Peter Habib

The Project

Peter will advocate for creative solutions to increase protections for individuals forced to migrate due to climate change through direct representation, trauma-informed pro bono training, and policy work.

Every year, more than 25 million people are forcibly displaced by sudden onset disasters such as floods, storms, wildfires, and extreme temperatures. By 2050, up to 216 million people throughout the world could face the same fate due to slow-onset climate events such as droughts and rising sea-levels. No comprehensive international legal framework currently exists to address displacement caused by climate change and disasters—a crisis of increasing magnitude. There is a clear need to address climate-driven displacement to protect and provide safe havens for impacted persons.

Peter is committed to ensuring the United States respects its moral and national interest in creating legal pathways to humanitarian protection for individuals fleeing climate-driven hazards and setting an example for other countries to do the same.

Fellowship Plans

This project is unique in its integrated response to climate-driven displacement—incorporating litigation, climate-informed resource development, trainings for a national pro bono network of asylum attorneys, and policy advocacy. During his Fellowship, Peter aims to help climate-displaced individuals in two ways: by ensuring maximum protection is extended under existing U.S. legal frameworks; and by advocating for the adoption of new forms of protection.