adelphi’s latest publication “Climate Diplomacy in Perspective – From Early Warning to Early Action” highlights the key positions in the debate on the security risks of climate change and the prospects of climate diplomacy.
The compilation, edited by adelphi’s experts on climate and security, Dennis Taenzler and Alexander Carius, builds on a conference on “Climate Diplomacy in Perspective” hosted by the German Federal Foreign Office and adelphi in Berlin in October 2011. More than 100 policy makers and experts from over 30 countries had come together to discuss the importance of enhancing the dialogue on climate change and security, building early warning capacities and fostering partnerships for early action and conflict prevention.
With insightful contributions from politicians, experts and leading scholars, the publication gives particular emphasis to water resource management, global food security, and rising sea levels that threaten coastal areas and low-lying island states. The authors explore ways to further develop regional cooperation and dialogue in light of a changing climate and provide strong arguments for urgent action that complements international climate negotiations.
The publication is available here: http://bwv.verlag-online.eu/shop/bwv/apply/viewdetail/id/4496/
Global progress towards achieving the SDGs is slow, and for many targets, off track. While SDG implementation is primarily a national task and responsibility, it also requires concerted international cooperation. This article presents two arguments why foreign policy could play an important role in their achievement.
No country is immune to natural hazards, but for fragile states, the effects are even more severe. Mostly, conflict prevention and humanitarian aid are seen as more pressing priorities to protect livelihoods there. This pushes efforts of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction to the bottom of the priority list and results in compounded pressures.
As the debate over climate-related security risks grows, many Pacific Island States are calling for more action by the international community to better address the links between climate change and global security. In an interview with adelphi, the former President of Nauru, Baron Waqa, highlights some of these calls as well as the challenges in getting the climate-security issue on the UN’s agenda.
A record breaking European heatwave provided a fitting backdrop to the latest round of UN climate change talks, in which delegates from around the world descended on Bonn for a two-week diplomatic effort.