Millions of refugees and displaced people are caught in a worsening cycle of conflict and climate disasters, warns a new report by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. Released in Belém, Brazil, the report highlights how extreme weather is compounding humanitarian crises and driving repeated displacement. By mid-2025, 117 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide, with three-quarters living in countries facing high or extreme climate risks. Over the past decade, weather-related disasters have triggered some 250 million internal displacements, pushing already vulnerable communities in regions like South Sudan, Brazil, Kenya, Pakistan, Chad, and Ethiopia to the brink.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi cautioned that extreme weather is destroying homes, disrupting essential services, and forcing families—many already uprooted by violence—to flee again. He emphasized that these communities, among the hardest hit by droughts, floods, and heatwaves, have the fewest resources to recover. In Chad, refugees from Sudan are receiving less than 10 liters of water a day, while by 2050, some refugee camps could endure nearly 200 days of hazardous heat annually, making them increasingly uninhabitable.
Environmental degradation is worsening the crisis. According to the report, three-quarters of Africa’s land is deteriorating, and over half of refugee settlements are in areas of severe ecological stress. Dwindling access to food, water, and income is intensifying instability, with communities in the Sahel reporting that climate-driven livelihood losses are contributing to recruitment into armed groups, linking environmental collapse to cycles of violence and displacement.
Meanwhile, unequal and insufficient climate financing is leaving millions of displaced people unprotected. Fragile, conflict-affected countries that host refugees receive only a fraction of the funds they need, while global climate finance rarely reaches those on the front lines. Grandi warned that funding shortfalls are crippling efforts to shield refugees from climate impacts and called for urgent investment in vulnerable areas. He urged leaders at COP30 to move beyond promises and deliver tangible action to prevent further displacement.
Despite these challenges, UNHCR stresses that solutions exist. Displaced and host communities can build resilience if they are included in national climate plans and receive adequate investment and representation in decision-making. However, most countries still overlook them in their climate policies. As world leaders gather for COP30, UNHCR is calling for inclusive climate strategies, increased adaptation financing, and direct support to the communities most affected.
The report, No Escape II: The Way Forward, produced with 27 partner organizations, expands on earlier findings with new data and recommendations to strengthen resilience in frontline regions. It will be launched at COP30 by Filippo Grandi, reinforcing UNHCR’s call for global action to address the intertwined challenges of conflict, climate change, and forced displacement.
