DHAKA UNIVERSITY NATIONAL MODEL

UNITED NATIONS 2017

www.dunmun.net

COMMITTEE:
UNITED NATIONS SECURITY
COUNCIL

AGENDA: CLIMATE CHANGE AS A

THREAT TO INTERNATIONAL
SECURITY
The Committee
According to the Charter, the primary responsibility of the Security Council is the maintenance
of international peace and security. It consists of 15 Members, and each Member has one vote.
Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions.

The Security Council plays the main role behind the determination of the existence of a threat to
the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means
and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. The Security Council can very as
well resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore
international peace and security.
The Security Council also recommends to the General Assembly the appointment of the
Secretary-General and the admission of new Members to the United Nations.

Its establishment and functions are mentioned in the Chapter V of the United Nations Charter.
Chapter VI, VII, VII and XII all explain briefly the powers of the Security Council.
The Security Council held its first session on 17 January 1946 at Church House, Westminster,
and London. Since its first meeting, the Security Council has taken permanent residence at the
United Nations Headquarters in New York City. It also travelled to many cities, holding sessions
in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 1972, in Panama City, Panama, and in Geneva, Switzerland, in
1990.

A representative of each of its members must be present at all times at UN Headquarters so that
the Security Council can meet at any time as the need arises. (UNSC website)

As delegates of the most powerful UN body we hope that you will perform your duties with
dignity and diligence without forsaking your states’ policies.

Mandate:
United Nations Security Council is one of the six main organs established under the United
Nations Charter. Whenever the global security is threatened the Security Council plays its role
for maintaining international peace and security.

According to the Charter, the United Nations has four purposes:

maintaining international peace and security;

developing friendly and favorable relations among nations;
promoting cooperation in solving international problems and in promoting respect for
human rights;

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 For harmonizing the actions of nations.
All members of the United Nations agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the Security
Council. While other organs of the United Nations make recommendations to member states,
only the Security Council has the power to make decisions that member states are then obliged to
implement under the Charter of the Security Council.

Maintaining peace and Security:

When an issue regarding threat to peace is brought before the Council, the Council firstly
recommends the parties involved to reach an agreement by peaceful means. As such The Council
may:

Attribute principles for such an agreement;

Begin investigation and mediation, in some cases;
Dispatch a mission;
Assign special envoys to act as a negotiator or mediator
Request the Secretary-General to use his offices to successfully bring about a pacific
settlement of the dispute.

When a dispute leads to hostilities, the Council’s primary concern is to bring them to an end as
soon as possible. In that case, the Council may command ceasefire orders that can help avert the
rising of the conflict. The council might also send off military observers or a peacekeeping force
to calm down the tensions, separate opposing forces and establish a calm environment in which
peaceful settlements may be bring upon.
Beyond this, the Council may opt for other enforcement measures, including:

Economic embargoes, arms embargoes, financial penalties and restrictions, and travel
bans;
Cutting diplomatic relations;
Blockade;
Joint military action.
A central concern is to concentrate activity on those in charge of the approaches or practices
denounced by the global group, while limiting the effect of the measures on other parts of the
population and economy.

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Functions:
Maintaining international peace and security in compliance with the principles and
purposes of the United Nations;
Investigating any dispute or conflicting situation which might lead to international
friction;
Recommending methods or principles to normalize such disputes or the terms of
settlement;
Formulating plans for the installation of a system to regulate armaments;
Determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression and to recommend
what action should be taken;
Call upon the Members to employ economic sanctions and other measures not related to
the use of force to prevent or stop aggression;
To take military action against an aggressor;
Recommending the admission of new Members.

Security Council Subsidiary Bodies

Article 29 of the United Nations Charter says that the Security Council may form subsidiary
bodies as per requirements for the performance of its functions. This is also reflected in Rule
28 of the Council’s Provisional Rules of Procedure.

