2017•04•07     London

Today, the UK office of the United Nations Children Fund United Kingdom (UNICEF UK) launched a new report titled ‘No Place to Call Home’. The publication marks the first ever comprehensive analysis of the impact on children’s rights when they are forced to abandon their homes due to climate change effects.

Around the world, around 1 in 45 children have been compelled to uproot and move, either within their own countries or across national borders. Increasingly, climate-related events, including rising sea levels and extreme weather, are driving this forced migration. Despite the enormous risks children on the move face, they have been largely overlooked in climate-related debates and policies. This report is aimed at redressing this.

Dr. Robert Oakes, a Senior Researcher in UNU-EHS’ EMSVA section, is a contributing author of the report, which also drew on field research carried out by colleagues within UNU-EHS.

“It is generally understood that children are one of the most vulnerable groups to the impacts of climate change,” Dr. Oakes explains. “This report, for the first time, outlines the main risks to children of climate related mobility, and how such movements can impact on their human rights. Further child-focused research is needed to enable better policy actions.”

To read the full report, click here