Position Statement on Security and Climate Mobility

As climate change reshapes the habitability of large parts of the globe, its impacts - from droughts to floods to heat waves - jeopardize the safety of homes at a moment’s notice, which can cause or exacerbate displacement. Such displacement can, in turn, affect the security of people, communities, and countries by interrupting access to food and water, increasing competition over shared natural resources, spurring backlash against vulnerable migrants and political division and exploitation, increasing recruitment opportunities for criminal or terrorist groups, or straining governance capacity to provide resources and services.

Considering the Climate Migration Council’s commitment to centering the people and communities most impacted by climate change, this position statement offers five recommendations for endorsement by security actors in the United States and abroad to define the term security to encompass the breadth of challenges posed by a changing climate.