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Climate gentrification is a subset of climate migration where lower-socioeconomic communities are displaced in favor of housing for more wealthy groups. Those affected by this phenomenon are typically in coastal cities, islands, and other vulnerable areas, susceptible to rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and other climate-related disasters. [1]
Gentrification is a process of economic displacement where areas of lower socioeconomic status are quickly changed by wealthier people moving in. They increase the cost of living and displace lower class residents. [2] The climate crisis is a global displacement process. Wealthy people take advantage of this displacement as they would on a smaller scale, establishing "climate gentrification." [1]
Historically, vulnerable areas located near seas and beaches excluded marginalized groups and are populated by high-income communities. [3] The unpredictability of climate change has reversed this trend as wealthy communities begin to move inland to prioritize the safety and value of their property. This widespread displacement of lower income groups can be attributed to the security of higher ground that has become prioritized by costal cities. The threat of more extreme weather and rising sea levels is motivating factor for investors to purchase property in a geologically safer location, simultaneously taking advantage of the cheaper property values. [4]
Rapid urbanization in coastal and wetland areas driven by economic, cultural, and environmental factors, has also increased the number of individuals exposed to flooding. As displacement occurs, opportunities for those with the means appear both costal and inland. [5]
Natural disaster events, specifically hurricanes, are also drivers of displacement. [4] Climate-related disasters in 2018 alone displaced more than 1.2 million people. [4] In 2024 Hurricane Helene was responsible for $78.7 billion worth of damage and economic loss to Southern United States (mostly Florida and the Carolinas) along with other countries and territories around the Atlantic Ocean. Experts cite climate change as the reason why rainfall was 10% heavier and rainfall totals over the two-day and three-day maxima were respectively 40% and 70% more likely due to record hot sea-surface temperatures. [6]
Climate gentrification causes low-income and minority communities to bear a disproportionate social and economic burden. As wealthier home owners move towards safer locations due to climate disasters, the cost of living increases and longtime low-income residents are displaced. [4] In elevated regions of Miami, for example, property has appreciated at a higher rate than anywhere else in the country. [4] Globally, more than 30 million people were displaced in 2020, 98% due to weather and climate hazards. [7] Displacement, due to extreme weather events, results in developers taking advantage of lower property prices and investing in expensive projects that cater to wealthier people. Once affordable homes are destroyed and expensive structures replace them, low-income residents are forced out of their communities. [4]
Socially, migration results in demographic turnover, which causes the loss of community identity and cultural disruption. Long-time residents are suffer from these changes, as many see friends and family forced out by wealthy newcomers. [7]
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