A new report has warned that climate change and its impact on agriculture and food supply could create ‘the world’s biggest refugee crisis’ and drive future violent conflicts.
The study, by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), highlighted the links between climate change, food poverty, conflict and migration ahead of a major climate summit in Germany next week.
It said climate change is a ‘threat multiplier’ driving violent conflict, while senior officials warned of tens of millions of refugees who could be displaced from drought-risk areas such as the Sahara in the future.
“If Europe thinks they have a problem with migration today … wait 20 years,” said former US military corps brigadier general Stephen Cheney. “See what happens when climate change drives people out of Africa…and we’re talking now not just one or two million, but 10 or 20 [million]. They are not going to south Africa, they are going across the Mediterranean.”
The EJF said that what happened in Syria, when a one-in-900 year drought caused farmers to lose livestock and livelihoods, while food scarcity and a failure of the government to respond led to the subsequent war and refugee crisis, is likely to be repeated in the future.
The organisation is calling for European leaders to create a legal protection framework for ‘climate refugees’ in advance of the problem escalating.
EJF executive director Steve Trent, said: “The challenge we face is complex. Climate change is the unpredictable ingredient that, when added to existing social, economic and political tensions, has the potential to ignite violence and conflict with disastrous consequences.
“In our rapidly changing world, climate change - and its potential to trigger both violent conflict and mass migration - needs to be considered as urgent priority.”