• Counter -Terrorism Committee (CTC)

• Non-Proliferation Committee
• Military Staff Committee
• Sanctions Committees
• Standing Committees and Ad Hoc Bodies
• Peacekeeping Operations and Political Missions
• The Peacebuilding Commission (PBC)
• International Courts and Tribunals

➢ International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in 1993

➢ International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in 1994 (UNSC website)

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Agenda Briefing:
The Security Council has identified the effects of climate change as threat to international peace
and security. Changing climate and weather patterns will affect the accessibility of natural
resources, like water, and may fuel internal and interstate clashes. Further, climate change will
increase the phenomenon of natural disasters, thereby potentially destabilizing already weak
States. The effect of food insecurity, energy crisis and human displacement will be explosive,
particularly in developing countries.

17 APRIL 2007:
Security Council hosted the first ever debate on the impact of climate change on peace and
security listening to 50 speakers. Although some delegations raised concern about the Council’s
role regarding the issue, the small island states welcomed Council’s consideration. The
developing countries particularly saw climate change as a socio economic development and
thought it to be an issue to be dealt by the more representative General Assembly. China’s
delegation was among those who proclaimed that the Security Council was not the proper forum
for a debate on climate change Calling for a “long-term global response” to deal with climate
change, along with unified efforts involving the Security Council, Member States and other
international bodies, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that projected climate changes could
not only have serious environmental, social and economic implications, but implications for
peace and security, as well. The Secretary-General also said that the issue was more concerning
for the vulnerable regions with pre-existing conflicts, poverty, food insecurity and unequal
access to resources.
The representative of Pakistan, speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries
and China, said that the Council’s primary duty was to maintain international peace and security.
Issues as such were more of a concern to the Economic and Social Council and the General
Assembly said the representative.
But Papua New Guinea’s representative, who spoke on behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum, said
that the impact of climate change on small islands was no less threatening than the dangers guns
and bombs posed to large nations. (SC/9000)

3 JUNE 2009:
On 3 June 2009, The General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution titled “Climate

Change and its possible security implications” (document A/63/L.8/Rev.1). The resolution
recognized climate change as a critical and vital issue especially for the small developing island

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states. The resolution was also very vital in strengthening the process of leading up to the United
Nations Climate Change Conference 2009: COP 15, Copenhagen, Denmark.

JULY 20 2011
The Security Council hold an open thematic debate on “Maintenance of international peace and
security: the impact of climate change” where it expressed concern about the possible adverse
effects of climate change. The Council said that these adverse effects in the long-run might
aggravate certain existing threats to international peace and security. It also stated that the loss of
territory in some States due to sea-level rise, particularly in small low-lying island States, could
have possible security implications. The then Secretary-General explicitly said that Climate
Change not just exacerbates threats to peace and security, it itself is a threat to International
Peace and Security. The Council recognized the duty regarding climate change and other
sustainable development issues conferred upon the General Assembly and the Economic and
Social Council, and it emphasized the Assembly’s 2009 resolution that confirmed the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as the key instrument for
addressing climate change.
The Secretary-General said that the events in Pakistan, the Pacific Islands, Western Europe,
China and Horn of Africa demonstrated urgency. He called for proper steps to reduce climate
change and make “sustainable development for all” the defining issue of our time.

Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) said
that Climate change was a multiplier of threat. Competition over access to pure water and land,
aggravated by regional changes in climate, was already a key factor in local conflicts in Darfur,
the Central African Republic, northern Kenya and Chad. (SC/10332)
13 FEBRUARY 2013:
The UK and Pakistan co-hosted an Arria-formula meeting on the “security dimensions of climate
change” that included the contribution of civil society as well as member states from outside the
Council

30 JUNE 2015:
Another Arria-formula meeting was hosted by the UN Security Council (UNSC) on 30 June
2015 on the role of climate change as a threat multiplier for global security. This meeting was
co-hosted by the Permanent Missions of Spain and Malaysia. The objective of the meeting was
“to better identify the inter-connected threats to international peace and security related to
Climate Change.”

