Disaster-Induced Migration and Adaptation Discourse in Bangladesh

Migration is everywhere. Who are considered to be migrants, what migration is considered to be and how migration can contribute to adaptation are inevitable issues in the migration-adaptation discourse. Usually migration is related to social, economic, political and many other factors. Extreme environmental change can cause affected populations to leave their permanent residence temporarily or permanently and move to (nearby) urban places or where more opportunities are available. Migration is a multi-causal phenomenon: even in cases where the environment is a predominant driver for migration, it is usually compounded by social, economic, political and other factors (Walsham, 2010). Furthermore, the decision to move or to stay is highly complex and depends on the individual, social and even cultural ability to cope with and adapt to climate shocks and stresses, including the particular vulnerabilities faced by women, children, the elderly, the disabled and the extremely poor. Therefore, just as the environment is only one among many factors that drive migration, migration is only one among many possible responses to environmental change (Bates, 1989; Black, 2001; Myers, 2002; Walsham, 2010). Environmental migration is often depicted as a failure of adaptation to environmental change and a worst case scenario.