One in Three Tuvaluans Seek Climate Asylum in Australia Amid Sea-Level Rise – Foxton News
Thousands of Tuvaluans Apply for Climate Migration to Australia as Rising Seas Threaten Island Nation
More than one-third of Tuvalu’s population has applied for a special climate visa offered by Australia, as the Pacific island nation faces an existential threat from rising sea levels. The figures, released by officials, highlight the growing urgency among Tuvaluans to seek long-term security beyond their sinking homeland.
Tuvalu’s ambassador to the United Nations, Tapugao Falefou, expressed surprise at the volume of applications. “The number of people registering has exceeded expectations,” he told Reuters, adding that many in the small island community are watching closely to see who will be among the first to resettle.
With a population of around 11,000 spread across nine low-lying atolls, Tuvalu is considered one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change. Scientific projections indicate that large parts of the country could become uninhabitable within decades, as sea levels continue to rise.
Since the opening of applications this month for Australia’s new visa initiative—part of the 2023 Falepili Union treaty between the two nations—over 1,100 individuals have signed up. When family members are included, the number seeking relocation rises to more than 4,000. The program will accept a maximum of 280 people per year, a cap designed to protect Tuvalu from losing too many skilled workers at once.
Under the agreement, successful applicants will gain the right to live, work, and study in Australia, with access to healthcare and education comparable to that of Australian citizens. Ambassador Falefou noted that migration under the treaty could also help support families who remain in Tuvalu through remittances.
NASA scientists warn that by 2050, daily tides could inundate half of Funafuti—the capital atoll where most of Tuvalu’s population lives. If sea levels rise by two meters, as projected in worst-case scenarios, up to 90% of the island could be underwater.
Currently, Tuvalu sits just over six feet above sea level on average and has already seen the ocean encroach by six inches in the past 30 years—1.5 times faster than the global average. In a bid to resist the tide, the government has constructed 17 acres of artificial land and plans to expand these efforts, aiming to preserve viable territory through the end of the century.
