Refugees are often located in climate-vulnerable areas, in which they are exposed to extreme weather events associated with climate change. In this chapter, we study how the climate vulnerabilities of refugees interact with, and are exacerbated by the spatial and socio-political vulnerabilities that refugees face. We use a case study approach and focus on Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps in Kenya. Our findings show how the spatial isolation of the camps, being located in remote and climate-vulnerable areas and often without adequate infrastructure and shelters, enhances the climate vulnerabilities of camp residents. Moreover, we show how the exclusion of refugees, for example, from labour markets, lowers refugee households’ adaptive capacities and, consequently, their abilities to respond to climate shocks. Forced migration will remain a pressing item on the global policy agenda: conflict, fragility, and climate extremes will continue to give rise to forced displacement. However, those same factors, particularly climate extremes, can undermine the effectiveness and feasibility of long-term, sustainable policy solutions.

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Exclusion and Vulnerabilities to Climatic Events Among Refugees: Insights from Dadaab and Kakuma, Kenya

  • Sonja Fransen,
  • Alexander Hunns

摘要

Refugees are often located in climate-vulnerable areas, in which they are exposed to extreme weather events associated with climate change. In this chapter, we study how the climate vulnerabilities of refugees interact with, and are exacerbated by the spatial and socio-political vulnerabilities that refugees face. We use a case study approach and focus on Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps in Kenya. Our findings show how the spatial isolation of the camps, being located in remote and climate-vulnerable areas and often without adequate infrastructure and shelters, enhances the climate vulnerabilities of camp residents. Moreover, we show how the exclusion of refugees, for example, from labour markets, lowers refugee households’ adaptive capacities and, consequently, their abilities to respond to climate shocks. Forced migration will remain a pressing item on the global policy agenda: conflict, fragility, and climate extremes will continue to give rise to forced displacement. However, those same factors, particularly climate extremes, can undermine the effectiveness and feasibility of long-term, sustainable policy solutions.