Climate change will result in more slow- and sudden-onset disasters. People in low- and middle-income countries are more vulnerable to these disasters, and those dependent on agriculture most of all. Some of these people will need to move, most likely internally and regionally, to find more productive livelihoods elsewhere.

Migration is not an inherently negative outcome. Access to less climate-affected labour markets can allow migrants to send remittances back home. Such remittances can support consumption needs, and even facilitate climate adaptation and increased resilience to future climate shocks.

For this to happen, better migration policy is needed. Policymakers in low- and middle-income countries need to ensure they plan for an increase in rural-urban migration; alleviate the risks associated with ‘distress migration’; and reduce the barriers to regional free movement. And they must be supported in these efforts by the international community, especially with adaptation finance and capacity building.

Funded by the Robert Bosch Foundation, this project focuses on the inter-connections between climate change, migration, and mediating factors, proposing policy options that can improve the adaptation and resilience-building impacts of migration.