Climate Change Displacement & Resettlement

Preparing for Population Displacement and Resettlement Associated with Large Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Projects

Conference at the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center

3-5 November 2010

Organized by CIESIN (The Earth Institute at Columbia University), Harvard School of Public Health, and IDDRI (Sciences Po in Paris)

The purpose of this workshop was to launch a dialog and research activity on current and future population displacements and resettlement resulting from large scale climate change adaptation and mitigation projects. As a first step towards fostering the discussion, the conference examined lessons learned from three decades of research into displacement and resettlement associated with large infrastructure and development projects, and then identified how these can be applied to the pressing issue of likely future displacement associated with climate change related projects. There is a continued investment in large infrastructure projects in developing countries, ranging from hydropower and transportation to water transfer schemes and irrigation systems. Past projects were often justified by their perceived contribution to economic development, but future projects are increasingly likely to be driven by efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

This workshop aimed to address two major types of displacement and resettlement: (1) those induced by large scale mitigation and adaptation projects (e.g. biofuel plantations, REDD projects, dams, or sea walls), and (2) those induced directly by climate change impacts that cause governments to resettle populations in the name of adaptation. This workshop did not seek to address the issue of spontaneous migration caused by direct climate impacts, but focused on organized resettlement activities.

For more information, please read the workshop background paper.

Conference Participants Back Row (left to right): Alula Pankhurst, Philip Fearnside, Greg Wannier, Alex de Sherbinin*, Graeme Hugo, Tony Oliver-Smith, and Francois Gemenne*

Front Row (left to right): Sarah Lahmani, Balaji Pandey, Susana Adamo, Michael Cernea, Charles Ehrhart, Gary Krieger, Marcia Castro*, Burton Singer, Yan Tan, Philippe Boncour, and Shi Guoqing

* The Conference organizers

The organizers are grateful for funding from The Rockefeller Foundation and Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD).

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