Climate security

Climate Security in times of geopolitical crises—what ways forward?

Ahead of the fourth Planetary Security Conference on 19–20 February 2019 in The Hague, SIPRI authored the 2019 progress report ‘Climate Security – Making it #Doable.’ The report reviews progress made to address climate-related security risks in a time of growing geopolitical turmoil. The authors highlight three upcoming processes that will be key in shaping actions on climate security in 2019 and beyond.

During 2018 the increasing impact of climate change became visible with frequent droughts, floods, and extreme weather events. At the same time geopolitical tensions grew between old and new rivals that seem to undermine the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 2015 Paris Agreement. The turmoil puts multilateralism in question.

Climate security within the UN

Nevertheless, as shown in the newly released report ‘Climate Security – Making it #Doable’, global and regional organizations have been able to achieve progress in addressing and mitigating climate-related security risks. Developments among regional organisations—including the African Union and the European Union—illustrates a growing awareness and action on climate security...