Climate Change, Agriculture and Migration: A Survey

Abstract

This paper proposes a selective review of the classical economics-based literature on climate change and migration, focusing on the extent to which agriculture might be considered a key mediating channel linking climate change to migration. Overall, climate change is expected to have large and negative effects on the global economy. These effects are even more evident whenever the economic sector considered is the agricultural one, particularly in developing countries. Hence, migration can be viewed as a specific form of adaptation implemented by individuals and households, enabling them to cope, among other things, with weather-induced risk. We show that the importance of agriculture emerges from both plenty of micro-level country studies and relatively few macro-level analyses using cross-sectional data over longer time periods. Thus, policy actions targeted to sustainable agriculture and rural development can both help tackle the challenges posed by climate change and create opportunities in the face of growing migration issues. However, we also stress that much of the current evidence is based on statistical associations that have nothing to do with causal inferences. This calls for the use of a more structural approach and more sophisticated research designs, enabling the researchers to better discriminate among different mechanisms concurrently at work. In addition, further research should be addressed to the role played by food security, a complex dimension largely missing in the current debates on climate change and migration.

The Role of Agriculture in the Formation of Macroeconomic Indicators of National Economy

“…Otherwise, climate change can make agricultural development unpredictable and disrupt the country's economic progress (Yalew et al, 2018). It is noted that further research should be aimed at helping with food security in the development of the country and the sustainability of the economy, the methodology of measurement, which is largely insufficient in modern research on climate change and the redistribution of resources between industries and countries (Falco et al, 2018).…”

“…Investment and innovation policy aimed at the implementation of projects to support agricultural production can only partially stop the decline in agricultural production during the current economic crisis (Falco et al, 2018;Fujimori et al, 2018). Agriculture's share in fixed investments of the Russian Federation and the number of people employed in agriculture are characterized by the downward tendencies for the entire analyzed period (Figure 3 and 4).…”

“…Agriculture contributes to the economy in general. It plays an important social and economic role with regard to people's health and welfare, and to the country's food security (Magasumovna et al, 2017;Falco et al, 2018;Lombardozzi, 2019). So, scientists consider the rural sector to play a strategic role in the state development (Lombardozzi, 2019).…”

Smoking Gentlemen—How Formula One Has Controlled CO2 Emissions

“…There are relevant surveys about the recent trends that the literature has observed in these scientific fields. Falco et al [19] provide a robust review about the literature on climate change and extractive activities. Falco et al [19] highlighted that the importance of agriculture emerges from micro-level country studies and some macro-level analyses using cross-sectional data over longer time periods.…”

“…Falco et al [19] provide a robust review about the literature on climate change and extractive activities. Falco et al [19] highlighted that the importance of agriculture emerges from micro-level country studies and some macro-level analyses using cross-sectional data over longer time periods. Nichols et al [20] majorly focused the interlinkages between climate changes and sustainability in a different work of literature survey.…”