Ebb and Flow: The Prospects and Constraints of Climate Migrants

Ebb and Flow: The Prospects and Constraints of Climate Migrants

By Justin Gest, George Mason University, Scott Drinkall, George Mason University, Kapiolani Micky, Micronesian Islander Community, and Lucas Núñez, George Mason University

Understanding why people choose to adapt or emigrate when facing slow-onset climate events is central to the design and implementation of policy addressing displacement spurred by climate change, especially climate-refugee programs. In this article, we leverage extensive field interviews and a novel survey in the Federated States of Micronesia, a country at high risk of environmental degradation but whose citizens have carte blanche access to the United States. We find that despite a general awareness of environmental risks, these play a minor role in migration decision making. Instead, other factors like work, health, and family obligations take precedence.