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Climate Change Is Real:
Global Temperature Rise: Earth’s average surface temperature has increased by about 2.0
degrees Fahrenheit since the late 19th century, a change which has been possible due to
increased carbon dioxide and other human-led emissions into the atmosphere. Most of the
warming occurred in the past 35 years, with 16 of the 17 warmest years on record occurring
since 2001. 2016 was the warmest year on record. Out of 12 months 8 had the warmest
temperature on record for those respective months. The Fourth Assessment Report of IPCC
states that eleven of the last twelve years (1995-2006) ranked among the twelve warmest years
since 1850. The IPCC report of 2007 predicts temperature rise of 1.1 - 6.4 °C by 2100. During
the next 10 to 15 years the incidents of natural disasters may double.
Warming Oceans: The oceans have captivated much of the increased heat. The top 700 meters
(about 2,300 feet) of ocean has been showing a warming of 0.302 degrees Fahrenheit since 1969.
Sea Level Rise: In the last century global sea level rose by 8 inches. The rate in the last two
decades, however, is nearly double that of the last century. Due to the Loss of ice by glaciers and
ice sheets and the reduction of liquid water storage on land, global mean sea level rises. By the
end of 21st century it is very likely that sea level will rise in more than about 95% of the ocean
area. (IPCC)
Ocean Acidification: Since the start of the Industrial Revolution, the acidification of ocean
surface waters has increased by about 30 percent. Major reason behind this increase is the result
of constant emission of carbon dioxide by humans into the atmosphere and hence more being
absorbed into the oceans. The amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by the upper layer of the
oceans is increasing by about 2 billion tons per year.

Climate change and National security

The potential impacts of climate change on nations have been considered as a national security
issue. Climate change figures in the United States’ National Security Strategy (NSS), although in
at times incoherent ways as in the 1996 NSS which countenanced the possibility that there might
be armed competition between nations for ‘‘dwindling reserves of uncontaminated air’’. Because
sovereignty over delineated territory is the material substrata of national security, then physical
processes such as sea-level rise pose substantial security risks: for example a 45 cm rise in sea-
level will potentially result in a loss of 10.9% of Bangladesh’s territory, forcing some 5.5 million
people to relocate.
Equally severe are the risks to small islands as a result of as rising seas and increasing climate
variability. However, long before evacuation the socioeconomic impacts of global warming on
islands may be ‘‘so profound that they dwarf any strategic issue currently confronting a major
peacetime economy’’. National security also has an internal dimension in that it is partly a

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function of state legitimacy. Governments in states where the material well-being of people is
highly variable to external forces such as changing terms of trade, or where material well being
is in decline, tend to be relatively more unstable, and the country relatively more prone to
internal violent conflict .
There is some analysis that suggests that this may be the case for exogenous environmental
shocks as well, although it should be noted that most of the time most states manage
environmental disasters without political repercussions. Climate change may have many other
indirect negative effects that can undermine the legitimacy of governments, it may: undermine
individual and collective economic livelihood; affect human health through reduced availability
of freshwater and food, and by exposing people to new disease vectors; undermine state wealth
and military capability; and exacerbate inequalities between people. The impacts of climate
change will have financial costs, and in some cases these are sufficiently large to justify
understanding climate change as a security issue.
Consider, for example, coral bleaching will reduce future GDP by some 40–50% by 2020 in
smaller Pacific islands, remembering that these losses are those expected to occur only as a result
of coral bleaching and its knockon effects. Further, the World Bank estimates the losses due to
climate change in Kiribati to be in the order of 17–34% of current GDP by 2050 (an absolute loss
rather than a reduction in GDP growth). Measures implemented to reduce greenhouse emissions
will also impose costs to national economies. It is US President George Bush’s assumptions
about the cost of reducing emissions and about lost competitive advantage that apparently
underlie US reticence on the Kyoto Protocol. Similarly, the Australian Government argued that
the Kyoto Protocol would particularly adversely affect Australia’s economy and so that country’s
final Kyoto target was a 108% change above 1990 levels of emissions. But it is the oil exporting
countries who have arguably the greatest to fear from the Kyoto Protocol. Most models suggest
that policies to implement the Kyoto Protocol (using a carbon tax as a proxy for response
measures) will increase oil prices and reduce demand in developed countries (which account for
60% of world oil consumption), thereby driving down global oil demand, prices and therefore
projected revenues for oil exporters. For example, a 0.45% decline in projected GDP in OPEC
countries for 2010 is forecasted.

