Seventeenth Global Studies Conference

Abstract

Many nations in the Global South are still experiencing the lasting economic inequities created by colonization and enforced by present day economic structures, all of which are compounded by climate change. As such, migration has become an increasingly common response among individuals and households experiencing the economic and environmental pressures associated with these systems. In this article, we argue that the inclusion of individuals from the Global South in the Global North should be considered as a form of reparations for individuals from these regions to address the historical injustices of colonialism and the ongoing impact of neo-colonial subjugation. We argue that inclusion of these peoples into the Global North is not only a humanitarian imperative but also a form of redress for the exploitation and inequality perpetuated by historical and contemporary global economic structures, and use data from focus groups of migrants in Canada to study the relationship between economic development initiatives, such as mining operations, and the complex and interconnected economic and environmental drivers of migration decisions.