Abstract:

Within the scope of this study, the concepts of climate migration and climate refugee are discussed in the context of climate change. These two concepts, which are not yet the object of institutional arrangements, are evaluated in theoretical discussions on the determination of conceptual boundaries, the explanation of causality mechanisms and how they will be placed in the legal framework. While the reports published on climate change after 1980 were effective in bringing the issue to the agenda, the data published by centers such as The International Displacement Monitoring Center show that the number of people who migrated due to environmental conditions are increasing day by day. As a research area in which different types of migration are examined together, climate migration considered as an adaptation strategy needs to be defined its conceptual boundaries. In this context, it is aimed to clarify the concepts, to discuss the causal relationships between climate change and migration, to understand the position of climate refugee in the legal framework and to justify it in the context of human rights, and to establish the connection between capitalism and climate change as a social process. This study is thought to fill the void in literature based on the argument that there is a need for sociological discussions examining the intersectionality of social, economic, and political mechanisms related to the relationship between climate change and migration is revealed, climate refugee is not only a problem of island countries that will be flooded due to sea level rise, but also it originates from current production and consumption structure.