Regional evidence of environmental mobility in Southeast Asia: A systematic review of the empirical evidence

In recognition of the complex and context-specific interplay between environmental change and human mobility, regionally focused systematic reviews have been acknowledged as very valuable. No such review exists for Southeast Asia (SEA), despite being a region that is significantly shaped by human mobility and a hotspot of environmental change. In this article, we aim to close the gap by systematizing the empirical literature on the causes and consequences of human mobility in the context of environmental change in SEA. The review is based on 63 scientific publications derived from the CliMig database and supplemented by additional backward and author-citation search methods. The empirical evidence from SEA reveals several overarching themes that are consistent with global trends in the environment-mobility nexus. In particular, we highlight the importance of remittances—both financial and social—as key mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to environmental uncertainty. We also identify several specific areas of research that require further investigation in the context of SEA, including the conditions faced by migrants in destination areas and the dual-nature impacts of remittances on both the household and the migrant’s perspective.