ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to determine if and how Haiti should be included in a list of countries with environmental refugees. It examines the environmental refugee literature and applies it to Haiti, and assesses the perspective of a typical Haitian who confronts both severe current economic and past political deprivation. The chapter shows the worldview of a representative citizen of the world's first black republic and the least urbanized country in the Western Hemisphere: a citizen experiencing the worst set of human development indicators in the region and among the worst in the world. It also examines the extent and causes of Haiti's most pressing environmental problem, deforestation. In contrast to Haitians migrating from one rural area to another, migrants moving from rural areas to urban areas tend to be young, nonagricultural workers and primarily women. The chapter traces the historical migration patterns of Haitians both within and outside Haiti and the relationship between Haiti's deforestation and refugee status.
