Videos – Climate Change and Migration

Topic Key

Climate Adaption

Climate Change Concepts

Climate Migration

Indigenous Perspectives

Sea Level Rise

Adapting Culture to Climate Change


This episode of Sea Grant's Voice of the Sea series explores the connection between culture and place and investigates how scientists, cultural practitioners, and community members are working together to understand and adapt to the effects of climate change.

Run time: 25 minutes

Source: Hawaii Sea Grant

Building Resilience to Climate Change


"By using big data analysis techniques and coupling it with localised information from the internet of things, social media and citizen science, we can now visualize the ever growing imprint of climate change. This talk explores how we can draw on this diversity of knowledge to recreate a more resilient world."

Run time: 16 minutes

Source: TEDxPorto

Can't Stop the Water


"For 170 years, a Native American Cajun community has occupied Isle de Jean Charles, a tiny island deep in the bayous of south Louisiana. Now the land that has sustained them for generations is vanishing before their eyes. Years of gas and oil exploration have ravaged the surrounding marsh, leaving the island defenseless against the ocean tides that will eventually destroy it. As Chief Albert Naquin desperately looks for a way to bring his tribe together on higher ground, those that remain on the island cling to the hope that they can stay."

Run time: 32 minutes

Note: The full film is not currently available for free.

Source: Rebecca and Jason Ferris

Climate Change 101 with Bill Nye | National Geographic


"Climate Change is a real and serious issue. In this video Bill Nye, the Science Guy, explains what causes climate change, how it affects our planet, why we need to act promptly to mitigate its effects, and how each of us can contribute to a solution."

Run time: 4 minutes

Source: National Geographic

Climate Change, Inequitable Impacts & Community Resilience


"In this session of "Climate Is Health," Kristin Baja explains community resilience, introduces the concept of resilience hubs, and what we can do to address the inequities apparent in the impacts of climate change."

Run time: 11 minutes

Source: Putney Pre-College

Climate change is killing crops in Honduras


"In rural Honduras, farming has been many residents’ livelihood for generations. But now, rising temperatures and declining rainfall are killing crops and jeopardizing the farmers’ very survival. Special correspondent Marcia Biggs and videographer Julia Galiano-Rios explore how climate change affects these rural populations, driving them into urban areas and ultimately, even out of the country."

Run time: 9 minutes

Source: PBS NewsHour

Climate change will displace millions...


"Scientists predict climate change will displace more than 180 million people by 2100 -- a crisis of "climate migration" the world isn't ready for, says disaster recovery lawyer and Louisiana native Colette Pichon Battle. In this passionate, lyrical talk, she urges us to radically restructure the economic and social systems that are driving climate migration -- and caused it in the first place -- and shares how we can cultivate collective resilience, better prepare before disaster strikes and advance human rights for all."

Run time: 13 minutes

Source: TED

Climate Gentrification in Little Haiti


"Historically black neighborhoods in South Florida are facing the consequences of climate change in more ways than one. Some fear they'll be priced out of their neighborhoods because of it by what organizers call 'climate gentrification.'"

Run time: 7 minutes

Source: The Root

Climate Refugees


"The film features a variety of leading scientists, relief workers, security consultants, and major political figures. All make a strong case that, whether human-caused or a product of nature, the changing climate is already creating humanitarian disasters and will inevitably lead to worldwide political instability."

Note: The UN now recommends "climate migrants" in place of "climate refugees."

Run time: 3 minutes

Source: The Video Project

How climate change is driving mass migration


"Climate change is forcing more and more people to flee their homes because of flooding, drought and extreme weather. Sub-Saharan Africa and low-lying coastal regions are especially at risk. Experts believe that millions of people will be displaced by climate change over the next half century. In Indonesia people are already affected by rising sea levels."

Run time: 10 minutes

Source: DW News

How Communities Can Adapt to Climate Change


"For many, the concept of “adapting” to climate change feels equivalent to admitting defeat. But climate change’s effects are already being felt today, so adapting will be necessary — and it doesn't have to hurt. Explore how building resilience can have a silver lining."

Run time: 4 minutes

Source: NOVA PBS

How the Climate Crisis Will Force A Massive American Migration


"The climate crisis will profoundly interrupt the way we live and farm in the United States. Extreme heat, massive floods and more fires may force millions of people to move — and millions may be left behind."

This video is accompanied by an interactive article. Learn more here.

Run time: 13 minutes

Source: ProPublica

Indigenous Knowledge Meets Science


"To tackle a problem as large as climate change, we need both science and Indigenous wisdom, says environmental activist Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim. In this engaging talk, she shares how her nomadic community in Chad is working closely with scientists to restore endangered ecosystems -- and offers lessons on how to create more resilient communities."

Run time: 13 minutes

Source: TEDWomen 2019

My Louisiana Love


"Tracing Monique Verdin’s quest to find a place in her Native American community as it suffers from decades of environmental degradation. When she returns to Louisiana to reunite with family, she sees that the traditional way of life is threatened by a cycle of man-made environmental crises. Monique must overcome the loss of her house, her father and her partner, and redefine the meaning of home." For the full documentary, click here.

Run time: 2 minutes

Source: PBS

Nasa's Earth Minute: Sea Level Rise


"For over 20 years NASA has been tracking the global surface topography of the ocean in order to understand the important role it plays in our daily lives. Climate change is causing our ocean to warm and glaciers to melt, resulting in sea level rise."

Run time: 2 minutes

Source: NASA Global Climate Change

New York is building a wall


"Staten Island recently received funding for a nearly 5-mile-long seawall to protect its coast. But the plan raises a lot of questions. We’re living in a dangerously dynamic world: Hurricanes are getting worse, wildfires are rampant in California, extreme heat is melting roads in India, and sea levels continue to rise. Will a wall really be enough to protect our coastal cities?"

Run time: 5 minutes

Source: Vox

Preventing Forced Migration


"The relationship between climate change and migration is complex, tied up in a set of factors that impact people’s need, ability and willingness to move. Target 13.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) calls for improved education, awareness-raising, human and institutional capacity to address climate change mitigation, adaptation, and early warning."

Run time: 7 minutes

Source: International Organization for Migration

Sea Level Rise and the Ala Wai Canal


This episode of Sea Grant's Voice of the Sea series take us inland to explore how rising sea level affects infrastructure, aquifers, and fresh water supplies."

Run time: 25 minutes

Source: Hawaii Sea Grant

Chasing Ice
Time to Choose
Before the Flood
A Beautiful Planet
Merchants of Doubt
This Changes Everything