United Kingdom, 11/19/2008

The tribunal recognizes a Zimbabwean teacher as a refugee and also finds removal would violate Article 3 ECHR in the context of political violence including, but not limited to, discriminatory deprivation of humanitarian relief in the context of drought- and flood-related food insecurity.

Australia, 10/26/2000

This case relates to disasters/climate change as the High Court of Australia, in obiter dictum, referenced natural disasters and catastrophes when discussing the definition of “refugee.” The court pointed out that individuals who move across international borders due to such circumstances do not qualify for refugee status under the Refugee Convention.

Australia, 1/15/2010

Politically active woman from Myanmar assisted in relief efforts in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis. Also forced to pay bribes to authorities because she and her husband were business owners. Established well-founded fear of being persecuted as member of particular social group and potentiallly more at risk because of activity relating to Cyclone Nargis.

Australia, 10/5/2012

A Fijian national sought and was denied recognition of refugee status in Australia owing to a fear of being persecuted on the basis of his political opinion. One aspect of his expression of political opinion was criticism of government cyclone response.

Australia, 2/24/1997

The case is significant because it includes the statement obiter dictum that has been cited by judges in multiple other jurisdictions. The statement by Dawson J reads: “By including in its operative provisions the requirement that a refugee fear persecution, the Convention limits its humanitarian scope and does not afford universal protection to asylum seekers. No matter how devastating may be epidemic, natural disaster or famine, a person fleeing them is not a refugee within the terms of the Convention." This is an important case for the development of international refugee law, so the way it treats disasters is important.

Australia, 3/1/1999

The obiter dictum in this case is significant for its recognition of the relevance of disasters in determining whether an internal relocation alternative is available. The statement, obiter dictum, reads: “It cannot be reasonable to expect a refugee to avoid persecution by moving into an area of grave danger, whether that danger arises from a natural disaster (for example, a volcanic eruption), a civil war or some other cause. A well-founded fear of persecution for a Convention reason having been shown, a refugee does not also have to show a Convention reason behind every difficulty or danger which makes some suggestion of relocation unreasonable”

Australia, 8/23/2000

Considering if positive action from the state is necessary to establish persecution for a Convention reason the court considered the example of a national authority engaging in discriminatory denial of disaster relief. The Court observed that ‘it is inappropriate to insist that some positive conduct be present before the Convention definition can be brought into play.’

Australia, 2/15/2013

The applicant, a member of the minority Shia population in Pakistan, was recognized as a refugee owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted by the Taliban. Flooding is recognized in country of origin information as contributing to displacement in the part of the country where the applicant had his origin, and the existence of flood-displaced Sunnis is a relevant factor in determining the availability of an internal relocation alternative.

Australia, 9/22/2022

This is an important case relating to the rights to remain and the duty of states to take steps to prevent displacement. It focuses on states’ obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the context of both climate change adaptation and climate change mitigation, particularly in relation to Indigenous Peoples but also potentially much more broadly. The case articulates state obligations under Articles 6 (right to life with dignity), 17 (right to private and family life and the home), and 27 (rights of minorities to culture) to take steps to prevent foreseeable harm, including specifically the harm of (permanent) displacement. The specific rights of the child under Article 24(1) ICCPR are also invoked (including in relation to permanent displacement) by the applicants but are not addressed in detail by the Committee.

Italy, 5/10/2023

This case concerns an adult male Applicant trafficked from Pakistan to Italy in circumstances arising as a consequence of flood-induced adversity in an agricultural context. On appeal, the Ordinary Court of Florence accepted that the Applicant was a refugee owing to his well-founded fear of being re-trafficked if returned to Pakistan, amongst other reasons, due to the critical environmental situation in the country and associated land disputes.

Pakistan, 12/22/2022

This case communicates allegations relating to the large-scale forced eviction of people living in informal settlements on the banks of waterways in Karachi, following an Order of the Pakistan Supreme Court. The evictions have allegedly been carried out in order to address increased flood risk presented by the existence of the informal settlements on waterways. The Communication highlights a range of relevant international human rights law standards and guidelines that are relevant in this context, with a particular emphasis on the gendered impacts, and poses nine questions that highlight core concerns from a human rights perspective.

New Zealand, 10/24/2019

This case is the most authoritative international human rights legal articulation of how the non-refoulement principle applies in relation to applications for international protection advanced under Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The Human Rights Committee determined that Article 6 does establish a non-refoulement obligation in situations where a person can demonstrate ‘substantial grounds for believing that there is a real risk of irreparable harm such as that contemplated by articles 6 and 7 of the Covenant’ having regard to the totality of adverse conditions appertaining in the country of origin, including those arising in the context of climate change. Key issues relate to the foreseeability of the feared harm as well as the severity of harm feared.

United Kingdom, 6/28/2011

An important decision establishing that the European Court of Human Rights can protect people from refoulement in situations where the conduct of the parties to a conflict can be established as the 'predominate cause' of a humanitarian crisis. In that case, the legal test has regard to an applicant’s ability to cater for his most basic needs, such as food, hygiene and shelter, his vulnerability to ill-treatment and the prospect of his situation improving within a reasonable time-frame.

New Zealand, 8/17/2000

This case concerns a claim for recognition of refugee status by seven members of the same family from Tuvalu. The family point to adverse environmental conditions, express a fear that climate change will exacerbate adversity, and attempt to draw a connection between the environmentally-related harm, their status as members of a particular social group (poor Tuvaluans), and culpable failures by the status authorities to provide effective protection. The claim was dismissed on multiple dimensions of the refugee definition, primarily the failure to establish a nexus between the harm feared and any of the Convention reasons.

New Zealand, 3/15/2010

This case raises an environmental dimension in the context of assessing the feasibility of internal relocation from Baghdad (where the applicant had lived until her flight) to Dahuk as part of the Applicant’s asylum claim. Internal relocation was assessed as not being available to the Applicant, in significant part owing to the serious difficulties associated with accessing water due to drought.

United Kingdom, 11/19/2008

The tribunal recognizes a Zimbabwean teacher as a refugee and also finds removal would violate Article 3 ECHR in the context of political violence including, but not limited to, discriminatory deprivation of humanitarian relief in the context of drought- and flood-related food insecurity.