Climate Change, Borders, and Mobility Justice

Twenty years after its introduction, the concept of the "Anthropocene" serves as a critical framework for understanding the unequal distribution of capacities to respond to climate change. This notion highlights how historically marginalised groups bear the brunt of environmental degradation while having limited agency in addressing these challenges. Jason W. Moore (2015, 2017) critiques the Anthropocene for obscuring the role of capitalism in climate crises, arguing that climate change is "capitalogenic," not merely anthropogenic. This perspective shifts the focus from humanity as a monolithic actor to the specific power dynamics and economic systems that exacerbate vulnerabilities, emphasising the importance of "mobility justice" in recharacterising those displaced by climate change.

Starting from this standpoint, the paper explores the multifaceted nature of borders, drawing on Sandro Mezzadra and Brett Neilson’s (2013) concept of borders as instruments for governing global space. Borders, including legal ones, function as sites of both control and resistance, as articulated by bell hooks (1991). The study examines border struggles within the international protection system, particularly regarding environmentally induced migration. Climate change disrupts established migration control policies, creating tensions between protecting human rights and maintaining migration control.

Through analysing documents related to residence permits issued for environmentally driven migration, this paper uncovers the nuances of these border struggles using semantic analysis. The research is within Boaventura de Sousa Santos’ (2015) human rights theories, focusing on how Italian jurisprudence addresses climate-induced migration and humanitarian protection. Despite judicial recognition of climate migration, legislative changes in 2018 eliminated humanitarian permits, narrowing the pathways for protection. This study advocates for reimagining legal frameworks to address these emerging challenges, underscoring the importance of human rights and social justice in shaping future migration governance