Written by Suthirth Parthiban
Edited by Emil Koch & Hanna Karasinska
A few years ago, in May 2018, a series of significant floods in East Africa caused hundreds of thousands of people to be displaced. Subsequently, diplomats from over the world worked on multiple global agreements to lay out guidelines for how countries should deal with the surge of displaced people. Along with that, one emerging category of refugees experienced short shrift, the so-called climate refugees.
To beat the climate crisis, we must understand and respond to how social inequalities intersect with our movement forward. Only then will we have the real story of climate change, something that doesn’t affect everyone equally, with the climate being a vital factor in influencing inequality. As we examined previously, the climate crisis factors do not only affect our earth and ecosystem, including melting ice caps, sea-level rise, extreme weather events, and biodiversity loss but also inequalities and social injustice. Most likely, if you ask most children what causes climate change, their mind diverts to the main environmental factors and rarely social injustice. This is because, as a society, we do not give enough importance to this problem. In 2018 Scientists from the Environmental Protection Agency discovered that residing close to facilities that release particle pollution like soot puts people of color at a 28% higher health burden than the general population. The findings were particularly alarming for Black Americans, who are at an even higher risk of 54%. Overall, families with low incomes, regardless of their racial backgrounds, face a higher exposure to pollution as compared to their more privileged counterparts.
The reality of the intersection between climate action and social justice is alarming. The way environmental-related racism and raging inequality are only fuelling the climate crisis, which, in turn, worsens social injustices around the world. Compared to white people and areas with higher incomes, people of color are more likely to be exposed to dangerous contaminants. Communities of color experience a much higher incidence of significant health issues, including heart attacks, lung ailments, and cancer. The impacts of climate change are not equally felt due to socioeconomic differences and social and political inequalities. Looking back in time, the disproportionate exposure to pollutants may arise from a complex interplay between residential segregation, discriminatory zoning practices, the location of industrial facilities, and the legacy of slavery. The unjust spatial distribution directly impacts the health and well-being of unprivileged minorities. Neighborhoods with low income and residents from racial and ethnic minorities are more likely exposed to toxic waste, air, and water, according to Cole et al. (2021). For instance, in the US, more than one million African Americans face an elevated cancer risk due to polluted air resulting from their proximity to industrial facilities.
While climate refugees and those who endure environmental racism may not significantly contribute to the problem of climate change, they are unevenly affected by its implications. Climate refugees, often unaware of the intricate factors leading to their displacement, make every effort to avoid being uprooted, sometimes resorting to drastic coping techniques like having their children drop out of school and taking on hazardous and demeaning jobs.
Although several developing countries petitioned the EU to grant climate migrants refugee status, individual EU Member States have not backed the concept of establishing a new category: climate refugees. On the grounds of climate change, the Directorate-General for Migration and Home of the Commission stated that no need for refugee-type protection existed. According to the IPCC, it will take around ten gigatons of net CO2 per year to remove to keep the increase in world temperature by 2050 within 1.5 or 2 °C. Therefore, in order to prevent the relocation of millions of people and stabilize their living situations, it is crucial to support projects that lead to viable and permanent solutions. We can involve ourselves in real-life solutions and climate change-reduced sustainable principles and make a fraction of these people’s lives better.
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References:
[1] Okiror, S. (2022, October 19). Lethal flash floods hit east African countries already in dire need. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/may/08/deadly-flash-floods-east-africa-dire-need-kenya-rwanda-somalia; (Accessed on 08/19/2023)
[2] European Parliament (10/182021). The concept of 'climate refugee' Towards a possible definition. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2021/698753/EPRS_BRI(2021)698753_EN.pdf; (Accessed on 08/19/2023)
[3] Ihab Mikati, Adam F. Benson, Thomas J. Luben, Jason D. Sacks, Jennifer Richmond-Bryant, “Disparities in Distribution of Particulate Matter Emission Sources by Race and Poverty Status”, American Journal of Public Health 108, no. 4 (April 1, 2018): pp. 480-485.
[4] United Nations. (n.d.). Biodiversity - our strongest natural defense against climate change | United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/climate-issues/biodiversity#:~:text=The%20risk%20of%20species%20extinction,destroy%20almost%20all%20remaining%20reefs; (Accessed on 08/19/2023)
[5] Psci. Aneesh Patnaik, Jiahn Son, Alice Feng, Crystal Ade. (2020). Racial Disparities and Climate Change — PSCI. PSCI. https://psci.princeton.edu/tips/2020/8/15/racial-disparities-and-climate-change; (Accessed on 08/19/2023)
[6] Cole, H.V.S., Mehdipanah, R., Gullón, P. et al. Breaking Down and Building Up: Gentrification, Its drivers, and Urban Health Inequality. Curr Envir Health Rpt 8, 157–166 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-021-00309-5.