Although migration has long been of interest to policy-makers, it has recently become a prominent topic in debates on the impacts of climate change. Frequently-cited figures estimate that by 2050 the number of people displaced primarily because of environmental degradation linked to climate change could be as high as 200 million (Myers 2005; Stern Review Team 2006). Underpinning these predictions is a view of migration as essentially forced movement resulting from the failure to adapt to the impacts of climate change; as a consequence, an undifferentiated mass of displaced people is expected to move to unspecified destinations, including international ones....

To a large extent, current debates on the links between migration and climate change reflect different views and perceptions of the role of migration in socio-economic development, rather than being informed by empirical evidence. This section reviews the reasons why there is such limited evidence on environment-related mobility, and the key arguments underpinning what at times appears to be a polarised discussion.

While environmental change has long been identified as one of the many drivers of migration, until recently it has been conspicuously marginal in migration research. In part, this is because interest has focused primarily on the socio-economic factors...

This section describes the findings from case studies conducted in three countries, Bolivia, Senegal and Tanzania, all of which are experiencing the impacts of slow-onset climate change. Within each country, specific locations were selected in areas representing a range of environmental changes, as described below. The methodology used was qualitative and as much as possible based on group discussions, as well as interviews with key informants. This enabled the three country teams to engage other actors (peasant federations in Bolivia, farmers’ associations in Senegal and youth organisations in Tanzania) in the research and discussions, and in so-doing stimulate local debates....

Migration is typically considered either a problem that needs to be managed, often in the sense of restricting it, or an essentially private concern of the migrant or her/his family. As a result, policies tend to veer between controlling migrants and ignoring them, with little in between. A central problem is that by considering migration in isolation, it becomes very difficult to understand, and address, the broader socio-economic, political and environmental dimensions that shape, and in turn are transformed by, people’s movement. In other words, it is important to consider both the causes and the consequences of migration (and the...

Addressing migration has long been an aim of policy-makers but, at the same time, one that has had limited success whether it attempted to promote or, more often, limit population movement. This paper highlights a different approach, with a focus on the causes and especially on the impacts of migration on the resilience of individuals, households and communities to environmental degradation linked to climate change.

The case studies show that even within the context of gradual climate change, it is possible to identify precipitating events, such as unusually harsh droughts, as tipping points from which livelihoods need to change radically...