Climate change and migration in Asia and the Pacific - Draft study

This draft study discusses how climate change is likely to influence population displacement, migration and settlement patterns and examines how this will impact development in five sub-regions of Asia and the Pacific. It argues that if migration due to climate change is managed effectively, humanitarian crises will be minimized, conflicts avoided, and countries can benefit.

In addition to assessing the impacts of climate change on migration across the entire region, a number of case studies are carried out in particular hot spots, such as Bangladesh–India, the PRC, and the Pacific. Smaller case studies use secondary data in Central Asia, Indonesia, the Mekong, Nepal, and Thailand.

In Chapter 2, the study looks at the evidence linking climate change and migration followed in Chapter 3 with a brief look at the nature of migration in the region. Chapter 4 then presents the potential hot spots of climate change in Asia and the Pacific, leading into the Chapter 5 discussion of the possible impact on migration (projecting the numbers of people who will be vulnerable). The implications for policy are than analyzed in Chapter 6, closing the study with a series of recommendations dealing directly with migration and the possible effects of climate change.