Displacement in Bangladesh

As many move, people with a disability are left behind

While the COP28 climate change conference is underway this week in Dubai, I’d like to present some of my recent fieldwork from Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. I’ve produced a series of short, behind the scenes videos that give a glimpse into my process as I parachuted into these places and produced my forthcoming film Invisible Impact; Disability on Climate Change’s Frontline. Here’s the intro to this series. 

An audio described version of this video can be found here.

The origin of this project goes back almost a decade ago when I was covering the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. It got me thinking about how as global warming makes these kinds of disasters more common, threats to the safety of people with a disability, people like me, will also increase. Four years after that experience, I went back to Tacloban to look into how the region’s disabled community was affected by that storm and filed this report for the public radio program The World. To my knowledge, that 2018 dispatch was the first on-the-ground story that looked at these concerns in US media.   

I felt my report was only the tip of this quickly melting iceberg and looked into how I could continue working on this global story, which still does not receive much attention in the media or in policy. That’s despite some studies indicating that people with a disability are much more likely to die during a weather-related emergency. Fortunately, the National Geographic Society and Fulbright Program also saw a need for more coverage of these issues and supported my trips around coastal South Asia.     

Bangladesh

I had read about how sea level rise, floods and storms displace thousands of people in Bangladesh from their villages along the Bay of Bengal. But, I wanted to know if people with a disability were among these climate refugees and if not, what kind of conditions were they facing in their vulnerable communities? Thanks to the pandemic, it took a little longer than expected to arrive in the country, but in August 2022, I started my reporting as a National Geographic Explorer.         

An audio described version of this video can be found here and was narrated by Keeley Giblin.  

During my two-week reporting trip, my collaborator for this project, Kazi Riasat Alve, and I spoke with dozens of people with disabilities throughout the coastal Chattogram disctrict. Even though not everyone we met was familiar with the concept of climate change, pretty much each person had a story about a flood, storm or other situation where they felt their lives were put at particular danger. And from what one environmental researcher told me, based on what he’s seen, people like this too often don’t live to tell stories about these events. It didn’t seem like people with a disability were given much consideration in Bangladesh’s disaster planning.  

Disability and accessibility advocate Vashkar Bhattacharjee didn't quite agree with my observation. He pointed to various local laws that prioritize the safety of disabled Bangladeshis during disasters…. at least on paper. He says there’s been much progress in his country toward disability inclusion and it could even be a “model” for other nations, but the connections between this population and climate change’s risks have largely not been explored.       

Vashkar was a great source for this project and he put my team and I in touch with his network of advocates in the region. With their introductions, we were able to gain the trust of the people we interviewed for Invisible Impact and subsequent reports. Below is an excerpt from my interview with Vashkar, who I met shortly after my arrival in Dhaka.   

Jason Strother   Let's start with the big picture. How does climate change impact people with disabilities in Bangladesh? Why should people with disabilities be concerned about climate change?

Vashkar Bhattacharjee  If you consider one-billion people with disabilities in the world are more vulnerable and 16-million people with disabilities in Bangladesh are most vulnerable because of climate change. It is impacting their life and livelihood. It is impacting their mobility, it is impacting their education and also it is impacting their movement. As you know Bangladesh is one of the most impacted countries by climate change.

Jason Strother   Specifically, when we say climate change in Bangladesh, what kind of phenomena are we talking about?

Vashkar Bhattacharjee   We are facing cyclones, we are facing tornadoes, we are facing floods, we are facing salinity like irrigation has become almost impossible in some places and people with disabilities are losing their jobs as farmers. In the sea, we are seeing the fisherfolk community, they are unable to catch fish and they're losing their jobs. Another big thing, because of climate change, during high tides, cities are going underwater and mobility is highly restricted. One of the biggest challenges for people with disabilities is displacement . 

Jason Strother   Tell me more about displacement. How is climate change causing displacement for people with disabilities?

Vashkar Bhattacharjee   For many people with disabilities, one of the biggest barriers they are facing is mobility, they are unable to move here and there. That's why they are displaced from their locality. And as there are no jobs or employment opportunities for people with disabilities in the climate change vulnerable areas, they need to move to cities, big cities and other parts of the countries where climate change affects them less.

Jason Strother  But, because some people with disabilities have mobility challenges, isn't it difficult for many of these people to migrate to bigger cities?

Vashkar Bhattacharjee   When you don't have employment opportunities, when again, and again, you lose your house (because of disasters) and when there is no opportunity for education, then the better choice is to move to a bigger city. At least they have some opportunity there. Unfortunately, I can tell you, a number of people with disabilities are begging in the street, which is a direct effect of climate change. As they lose their employment in their locality, they come to a big city and they are involved in begging. Even though the government has lots of support services, social safety net program, there still is a challenge.

Jason Strother   How is the government responding to concerns about how people with disabilities are being displaced due to climate change phenomena? Is there inclusive disaster management in Bangladesh?

Vashkar Bhattacharjee   There is inclusive disaster management on paper. But, in practice, people with disabilities are really missing at the implementation level.

Jason Strother   How can people with disabilities become more active in these policy circles?

Vashkar Bhattacharjee   We need more local and national-level OPDs (organizations of people with disabilities) to work on climate change issues. Even though in disability inclusive disaster management, lots of discussion and research has happened, climate change issues are missing. As a movement, persons with disabilities need to consider that disability inclusive climate change policies are highly, highly, highly required from our governments. I'm not seeing (this) even at the international-level, so there's not much discussion about disability inclusive climate change related policies or interventions.There's a lack of opportunity, lack of understanding by the policymakers, a lack of understanding by the government, And also it is seen as an environmental issue, its seen as a scientific issue. It is a human rights issue. It is directly impacting my life. 

This interview was shortened and edited for clarity. 

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Invisible Impact

Disability on Climate Change’s Frontline

An audio described version of the trailer below can be found here. 

To find out more about my forthcoming short film, reach out to me at jason@lens15.com or reply to this newsletter. 

Learn more at Lens15.com/impact  

Keeley Giblin edited this newsletter