An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective

Climate crisis-related displacement is one of the most prominent issues in our world. Although, there is no given legal definition for climate refugees in any international legal convention, in order to analyse this phenomenon; those who are compelled to leave their homes due to climate change-relat...

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Main Authors: Alican Candoğan, Mehmet Botan Kayhan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Istanbul University Press 2024-12-01
Series:İstanbul Hukuk Mecmuası
Subjects:
Online Access:https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/5D8063A4205B4C5583161CF6B8FCFB4C
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author Alican Candoğan
Mehmet Botan Kayhan
author_facet Alican Candoğan
Mehmet Botan Kayhan
author_sort Alican Candoğan
collection DOAJ
description Climate crisis-related displacement is one of the most prominent issues in our world. Although, there is no given legal definition for climate refugees in any international legal convention, in order to analyse this phenomenon; those who are compelled to leave their homes due to climate change-related catastrophes would be accepted as climate refugees within this article. It is clear that climate refugees, who sit at the crossroads of climate change and the refugee crises, can only be adequately protected through a combination of climate action and refugee rights. The climate crisis is a substructure of the refugee crisis. Therefore, climate action, which is principally aimed at solving substructural problems, is essential for solving the superstructural climate refugee crisis. Nevertheless, according to scientific predictions, even the most optimistic scenarios foresee a considerable change in the climate. Hence, even the most optimistic scenarios in which humanity takes climate action may not be enough to prevent the existence of climate refugees. The Refugee Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, which is currently the most prominent international convention on refugee rights, does not encompass climate refugees because of its contingent wording. Thus, it is necessary to adopt comprehensive legislation that protects the rights of climate refugees in addition to climate action that would reduce the number of possible refugees. Yet both substructural and superstructural issues are in a position of conundrum due to the extant international political and legal system, which prioritises the national sovereignty and states consents. Consequently, legal solutions in the sense of both climate and refugee crises fall short if the international political and legal status quo is ignored.
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spelling doaj-art-ba3bab72ec0447beaab627bbe292ce462025-08-20T01:51:16ZengIstanbul University Pressİstanbul Hukuk Mecmuası2667-69742024-12-018241185122910.26650/mecmua.2024.82.4.0001123456An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law PerspectiveAlican Candoğanhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6673-5737Mehmet Botan Kayhan0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3310-3906Utrecht University, Utrecht, NetherlandsClimate crisis-related displacement is one of the most prominent issues in our world. Although, there is no given legal definition for climate refugees in any international legal convention, in order to analyse this phenomenon; those who are compelled to leave their homes due to climate change-related catastrophes would be accepted as climate refugees within this article. It is clear that climate refugees, who sit at the crossroads of climate change and the refugee crises, can only be adequately protected through a combination of climate action and refugee rights. The climate crisis is a substructure of the refugee crisis. Therefore, climate action, which is principally aimed at solving substructural problems, is essential for solving the superstructural climate refugee crisis. Nevertheless, according to scientific predictions, even the most optimistic scenarios foresee a considerable change in the climate. Hence, even the most optimistic scenarios in which humanity takes climate action may not be enough to prevent the existence of climate refugees. The Refugee Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, which is currently the most prominent international convention on refugee rights, does not encompass climate refugees because of its contingent wording. Thus, it is necessary to adopt comprehensive legislation that protects the rights of climate refugees in addition to climate action that would reduce the number of possible refugees. Yet both substructural and superstructural issues are in a position of conundrum due to the extant international political and legal system, which prioritises the national sovereignty and states consents. Consequently, legal solutions in the sense of both climate and refugee crises fall short if the international political and legal status quo is ignored.https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/5D8063A4205B4C5583161CF6B8FCFB4Cclimate refugeesclimate crisisrefugee crisisrefugee conventionnational sovereigntycomplementary protection
spellingShingle Alican Candoğan
Mehmet Botan Kayhan
An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective
İstanbul Hukuk Mecmuası
climate refugees
climate crisis
refugee crisis
refugee convention
national sovereignty
complementary protection
title An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective
title_full An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective
title_fullStr An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective
title_full_unstemmed An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective
title_short An Inquiry on the Legal Status and Protection of Climate Refugees from an International Law Perspective
title_sort inquiry on the legal status and protection of climate refugees from an international law perspective
topic climate refugees
climate crisis
refugee crisis
refugee convention
national sovereignty
complementary protection
url https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/5D8063A4205B4C5583161CF6B8FCFB4C
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