Marissa Nelson | July 27, 2021 8:54 pm On average, 23.1 million people have been displaced by natural disasters every year since 2010, according to the World Meteorological Organization. As rising seas levels, destructive floods, droughts and wildfires threaten communities in the U.S. and around the globe, some say governments need to prepare for more migration. Thanks to our sponsors: While there isn’t an official designation, some call climate-induced migrants “climate refugees.” “Broadly speaking ... climate refugees are people who are displaced by climate events whether it’s a large one-time event, or it’s a cumulative of events from hurricanes and flooding and wildfires or if it’s a chronic condition,” said Sabina Shaikh, director of the University of Chicago’s Program on Global Environment.