Published 2026-04-23
Abstract
Pacific Island nations, some of the world’s lowest contributors to global carbon emissions, are experiencing some of the most severe effects of climate change to date. Intense cyclone seasons, rising sea levels, and salination of freshwater supplies are intensifying stress on Pacific Islanders. Thousands have already been displaced, and many more are at risk as island nations face the threat of becoming uninhabitable. This paper examines the causes of climate-induced migration in the South Pacific and evaluates immigration policies in the countries Pacific Islanders are fleeing to, namely the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. Cases such as Ioane Teitiota v. New Zealand and international agreements like the 1951 Geneva Convention show a deficit between the complexities of climate migration and the protections that exist for migrants. A review of global initiatives reveals how even more expansive regional frameworks for ecological migrants fall short. Moreover, this paper posits that state-level reticence about expanding legal obligations towards climate migrants has been a serious barrier to climate justice, and that, save for a binding international agreement, climate migrants are likely to suffer. Ultimately, the states that are most responsible for the carbon emissions that have caused the current ecological crisis should take responsibility through durable international frameworks for their first and worst-off victims fleeing from the Pacific Islands.