In 2008, Refugee Week will be held from Sunday, June 15 to Sunday, June 21. This will coincide with World Refugee Day which will take place on Friday, June 20, 2008. In Australia, the national theme for Refugee Week 2008 is "A Place to Call Home".

When we think of refugees we traditionally think of people who have been forced to leave their home as a result of conflict, injustice, or persecution. In fact, the 1951 Refugee Convention defines “refugees” as those who “owing to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.”

But in today’s world we are increasingly seeing thousands upon thousands of people forced to leave their homes because of the impacts of climate change. Increased droughts, desertification, rising sea levels, along with the more frequent occurrence of extreme weather events, is creating a ‘climate refugees’ crisis around the world.

This is a new phenomena and one which the international community is being forced to address as a matter of urgency.
Climate change itself refers to the variability of average weather patterns over a period of time. These changes are caused by both natural and human factors, however, most scientists now agree that current climate change is inextricably linked with the increase in greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere.

This increase in greenhouse gases is primarily attributed to the extensive burning of fossil fuels. Shamefully Australia remains the greatest per capita emitter of greenhouse gases in the industrialised world. Other factors contributing to climate change include: deforestation, beef production (linked to methane gas production from animal farts), and local industrial activities.
 
The effects of climate change include long-term environmental changes which occur over time such as rising sea levels, loss of biodiversity of species and desertification; and the increase in extreme weather conditions such as cyclones and floods.

"Global warming and extreme weather conditions may have calamitous consequences for the human rights of millions of people," said Kyung-wha Kang, the U.N. deputy high commissioner for human rights.

"Ultimately climate change may affect the very right to life of various individuals," she said, pointing to threats of hunger, malnutrition, exposure to disease and lost livelihoods, particularly in poor rural areas dependent on fertile soil.

Although climate change in itself does not produce refugees, the effects of climate change are putting millions of people at risk and forcing them from their homes, in some cases temporarily, and in others permanently.

Communities that are already vulnerable and under stress, due to factors such as: population growth, poverty, malnutrition, poor water, air and soil quality, dependence upon distant global markets, politically corrupt governments, gender inequalities and the HIV/AIDS epidemic, are finding that their level of vulnerability is increased by the effects of climate change.

The International Federation of Red Cross believes that more people are now forced to leave their homes because of environmental disasters than war, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), has suggested 150 million environmental refugees would exist by 2050.

Ecological stress in the form of naturally occurring droughts, floods and pestilence has been a significant factor in forcing people to migrate since the beginning of recorded history. And history demonstrates that people move when they cannot sustain themselves.

Climate induced migration today is playing out in three distinct ways. First, people are moving in response to a deteriorating environment, creating new or repetitive patterns of migration, especially in developing countries. Secondly, there is increasing short-term population movements due to severe cyclones or major flooding. Thirdly, large scale population movements are beginning to be seen in countries such as Sudan where adverse shifts in climate interact with other migration drivers such as political disturbances, military conflict, ecological stress and socio-economic change.

In this first phase of movement in response to a deteriorating environment, those affected by climate changes are no longer able to secure a livelihood from the land or sea, ensure their food security, have access to water resources or shelter and other infrastructure, and are thus forced to seek refuge outside their home and land. Communities are moving from areas that can no longer sustain them to areas of more suitable climate to grow their crops, find food, water and shelter or to find employment to generate an income.

In countries such as Tanzania where a significant increase in the number of droughts has been observed in the past 10 years Caritas has witnessed first hand the suffering of local communities as families, who are often living on less than $2 per day, struggle to grow enough food to eat, or find safe water to drink. The World Resources Institute estimates that roughly 70 per cent of the world’s population lives by farming, and 40 per cent of all exports are agricultural products. Within the developing world the poorest members of society are often those who are most dependent on rain-fed agriculture for jobs and income. This leaves them highly vulnerable to climatic phenomena that disrupt agricultural cycles. If their crop fails they often have no resources to fall back on.

Another climate change contributing to a deteriorating environment is rising sea levels. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, sea levels are predicted to rise worldwide by 0.09 to 0.88m between 1990 and 2100.

This is already having a significant impact on those countries where coastal areas constitute a large proportion of their total land area such as the Pacific Island nations, and Bangladesh.

