PEMOCC Southwest Workshop

Despite the increased reference to the link between climate change and human mobility (which includes displacement, migration, and planned relocation), there is a dearth of knowledge on how shifts in population patterns intersect with underlying socioeconomic, cultural, political, and environmental processes and resources that either enable or constrain the ability of people to cope where they are or force them to move due to lacking support or constrained resources. As part of an NSF Coastlines and People (CoPe) Research Coordination Network (RCN) grant entitled “People on the Move in a Changing Climate (PEMOCC)” led by the Georgia Sea Grant Program, the Southwest Region Project Team convened a virtual workshop on September 27-28, 2022, to facilitate a discussion among experts and stakeholders for the identification of the scientific infrastructure that is required to conduct place-based, use-inspired collaborative research on climate-induced human mobility and regionally tailored educational and engagement strategies.

The goals of the workshop were to feature:

• The current state of knowledge on climate-induced human mobility;
• Local, regional, and international case studies; and
• Unique needs of the underserved and underrepresented coastal communities.

In order to create:

• Data and research gap analyses;
• Framework (possibly developing scenarios) for conducting use-inspired research;
• Education and engagement for building community resilience and climate adaptation; and
• Networks of interdisciplinary and diverse researchers engaged in the study of climate-induced human mobility.

The PEMOCC Southwest workshop addressed a variety of themes related to climate-induced human mobility, with panel discussions on communication, policy, environmental justice, receiving communities, and decision-making. A core theme through the workshop echoed by both speakers and participants was the importance of personal experiences in these conversations.

Over 60 participants represented 53 organizations that ranged from academic institutions, city/local governments, state agencies, federal agencies, community-based/non-profit organizations, private industry, and journalism.

A report summarizing this workshop, including the research needs identified, will be shared with all program participants in the coming months.

• Post-Workshop Resource List: Click here to explore the resources shared by panelists and participants in the workshop
• Meeting Agenda: To download a PDF of the agenda, click here.

• To learn about the National PEMOCC initiative, click here. To get involved and stay up to date on the national PEMOCC network’s activities, please fill out the interest form on the national PEMOCC website.
• To share any post-workshop thoughts or questions that you didn’t get to discuss, please share with us via this form.
• For any additional questions or comments, please contact Karina Alvarez at karinaa9@usc.edu.

This workshop was organized by the University of Southern California Sea Grant Program in coordination with the PEMOCC Regional Coordination Network. PEMOCC is supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. (1940082). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.