Climate-related migration within the EU legal framework: the dark side of the green transition

Abstract

La migrazione climatica nel quadro giuridico dell’Unione Europea: il lato oscuro della transizione ecologica - This article examines climate-related migration within the European Union legal framework, highlighting the structural limits of existing asylum and protection categories in addressing environmentally driven mobility. It argues that the Common European Asylum System is ill-equipped to capture the multi-causal and slow-onset nature of climate-induced displacement. In the absence of a dedicated legal status, protection has increasingly relied on human rights law and the principle of non-refoulement. The article further explores the tension between the EU’s green transition objectives and its predominantly securitarian migration policies. It concludes that climate-related mobility constitutes a critical test of the EU’s capacity to adapt its legal order to emerging forms of vulnerability.

Keywords: Climate-related migration; EU asylum law; Non-refoulement; Human dignity; Green transition