563
cities to find work, leading to violence, poverty, and instability (Johnstone and
Mazo 2011). In Syria, the ongoing civil unrest and refugee crisis is partially attributed to a severe drought that added to political instability. From 2006–2011, more
than 60% of Syria experienced devastating drought, crop failure, and loss of livestock. With the increased population in urban areas, water supplies became strained
and made living conditions worse. Coupled with governance issues, the war forced
millions to leave Syria for other Middle Eastern nations or Europe (Werrell and
Femia 2013). Within Syria, critical infrastructure for water, food, and energy have
been destroyed and are not easily rebuilt without significant investment, making
repatriation of displaced Syrians that much more difficult.
Mass migrations or forced migrations have occurred due to both economic hardship and poor conditions for producing food, and as a result, larger societal changes
have occurred in major regions of the world. Socio-economic and political stressors
in response to new climate conflicts and violence have threatened the stability of
government structures in responding appropriately. For example, West African
countries such as Mali, Niger, and Gambia have experienced vast migrations of
young men searching for limited jobs in neighboring Libya and Algeria. As temperatures rise and rain becomes increasingly unpredictable, life as a farmer has all
about disappeared. Instead, men chance migration through the Sahara Desert and
jihadist-ridden territory to look for new means of income to support families, oftentimes dying along the way or returning home with nothing (Sengupta 2016).
In turn, such migrations impact receiving countries. In places like Jordan’s
Za’atari refugee camp, thousands of refugees rely on water trucked in daily. Lack of
adequate sanitation forces residents to discard waste water onto the bare desert
inside the camp, jeopardizing groundwater supplies. Providing water to more people has further stressed an already scarce resource (Farishta 2014).
Stories in the news are being backed up by systematic research. In a study
released in 2019, researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems
Analysis (IAASA) linked climate, conflict, and migration, noting that “Climate
change will not cause conflict and subsequent asylum-seeking flows everywhere.
But in a context of poor governance and a medium level of democracy, severe climate
conditions can create conflict over scarce resources” (Abel et al. 2019).
The idea of climate refugees is relatively new. While there is no legal definition,
the issue of migration caused by climate impacts is being considered by the United
Nations High Commission for Human Rights because of displacement caused by
disasters and climate change (see https://www.unhcr.org/climate-change-and-disasters.html). The number of people displaced by such disasters is growing: an estimated 24 million people have been displaced each year since 2008, with an estimated
143 million people displaced by climate impacts in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia,
and Latin America by 2050 (McDonnell 2018). How to address such refugees in
international law remains an open question. Climate as a threat multiplier and cause
of mass migration is not the only challenge made more severe climate change.
Areas like the Arctic which have previously been seen as peaceful have already
started to see conflicts emerge. As the Arctic sea ice melts, parts of the Arctic Ocean
have started to remain ice-free. New fishing grounds and vessel passage routes have
20 Managing Human Conflicts
cities to find work, leading to violence, poverty, and instability (Johnstone and
Mazo 2011). In Syria, the ongoing civil unrest and refugee crisis is partially attributed to a severe drought that added to political instability. From 2006–2011, more
than 60% of Syria experienced devastating drought, crop failure, and loss of livestock. With the increased population in urban areas, water supplies became strained
and made living conditions worse. Coupled with governance issues, the war forced
millions to leave Syria for other Middle Eastern nations or Europe (Werrell and
Femia 2013). Within Syria, critical infrastructure for water, food, and energy have
been destroyed and are not easily rebuilt without significant investment, making
repatriation of displaced Syrians that much more difficult.
Mass migrations or forced migrations have occurred due to both economic hardship and poor conditions for producing food, and as a result, larger societal changes
have occurred in major regions of the world. Socio-economic and political stressors
in response to new climate conflicts and violence have threatened the stability of
government structures in responding appropriately. For example, West African
countries such as Mali, Niger, and Gambia have experienced vast migrations of
young men searching for limited jobs in neighboring Libya and Algeria. As temperatures rise and rain becomes increasingly unpredictable, life as a farmer has all
about disappeared. Instead, men chance migration through the Sahara Desert and
jihadist-ridden territory to look for new means of income to support families, oftentimes dying along the way or returning home with nothing (Sengupta 2016).
In turn, such migrations impact receiving countries. In places like Jordan’s
Za’atari refugee camp, thousands of refugees rely on water trucked in daily. Lack of
adequate sanitation forces residents to discard waste water onto the bare desert
inside the camp, jeopardizing groundwater supplies. Providing water to more people has further stressed an already scarce resource (Farishta 2014).
Stories in the news are being backed up by systematic research. In a study
released in 2019, researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems
Analysis (IAASA) linked climate, conflict, and migration, noting that “Climate
change will not cause conflict and subsequent asylum-seeking flows everywhere.
But in a context of poor governance and a medium level of democracy, severe climate
conditions can create conflict over scarce resources” (Abel et al. 2019).
The idea of climate refugees is relatively new. While there is no legal definition,
the issue of migration caused by climate impacts is being considered by the United
Nations High Commission for Human Rights because of displacement caused by
disasters and climate change (see https://www.unhcr.org/climate-change-and-disasters.html). The number of people displaced by such disasters is growing: an estimated 24 million people have been displaced each year since 2008, with an estimated
143 million people displaced by climate impacts in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia,
and Latin America by 2050 (McDonnell 2018). How to address such refugees in
international law remains an open question. Climate as a threat multiplier and cause
of mass migration is not the only challenge made more severe climate change.
Areas like the Arctic which have previously been seen as peaceful have already
started to see conflicts emerge. As the Arctic sea ice melts, parts of the Arctic Ocean
have started to remain ice-free. New fishing grounds and vessel passage routes have
20 Managing Human Conflicts