environmental refugee
Ecology-driven migrant
A person forced to leave their home region due to environmental changes—drought, flooding, desertification, rising sea levels, or other climate-related disasters that make the area uninhabitable or unable to sustain life.
The term lacks formal legal recognition under international refugee conventions, which define refugees by persecution rather than environmental displacement: Millions of environmental refugees may be created by rising oceans in Bangladesh.
Increasing ocean surface height
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
- desertificationLand becoming barren, infertile
- extreme weatherUnusual, dangerous atmospheric events
- floodingOverwhelming water accumulation
wildfires · heatwave · deforestation · habitat loss · famine · storm surge · typhoon · cyclone
Without national belonging
- undocumentedNot officially recorded
- citizenshipStatus as state member
- recognitionPerceiving something as known
- legal statusOne's position in law
residency · documentation · border crossing · international law · unrecognized · rights · advocacy · UNHCR
Movement to new territory
- exodusMass departure from somewhere
- evacuationRemoval from danger
- relocationPermanent change of residence
- resettlementReestablishing in new place
fleeing · uprooted · dispossessed · cross-border · forced migration · mass movement · temporary shelter
State of uncertain stability
- exposureState of being unprotected
- riskPossibility of harm
- insecurityUncertainty about oneself
- susceptibilityLiability to influence
endangerment · marginalization · poverty · food insecurity · health risks · trauma · landlessness · uncertainty
Capacity to recover quickly
- copingManaging under strain
- mitigationReduction of severity
- sustainabilityCapacity to endure indefinitely
- climate adaptationAdjusting to environmental shifts
early warning · disaster preparedness · infrastructure · sea walls · water management · humanitarian aid · integration · rebuilding
sea-level rise
Increasing ocean surface height
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
- desertificationLand becoming barren, infertile
- extreme weatherUnusual, dangerous atmospheric events
flooding · wildfires · heatwave · deforestation · habitat loss · famine · storm surge · typhoon · cyclone · hurricane
stateless
Without national belonging
- undocumentedNot officially recorded
- citizenshipStatus as state member
- recognitionPerceiving something as known
legal status · residency · documentation · border crossing · international law · unrecognized · rights · advocacy · UNHCR · legal limbo
migration
Movement to new territory
- exodusMass departure from somewhere
- evacuationRemoval from danger
- relocationPermanent change of residence
resettlement · fleeing · uprooted · dispossessed · cross-border · forced migration · mass movement · temporary shelter
precariousness
State of uncertain stability
- exposureState of being unprotected
- riskPossibility of harm
- insecurityUncertainty about oneself
susceptibility · endangerment · marginalization · poverty · food insecurity · health risks · trauma · landlessness · uncertainty · instability
resilience
Capacity to recover quickly
- copingManaging under strain
- mitigationReduction of severity
- sustainabilityCapacity to endure indefinitely
climate adaptation · early warning · disaster preparedness · infrastructure · sea walls · water management · humanitarian aid · integration · rebuilding
- displaced peopledisplaced, IDPs, asylum seeker, displaced persons, displaced person
environmental refugeeexpatriate
One living abroad permanently
digital nomad · expat · snowbird · adventurer · colonist
environmental, refugee, environment, environments, environmentally, environmentalism, environmentalist, environmentalists, environ