Changes in environments – often a consequence of rapid and radical anthropogenic climate change – are an increasingly important driver of migration. Despite a consensus among scholars that the environmental impact on migration is difficult to measure, its significance for the movement of people across the globe needs to be studied. This co-sponsored session will include presentations that explore the nexus between religion and climate migration from both empirical and explanatory angles, including normative questions.
In spite of the consensus that has been achieved by scholars of migration and climate change—that climate-induced migration, while real, is complicated by other factors—a narrative of “invasion” persists on the part of both the general public and academics from other fields. This paper interrogates this “invasion” narrative in terms of both its cultural roots and its relevance to Christian thought. The paper unfolds in three steps. First, it sketches the history of the research on climate change and migration in order to contextualize the “invasion” narrative. Second, it argues that this narrative stems from an abstracted an oppositional imaginary for human/nonhuman relations. Third, it identifies a Christian dimension to this imaginary, both as a source of the problem and as an element in a creative response. In other words, Christian thought is both a resistance to the narrative of invasion and an expression of it.
Rising global temperatures harm everyone’s quality of life without regard to national boundaries. The effects of climate change indiscriminately destroy precious habitats and hasten species extinction, which generates incredible human and economic costs for millions of people from property loss, food shortages, disease, and needless deaths each year. As conditions worsen, unfarmable land and job loss force residents to relocate for employment opportunities and better living conditions. Contemporary discussions about migration frequently simplify/generalize the topic by asserting that displaced people share comparable stories, circumstances, and motivations. Hence, the challenge climate migration poses to discourse about people on the move, both locally and globally, is in assuming that migration is a monolithic issue. To achieve social justice for all, it is essential that religious and secular leaders recognize the diversity of migration and address each group’s various needs and goals.
As climate change accelerates forced migration, Catholic social teaching (CST) provides a critical ethical and theological framework for addressing climate-induced displacement. This paper examines how CST informs Catholic responses to climate migration through humanitarian action, policy advocacy, and global governance efforts. Using case studies from Catholic Relief Services in Central America and the Catholic Climate Covenant in the U.S., this paper highlights the Church’s role in supporting climate migrants. It explores how Catholic Social Teaching principles, especially the common good, human dignity, and the preferential option for the poor, shape faith-based interventions and influence international migration policy. Catholic organizations challenge existing legal definitions of refugees, advocating for expanded protections for climate-displaced persons. This study asserts that Catholic actors are not only responding to climate migration but actively shaping ethical and political discourse on migration governance in an era of ecological crisis.
As climate change accelerates migration, conflict, and humanitarian crises, understanding the role of religion in shaping community responses is crucial. This presentation explores multi-agent artificial intelligence modeling applied to four case studies: refugee integration in the Netherlands, religious aid dynamics in Lesbos, climate policy resistance in the EU, and conflict-climate interactions in Palestine through a collaboration with UNDP Program for Assistance to the Palestinian People.
Findings reveal that faith-based interventions often outperform secular approaches in fostering social cohesion, aid distribution, and policy adoption. In Palestine, for example, climate shocks exacerbated religious-political divisions, requiring culturally attuned development aid strategies. Our AI-driven simulations provide predictive insights for optimizing aid distribution, refugee policies, and climate mitigation efforts.
By bridging computational modeling and religious studies, this research highlights AI’s potential to enhance development aid strategies, ensuring they are ethically, culturally, and religiously sensitive in an era of climate-driven crises.