26 - So, as early as 1969, for example, the African Union, developed a much more expansive definition of refugee status that took into account, how a generalized climate of disruption or, or, or violence can, or events seriously disturbing the public order can, can force people to migrate. Likewise, in 1984, the Garena declaration in response to the upheaval in Central America, also recognized That there were events

00:08:59 - so they attempted to create a much more expansive definition of refugee. And then now, in, in, since then as the U-N-H-C-R and the IOM and other international organizations have, you know, rung, rung the bell, you know, tried to, to put climate change on the agenda, they have also called for creating complimentary tracks for admission. I think there's some resistance to amending the refugee definition as it exists for fear

Challenges and Initiatives in Addressing Climate Migration

00:09:30 - for the politically displaced. And so I think most international bodies or, or agencies are now calling for a complementary track for admission. but, but there's, there's resistance. I mean, here in the United States, the first attempt to create that complementary track for admission occurred in 2019. when, representative Ni Velasquez and Senator Ed Markey introduced the first climate migration

00:10:02 - And so since then, you know, we haven't, received, you know, Congress has refused to act. The Biden administration, instead has focused on addressing the root causes of migration and trying to develop, resiliency. And so that led, for example, to the, Los Angeles declaration where 22 nations came together and agreed, that they would try to, create opportunities for people to stay home

00:10:34 - multiple conditions including climate change that are displacing them, and then also they pledge to work together to manage migration. We're also, at least, here in the United States, the Biden administration has, secured, commitments from industry, from private industry, for example, to, to create job opportunities to assist with infrastructure development and, and the like. so they've been working on multiple fronts to,

Addressing Climate Change and Its Impact on Vulnerable Nations

00:11:04 - but also to provide the technologies to provide the, the scientific knowledge, and, and also to create the jobs, that will convince people to that, that there are opportunities in their homeland. So, and so they'll, they'll, they'll be more likely to, exercise that right to stay home. I think we're all in agreement that, that climate change is a fast moving train and we are nowhere, meeting the targets of the Paris Agreement. And that is indeed worrisome.

00:11:36 - have a particular obligation to the lesser developed nations. I mean, the, you know, it, it's the lesser developed nations that are currently on the front lines, of, of the climate crisis, right? And many of them are former colonies whose wealth Was extracted for the benefit of the wealthier nations. as I said, they're highly indebted. they're, many of them, are experiencing intense levels of criminal violence,

00:12:06 - And so, so I think we have a particular obligation to, to these lesser developed nations. But, but every nation is experiencing, you know, the climate crisis. We're not immune from from it here in the United States. I mean, we just experienced two back to back hurricanes, hurricanes, Helene and, and Milton, which were devastating, right? And, you know, already we, and within the United States have internal migration of our own, where people from California, for example, long affected by the wildfires, are moving elsewhere

Impact of Climate Change on Coastal Communities

00:12:39 - because they've had to, you know, people in Florida are no longer able to afford, the insurance on their homes because of flooding, because of coastal erosion, because of back-to-back hurricanes. And many of them, are also having to move elsewhere. So right now, in the United States, there are 170 coastal communities that have reached the threshold for chronic inundation, and over half of them are communities of the underserved.

00:13:19 - And so, so yeah, you know, even wealthy nations are affected by the climate crisis. But I think, but even so, I think we have a particular obligation to the lesser developed nations.

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