Crossing No Man’s Land: Are Climate-Driven Migrants Protected Under Global Law?

Abstract

Climate change is increasingly emerging as a structural driver of cross-border human mobility, yet international law remains largely unresponsive to the legal status and protection needs of climate-driven migrants. Rising sea levels, extreme weather events, desertification, and resource scarcity are forcing populations to move beyond national borders, often into legal uncertainty. This article examines whether existing global legal frameworks particularly international refugee law, international human rights law, and migration governance instruments provide adequate protection for individuals displaced primarily by climate-related factors. Employing a doctrinal and comparative legal research methodology, the study analyses core international treaties, soft law instruments, and relevant jurisprudence to identify normative gaps and conceptual limitations. The findings reveal that the absence of a legally recognized category for climate-driven migrants results in fragmented and inconsistent protection, leaving affected populations vulnerable to exclusion and rights deprivation. The article argues that reliance on traditional refugee definitions and ad hoc humanitarian responses is insufficient. It concludes by proposing normative and policy-oriented pathways, including interpretative expansion of existing regimes and the development of a dedicated international framework, to ensure effective protection for climate-driven migrants under global law.