knowledge

What’s the connection between climate change and migrations?

The weather or more precisely the climate, is actually the cause of migration. It looks like we are on the brink of a climate catastrophe. The world we know is disappearing and we are unlikely to stop it.

CLIMATE REFUGEES

Drought, hurricanes, veld fires and floods – natural phenomena can be life-threatening. They don’t have to be a direct threat. They can destroy crops, food supplies or cut off access to drinking water.
If these events recur, people are forced to leave their homes and find somewhere else to live.

Human activities are the main cause of tne climate change.

Fossil fuels, large scale animal husbandry, industrial activities and on top of that, deforestation. It is the Global South that feels most of the effects of climate change. These changes are mainly caused by developed countries.

EVERYTHING IS BURNING

What is conducive to the spread of veld fires and thus the extension of the fire season? It is dry air, high temperatures, relatively few rainy days and strong winds. The effects can be observed anywhere around the Globe.

EVERYTHING IS FLOWING

… mainly coastal towns, where the advancing climate crisis “took away” thick layers of ice, protecting the coast from waves. The land deprived of this protection, disappears under water along with towns and villages.

WHAT THE WIND BRINGS

Anything it wlill pick up along the way. The progressing climate crisis is conducive to the formation of cyclones. The higher the water temperature, the better the conditions for hurricanes to form. As a result of climate change, strong winds begin to blow where no one has heard of them before.

PRICELESS WATER

Central Kenya, South Sudan. It’s hard to find a person who has not heard that every drop of water counts. There are many such places and there are signs that there will be even more of them.

Where possible, people are rebuilding their homes damaged by extreme weather events. 

It happens that there is nothing left and people are forced to move to more friendly regions of the world. However, oftenly, a refugee camp becomes their new home. 

Temperature rises:

The greatest increase in temperatures is observed in the Arctic region, while in Europe in the south of the continent. More and more often we will witness the severe effects of heat waves. It can be also expected that drought will become more extreme.

While agriculture can benefit from a slight increase in temperature, prolonged drought will affect natural ecosystems, human health and drinking water.

www.eea.europa.eu 

Only a few get rich…

“If we look at the global energy system, we can see that only a few can benefit from it. They are usually large international companies. One quarter of the planet is still energy poor … Renewable energy is a great democratizing and liberating force, especially for the poorest.”

 

How to slow down the climate crisis?

This requires the efforts of all, especially in developed countries, which are responsible for the emission of the greatest amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Governments and corporations must adjust their policies on greenhouse gas emissions, with carbon dioxide to begin with. We all can be a part of this transformation. By changing our own consumption habits and our daily choices as customers. We can exert pressure on  companies and politicians.

This is the world we live in. Even if it is impossible to stop the changes caused by irresponsible human activities, we can certainly do a lot for the people most affected by them.