Why successfulin situadaptation with environmental stress does not prevent people from migrating? Empirical evidence from Northern Thailand

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between rainfall-related events and trends, livelihood and food security and migration in rural upland communities in Thailand. This study was conducted as one of eight case studies within the framework of the 'Where the Rain Falls' Project. This article is based on empirical research in four villages in the Province Lamphun, Northern Thailand. The households' livelihood in the research area is characterized by a high level of on and off-farm diversification and integration into national and global market structures. Migration -internal as well as international -is widespread. Based on the data gathered in a multi-method field-based research design, the study observed that while households are exposed to various rainfall related stressors, such as the extreme rainfall in 2011 which resulted in heavy floods in the Central Plains of Thailand, migration is not considered as a primary coping and risk mitigation strategy. Environmental factors are furthermore not the primary explanatory factor for pattern of mobility. The study highlights the complex relationship between environmental factors including rainfall and migration beyond determinism notions of environmental migration. This study points out that while migration might not be caused by rainfall-related events and trends, through migration induced translocal connectedness, the social resilience of exposed households and communities can be strengthened.

Perturbations environnementales et migrations au Vietnam

“…Tel qu’avancé par Dun (), depuis le milieu des années 1980, le volume de personnes quittant les zones rurales pour migrer vers les villes a connu d’importantes variations, notamment en raison des nouvelles opportunités économiques introduites par la politique du Doi Moi. Ceci correspond à l’affirmation de Sakdapolrak et al () selon laquelle la migration des jeunes est clairement associée aux changements structurels de l’économie et du marché du travail et à Afifi et al () qui notent qu’au sein des ménages relativement mieux nantis du Vietnam et de la Thaïlande, il y a un nombre croissant de migrants cherchant à améliorer leurs compétences par l’éducation et la formation. Notre analyse montre qu’au sein des ménages ayant au moins un émigrant depuis 2008, près de la totalité des ménages (97,5 %) ont d’abord fait référence à des motifs socioéconomiques (emploi et études) pour expliquer la migration au sein du ménage.…”

“…Le fait d’avoir une solution alternative concernant leurs moyens de subsistance peut avoir influencé à la baisse les chances qu’un membre du ménage émigre. Cette affirmation est cependant contredite par les résultats de Sakdapolrak et al (), selon lesquels les individus entreprennent des migrations malgré l’implantation de mesures d’adaptation in situ efficaces, démontrant ainsi que la migration a un lien clair avec l’intégration au marché global du travail. Les travaux de Miller () dans le delta du Mékong vont également dans ce sens ; c’est‐à‐dire que les moyens de subsistance des ménages n’ont jamais été exclusivement « locaux ».…”

“…Van der Geest et al (2014) arrivent a la même conclusion dans le cas du delta du M ekong au Vietnam : les stress environnementaux ne ressortent pas en tant que principaux facteurs motivant la d ecision de migrer ; la demande de main-d'oeuvre dans les centres industriels serait le facteur explicatif principal (Van der Geest et al 2014). De plus, selon Sakdapolrak et al (2014), le fait que les gens migrent malgr e l'implantation de mesures d'adaptation in situ efficaces d emontre que la migration a un lien clair avec l'int egration au march e global du travail.…”

Migration as a Potential Heat Stress Adaptation Strategy in Australia

“…However, of particular concern to developing countries are those people who lack the resources to move away, that is that they are trapped (Black et al 2011b). However, even successful in-situ adaptation to increasing temperatures might not prevent people from moving away (Sakdapolrak et al 2014) because migration is rarely caused by a single factor alone but by many factors that collectively contribute to an individual's decision to move (McLeman and Smit 2006;Black et al 2011a). Interaction effects and the wider range of climatic effects on migration are not yet well understood (Carleton and Hsiang 2016).…”

Family caregiving for older adults: gendered roles and caregiver burden in emigrant households of Kerala, India

“…Renewed academic interest has focused on the influence of emigration on the Asian family and household structure to better understand the consequences of emigration on left-behind older adults as well as their left-behind family caregivers (Yeoh, 2014). Building on 'left behind' literature regarding non-earning members of emigrant households (Yeoh et al, 2002;Yeoh & Huang, 2014), the influence of remittance flows and how emigration leads to the formation of new care arrangements and roles within the household have attracted attention (Agadjanian, Yabiku, & Cau, 2011;Parsons, Lawreniuk, & Pilgrim, 2014;Sakdapolrak, Promburom, & Reif, 2014;Singh, Cabraal, & Robertson, 2010). Remittances seem to support older adults (Knodel & Chayovan, 2008;Stöhr, 2015) and alleviate the economic burden of left-behind family members (Agadjanian et al, 2011).…”