Migration and Environment – A Review of Empirical Analyses and Theoretical Modeling

Communication dans un congrès: Environmentally-induced migration can be analyzed through several theoretical frameworks: the new economics of labour migration, models grounded in environmental economics that analyze pollution externalities under the assumption of free factor mobility, international trade models as well as new economic geography models of the spatial distribution of population. This review surveys some of the latest attempts to analyze environmentally-induced migration, both empirically and theoretically, and aims at identifying the policy-relevant extensions that can be done. The topic is important given evidence on the current and future impact of climate change, and its incidence on low-income countries in particular. The review includes the recent empirical analyses that tries to link evidence on environmental change, in particular climate variability, to migration flows and the spatial distribution of population. A consensus seems to emerge that there is little likelihood of large increases in international migration flows due to climate variability. The evidence to date shows that regional migration will be affected, though, either on the African continent or internally, within country borders. The results have implications for urbanization trends and the sharing of common resources.

Auteur(s)

Katrin Millock

Date de publication
  • 2012
Mots-clés JEL
O15 Q54 R23
Mots-clés
  • Climate change
  • Environment
  • Migration
  • Rainfall shocks
Titre du congrès
  • Second International Conference on Environmental Economics and Natural Resources Management in Developing and Transition Economies (enrmdte)
Version
  • 1