Sara Curran - University of Washington
Climate Change and Local Environmental Stress on Migration in Nang Rong, Thailand
Date: 02/24/2012 (Fri)
Time: 1:00pm- 2:30pm
Location: Seminar will be held on-site: 130 Soc/Psych Zener Auditorium
Organizer: Giovanna Merli, Phil Morgan
Meeting Schedule: Login or email the organizer to schedule a meeting.
All meetings will be held in the same location as the seminar unless otherwise noted.
9:00am - 9-12.30 pm meetings with sociology faculty
10:00am - Dave Brady (Soc/Psych Room 259)
11:00am - Gary Gereffi (Soc/Psych Room 264)
11:30am - Kieran Healy (Soc/Psych Room 276)
12:00pm - Katherine King (Soc/Psych Room 271)
12:30pm - Prepare for Talk
1:00pm - Seminar Presentation (1:00pm to 2:30pm)
2:30pm - Bill Pan (Social Sciences 213)
3:00pm - DuPRI students (Soc Sciences 213)
4:00pm - Elizabeth Frankenberg (Soc Sciences 213)
4:45pm - Giovanna Merli (Soc Sciences 213)
Additional Comments: Abstract: Scholars point to climate change, often in the form of more frequent and severe drought, as a potential driver of migration in the developing world, particularly in populations that rely on agriculture for their livelihoods. To date, however, there have been few large-scale, longitudinal studies that explore the relationship between climate change and migration. This study significantly extends current scholarship by evaluating distinctive effects of slow onset climate change and short-term extreme events upon different migration outcomes. Our analysis models the effect of the environment--as measured by Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and the occurrence of El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events—on labor and return migration to Nang Rong. Our preliminary findings indicate that reduced vegetation health is associated with higher rates of labor migration and lower rates of return migration. Dry El Nino periods have the same effects on migration as NDVI, whereas wet La Nina periods are associated with lower labor migration and higher return migration.