First Displacement, then Disasters: How Refugees Contend with Climate Change

More from Changing Climate, Changing Migration All episodes →

1. 

   S1 · E55 · 28 Aug 2026 · 34 min

   Precedent or Cautionary Tale? The U.S. Climate-Driven Relocation of Isle de Jean Charles

   In 2016, the U.S. federal government provided $48 million to relocate the climate-threatened Louisiana island of Isle de Jean Charles. The effort, which was the government’s first climate-driven community relocation project, was closely watched as a potential model for the future. But the relocation was more challenging than originally anticipated. Many residents who were members of a Native American tribe felt they had been treated unfairly or were excluded from decisionmaking. In the end, some tribal leaders referred to the process as a “cultural genocide.” We speak with Jessica Simms, a…

2. 

   S1 · E54 · 31 Jul 2026 · 32 min

   Fiji on the Front Lines of Climate Mobility

   Fiji has long been at the forefront of developing policies to help its residents voluntarily relocate to escape the extreme effects of climate change. The country, which is comprised of hundreds of islands in the Pacific, faces rising sea levels, extreme weather, and other dangers. But for many Fijians, the choice to pack up and leave home is a difficult one. Many have a deep spiritual and personal connection to place, a concept known as vanua. Meanwhile, as one of the largest economies in the region, Fiji is also a destination for migrants from other Pacific Island countries, including…

3. 

   S1 · E53 · 30 Jun 2026 · 29 min

   How the World Is Learning to Respond Collectively to Climate Displacement

   The coordinated global response to climate change-driven displacement is relatively new. Just a few decades ago, virtually no governments were paying attention to the ways in which people were being displaced by extreme weather, sea-level rise, and other climate events. Although the international response remains a work in progress, significant strides have been made to bring the world together. One of the people responsible for that coordination is Walter Kälin, a longtime humanitarian expert and legal scholar who is now the Envoy of the Chair of the Platform on Disaster Displacement, a…

4. 

   S1 · E52 · 26 May 2026 · 34 min

   Climate Change Is Making People Sick. Can Migration Help?

   Climate change can be devastating for individuals’ health and safety. Climate-linked natural disasters can cause physical injuries and damage health-care systems, while slow-onset changes such sea-level rise can lead to the spread of disease and make it harder for people to obtain care. In that context, leaving a climate-vulnerable place can potentially lead to better health outcomes—but only under the right circumstances. In this episode, we speak with Ilse Ruyssen, an economist at Ghent University and the UN University Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies, who leads the…

5. 

   S1 · E51 · 23 Apr 2026 · 31 min

   Priced Out: Climate Change, Home Insurance, and the People Stuck in the Middle

   Climate change is making home insurance more expensive and less available, as the multibillion-dollar losses caused by hurricanes, wildfires, and other disasters increase in scale. Rising insurance premiums can push some people to relocate or force others to either pay more money to remain in their home or go without insurance and risk catastrophe if disaster strikes. Residents, insurance companies, and policymakers in high-income countries are beginning to reckon with these issues and are working to find a way to adequately offset risk without charging exorbitant prices. This episode…

6. 

   S1 · E49 · 23 Feb 2026 · 24 min

   Climate Displacement from Indigenous Lands

   Many Indigenous people have a deep connection to their ancestral homelands that dates back centuries. What happens when climate change and other factors force them to move away from those lands? This episode discusses issues affecting Indigenous people, especially in the Americas. Our guest is environmental scientist Jessica Hernandez, a climate justice and Indigenous advocate. She discusses the factors compelling migration for Indigenous communities, their experiences after migration and the dearth of Indigenous voices in policy discussions over climate change and migration.

7. 

   S1 · E48 · 26 Jan 2026 · 39 min

   Is Climate-Vulnerable Africa Prepared for Increased Displacement?

   Africa may be the most climate-vulnerable region of the world, with drought, extreme heat and storms, and other impacts affecting millions across the continent. These environmental events have forced people from their homes and in some cases even contributed to conflict between different groups. By far, most climate-affected individuals who migrate stay either within their own country or go elsewhere on the continent, rather than migrating beyond Africa. How prepared is the continent for a future of increased displacement? Governments are making some strides to accommodate displaced…

8. 

   S1 · E47 · 16 Dec 2025 · 30 min

   Trapped by Climate Change: The Economics of Staying or Leaving

   It is not guaranteed that someone harmed by a natural disaster or other environmental change will leave their home. A complicated web of factors affects whether climate-vulnerable individuals want to—or even can—move. One of these factors is financial: How much money or other resources someone has at their disposal. In this episode, we speak with Kelsea Best of The Ohio State University about climate (im)mobility and the economic and other factors that help shape futures amid changing climates. We also discuss the notion of “climate gentrification,” which occurs when wealthier people move…

9. 

   S1 · E46 · 10 Nov 2025 · 27 min

   The Young Lives Uprooted by Climate Change

   Children are especially vulnerable to displacement linked to climate change. Each year, millions of young people are displaced by weather-related disasters, as schools and other services break down and adults send children away to find safety. Forced from their homes, children often face new challenges, including being unable to access education or medical care, and even heightened risk of violence and other dangers. Despite the unique challenges that children face in displacement, there are relatively few international laws or systems particularly designed to assist those forced to move…

10. 

    S1 · E45 · 29 Oct 2025 · 27 min

    Will Climate Change Push Some People into Statelessness?

    Within the next few decades, rising sea levels could wipe some small Pacific Island nations off the face of the earth. The prospect that the physical territory of countries such as Kiribati and Tuvalu is no longer habitable raises the prospect that their nationals could lose their citizenship, becoming stateless. It also poses profound questions for international law and the obligations of other countries. How likely is this possible outcome, and what can countries do to protect their sovereignty and their citizens? Join our discussion with Mark Nevitt, an international law scholar at the…