This research aims to understand situations of vulnerability and community agency to respond to flooding, coastal erosion, and sea-level rise.
Publications
Coming Soon
Further information
See our past research on “Blended Learning Course on Climate Change, Disaster and Displacement” here.
See our past research on “Flooding Disaster, People’s Displacement and State Response in Hat Yai” here.
See our past research on “Mobile Political Ecologies of Southeast Asia” here.
Contact
Contact Orapan Pratomlek for further details.
Project Status: Ongoing
The connections between environmental change and peoples’ mobility are increasingly recognized in academic and policy circles, and popular media. Most visible are the impacts of disaster such as flood on forced displacement, but slow onset environmental changes such as sea level rise are nowadays also crucial in shaping mobility patterns. These events, which are also connected to climate change, directly impact human lives and safety and the enjoyment of human rights.
In Thailand, there is emerging focus on the impacts of slow onset environmental change on displacement and mobility, but much remains to be understood. For coastal areas, such as the Samut Prakan and Samut Sakorn Provinces south on the Gulf of Thailand, climate change-connected trends such as sea level rise and extreme weather events intersect with other ongoing changes such as coastal erosion that connects to inland river basin planning and local coastline management.
The objectives of this research are:
Understand the sources of vulnerability in communities in the coastal areas of Samut Prakan and Samut Sakorn Provinces affected by slow onset environmental change and displacement, their agency to respond, and government and other forms of assistance to date
Map out the relevant areas of Thai law and policy that influences community vulnerability and government response, including human rights duties of the Thai government
Identify how community members, civil society, academics and government agencies can better respond to the challenges faced in these coastal communities
The research has received support from the Raoul Wallenberg Institute (RWI).