World's first planned migration of an entire nation

More than 5,000 people have applied for a first-of-its-kind migration visa that offers residents of a Pacific island an escape from the worst effects of climate change. Applications for the visa closed to people in Tuvalu on 18 July. Under its terms, 280 Tuvaluans can relocate to Australia each year from 2025 through a ballot system. Four days after the ballot opened, 3,125 Tuvaluans, roughly one-third of the nation's population of 11,000 people, had already registered for a chance to receive the visa. “This is the first agreement of its kind anywhere in the world, providing a pathway for mobility with dignity as climate impacts worsen,” Australian government representatives said. The representatives said that they recognised the “devastating impact climate change is having on the livelihoods, security and well-being of climate-vulnerable countries and people, particularly in the Pacific region.”

- WORDS SASCHA PARE

Tuvalu sits midway between Australia and Hawaii in the South Pacific Ocean. The country consists of nine low-lying atolls, ring-shaped islands surrounded by coral reefs. Tuvalu’s highest point is 4.5 metres above sea level, but the country's mean elevation is just two metres above sea level, making it extremely vulnerable to sea level rise, flooding and storm surges due to climate change. In 2023, sea levels around Tuvalu were 15 centimetres higher than they were 30 years prior. Much of the country’s land and critical infrastructure will be below high-tide level by