Climate migration is also burdened by prejudices, so it is important to overcome these prejudices and understand the complex dynamics of climate migration. The climate crisis is an omnipresent issue, and the associated changes are already being felt with far-reaching impacts on the economy and people, particularly in developing countries. Resource scarcity, environmental pollution, and natural disasters force people to leave their homes. Environmental catastrophes such as wildfires and floods occur worldwide, accompanied by worsening periods of drought.
For the topic of climate migration, there are mainly articles and documentaries available. Therefore, it is important for us to present the subject in a way that allows for easy access and visual comprehension of the information. To achieve this, we aim to create a repertoire of texts, infographics, and illustrations that can be presented in both printed and digital formats. To make it engaging and easily understandable, we plan to incorporate interactive infographics to convey the key information of the topic.
While not all displacement can be attributed solely to the climate crisis, it is undeniable that climatic conditions are already forcing people to flee their homes. Unfortunately, the term "climate migration" is not widely used compared to terms like "war refugee" or "economic migrant." This lack of awareness highlights the need to shed light on how natural disasters can impact and alter livelihoods locally. Instead of solely focusing on the complexities of migration, our aim is to address this specific aspect.
For the topic of climate migration, there are mainly articles and documentaries available. Therefore, it is important for us to present the subject in a way that allows for easy access and visual comprehension of the information. To achieve this, we aim to create a repertoire of texts, infographics, and illustrations that can be presented in both printed and digital formats. To make it engaging and easily understandable, we plan to incorporate interactive infographics to convey the key information of the topic.
When entering the term into Google, a variety of different terms are displayed. In German, there are both "Klimaflucht" and "Umweltflucht," "Klimamigration" and "Umweltmigration," among others. But what is the difference, and which term is the most appropriate to use?
The terms "climate migration" and "climate refugee" lack official definition and recognition. Migration is influenced by multiple factors, and the Geneva Refugee Convention requires specific reasons for migration, such as political reasons for war refugees. Thus, specific laws regarding climate migration are currently absent, posing challenges for individuals seeking recognition as climate refugees. Additionally, distinguishing between various similar terms is crucial due to their distinct meanings.
(vgl. Neal 2019; Barghorn 2020)
During the initial brainstorming session, we started by collecting all the ideas and thoughts that came to mind on the topic to give us a quick overview of what we wanted to consider. We took a few minutes to categorize our thoughts into five main categories, laying the groundwork for further analysis and later conceptualization.
As the next step, we transferred our brainstorming into a mind map and added additional content. We also addressed the concept of climate and the concept of migration separately, and then sought to establish a connection between them.
The decision to flee can be divided into three levels: macro, meso, and micro levels. At the macro level, external factors such as politics, demography, environment, social issues, and economy, along with territorial and temporal fluctuations, play a role. The micro level involves personal characteristics, while the meso level represents obstacles within the social environment. These factors influence the decision of whether a person migrates or stays.
Environmental disasters often coincide with other factors that can also become reasons for people to flee. These other factors can be political, demographic, economic, social, or ecological in nature and can be exacerbated by disasters. The weighting of these factors as reasons for flight varies.
A quantitative survey was conducted to assess the sentiment towards the climate crisis, people's engagement, and the obstacles they face in getting involved. It was also important to understand people's views on climate migration and the reasons they perceive for fleeing. A total of 277 individuals participated in the survey, providing insights into different age groups and potential variations in responses based on their country of origin.
The consistency of the visual design was one of the biggest priorities. Having so many features and content categories made it of extreme importance to keep things under a system that would not confuse our users through the use of color or button design.
The user flow method was applied here to provide an efficient and simple user experience to the visitors. By creating the different steps, it can be easier to see if the app is guiding the user properly through the app and all the information they want can be found quickly. Also, problems in the app usage can be detected quickly and easily.
We used the Brain Storming method to quickly collect a large collection of topics and later organize them into a Mind map. This Mind map served as the basis for the content of our app.
We focused on the topic of “domestic violence” and defined a “How Might We” question to collect various solution ideas and define our standpoint. Our question was: “How can we create a trustworthy, easily accessible app that sensitively addresses the needs of victims of domestic violence and shows ways to help?”.
With the Crazy 8 method, you quickly develop a variety of different layout variants so that you can draw on a wide range of screens during the implementation process.
Wireframes were then created to illustrate the design and functions. This makes it possible to identify problems at an early stage.
The web application consists of various focal points. A map displays regions affected by disasters. There is a general page with explanations and the evolution of extreme weather, as well as a glossary. Each disaster has its own page with information about the region, explanations, and impacts on humans and the environment. There is also a decision on whether to stay or flee, with explanations of the issues and possible outcomes.
After that, we made a design system to ensure a consistent and user-friendly visual style.
Our app supports women experiencing domestic violence. It is user-friendly and offers features such as information about violence, access to local support services, and emergency assistance. Our goal is to provide safety and support to women in need.
We have created posters and a small booklet to raise awareness about domestic violence and provide information. The posters convey an important message and refer to our collaboration with the hygiene product manufacturer. The booklet included in the hygiene products provides in-depth information and a QR code for direct download of our app. With these materials, we aim to help people better understand domestic violence and offer support.
To inform people about the connection between climate and migration and challenge, negative stereotypes about refugees. The use of storytelling was interesting because it let the user choose whether to stay in a climate crisis country or leave.
I liked the different ways the project was designed. The use of illustrations, animations, and images made the project visually attractive. Overall, it's impressive how the project managed to present a complex topic in such different ways. I think that informative content, emotional engagement, and visual representation works well together.
I'm proud to say that I was able to finish this bachelor project during all the COVID-19 restrictions.
In my climate migration project, there were challenges I had to overcome in the process. During the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions, it has been difficult to regularly communicate with my group members. We switched to digital communication tools, which took some time to adapt to but worked well.
Another problem was talking to experts and people who were affected. The pandemic made it harder to talk to people who had been affected in person and to get their opinions. However, we found alternative ways to obtain well-founded information.
It has also been hard to manage texts and to emphasize the most important points. To make complicated information easy to understand, you need to think carefully and decide which parts to focus on first.
I view these challenges as opportunities to learn more about project management, communication, and information processing.
HfG Schwäbisch Gmünd,
Bachelor of Arts, 2021
Team: Philipp Gendle, Jessica Hoermann, Anastasia Judt
