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• 1 2016-04-20T13:21:43-07:00 The Definition of Refugee 38 plain 2016-05-01T18:24:37-07:00 Developing countries are most affected by climate change. They are much more susceptible to infections, lack of healthcare, low income, inadequate education, improper resources, and so forth. These characteristics make people living in underdeveloped countries much more vulnerable. With their economy already under the poverty line and limited resources; having to help others, such as refugees is much more challenging. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and Farjana, refugees refers to people who are forced to locate outside of their homeland for safety because of war or persecution due to their political and racial differences.¹ However, there is another concern arising other than war and persecution, which causes others to migrate out of their country. The issue here is defined “Climate Refugee”. Climate refugees are people who are to move out of their country because of environmental disasters, such as sea-level rising, global warming, and rising temperature. Nevertheless, climate refugee was never clarified and is not considered a full refugee to be provided with help. Since climate change is negatively impacting majority of developing countries and with improper resources and limited help, the poor are moving around into other developing countries and illegally crossing borders.
  
  Definition, policy, and regulation play a huge role in determining how the humane world functions. Such definition of the term refugees may need to be revised, and climate refugees should be stressed upon for others to recognize the issue and provide a helping hand.
  
  In 2008, there was a conference hosted by the United Nations University to work on expanding the term refugees. The conference did not end up with a new well-rounded definition of refugees. The United Nation University concluded that the issue needed thorough evaluation, more research and policy development for an official decision to be made.² For climate refugees to survive climate changes once it occurs, they are forced move up or down to bigger cities in their home country that have not yet been affected. However, if the larger cities are full or has also been affected, the citizen’s only other option to survive is to cross the border illegally over to their neighboring countries. On the other hand, because climate refugees are not defined as true refugees, the neighboring countries, and developed countries are reluctant to help them.
  
  1. Farjana Jahan and Kazi S.M. Khasrul Alam Quddusi, “Climate Change and Bangladesh: Geographical and Socio-economic Impacts,” Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology 7, (2013): 113-132. Print article.
  2. L. W. Marshall, “Toward a new definition of ‘refugee’: Is The 1951 Convention Out Of Date?” Disaster and military surgery: 61-66.