RK - Unine 1Raoul Kaenzig, University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland 17.07.2013

BOLIVIAN ANDES: NARRATIVES ON GLACIAL RETREAT AND MIGRATION

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CASE STUDY IN THE BOLIVIAN ANDES

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RESEARCH

2 approaches :

• 1) On narrativesHow the relation between glacial retreat and migration is framed in the medias?

• 2) On mechanismsHow glacial retreat may affect the decision to migrate?

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« In Bolivia, Water and Ice tell of climate change » NYT, 2009

“El deshielo empuja la emigración en una comunidad indígena de Bolivia.” CNN Mexico, 2011

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Images: Vergara, 2008; RK 2010

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La communauté de Khapi sur internet

"climate change" (milliers)

"climate refugees" (dizaines)

"Khapi" (unité)

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Villagers say: yes!“My four brothers are gone, they live in the city; because we lack terrain and we lack water. This year there is no water coming down the glacier!” (Khapi, man 32 y.o., 2012)

Experts say: no! “They are enjoying an extra-amount of water. Until now, they have not experienced out-migration because of this.” (Environmental NGO director, La Paz, 2012).

MECHANISMS BETWEEN GLACIAL RETREAT AND MIGRATION

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MECHANISMS BETWEEN GLACIAL RETREAT AND MIGRATION

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CONCLUSION AND FURTHER REMARKS

• Mediatisation of the villages: Victims VS agency…. A way to adapt?

• Visual dimension of retreating glaciers has a strong impacts on decisions: migration as an anticipatory adaptive strategy?

• Importance to consider the temporal dimension; Are they “sitting on a melting bomb?”

• Moving to vulnerable destinations (cities), and then?

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Raoul.Kaenzig@unine.ch www.unine.ch/geographie

THANK YOU !