Narratives, challenges and opportunities
The worsening impacts of climate change on the world’s most vulnerable people place the management of climate and conflict risk squarely within the humanitarian domain. The ways in which humanitarian actors approach these challenges matter, both for the effectiveness of emergency response and for broader climate action in fragile and conflict-affected situations.
The speed and complexity of climate challenges today pose multifarious risks to societal stability, especially those pertaining to peace and conflict. These risks are multidimensional, for they can amplify socio-economic tensions, provoke competition over resources, or accentuate national rivalries affecting international order – thus, carrying vast security implications. The Indo-pacific region is particularly vulnerable to these climate-related security risks considering the range of conventional and unconventional challenges faced.
Examining Nationally Defined Contributions, Targets, and Gaps in Wealthy Versus Middle-Income States
A Region on the Frontlines of Climate Change
As climate change and policy responses grow more intense, prominent, and high-stakes, opportunities will grow for state and non-state actors to spread mis- and disinformation. These mis- and disinformation challenges go beyond climate denialism, and are present across the breadth of climate security risks. These risks comprise the physical impacts of climate disasters, cascading socio political impacts of climate change, and backlash or unintended consequences from climate policies themselves.
Livelihoods are central to the relationship between climate change and conflict. Changes in temperature and precipitation patterns negatively affect household income sources and food supply. The lack of alternative livelihood options, coupled with political, social and economic strife, may lead people to resort to violence to safeguard their means of survival.
The humanitarian–development–peace (HDP) nexus emphasizes the need to address crises through integrated approaches, aligning humanitarian, development and peacebuilding efforts.
Director of Global Initiatives for the International Peace Institute and also Head of the Climate Peace and Sustainable Development Team
On 7 March, PSI spoke to Jimena Leiva Roesch, who serves as the Director of global initiatives for the International Pe
Lessons from Yemen, Ukraine, and Libya
The world's water is in trouble. Freshwater pollution, coupled with climate change, population growth, and increasing demand, threatens water quality and availability. The strain is clear already, as 26% of the world’s population lacks access to safe drinking water, and a whopping 46% lack access to basic sanitation. In countries experiencing conflict, these percentages soar. In 2015, 38% of people living in conflict-affected states lacked basic drinking water.
Communities need to adapt to the havoc wrought by this weather phenomenon.
Some scientists suspect that atmospheric rivers, plumes of water vapor that transport water from the poles and dump heavy rain or snow when they hit land, caused the 'Great Flood' in 1862. These rivers in the sky have become increasingly powerful in the decades since, pummeling California and the western United States the past few winters. They will likely grow even more severe in a warming world. Western states need to prepare accordingly.
