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/
With global climate action stagnating, sustained community-driven initiatives can fill the governance gap and also help mitigate climate-related security risks in South Asia.
The longstanding dispute over water rights among Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia escalated in 2011 when Ethiopia began construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), in the absence of any agreement with downstream Egypt. The GERD dispute offers an alarming insight into just how dangerous future transboundary water disputes may become, particularly in the context of a changing climate.
Though focused on climate change, National Adaptation Plans offer important assessments of the risks a country faces and can be valuable in devising comprehensive pandemic response strategies.
Women in the region suffer disproportionately from climate impacts, but they also play an essential role in addressing climate change. With the right policy responses, it is possible to reduce security risks and empower women to better address the challenges they face.