However, these costs of implementing response measures, although experienced differentially

among states, are nevertheless small relative to the expected costs of impacts, and so cannot be
said to constitute a problem of such a magnitude to warrant considering them as a national
security issue. Finally, given the dominant focus of national security policy on violent conflict
and trans-border incursions, the issue of whether, and how climate change may stimulate
conflicts and increase migration is important. These issues will be discussed in the following
section, however suffice to say now that violent conflict is a security issue for those states who
are directly involved, and may indirectly affect other states who may choose to or be obliged to
intervene as negotiators or peacekeepers, and through disruptions to trade.

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Regional Impacts On Regional Security:
1) AFRICA:
Africa is a continent which is already under a lot of pressure from climate strains and is
highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Numerous areas in Africa are
perceived as having climates that are among the most variable in the planet on seasonal
and decadal time scales. Floods and droughts might occur within months of each other in
the same area.

What basically happens due to incidents as such is creation of famine and widespread
disruption of socio-economic well-being. For example, estimates reported that one third
of African people already live in drought- prone areas and 220 million are exposed to
drought each year. Climate change has impacted African region in a number of ways.
Also many factors have been responsible for affecting the continent’s ability to cope with
climate change. These include poverty, illiteracy and lack of skills, weak institutions,
limited infrastructure, lack of technology and information, low levels of primary
education and health care, poor access to resources, low management capabilities and
armed conflicts. Also the overexploitation of land assets including forests, increases in
population, desertification and land degradation pose additional threats (UNDP 2006). In
the Sahara and Sahel, dust and sand storms have had negative impacts on agriculture,
infrastructure and health. With the increasing trends of global warming Africa is expected
to face more frequent and dangerous extreme natural disasters. Also Africa will face
increasing water scarcity and stress with a subsequent potential increase of water
conflicts.
Africa is also vulnerable to a number of climate sensitive diseases which have already
reduced the life expectancy of people in the region. National estimations indicate that the
coastal infrastructure in 30 percent of Africa’s coastal countries, including the Gulf of
Guinea, Senegal, Gambia, Egypt, and along the East-Southern African coast, is at risk of
partial or complete inundation due to accelerated sea level rise.

Some information:
• Higher warming (x1.5) throughout the continent and in all seasons compared with
global average
• Decrease in rainfall in most of the areas
• 75–220 million people will face severe water shortages by 2020
• Yields from crops could be halved by 2020 in some countries leading to food
insecurity and shortages of food

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 • Drying and desertification in many areas particularly the Sahel and Southern
Africa
• Africa has a low adaptive capacity to both climate variability and climate change

2) ASIA:
Asia, the largest continent on earth faces formidable environmental and socio economic
challenges. Food security is under threat due to the degraded condition of land and
ecosystem. Besides, water and air quality are constantly deteriorating while continued
increases in consumption and associated waste have contributed to the exponential
growth in the region’s existing environmental problems. The region is also prone to
extreme natural incidents like tsunami, earthquake, cyclones and floods. As such it gives
rise to hunger, disease susceptibility and loss of human livelihoods.

Under climate change, predicted rainfall increases over most of Asia, particularly during
the summer monsoon, could increase flood-prone areas in East Asia, South Asia and
Southeast Asia. Presently 1.1 billion people don’t have access to safe drinking water. 120
million to 1.2 billion will face increased water stress by the 2020s in South and South
East Asia. Melting of glaciers in the Himalayas has been a prime concern for the Asian
region. Global warming could lead to an escalation in the snowline and disappearance of
many glaciers resulting major impacts on the populations relying on the 7 main rivers in
Asia fed by melt water from the Himalayas. In Asia one billion people could face
shortage of water leading to drought and land degradation by the 2050s. Grassland
productivity is likely to drop by as much as 40 – 90 per cent for an increase in
temperature of 2 – 3° C in the Asian region. Rise in the sea level and changes in the
temperature of sea water, salinity, wind speed and direction, strength and predator
response to climate change have the potential to significantly alter fish producing habitats
and food supply for fish and ultimately the abundance of fish populations in Asian waters
with negative impacts on Asian economies.

Necessary Information:
• Increasing reduction in snow and ice in Himalayan and Tibetan Plateau glaciers
• Droughts during the summer months and El Niño events
• Intense rainfall events causing landslides and severe floods
• Increasing water stress to over a hundred million people
• Decreasing crop yield leading to food shortages
• Reduced soil moisture and evapotranspiration may increase land degradation and
desertification

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 • Adaptive capacity varies between countries depending on social structure, culture,
economic capacity, geography and level of environmental degradation.

3) LATIN AMERICA:

Some necessary information:

• Warming above the global mean is estimated in most of Latin American

countries
• Number of people undergoing water shortages is likely to be 7–77 million
by the 2020s
• Reduction in water quality due to increasing floods and droughts
• By 2050s, 50% of agricultural lands are expected to be subjected to
desertification and salinization in some areas
• Dry spells and drought, such as in northeast Brazil
• Increase in force of tropical tornados in the Caribbean basin
• Noteworthy loss of natural resources and species annihilations in
numerous regions of tropical Latin America, including tropical
backwoods, because of higher temperatures and loss of groundwater with
impacts on indigenous communities
• Heat stress and changing patterns in the occurrence of disease vectors risk
to health
• Unexpected rainfall patterns over northern South America, including the
Amazon forest

4) SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES:

The small islands developing States consists of 51 States and Territories and extends over
the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans and Caribbean Sea, and are highly susceptible to
the effects of climate change and are already feeling its impacts. In SIDS, arable land,
water assets and biodiversity are as of now under pressure from ocean level ascent.
Increments in populace and the unsustainable utilization of accessible common assets add
further issues. SIDS are portrayed by the concentration of large settlements with
associated financial and social activities at or near the coast. Vulnerabilities comprise low
obtain ability of resources, rapidly growing population, remoteness, susceptibility to
natural disasters, excessive dependence on international trade, and vulnerability to global
development. It has been projected that a 10 per cent decrease in average precipitation by

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 2050 could induce a 20 per cent reduction in the size of the freshwater lens. The
estimated effects of climate change on agriculture include prolonged periods of drought,
loss of soil productiveness and shortening of the growing season which will result in
major economic losses and seriously hamper the food security.

Threat To International Peace And Security:

Major climate induced vulnerabilities include population displacement, drinking water scarcity,
reduced agricultural productivity and food insecurity, loss of livelihood, health threats, energy
crisis, and disaster security. Now these vulnerabilities might give rise to internal or inter-state
conflicts and social conflicts or even worsen the existing ones. Food insecurity and reduced
agricultural productivity is potentially the most distressing consequence of climate change. With
global warming rising to 3 degree C the number of people suffering from hunger will rise by
250-550 million. Rising food prices could push hundreds of millions of people back into
poverty. This condition can worsen the economic performance of weak and unstable states, thus
aggravating destabilization, the downfall of social systems and violent clashes.
A changing climate affects the essential ingredients of maintaining good health: clean air and
water, sufficient food and adequate shelter. Oxfam states that the developing countries will
require at least $50bn per year to adapt to inevitable climate change-related disasters.
Climate change may damage key energy infrastructures, such as energy plants, nuclear
installations, and consequently destabilize public order. Climate change could also generate
large-scale human displacement and migration from one region to another. The 2001 World
Disasters Report estimated that there were currently 25 million "environmental refugees." IPCC
estimated that, by 2050, 150 million people could become climate induced refugees. These
refugees will generate being displaced by sea level rise (SLR), desertification, increasing water
scarcity, floods and storms, etc.
Scarcity of Resources might also be a contributing factor to conflict and instability. The 1994
Rwandan genocide was in many ways a consequence of disputes over agricultural resources. The
1974 Nigerian coup was a result of insufficient response to famine. The situation in Darfur,
which had land resources at its root, is spilling over into neighboring Chad. The United Nations
projects 300 potential conflicts related to water around the world today.
Due to the climate-induced poverty and economic deprivation radicalization and extremism may
increase in many developing societies, especially in South Asia. When a government fails to
provide basic services to its people, situations are favorable for extremists and terrorists to fill the
vacuum.

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HOMER-DIXON Project:
Through close examination of the connection between environmental scarcity and conflict,
researchers for the Project on Environment, Population and Security have identified common
physical, economic, and social dynamics in a variety of contexts. The main findings are as
follows:

1) Under certain circumstances, scarcities of renewable resources such as cropland, fresh

water, and forests produce civil violence and instability. However, the role of this
“environmental scarcity” is often obscure. Environmental scarcity acts mainly by
generating intermediate social effects, such as poverty and migrations, that analysts
often interpret as conflict’s immediate causes.

2) Environmental scarcity is caused by the degradation and depletion of renewable

resources, the increased demand for these resources, and/or their unequal distribution.
These three sources of scarcity often interact and reinforce one another

3) Environmental scarcity often encourages powerful groups to capture valuable

environmental resources and prompts marginal groups to migrate to ecologically
sensitive areas. These two processes — called “resource capture” and “ecological
marginalization” — in turn reinforce environmental scarcity and raise the potential
for social instability.

4) Societies can adapt to environmental scarcity either by using their indigenous

environmental resources more efficiently or by decoupling from their dependence on
these resources. In either case, the capacity to adapt depends upon the supply of social
and technical “ingenuity” available in the society

5) If social and economic adaptation is unsuccessful, environmental scarcity constrains

economic development and contributes to migrations

6) In the absence of adaptation, environmental scarcity sharpens existing distinctions

among social groups

7) In the absence of adaptation, environmental scarcity weakens states

8) The intermediate social effects of environmental scarcity including constrained

economic productivity, population movements, social segmentation, and weakening of
states can in turn cause ethnic conflicts, insurgencies, and coups d’état

9) Environmental scarcity rarely contributes directly to interstate conflict

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 10) Conflicts generated in part by environmental scarcity can have significant indirect
effects on the international community.

Climate Change and Armed Conflict:

There has been evidence that the collapse of the Khmer empire in the Mekong basin in the early
15th century relates to an unusually severe prolonged drought (Buckley et al., 2010). Evidence
also suggests that due to major changes in weather patterns many of the powerful civilizations
collapsed previously including the Anasazi, the Akkadian, Classic Maya, Mochica, and
Tiwanaku empires. Some studies show that the Little Ice Age in the mid-17th century was
associated with more cases of political upheaval and warfare than in any other period in Europe,
China and Ottoman Empire. These studies basically points out that climate change can result in
major political upheaval given certain social conditions, including a prevalence of subsistence
producers, conflict over territory, and dictatorial systems of government with limited power in
marginal areas. It should be noted that these findings from historical backgrounds are not directly
transferable to the contemporary globalized world. In today’s world the change in climate will
cause larger political upheaval

The Conflict in Darfur:

Sudan has been extremely affected by conflict and violence since independence in 1956. Civil
war took place between the North and South during 1956–72 and 1983–2005, leaving 1.5 million
people dead and led to independence for South Sudan in 2011. This area remains unsteady amid
political clashes over territory in the Abyei region and controversy over arrangements for oil
exports. Since 2003, conflict has affected Darfur, in the west of Sudan, where perhaps 200,000
people have died and 2 million people have been forced from their homes. Intermittent local
conflicts have been present in Darfur for at least 30 years (UNEP 2007). Conflict has also been
present in East Sudan, where a peace agreement was reached in 2006. UNEP report from 2007
said that environmental and climate issues such as land degradation, deforestation and climate
change are threatening long-term peace and food security in Sudan. UNEP specifically
mentioned about Darfur that ‘complex but clear linkages exist between environmental problems
and the on-going conflict’ (UNEP 2007). According to the UNEP, overgrazing, deforestation and
drought in Darfur have reduced vegetation cover and the quality of soil. Since livelihoods of
most of the people was closely related to access to natural resources, this led to augmented
competition for water and fertile land. In a situation of lawlessness, historical tensions and
declining respect for traditional authority, environmental degradation and resource competition
made conflict more likely. UNEP study suggested that rainfall in Sudan had dropped by 16-30

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%. The report also suggested that between 2030 and 2060 there would be a rise of temperature
between 0.5C to 1.5C. Also drop in the yields of the crops were also a matter of great concern as
suggested by UNEP. A political conflict between rebels in the western region and the Sudanese
government in Khartoum rose in 2003 which was powered by long-lasting competition between
mostly Arab nomads and African farmers for scarce water and land after years of drought.

• In Sudan’s western region of Darfur Rebels rose up against the government in February
2003, demanding that Khartoum(Capital of Sudan) discriminated against non-Arab
farmers there
Khartoum equipped proxy Arab militia to help suppress the uprising. Some militiamen,
locally known as Janjaweed, plundered and scorched villages, and killed civilians. The
government has called the Janjaweed outlaws and denied supporting them
At least 200,000 people have been killed and over 2 million driven from their homes in
the region since early 2003, some crossing the border into Chad, exacerbating a refugee
crisis there
• Darfur has been called by The UN as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises
A peace deal in May 2006 was signed by only one of three rebel negotiating factions. The
agreement was almost immediately rejected by many in Darfur who said it did not go far
enough in ensuring their security
• The U.N Security Council in August 2006 adopted a resolution for deployment of a
“hybrid” U.N.-AU force consisting of 22,500 members in Darfur

Situation in Niger:
Sahel: Sahel is a semiarid region of western and north-central Africa extending from Senegal
eastward to The Sudan. It forms a transitional zone between the arid Sahara (desert) to the north
and the belt of humid savannas to the south. The Sahel stretches from the Atlantic Ocean
eastward through northern Senegal, southern Mauritania, the great bend of the Niger River in
Mali, Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta), southern Niger, northeastern Nigeria, south-central
Chad, and into The Sudan.
Downscaled climate model projections for 2040–2060 compared to 1980–2000 anticipate an
increase of between 1°C and 3°C in the Sahelian region. Niger is very much likely to face bad
weather patterns with soaring temperatures, rise in the number of storms and dry spells. Erratic
rainfall combined with rising temperatures has already interacted with non-climate factors to
increase livelihood vulnerability. Due to population increases, environmental mismanagement,
and climatic shifts, yields from rain fed crop production decreased over time. Also Tree cutting
to clear land for agriculture and for fuel wood has had a huge impact on soil erosion and soil
quality. Farming households have diversified, with the majority choosing livestock production to
supplement household income. Conversely, many pastoralists have expanded by engaging in

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cultivation. There has been a union toward agropastoralism as a more robust livelihood, and a
strengthening of commercial activities. Amid these shifts, antipathies sometimes arise against
those with the capital and connections to gain preferential access to land, water, and pasture. In
principle, cultivation is forbidden in the northern pastoral zone of Niger. There is, however, a
strong northward extension of agriculture due to land pressures in the south. Both pasture areas
and livestock routes are being cultivated, increasing the incidence of farmer-herder conflicts
where this has occurred. Farmer-herder conflicts have claimed hundreds of lives since the 1990s,
and they continue to persist. Recent economic activities such as cutting land and wood, charcoal
generation, the intrusion of commercial farms into pastoral zones, and the fencing-in of large
zones by rich and powerful individuals have proceeded unhindered in some areas of the pastoral
zone.
There are few signs of solid linkages between climate change and extensive violent conflict in
Niger. Climate developments and the sometimes divergent adaptive responses of different
livelihood groups are more significant for the kind of frequent, low-intensity, and localized
conflict among farmers and herders typical of many areas of the country. The number of
fatalities resulting from such conflict is usually low, but the persistence of violent encounters
complicates efforts to implement effective and sustainable development programs. Even so,
although the probability is low, the effects of climate change in northern Niger, in combination
with the rebellious history and unresolved grievances of the Tuareg population, could have the
potential to produce more serious violence. The Tuareg never fully recovered from the effects of
the great droughts of the 1970s and 1980s, and the loss of pastoral areas to rapidly expanding
agriculture has left them in an insecure and unstable position. Many Tuareg believe that
inadequate (or discriminatory) government policies, including the Rural Code, work against
them. Repeated climate stresses or a severe climate shock with a weak response from the central
government could plausibly spark a renewal of Tuareg rebellion in Niger.

