Australia will take in people fleeing climate change from Pacific island nation

Australia has agreed to take in people displaced by climate change from the Pacific islands of Tuvalu, which are threatened by climate change, in a new treaty announced Friday.

Australia has agreed to offer residency to people displaced by climate change from the Pacific islands of Tuvalu in a new treaty announced Friday.

“Tuvalu faces special and unique challenges which are already exacerbated by the effects of climate change. It is geographically remote, has a fragmented landmass, and a scarcity of natural resources,” Australia’s prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said in a statement Friday.

The treaty is called the Falepili Union, based on the Tuvaluan word for the traditional values of good neighbourliness, care and mutual respect, and will allow a “special pathway” for up to 280 Tuvuluans a year to go to Australia.

With a population of 11,000, it would take up to 40 years for the entire population of Tuvalu to move to Australia under those parameters.

“We believe the people of Tuvalu deserve the choice to live, study and work elsewhere, as climate change impacts worsen,” Albanese said, adding that the treaty is groundbreaking.

“Australia has committed to provide a special pathway for citizens of Tuvalu to come to Australia, with access to Australian services that will enable human mobility with dignity.”

The statement said that climate change remains the greatest threat to Tuvalu’s security and well-being, and the treaty came at the request of Tuvalu.

“I wish to express my heartfelt appreciation for the unwavering commitment that our friends from Australia have demonstrated,” Tuvalu Prime Minister Kausea Natano said. “This partnership stands as a beacon of hope, signifying not just a milestone but a giant leap forward in our joint mission to ensure regional stability, sustainability and prosperity.”