Examples of potential impacts of sea level rise can be noted all around the world. But in 2005, half of Bhola Island in Bangladesh became permanently flooded, leaving 500,000 people homeless. The Bhola Islanders have been described as some of the world's first climate refugees.  The inhabitants of the Carteret Islands in Papua New Guinea are also among the first climate refugees due to rising sea levels. And Tuvalu, along with other small island states is facing the prospect of extinction – making it possibly the first nation to be obliterated as a result of climate change.

We are also currently witnessing the second phase of climate induced migration, as throughout the world there has been an upward trend in the number of natural disasters due to hydro-meteorological events such as cyclones and flooding. These extreme weather events are also becoming increasingly unpredictable.

As the world stands in shock at the catastrophic death toll from Cyclone Nargis which hit Burma closely followed by the devastating earthquake affecting the people of China we are reminded of how vulnerable poor communities are to climate change. We are also reminded that while climate change affects everyone, those most seriously and disproportionately affected are those living in poverty, particularly in developing countries.

During natural disasters food supplies may be contaminated, and crops destroyed threatening food security. There may also be a loss of land and infrastructure. Populations are forced to flee the devastated area in search of water, food and shelter.  As a direct result of the recent cyclone in Burma Caritas is anticipating increased numbers of people crossing into Thailand, their own country unable to meet their urgent needs.

In countries such as Sudan we are witnessing the third stage of migration due to climate change were we are observing vast numbers of the population forced to move to areas which are often already overcrowded or unsafe due to conflict, with an exacerbation of the conflict occurring as people vie for the natural resources available, placing communities under even greater pressure to migrate further.

Overall the devastating -  and increasingly undeniable -  impacts of climate change, which include increased droughts, desertification, and sea level rise, along with the more frequent occurrence of extreme weather events, is sure to lead to an increased number of climate refugees around the world. 

Caritas Australia is profoundly affected by this crisis as we are working with the poorest of the poor. We see first hand the suffering that many, many, are experiencing because they do not have the resources to cope with the climate changes as they occur around them. We see the parents who have to leave children at home, often alone undernourished and uneducated, while they travel to far off towns or cities to secure employment because they can no longer grow enough food to eat or generate an income. We see families devastated by climate disasters, their homes and schools are gone, there is no place to find work, they must walk, often huge distances to find refuge.

But Caritas Australia is taking action on several fronts to respond to these challenges faced by climate refugees.
We are working through partner organizations to respond to both the short and long term humanitarian needs of people affected by climate change and climate induced disasters.

We are assessing the threats faced by particular vulnerable communities and supporting them to adapt to new weather conditions and reduce the risks of disasters.  Through our partners we educate and train communities in sustainable agricultural practices and assist them to ensure water security through the construction of local water points and water tanks. For example, in Papua New Guinea we support Organic Farming programs, in the Solomon Islands we support Buma Water and Sanitation facility programs and in India we run Watershed Management programs. In Tanzania Sustainable Agriculture and Integrated Community Development projects (which address food security, water and sanitation as well as other issues such as health and education) are a priority.

Our disaster response teams are also working tirelessly to ensure urgently needed supplies of water, food and shelter reach those effected by natural disasters.

As climate change exacerbates the vulnerabilities and stresses that people living in poverty already experience, Caritas Australia continues to work to provide people with steps to lift themselves out of poverty and vulnerability, whilst ensuring that these methods are sustainable.

(For more information about our extensive program work, please visit www.caritas.org.au)

Part of Caritas Australia’s work is also in education and advocacy.  The Australian community can be of great assistance in helping us to address the emerging humanitarian crisis of climate refugees. We are calling on the Australian community to stay informed about the plight of climate refugees. To keep up to date with how Caritas is responding to the crisis through our newsletters and website, to continue to support both our emergency response work and our long term sustainable development projects, and to undertake advocacy initiatives by lobbying local politicians to address issues of climate change, such as reducing green house gas emissions.  The Australian government also needs to be encouraged to plan now for how we as a nation will assist those affected and displaced by climate change, especially our neighbours and develop new International responses to those displaced by climate change.

Anna Orchard
Communications Officer, Caritas Australia