Climate gentrification

Climate gentrification is a type of climate migration where households and communities face economic stress and potential displacement as the demand for lower-risk geographies increases from populations leaving areas impacted by climate change. Those affected by this phenomenon are typically in coastal cities, islands, and other vulnerable areas, susceptible to rising sea levels, wildfires, extreme weather events, and other climate-related disasters.

Origin

Gentrification is a process of economic displacement where areas of lower socioeconomic status are quickly changed by wealthier people moving in. They increase the cost of living and displace lower class residents. The climate crisis is a global displacement process. Wealthy people take advantage of this displacement as they would on a smaller scale, establishing "climate gentrification." Climate gentrification may manifest in one of three ways. In the Superior Investment Pathway, demand for housing and real estate increases as people move from a risky area to an area with lower risk. In the Cost-Burden Pathway, only wealthy people can bear the costs of living in high-risk areas, as lower socioeconomic status households are forced to leave because of increased costs and risks. Finally, in the Resilience Investment Pathway, rents and the value of properties leads to displacement effects as an unintended consequence of investments in resilience and risk reduction infrastructure that lowers risks and increased the amenity value of the community.

Causes

Historically, vulnerable areas located near seas and beaches excluded marginalized groups and are populated by high-income communities.