Honoring the Earth and Human Rights in a climate-altered world. Article by Robin Bronen, N.Y.U. Review of Law & Social Change, Vol 45. April 21, 2021. Read the article:
ABSTRACT
Population displacement presents one of the most complex governance
challenges created by the climate crisis. Sea level rise, erosion, storm surges, and
flooding will cause the permanent loss of land and housing for millions of people
residing in low-elevation coastal zones.1 The consequent inability to return to
original homes and lands will fundamentally alter their lives and livelihoods.
Coastal topography and geology, as well as the costs and scale of engineered
coastal protection, make it highly unlikely that all coastal communities in the
United States will be protected. Large-scale population and infrastructure
displacement, including community relocation, will be required to protect people
from disappearing coastlines. Who will be protected and for how long? Where will
people go, who decides, and how can their human right to water, housing and food
be protected and promoted when they are forcibly displaced from their homes?
These are the questions that need to be asked and answered in a federal relocation
governance framework.