Giving Compass' Take:

• Inga Vesper reports that researchers found in a global study that climate is currently the biggest driver of migration.

• How can funders work to address the massive and growing needs of climate migrants? 

• Learn about preparing for a world of climate migrants. 

The effects of climate change, including floods and extreme temperatures, have become more important push factors in migration than economic inequality or conflict, according to a global study.

The study, undertaken by a team at the University of Otago in New Zealand, looked at migration data from 198 countries of origin to 16 member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) between 1980 and 2015.

Researchers developed a model to understand the causes of migration, divided into effects of climate change, economic performance and political strife.
The model showed that rising temperatures and a growing number of weather-related disasters now cause more migration than lack of income or political freedom.

Each 10 percent increase in temperature in an origin country caused an increase of 3 percent in migration from that country to the 16 destination countries, which included Australia, Italy, Spain, and Germany.

Read the full article about climate and migration by Inga Vesper at Eco-Business.