With the purpose of evaluating the increase in migration from Central America and parts of Mexico, associated with droughts and climate change, a meeting was held in September at the facilities of the University of Arizona.
PhD Alex Guerra, Director of the Private Institute for Climate Change Research (ICC) participated in this event together with many experts on Climate Change, Droughts and Migration.
Different discussion panels were held at the meeting. In the first panel, Dr. Alex Guerra said that it is important to help people adapting to climate change in Central America and Mexico, so they can have a better life and prevent them from migrating.
There where other 40 participants in the event, among academics representatives of non-governmental organizations related to migration; climatologists and other experts with experience in adaptation to climate change.
As part of the agenda, a public panel was developed with students, media and civil society in general; at the end six experts, including Dr. Guerra, shared the conclusions with the participants.
Migration is a phenomenon that has occurred in the history of mankind, it has multiple causes. In the case of Central America, poverty is one of the main causes why people migrate in search of a better life; Violence may be another factor. Photography: Roger Arnold Acnur.
In an interview held after the meeting, the Director of ICC said: “When you tell people about migration and climate change, they don’t see an instant or clear relationship; climate change could be impacting people’s lives, especially livelihoods that depend on agriculture, for that reason, not having a job forces them to migrate”.
The dry corridor of Central America (From Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica)
In the last four years in the dry corridor of Central America there have been droughts, people have lost much of their crops and there are specific cases where people, due to lost resources, decide to migrate.
The final conclusion of the invited experts at the event was: “People migrate because they are forced to do so and climate events can be one of the main drivers”.
