Climate Change

In Liberia, the process of recovery from war includes encouraging both ex-combatants and former IDPs to return to their place of origin and resume their lives there. There are many difficulties, not least the reluctance of some excombatants to go and to stay, and the reluctance of some communities to accept them back.

When the Koshi River which flows through the Eastern Terai region of Nepal flooded in summer 2008, it displaced more than 60,000 people, damaged the national highway, and destroyed crops. Since then, major concerns have been voiced that the fragile embankment will break in more places, flooding an even greater area.

The severity of risk is closely linked to the poor maintenance of dams and river barriers. Responsibility thus ultimately lies with the government.

People must both understand and trust the climate information they receive if they are to respond in an adequate manner.

In 2000, the Limpopo river basin in southern Africa experienced a very substantial rainfall for many days as a result of unusual cyclone activity. Experts knew that it would result in serious flooding - of a magnitude never experienced before by rural communities in Mozambique. Yet very few villages were informed about it.

International Alert recently hosted a roundtable on Climate Change, Conflict and Effective Responses bringing together people from a range of think-tanks, NGOs and government departments to start a discussion on the complexities of responding to climate change in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.

From Dan Smith’s blog, which can be found at www.dansmithsblog.com.

While thousands of negotiators, activists, diplomats, scientists, politicians and journalists meet in Copenhagen for the climate summit – formally said, the 15th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – the question has been raised whether we should want them to succeed or fail. Which, of course, begs the next question: what is success at Copenhagen?

Thousands of negotiators, activists and lobbyists have descended on Copenhagen for two weeks to discuss a global deal on climate change. The high profile issues are about reducing carbon emissions and how much money the developed countries, who have the main responsibility for global warming, will put on the negotiating table to help people in poorer countries cope with the consequences. But these are not the only important issues.

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.

Climate change is upon us and its physical effects have started to unfold. That is the broad scientific consensus expressed in the Fourth Assessment Review of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change. This report takes this finding as its starting point and looks at the social and human consequences that are likely to ensue – particularly the risks of conflict and instability.

Climate, poverty, governance

A_climate_of_conflict.pdf

As climate change unfolds, one of its effects is a heightened risk of violent conflict. This risk is at its sharpest in poor, badly governed countries, many of which have a recent history of armed conflict. This both adds to the burdens faced by deprived and vulnerable communities and makes it harder to reduce their vulnerability by adapting to climate change.

Climate_change_conflict_and_fragility_Nov09.pdf