Displacement related to climate change and disasters: Challenges and opportunitiesDIHAD 2015 Session 2: Environmental Protection and Climate Change – Opportunities24 March 2015

IDMC is the world’s leading source of data and analysis on internal displacement, providing a solid evidence base through which to inform policy and operational decisions that improve IDPs’ lives. We do this by monitoring all displacement situations, providing quantitative estimates of the number of IDPs worldwide and disseminating information and analysis relevant to policy development.

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC)

Displacement in the climate change agenda

UNFCCC Cancun Adaptation Framework:

“…14. Invites all Parties to enhance action on adaptation under the Cancun Adaptation Framework, taking into account their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, and specific national and regional development priorities, objectives and circumstances, by undertaking, inter alia, the following:

(f) Measures to enhance understanding, coordination and cooperation with regard to climate change induced displacement, migration and planned relocation, where appropriate, at the national, regional and international levels…”

Displacement related to weather and geophysical hazards (1970 – 2012)

Components of disaster-related displacement risk

Displacement risk drivers: Climate change

Interlocking vulnerabilities of small island states

Displacement risk drivers: Population growth in hazard-prone areas

Displacement risk drivers: Rapid, unplanned urbanisation

Displacement risk drivers: Conflict, especially conflict combined with natural hazards

Case study: Drought-displacement risk for pastoralists in northern Kenya, southern Ethiopia and

south-central Somalia

Case study: Drought-displacement risk for pastoralists in northern Kenya, southern Ethiopia and

south-central Somalia

Percentage of pastoralists displaced

What needs to be done?

1. Innovate out of the problem: Focus on present to fix the future

2. Where appropriate, coordinate Disaster Risk Reduction, adaptation, humanitarian and development frameworks

3. Address evidence and knowledge gaps

Can we do all this?

Yes, we can.

Thank you.