Rising seas, immobilities, and translocality in small island states: case studies from Fiji and Tuvalu

As increasing global temperatures lead to sea level rise and associated impacts (e.g. flooding, erosion, saltwater intrusion), the relocation of people and assets away from sites of coastal risk has been viewed by some as a certainty. However, many people affected by emerging coastal changes remain in sites of residence. Here we examine the experiences of residents in three low-lying villages across two small island states: Dreketi and Karoko in Fiji, and Funafala in Tuvalu. Analysis of qualitative data from interviews shows that residents are concerned about local coastal changes, and largely attribute them to climate change. While some anticipate future relocation and retreat, and a few households have retreated short distances away from the coast, for now residents remain in and move to these sites to maintain livelihoods, practices, well-being, and sense of belonging. These are places that people value and plan to live in as long as possible. The contribution of this paper is to highlight the vernacular explanations of overlapping drivers of immobility and translocality in sites of coastal risk. It indicates the need to move away from the binaries of immobility/mobility and of trapped/voluntarily immobile populations and to examine the multiplicities of human (im)mobility.