Treaty Offers Australian Residency to Tuvalu Citizens Displaced by Climate Change

A new treaty between Australia and the low-lying Pacific Island nation of Tuvalu will offer 280 Tuvalu citizens per year permanent residency in Australia as sea level rise threatens the nation. Additionally, the treaty will link the two Oceanic nations together with close security ties. The signing of this treaty comes as sea levels rise due to Climate change, which threatens the very existence of several Pacific Island nations. 

Tuvalu is located in Oceania, roughly equidistant to both Hawaii and Australia. The island nation comprises nine islands located in the South Pacific. Tuvalu and other similar nations are extremely vulnerable to Climate change. Indeed, estimates show that by 2050, much of their land area will be submerged during high tide. Despite this looming threat, Tuvalu has done little to contribute to the factors that are rapidly driving Climate change. All of the Pacific Islands combined contribute less than 0.03 percent of the world’s carbon emissions. Yet, Tuvalu’s 11,200 citizens face an uncertain future as waters rise. Soon, the lands that they and their ancestors have called home for generations may be uninhabitable. 

The treaty between Australia and Tuvalu not only recognizes the threat that climate change poses to Tuvalu and other Pacific Island nations, but also offers permanent residency in Australia to 280 citizens of Tuvalu each year. It is up to the nation of Tuvalu, headed by Prime Minister Kausea Natano, to decide which Tuvaluan citizens will be offered Australian residency visas. However, Australia has also committed to rendering aid necessary to allow Tuvalu’s citizens to remain in their island homes. Australia will also render aid to Tuvalu as requested in cases of natural disaster, military aggression, or future pandemics.

In exchange, Tuvalu will be required to side with Australia in international affairs on security and matters related to defense. This follows a growing presence from China in the Pacific region. 

The new partnership between Tuvalu and Australia is to be known as the Falepili Union. This name derives from a “Tuvaluan word referring to good neighborliness, care, and mutual respect” according to the news outlet The Guardian. Although the agreement between the two nations offers a pathway for residency in Australia to Tuvalu citizens, large-scale migration is not anticipated. However, the 280 residency visas offer a dignified migration route to those displaced due to Climate change or other events. 

As part of efforts to help Tuvalu’s people remain in their homes, Australia will also deepen its cooperation with the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project. This project hopes to reclaim land in Tuvalu’s capital of Funafuti. By creating six percent more land mass in the capital, additional housing can be built and other essential services created. 

Pacific nations have stated that sea level rise and other repercussions of Climate change are considered the largest threat to their national security. Many of these countries measure only meters above sea level at their highest points. Despite Australia and Tuvalu’s new treaty, other countries in the region remain concerned about Australia’s fossil fuel emissions and approval of new fossil fuel extraction projects.

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