Events

Side event: Human mobility in the context of climate change in mountain areas – evidence, gaps and priorities

From: 11.06.2024 to: 11.06.2024

The International Organization for Migration will be hosting a side event at the 3rd High-Level International Conference on International Decade for Action “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018-2028 in Dushanbe, Republic of Tajikistan. The event will be a moderated discussion held in person on 11 June (time and location to be confirmed).

The event will be an opportunity for collective advocacy ahead of the International Year of Glaciers' Preservation 2025, the Five Years of Action for the Development of Mountain Regions 2023-2027, and the 29th Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Mountainous areas worldwide are highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Average global warming of 1.5ºC and above is projected to have devastating impacts on mountain systems, including glacier retreat, increase in water scarcity, increase in extreme events, and loss of biodiversity. With climate change impacts in mountain areas affecting hydrological cycles, pre-existing inequalities and vulnerabilities are exacerbated especially for those relying primarily on natural rainfall patterns for sustaining their well-being and livelihoods.

The impacts of sudden onset hazards can lead to displacement. At the same time, different types of migration can also enhance climate change adaptation if enabling conditions are present. With increasing intensity and frequency of sudden-onset events, planned evacuation from disaster-affected areas to safe places (e.g., host families or evacuation shelters) is important for saving lives. Labour migration is a traditional livelihood strategy across mountain areas. In many mountain countries, remittances make a substantial contribution to the GDP as well as play a critical role in social protection at the household and community levels. Planned relocation of communities from hazard-prone areas is also a common strategy in mountain areas, although it has received limited attention and evidence gathering remain relatively weak.

Mountain countries have not managed to develop collective advocacy efforts that catch the attention of global policymakers and other stakeholders. The Task Force on Displacement of the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change recommends that parties enhance action to address human mobility-related challenges and opportunities in the context of climate change. Stakeholders in mountain areas should be supported to better address the human mobility challenges and opportunities in the context of climate change to advance water action. This includes addressing existing evidence gaps in mountain regions, building collaborative approaches, and developing capacities.

Learn more about the conference