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Blog Posts by Alice Thomas

Countering Climate Extremes Really Does Take a Village
May 11, 2012 Alice Thomas Climate Displacement, Americas, Asia

Newtok is a small Native American village on the northwestern coast of Alaska. Indigenous populations have inhabited Newtok for at least 2,000 years. But over the past two decades, unprecedented changes have taken place that threaten Newtok’s very existence.

Accelerated coastal erosion – exacerbated by thawing permafrost, declining sea ice protection, and warmer temperatures  – along with increased storm surges and salt water inundation of fresh water supplies, are making life here untenable. So the Newtok community has decided to move.

Poisoned Climate: Still Submerged in Colombia
February 14, 2012 Alice Thomas Climate Displacement, Colombia, Americas

This blog post originally appeared at ThinkProgress Green as a guest post.

16 Days: A Dangerous Climate for Women
December 02, 2011 Alice Thomas Africa, Climate Displacement, Pakistan, Somalia, Asia, Women & Children

This week, events are taking place across the globe to mark the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, a campaign to end violence against women, which, according to the UN, 70 percent of women will experience in their lifetime.

Climate Displacement: Facing the Human Security Threat
November 28, 2011 Alice Thomas Climate Displacement

Last week, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees briefed the UN Security Council on "New Challenges to Security," highlighting the increasing threat posed by climate change. 

His remarks could hardly have come at a better time. In 2010 alone, more than 43 million people were forcibly displaced by sudden-onset natural disasters – just as many as were displaced by conflict. Millions more have had to flee their homes because of slower-onset events like drought and famine.

The UN Refugees Convention at 60: Recognizing a Changing World
November 03, 2011 Alice Thomas Climate Displacement

Next month, the United Nations will hold a high-level ministerial meeting to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the 1951 Refugees Convention. For more than half a century, the Convention and its 1967 Protocol have provided protection to millions of vulnerable people fleeing conflict and persecution in their home countries.