Blogs & Opinions


Climate Security, Energy Security, and the Russia-Ukraine War

May 11, 2022 | Mark Nevitt

Climate change is an existential crisis that requires an immediate, transformational shift away from fossil fuels — a point reinforced in stark terms in the…


The Risks of Gender-Blind Climate Action

May 10, 2022 | Marisa O. Ensor

Climate change is widely recognized as one the greatest threats to peace and security in the 21st century. The causal pathways that link deteriorating environmental conditions, insecurity, and conflict, while…


Reimagining the Aftermath of War, Now

May 10, 2022 | Aida A. Hozić and Juliana Restrepo Sanín

Feminist scholars stress two aspects of wars. First, they emphasise continuums and circuits of violence, challenging the usual dichotomies of war and peace, public and private, domestic and…


Why Climate Change Will Exacerbate Inequalities and Grievances in Iraq

May 9, 2022 | Dylan O’Driscoll, Shivan Fazil

The UN Environment Programme has ranked Iraq as the fifth most vulnerable country to climate change. In recent years, it has increasingly witnessed extreme heatwaves with temperatures reaching…


System Shock: Russia’s War and Global Food, Energy, and Mineral Supply Chains

May 9, 2022 | Amanda King and Claire Doyle

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is sending shockwaves through global systems for natural resources like food, oil and natural gas, and critical minerals. But a recent Wilson…


Environment Ignored as Myanmar Struggles with Coup

May 6, 2022 | Thin Lei Win

When Myanmar’s military staged a coup more than a year ago and seized power from a democratically elected civilian government, not only did it undo…


Unpacking the Pentagon’s $3.1 Billion Climate Request

May 5, 2022 | John Conger

On March 28, the U.S. Federal Budget request for Fiscal Year 2023 (FY2023) was released, officially kicking off the Congressional budget season and the ensuing…


The Climate, Security & Peace Nexus: A Perspective and Evidence from Kenya

May 3, 2022 | Elvin Nyukuri

Why is climate change a critical factor for peacebuilding? How are the fields of climate change, conflict prevention and peacebuilding interlinked? As shown in the…


Preventing Water Conflict through Dialogue

May 2, 2022 | Ken Conca

When considering the potential effects of “backdraft” on climate change responses, the question of the world’s water future may be the most salient of all—especially as we…


Five Rules for Climate Adaptation in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Situations

May 2, 2022 | Elise Remling

How can organizations working on adaptation in fragile and conflict-affected situations make sure their interventions not only do no harm, but even contribute to peace?

The magnitude of projected…


The Implications for Israel of a Possible War over the Nile

May 1, 2022 | Martin Sherman

The Blue Nile is one of the river’s two principal tributaries that converge near the Sudanese capital Khartoum and then flow northwards through Egypt to the Mediterranean…


A Loss of Ecological Security: The Demise of the Sistan Basin

Apr 29, 2022 | Laura Jean Palmer-Moloney

Water is one of the most critical factors for regional security and stability because it is multidimensional.

In my capacity as Senior Advisor on Water to…


Deforestation in Colombia: An Intricate Story of Conflict and Power

Apr 28, 2022 | Martina Igini

The loss of forests in Colombia is an intricate story of conflict, mismanagement, and illegal activities. Between 2002 and 2020, Colombia was losing green coverage at…


The Conversation: Why is Tackling Climate Change Critical in Ensuring World Peace and Security?

Apr 27, 2022 | The Conversation, UCDavis

Climate change isn’t a direct driver of conflict. Most scientists agree on this and it’s reflected in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group II…


Do Not Underestimate the Links between Climate Change and Conflict, Experts Warn

Apr 27, 2022 | Francesco Femia, Caitlin Werrell

General Tom Middendorp (ret.), Chair of the International Military Council on Climate and Security (IMCCS), is one of more than a dozen leaders in the…


On Russia’s Invasion and Environmental Devastation of Ukraine: An Introduction to the Toxic Remnants of War

Apr 26, 2022 | Thomas Persico

TRW is not an easily defined concept. Many organizations have varying definitions of TRW, but the most common definition of TRW is: “any toxic or…


The Role of the Environmental War Crime in the Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Apr 25, 2022 | Elliot Winter

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has entered its third month. However, in the background, there is another victim of the invasion: the environment. 

As with most crimes,…


The Environmental Legacy of Russian Invasion of Ukraine Will Take Years to Clean Up

Apr 25, 2022 | Karen Graham

Russia’s war in Ukraine is poisoning the soil, water, and the air, with environmental-health experts saying pollutants released by the continuing assault could take years…


Potential Of Water Wars And Conflicts – OpEd

Apr 22, 2022 | Patial RC

Water conflicts may soon become the main source of discord between nations replacing the ongoing boundary disputes and discords.  Likely conflicts of water leading to wars may…


Climate May Not Directly Drive Conflict but It’s Critical for Building Peace

Apr 21, 2022 | Grazia Pacillo, Ana Maria Loboguerrero, Elisabeth Gilmore, Peter Läderach, and Tanaya Dutta Gupta

Climate change isn’t a direct driver of conflict. Most scientists agree on this and it’s reflected in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group II…


“Climate Greatest Threat to Australia’s Security,” Ex-Defence Chief Says

Apr 21, 2022 | Michael Mazengarb

National security experts have called on Australian voters to use the federal election to support candidates that back strong action on climate change, saying Australia…


New Pentagon Inspector General Report on Climate Resilience in the Arctic: Key Takeaways

Apr 21, 2022 | Erin Sikorsky

Last week, the Department of Defense (DoD) Inspector General (IG) released a new report evaluating the climate resilience of US military bases in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic…


Integrating Climate Change into the US Global Fragility Strategy: A New “Prologue”

Apr 19, 2022 | Francesco Femia, Caitlin Werrell

In early April, the Biden Administration released a “prologue” to the US Global Fragility Strategy, also known as the Strategy to Prevent Conflict and Promote…


Why Climate Action Holds the Key to German Security

Apr 16, 2022 | Sherri Goodman

The shocking force of Russia's invasion, financed by its grip on the world fossil fuel market, shows that Germany's national security depends on securing energy…


The New Taleban’s Opium Ban: The same political strategy 20 years on?

Apr 14, 2022 | Jelena Bjelica, Kate Clark

Afghanistan has already lost most of its other foreign income in the form of on and off-budget support, both civilian and military, since the Taleban…


Climate Policies Must Allow Women to Control their Bodies and their Fates

Apr 14, 2022 | Zainab Yunusa

Links between women’s sexual and reproductive health and the impacts of climate change are made clear in the recent Working Group II report from the UN Intergovernmental…


#BringBackOurGirls: Ecofeminism, Climate, and Conflict

Apr 14, 2022 | Adenike Oladosu

On the night of April 14, 2014, a group of militants attacked the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Nigeria. They kidnapped 276 female students,…


Battles over UN Rulebook on War and Nature Show Might Still Trumps Right

Apr 12, 2022 | Tracy Keeling

War is always an environmental catastrophe, and one we can ill afford in our age of climate and ecological crises. In light of this, the UN’s International Law Commission (ILC) is…


What Next for Climate Security? Implications From IPCC Working Group II 6th Assessment Report

Apr 11, 2022 | Elisabeth Gilmore, Halvard Buhaug, and Helen Adams

The recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 6th Assessment Report (AR6) from Working Group II (WG2): Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability presents the stark implications of climate change.…


10 Ways War Harms Wildlife

Apr 11, 2022 | John R. Platt

As war and conflicts rage on in Ukraine, Yemen, South Sudan, Libya and other places around the globe, it’s important to look at the long-term…