The geography of climate and environmental mobilites

Abstract der Sitzung

Evidence is abundant of the negative effects of climate change on the livelihoods security, especially of the most vulnerable people in low- and middle-income countries. And even if the goal is met to limiting global warming to 1.5°C, climate-related losses and damages will still increase. This influences human mobility, resulting in different (im)mobility types, including displacement and forced distress migration, voluntary adaptive migration, planned relocation, or involuntary immobility (de Sherbinin et al. 2008; Piguet 2011; Hunter et a. 2015; McLeman et al. 2021). While a large part of research has been focussing on causality and attribution of mobility to climate change, there are a number of other important aspects, among them developmental aspects of migration as adaptation, associated with remittance sending and investment; migration as a sign of failure and increased vulnerability; safe and regular pathways for climate induced migration, including climate passports; or issues of global climate justice in the wake of involuntary mobility or immobility.

As Geography is an important discipline in the field, the central objective of the panel is to bring together different geographical perspectives on the nexus of environmental and climate change and human mobility.

We are thus calling for submissions that address one or several of the above mentioned aspects, or deal with the following fields:

1. … diverse sets of mobilities and immobilities in the context of environmental and climate change (e.g. displacement, resettlement, circular mobility, transnational movements, migration as adaptation, trapped populations, voluntary immobility, etc.);

2. … a diverse set of environmental and climatic changes, ranging from slow-onset to fast-onset events and mixes thereof, and how these impact on im/mobilities in different or similar ways;

3. … the role of socio-economic, socio-cultural and socio-political processes for im/mobilities, and how they intersect with each other; for example financial or social exchanges that foster abilities to move or stay and adapt in place;

4. … a diversity of methodological approaches and advancements to tackle questions of im/mobilities in the context of environmental/ climate changes (e.g. quantitative modeling, policy analysis, ethnographic case studies, etc.);

5. … relevant policy processes and changes, their impacts, and the question how the science-policy divide can be bridged.

For questions regarding the session, please contact Patrick Sakdapolrak (patrick.sakdapolrak@univie.ac.at) and Harald Sterly (harald.sterly@univie.ac.at).

We are looking forward to your contributions!