Workshop - Call for Papers
ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE AND MIGRATION
11th & 12th September 2008, Oxford
Many recent reports on the likely impact of climate change
have highlighted the potential for large- scale
'environmentally-induced' migrations in developing regions
of the world over the next twenty to fifty years.
Environmental transformations resulting from increases in
global atmospheric temperatures have prompted many experts
to predict the collapse of traditional livelihoods systems,
increased conflict over natural resources, regional 'water
wars', and a resulting population of 'environmental
refugees' that some have predicted will be hundreds of
millions strong.
As yet, there is little concrete evidence to justify such
predictions. There is a significant lacuna in both
conceptual and empirical research on the relationship
between environmental change and the patterns and process of
migration. For example, it remains unclear how one can
differentiate between 'environmentally induced displacement'
and other forms of displacement, given the complex mix of
factors which underlie people's decisions to move.
This workshop seeks to address this lacuna by bringing
together academics, activists, policy makers and development
practitioners to share research, experience and analysis on
the subject. In particular, the workshop hopes to address
the following questions:
* How can we conceptualise the relationship between
environmental change and migration, particularly 'forced'
and 'economic' migration? What do the concepts of
resilience, adaptation and transformation bring to our
understanding of this relationship?
* What empirical evidence is available to underpin
existing analyses of the links between environmental change
and migration? What are the gaps and how are they being
filled?
* To what extent does migration related to environmental
change give rise to new challenges for humanitarian response
or notions of sustainable development? Should those who
migrate as a result of environmental change be afforded
specific forms of legal and social protection?
* How important are questions of political economy in
determining the relationship between environmental changes
and migration locally, regionally and internationally?
* How is environmental change likely to influence
migration patterns in the 21st century at the local,
regional and international level?
The workshop will be organized as an open forum where a
number of brief presentations are followed by open
discussion. Potential speakers are invited to submit
presentation abstracts to be considered for inclusion in the
workshop.
Abstracts may address any question relevant to the
interrelationship between environmental change and
migration, should be no more than 300 words long, and should
be submitted to
simon.addison@qeh.ox.ac.uk by the 20th June
2008. Participants will be expected to cover their own costs
for attending this event, though some limited funding maybe
available for those who would otherwise be unable to attend.
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