Climate Change Refugees: Who Are They, and What Does the World Owe Them?

This honors thesis contributes to emerging scholarship on climate change refugees by grappling with the question: Who are climate change refugees and what does the world owe to them? In an attempt to move beyond discussions of definitions and legality, this thesis traces the framework barriers that prevent individuals from understanding that a climate change refugee crisis is looming. It presents case studies of small island nations to highlight the struggles of climate change refugees who usually remain invisible to the international community. Finally, it ponders individual responsibility to climate change refugees.