Linking Coastal Disasters and Migration: A Case Study of Kutubdia Island, Bangladesh

Munshi Khaledur Rahman, Bimal Kanti Paul, Andrew Curtis, Thomas W. Schmidlin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

On 4 August 2012, the southeastern part of Kutubdia Island, Bangladesh, experienced coastal erosion and flooding associated with tidal waves, storms, and continuous heavy rainfall for two days. This provided a unique opportunity to study the relationship between rapid-onset disasters and migration decisions of individual households perpetually living under environmental risk. Using Kutubdia Island as a case study, this article examines the migration decisions of respondents in the immediate aftermath of two extreme natural events. Relevant data were primarily collected from a questionnaire survey conducted nearly two months after the occurrence of the event. The study's findings support the view that both environmental and nonenvironmental factors lead to migration. The article outlines several areas for further research on the links between migration and environmental stress.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)218-228
Number of pages11
JournalProfessional Geographer
Volume67
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 3 2015

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Earth-Surface Processes

Keywords

  • Bangladesh
  • Kutubdia Island
  • coastal erosion
  • environmental change
  • flood
  • migration

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