What is Climate Insecurity?

Conflicts of different intensities and types are driven by multidimensional interactions between environmental, economic, social, and institutional/political factors. Climate change is increasingly recognized to exacerbate the risk of conflict emergence.

Via cascading and interacting effects across socio-economic and political systems, climate-related factors impact conflict dynamics in multiple ways. Hence the concept of climate security, i.e. climate change-induced security risks for human and natural systems, needs to be considered in conflict management and strategic policymaking process.

Until recently, issues around conflict and fragility have been addressed from a symptomatic rather than holistic perspective. The need to integrate climate change and food systems thinking into conflict management is progressively being acknowledged by academia, development, and governmental agencies. Understanding and systematically analyzing the root causes and the role climate security play for conflict and peace is key to plan and implement interventions addressing and preventing conflict.

Food systems, food security, and livelihoods are interconnected drivers within the pathways linking climate to conflict. Working in conflict-prone areas most affected by both, climate change and fragile institutional/political systems, CGIAR’s research on agricultural productivity, natural resource management, climate science, livelihoods and food security, youth, and gender, markets, and value chains, are essential components of the framework of climate and conflict. It, therefore, helps to build and maintain more food systems and climate-smart peace.

CGIAR’s work addresses the various impact pathways, i.e. drivers linking climate and conflict, from different angles and via multidisciplinary approaches, contributing directly and indirectly to climate security and peacebuilding.

Source of info can be found on the new CGIAR Climate Security website: https://climatesecurity.cgiar.org/