Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Future-making beyond (im)mobility through tethered resilience

Adaptation to climate change goes beyond the migration–non-migration divide. Families and communities combine mobility with rootedness, drawing on cultural ties, intergenerational learning, and lived knowledge to navigate risks and shape long-term futures.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

USD 39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Concept of tethered resilience as future-making, useful in understanding (im)mobility under risk.

References

  1. Hunter, L. M., Luna, J. K. & Norton, R. M. Annu. Rev. Sociol. 41, 377–397 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Farbotko, C., Dun, O., Thornton, F., McNamara, K. E. & McMichael, C. Nat. Clim. Change 10, 702–704 (2020).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Scharrer, T., Lambert, L., Millar, S., PekĹźen, M. & Laakkonen, V. Comp. Migr. Stud. 12, 54 (2024).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Sakdapolrak, P. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 121, e2206185120 (2024).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Sterly, H. et al. Glob. Environ. Change 90, 102953 (2025).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Iyer, M. V. & Schewel, K. Georget. Immigr. Law J. 38, 207 (2024).

    Google Scholar 

  7. Erwin, A. et al. World Dev. 138, 105282 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Napogbong, L. A., Ahmed, A. & Derbile, E. K. Clim. Dev. 13, 201–214 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Cascone, N., Peña del Valle Isla, A. E. & Milan, A. in Migration, Risk Management and Climate Change: Evidence and Policy Responses (eds Milan, A. et al.) 63–83 (Springer, 2016).

  10. Tonmoy Islam, T. M. & Kotikula, A. Asian Dev. Rev. 40, 79–111 (2023).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Bunnell, T., Gillen, J. & Ho, E. L. E. Ann. Am. Assoc. Geographers 108, 35–51 (2017).

    Google Scholar 

  12. McMichael, C., Farbotko, C., Piggott-McKellar, A., Powell, T. & Kitara, M. Populat. Environ. 43, 82–107 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Briana, N. J. Refugee Stud. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feae034 (2024).

  14. García-Hernández, C., Ruiz-Fernández, J. & González-Díaz, B. Geogr. Res. 57, 189–203 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Few, R. et al. WIREs Clim. Change 12, e687 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bishawjit Mallick.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Mallick, B., Hunter, L.M., Ackerly, B. et al. Future-making beyond (im)mobility through tethered resilience. Nat. Clim. Chang. 15, 1257–1260 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-025-02506-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Version of record:

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-025-02506-8

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing