Recent commitments from major polluters are reason for cautious optimism, but there are still a few red flags to watch out for, especially when it comes to promoting peace and stability through climate finance, adaptation and mitigation.
In recent weeks, the Berlin Climate and Security Conference 2021 fostered broad and comprehensive understanding of climate-induced risks to security. Now, a high-level political round-table at COP26 will help establish a shared multilateral agenda for climate security action.
Meanwhile at the UN Security Council, there have been signals towards a potential resolution on climate security. And it cannot come soon in enough. Like climate change itself, the clean energy transition will have a huge impact on international power relations, and could have drastic consequences for conflict zones reliant on fossil fuels for export and energy, like Libya. And let's not neglect the nature-security nexus. In the Colombian Amazon, accelerated environmental degradation and a human rights crisis are converging into an explosive situation.
Fortunately, climate diplomacy can also remind us that there is opportunity in a crisis. For more, listen to our latest podcat episode on EU climate diplomacy in a post-Covid-19 world.
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Your Editorial Team
