ADAPTAR Project – Derecho Climático Europeo

ADAPTAR report

Report of the ADAPTAR project, work in progress (Feb. 2025)

In February 2025, the first version of the project report was published. The report is the result of the work carried out so far by the entire project team and also includes the comments and suggestions gathered during the November 2024 seminar.

The report consists of three parts: one main section and two appendices. It can be downloaded both from this website and from the UNED institutional repositor as well as from the following links:

Dissemination of results

ADAPTAR Project

1. International seminar: “Climate-induced migration: recent trends and future directions”, organized by the Centre D’Estudis de Dret Ambiental de Tarragona (CEDAT) – Monday 24th April 2023.

http://www.cedat.cat/news/911/international-seminar-climate-induced-migration-recent-trends-and-future-directions

2) Academic Paper: “¿Qué debería ser un migrante climático para el derecho internacional?” Revista Catalana de Dret Ambiental, Vol. 14, issue 1, 2023

https://raco.cat/index.php/rcda/article/view/419661

3) International Conference: Towards a Legal System in Harmony and Peace with Nature, Panel IV: Addressing Environmental REfugees’ needs: Main legal challenges and opportunities ahead.

Program

4) Focus Group on Climate Migrations on the topic “Social strategies to confront climate migrations” organized by the Ecology and Development Foundation (ECODES). Madrid, April 25, 2024. With the participation, among others, of representatives of Greenpeace, Entre Culturas, Ayuda en Acción, Alianza por la Solidaridad.

5) Publication of Book Chapter by Borràs-Pentinat, S. “The climate refuge in the European Union: the other forgotten migration” in Corti Varela, J., Jarillo Aldeanueva A. European Climate Law: Union Policies and External Action , Tirant lo Blanc, 2024, pp. 81-118.

https://editorial.tirant.com/es/ebook/derecho-climatico-europeo-politicas-de-la-union-y-accion-exterior-justo-corti-varela-9788411972802

6) Presentation “Climate-displaced People arriving in Spain” at International Conference SOCIOECOS 2024 Climate Change, Sustainability and Socio-ecological Practices, June 6-7, 2024

https://blogs.uned.es/derechoclimatico/wp-content/uploads/sites/269/2024/09/Conference-Programme-and-Timetable.pdf

7) Presentation “Climate migrations: conceptualization and challenges” at the VII International Congress of Development Studies, Just Transitions and Pacts for Sustainable Development, May 30-31, 2024

https://blogs.uned.es/derechoclimatico/wp-content/uploads/sites/269/2024/09/distribucion-propuestas.pdf

8) Presentation “Climate displaced people: approach to the debate in Spain” at GT21 (Sociology and Environment) within the XV Spanish Congress of Sociology, June 26-29, 2024.

https://www.conftool.com/fes2024/index.php?page=browseSessions&form_tracks=23&form_topic=0

9) Presentation “Migraciones climáticas: aproximación al debate en España”. at XV Congreso Español de Sociología. Sevilla, 26-29 junio 2024.

https://congreso2024.fes-sociologia.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Libro-de-Actas-XV-Congreso-Espanol-de-Sociologia.pdf

10) Presentation “Migraciones climáticas: análisis del debate en España”. at I Congreso Internacional de Estudios Socioambientales. 5-7 noviembre 2024.

https://web.ua.es/es/congreso-internacional-estudios-socioambientales/programa-e-instrucciones.html

11) Research Seminar presenting the work in progress report of the project ADAPTAR. Discussants: Gloria Fernández Arribas (UPO), Verónica Laorden Pavón (CEAR), María Cruz Fajardo Vizcayo (independent scholar). 25 November 2024. Council meeting room, UNED Central Library.

12) Presentation “Enforcing International Environmental Law through Refugee Law/International Human Rights Law: The Case of Climate Displaced Persons” at International Conference the Crossroad of International Environmental Law Enforcement, European Society of Internacional Law, 2-3 December 2024.

https://blogs.uoc.edu/edcp/es/the-crossroad-of-international-environmental-law-enforcement/

Project Grant

ADAPTAR Project

The field work was completed in the first semester in 2024.

This work consisted of carrying out 36 in-depth qualitative interviews with UNHCR, NGOs (reception staff and legal advice), officials in charge of processing asylum and refuge applications (OAR and immigration police) and asylum/refugee applicants mainly. of the Sahel. The interviews have been carried out in the Canary Islands (Tenerife and Gran Canaria), Andalusia (Algeciras and Seville) and Madrid.

The interviews were anonymized, transcribed, and coded, following the protocol of the UNED Ethics Committee, which has given its VB to the scripts and informed consents.

Between June 2024 and December 2024, the preliminary results were presented at 10 national and international conferences (see Dissemination of Results).

In November 2024, the preliminary project report was presented at an internal seminar before three external discussants.

In February 2025, the project report was published, including the comments and contributions received.

Currently, work is being done on the publication of a book (with Marcial Pons publishing house) and several academic articles in indexed journals.

Rationale

ADAPTAR Project

Climate Change’s negative effects can disrupt people’s way of living in such a manner that oblige them to displace. In such events, displacements would be an adaptation to climate change. If displacements are international, people could suffer vulnerabilities if they are not offered an effective legal framework in the host country, either through Migration Law (including Human Rights protection), International Asylum Law, or subsidiary protection. Providing effective legal protection to climate-displaced people is also an (indirect) adaptation to climate change and, consequently, a green transition action.

The research hypothesis is that there are climate-displaced people among asylum seekers, as well as among those who apply for subsidiary protection or a temporary residence permit due to humanitarian reasons, and they are not given effective legal protection. A secondary hypothesis is that climate-displaced women are a target group that deserves special protection.

The project aims to contribute to the adaptation of the Spanish proceedings on asylum, subsidiary protection and temporary permits due to humanitarian reasons to the challenges climate displacements bring by: identifying and grading climate-displaced people’s vulnerability, and helping administrative and judicial authorities in their tasks of providing, particularly to women, effective protection.