In the lead-up to the next global summit on climate change in Cancun, Mexico, International Alert along with the Delegation of the European Union in Nepal held a dialogue on climate change, security and governance on 3rd September 2010 in Kathmandu.
The meeting brought together national and regional experts from Nepal and from the South Asia Network on Security and Climate Change (SANSaC) to discuss processes to tackle the dual challenge of climate change and security at regional and national levels. This meeting, part of an ongoing process to foster critical debate on addressing the climate and security risks, is the third to take place in Nepal since 2007.
The issue was especially timely given that climate impacts were in the Nepali headlines each day while experts met in Kathmandu, as vulnerable communities across Nepal struggled to cope with the monsoon-related floods. The chair, Janani Vivekananda of International Alert noted that ‘climate change is already adding to the burdens that the poor and vulnerable in Nepal and the South Asia region have to face. Their vulnerability is shaped not only by the persistence of poverty, the lack of good infrastructure, the difficulty of getting a foothold in the world market, but also by the fragility of state institutions, the instability of political arrangements, and the effects of recent armed conflict or threat of looming violence. In many fragile contexts, as climate change interacts with other features of their social, economic and political landscape, there is a high risk of political instability and violent conflict’.
Noting the importance of understanding the linkages between climate, governance and resilience, participant Ajaya Dixit stressed that ‘climate change adds a layer to already existing marginalisation, livelihood stress and weak governance faced by communities. We need to understand what this means for development’.
Highlighting the conflict potential, he added: ‘The voice of affected communities needs to be brought into the discourse. If you don’t have a voice in decision-making, that’s a recipe for conflict’.
Accepting that international processes on climate change may not be sufficient to drive progress in the South Asia region, participants explored how inter-linked issues of climate change, governance and resilience can be addressed within existing national and regional processes, the opportunities and possible pitfalls specific to South Asia.
The discussion raised some important questions for further exploration and analysis:
- How does climate change, variability and uncertainty affect governance and security at all levels?
- How do we ensure climate adaptation policies and financing mechanisms do no harm in fragile contexts?
- How can we avoid climate financing becoming a new resource for elite capture?
- How can we maximise the potential for climate responses to build social cohesion and peace?
The outcomes of the dialogue offer unique and valuable insights to shape future research needs, help to identify knowledge and capacity gaps and promote understanding of climate change and security implications in South Asia. The priority questions identified will be explored with policy makers and sectoral experts in the next meeting scheduled for late-November.
More information on the roundtable is available here [6].