Climate change and conflicts are increasingly linked to environmental and civilian harm at local and international levels. While climate change is often associated with a reduced quantity and quality of natural resources – and considered to be a “threat multiplier” in conflict terms – scholars are quick to point out that the relationship between the environment and conflict is much more complex. To better understand the specific geopolitical and ecological conditions in which conflicts take shape, this conference aims to strengthen knowledge on the particularities of the climate-conflict nexus.
This conference brings together expertise on the empirical and conceptual underpinnings of the interlinkages between violent conflict, climate change, and environmental harm. The conflict-environment relationship is multifold and often mutually reinforcing as exemplified through the damaging impact of conflict and war on the environment, the intensification of existing socio-political tensions and inequalities by environmental changes, and the possibility of de-escalation and post-conflict reconstruction through environmental peacebuilding. Through various sessions, this conference hopes to contribute to the field of Green Conflict Studies by developing knowledge of the interlinkages between climate, the conflict lifecycle, and human society.
The conference will provide a unique opportunity for researchers from different disciplines to present and discuss their work.
The conference aims to contribute to debates on the instrumentalization of the environment within different political contexts. The focus will be on various topics related to the weaponization of the environment including, but not limited to environmental peacebuilding, acts of resistance, environmental governance (e.g. land grabbing), militarization, national security, and more.