Clark-Ginsberg Aaron, Martinez Linda Sprague, Scaramutti Carolina, Rodríguez José, Salas-Wright Christopher P, Schwartz Seth J
RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA.
School of Social Work, Boston University, Boston, MA.
Clim Dev. 2024;16(1):25-35. doi: 10.1080/17565529.2023.2176188. Epub 2023 Feb 19.
Climate change-related shocks and stresses are prompting the movement of hundreds of thousands. The purpose of this study is to understand the experiences of climate change migrants, people displaced from these crises from the initial impacts of the hazard to their recent arrivals in a new location. To do so we draw on focus group discussions with Puerto Ricans in South and Central Florida displaced by 2017 hurricane Maria. We document the factors leading up to the hurricane that shaped their preparedness, their relocation decisions, and their post-relocation experiences in the initial seven months following the hurricane. We find that for these Puerto Ricans, underlying neglect, discrimination, and other social processes transformed Maria from a hazard to a disaster with devastating economic, social, and physical and mental health effects, while also creating challenges in early recovery. However, migrants were also able to draw on their faith, community and educational institutions, and new neighbours as sources of strength and coping. We argue that since these factors are socially produced, a vulnerability perspective is critical to understanding the experiences of climate migrants. We draw on this perspective to conclude with research and policy implications.
与气候变化相关的冲击和压力正促使数十万人迁移。本研究的目的是了解气候变化移民的经历，即那些因这些危机而流离失所的人，从灾害的最初影响到他们最近抵达新地点的经历。为此，我们借鉴了与2017年因飓风“玛丽亚”而流离失所至佛罗里达州南部和中部的波多黎各人进行的焦点小组讨论。我们记录了导致飓风的因素，这些因素塑造了他们的防备措施、搬迁决定以及飓风过后最初七个月的搬迁后经历。我们发现，对于这些波多黎各人来说，潜在的忽视、歧视和其他社会进程将“玛丽亚”飓风从一种灾害转变为一场灾难，对经济、社会、身心健康造成了毁灭性影响，同时也给早期恢复带来了挑战。然而，移民们也能够依靠他们的信仰、社区和教育机构以及新邻居作为力量和应对的源泉。我们认为，由于这些因素是社会产生的，脆弱性视角对于理解气候移民的经历至关重要。我们借鉴这一视角得出了研究和政策方面的启示。