Climate Change and Conflict In Kenya:

People who are directly dependent on renewable natural resources for their livelihood are more
vulnerable to climate change than other. Such has been the case for farmers and pastoralists in
Africa who are almost exclusively without insurance against harvest or livestock losses caused
by floods or droughts. Pastoralism is mostly practiced in areas where there are arid and semi-arid
lands characterized by low and erratic rainfalls combined with high annual average temperature.
About a third of the Kenyan population depends on pastoralism for food and income security.

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Effects of Climate Change on Indigenous People:
Indigenous peoples are among the first to face the direct consequences of climate change, owing
to their dependence upon, and close relationship with the environment and its resources. Climate
change worsens the difficulties already faced by vulnerable indigenous communities. Indigenous
communities constantly face political and economic marginalization, loss of land and resources,
human rights violations, discrimination and unemployment, these factors coupled with effects of
climate change exacerbates their conditions. Few examples:
The glacial melts in the high altitude regions of Himalaya affects hundreds of millions of
rural dwellers who depend on the seasonal flow of water. It is resulting more water in the
short term, but less in the long run as glaciers and snow cover shrink
In the Amazon, the effects of climate change include deforestation and forest
fragmentation, and consequently, more carbon released into the atmosphere exacerbating
and creating further changes
Some of the concerns facing indigenous people of Arctic include the change in species
and accessibility of traditional food sources, perceived reduction in weather predictions
and the safety of traveling in changing ice and weather conditions, posing serious
challenges to human health and food security
• Rising temperatures, dune expansion, increased wind speeds, and loss of vegetation are
negatively impacting traditional cattle and goat farming practices of indigenous peoples
in Africa’s Kalahari Basin

Climate change can be tackled in conflict states by:

Firstly, Integration of climate change adaptation with wider development and peace-
building processes is necessary. Technical approaches to environmental security managed
without appreciation of social and political tensions and recognition of the complexity of
conflict areas risk failure.
Taking a three-way tactic to build climate resilient conflict areas: (1) facilitating conflict
resolution; (2) managing environmental conditions and; (3) tackling vulnerability and
exclusion
Promoting use of fuel-efficient stoves in camps for refugees and internally displaced
people (IDPs). Stove programs reduce the need for firewood collection, which saves
people time and effort and can lessen vulnerability to attack in dangerous places. The
stove programs also lead to reduced deforestation, lowering stress on the local
environment.

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The Resolution must address following issues
1. How to tackle climate induced security threats?
2. How to achieve consensus to establish “climate change” as a legitimate threat to
international security?

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https://climate.nasa.gov/effects/.

3) Clinton, W., 1996. US National Security Strategy of Engagement and Enlargement. The
White House, Washington.

4) "GA Resolution: “Climate Change And Its Possible Security Implications”". 2017. Un-
Ngls.Org. https://www.un-ngls.org/index.php/un-ngls_news_archives/2009/2478-ga-
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5) "Global Sea Level Rise Accelerates Since 1990, Study Shows". 2017. U.S..
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-climatechange-seas/global-sea-level-rise-accelerates-
since-1990-study-shows-idUSKBN19H1SB

1) Hoegh-Guldberg, O., Hoegh-Guldberg, H., Stout, D., Cesar, H., Timmerman, A., 2000.
Pacific in Peril: Biological, Economic and Social Impacts of Climate change.

2) IMPACTS, VULNERABILITIES AND ADAPTATION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES.

2007. Ebook. UNFCCC. https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/publications/impacts.pdf.

3) "IPCC - Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change". 2017. Ipcc.Ch.

http://www.ipcc.ch/.

4) IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), 2001. Technical summary: climate

change 2001: impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability. In: Climate Change 2001: Impacts,
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5) "Project Description • Thomas Homer-Dixon". 2017. Thomas Homer-Dixon.

https://homerdixon.com/eps/project-description/.

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6) "SECURITY COUNCIL HOLDS FIRST-EVER DEBATE ON IMPACT OF CLIMATE
CHANGE ON PEACE, SECURITY, HEARING OVER 50 SPEAKERS | Meetings
Coverage And Press Releases". 2017. Un.Org.
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