A/67/299 policy and migration. The Global Migration Group, a collective of 18 United Nations agencies, the World Bank and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), was created in 2006 in recognition that migration is a complex and multidimensional issue that requires a coherent and coordinated approach from the international community (see http://www.globalmigrationgroup.org). The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as the Chair of the Global Migration Group in the second half of 2011, focused its statement on the relationship between climate change and migration. 27. The Climate Change Environment and Migration Alliance (see http://www.ccema-portal.org), which includes the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, IOM and other international non-governmental organizations specialized in environment, has also recently been established. 28. Individual United Nations agencies have also focused specifically on the link between migration and climate change. IOM has a thematic focus on this issue and has developed numerous publications on the topic. 3 Similarly, UNHCR has recognized the important impact that climate change will have on its work. 4 The World Bank also recently commissioned a study on human rights and climate change. 5 29. The 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), held in Brazil from 20 to 22 June 2012, also recognized the issue of migration as relevant in the context of environmental cooperation, and emphasis was put on the need for States to recognize the rights of migrants, in particular those in a vulnerable situation. 6 30. Of course, the Special Rapporteur recognizes the contributions of numerous non-governmental organizations, as well as Governments themselves, to the development of this field. As more research continues to be carried out at both the scientific and policy levels, the understanding of the issues continues to evolve. Building on this, the Special Rapporteur will further explore the human rights aspects of migration relating to climate change. C. Question of definition: what is climate-change-induced migration? 31. Environmentally induced migration is commonly presented as a new, or emerging, issue. Yet, changes in environmental conditions have always influenced migration patterns. It is a core feature of our human condition: since mankind has existed, people have been moving in response to changes in their environment, often seasonally. In the context of climate change, however, the rate and scale of this migration could be multiplied. Precise numbers regarding environmental migrants vary considerably, with estimates of the number of people likely to be displaced by __________________ 3 4 5 6 12-46071 An overview of the work of IOM on migration and climate change is available from http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/pid/2068. An overview of the work of UNHCR on Migration and Climate Change is available from http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49e4a5096.html. World Bank, Human Rights and Climate Change: A Review of the International Legal Dimensions, Washington, D.C., 2011. See outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) (A/66/L.56, annex, paras. 144 and 157). 7