A future agenda for research on climate change and human mobility

Abstract

In the past 15 years, research activities focusing on the interlinkages between climate change and human mobility have intensified. At the same time, an increasing number of actors and processes have sought to address human mobility in the context of climate change from a policy perspective. Hitherto, research has been limited in terms of geographical preferences as well as conceptual and methodological focus areas. This paper argues that to address the evolving policy space, future research on climate change in the context of human mobility needs to become more differentiated, integrated and generalized. This includes concerted efforts to better integrate researchers from the global South, improved cross‐linkages between different datasets, approaches and disciplines, more longitudinal and comparative studies and development of innovative qualitative and quantitative methods.

Introduction: Environmental (im)mobilities: Improving the evidence base for effective policy making

“…The Special Section articles also address the dissemination and use of data and research to improve policy and practice, highlighting challenges and opportunities for translating scientific knowledge into policy action and effective practices (Hoffmann et al, 2023) and ways to bring the evidence to the attention of key actors (Rosengärtner et al, 2022). Furthermore, the articles identify topics that need to be researched in order to better understand the interconnections between climate change and different forms of (im)mobilities (see Oakes et al, 2023). These contributions are described in greater detail in the next section.…”

“…The Special Section ends by synthesizing a brief future agenda for research on environmental change and migration. Oakes et al (2023) stress three needs to overcome current limitations in geographic coverage, conceptualization, and methodologies: the needs for (1) more differentiated; (2) more integrated; and (3) more generalized research. The authors call for more diversity in terms of research teams and topics; combined data and approaches, as well as interdisciplinary work; and more diversity of research methodologies to raise the generalizability of findings, including underused approaches such as Bayesian network analyses, longitudinal studies, or comparative studies.…”

“…The authors call for more diversity in terms of research teams and topics; combined data and approaches, as well as interdisciplinary work; and more diversity of research methodologies to raise the generalizability of findings, including underused approaches such as Bayesian network analyses, longitudinal studies, or comparative studies. With their arguments, Oakes et al (2023) join other recent calls to raise the research on environmental change and migration to a new level of complexity and depth. Further data and research needs highlighted by other researchers include rescaled data collection efforts, more integrated data, and data standardization; better theoretical models; and finally, conceptual approaches that built on intersectional lenses as well as a mobilities perspective that also integrates immobilities (Cundill et al, 2021; Vinke & Hoffmann, 2020; Wiegel et al, 2019).…”

Intersecting (im)mobilities in the context of drought, hunger and conflict – Reflections inspired by research in Kenya

“…In such a complex context, it is necessary to be very cautious about using simplistic narratives of ‘climate refugees’. Echoing a growing number of scholars who rightfully criticize overly simplistic and environmental determinist explanations of ‘climate‐induced migration’ in the policy discourse (Boas et al., 2019; Oakes et al., 2023; among others), we think it is necessary to recognise the multiplicity of risks and transformations that shape migration patterns, people's own perceptions, experiences and aspirations, their embeddedness in social relations, including their local, translocal and transnational networks, and the meaning that diverse forms of ( im )mobilit ies play in their lives. Such a relational, critical and indeed political understanding of (im)mobilities can also inform debates about food security under conditions of climate change, violent conflict and other socio‐economic ruptures.…”

Futures of conflict risk, migration and equity implications

“…The lack of subnational longitudinal migration data has limited progress on largescale quantitative subnational migration research (Piguet, 2022). In line with this, little research has been published on developing quantitative multi-country migration scenario projections on a subnational level that encompass the potential impact of environmental change (Beyer et al, 2023;McLeman, 2013;Oakes et al, 2023). The scarcity of research can be attributed to various causes.…”