What is Climate Migration?

Increasing temperature due to climate change poses a significant threat worldwide. Many different disasters are expected in other parts of the world. For example, While one region fights drought, another area must fight sea level rise. Many immigrants will arise due to climate change, which is expected to displace societies. People who have to migrate due to climate will be called climate immigrants. Forming a new immigrant class, climate immigrants will pose a significant problem for developed countries.

Climate migration will be an issue that will cause various dangers at both individual and social levels. With the uneven population growth, epidemic diseases will primarily increase. Migration will fundamentally affect public health and turn into macro-scale sociological events. However, public order will be disrupted. As social orders deteriorate, unrest will increase. With the deterioration of public order, unemployment and violence, especially gender-based, will increase. Environmental disasters that will fundamentally disrupt the level of welfare will also affect cultures. Climate change, which will affect every aspect of the public sector, from food security to the health system, will now affect the ecological balance and every part of society.

Climate migration is defined as people leaving the regions they live in and migrating to new areas due to the adverse effects of climate change. Among the reasons that cause climate migration are essential factors such as rising sea levels, drought, famine due to infertile lands, and the destruction of habitable areas. Climate migration is expected to become a significant issue due to anticipated international disasters. Large waves of migration are expected to other countries from the Pacific Islands, Bangladesh, the Sahel Region, the Caribbean Islands, Central America, the African Great Lakes Region, India, and the Cattle Plains of Bangladesh, Malawi, and Mozambique.

Climate change is felt especially in economically underdeveloped countries. The culture and even the existence of societies with low social and economic income and lack of technological innovations will disappear. This situation has turned into a life-or-death problem in the international arena. Each community should prioritize climate change and support clean technology innovations for the solution.

Especially in recent years, the effects of the climate crisis have become more evident. Natural disasters such as forest fires, floods, seasonal temperatures above average, and drought are becoming more common daily. Global action plans should be created to reduce or eliminate the effects of the climate crisis. With the action plan, energy sources, the most critical factor that triggers climate change, should be changed. Dependency on fossil fuels should be reduced, investment in renewable energy sources and energy efficiency should be increased.

What are the measures taken with the G20 Summit?

The G20 summit is a meeting of the leaders of the world's 20 largest economies. These summits are held to address global economy, finance, trade, climate change, and other global issues. G20 summits are an essential platform to contribute to solving global problems.

Climate change was one of the most discussed topics at the 2023 G20 Summit, which took place in New Delhi, the capital of India, on September 9 and 10, 2023. However, a common ground could not be found. Although the leaders adopted a joint action plan at the end of the summit to combat climate change, no steps were taken for essential solutions. For example, leaders have refrained from setting a net-zero emissions target by 2050.

As a result, mass migrations will inevitably occur due to climate change. Climate change will fundamentally affect the origins of societies. Creating international action plans to protect public health and order is essential and urgent in such a situation.