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1.
Background
Development,
poverty alleviation and sustainable management of the environment
ultimately depend on social stability and peace. Yet, since
the end of the Cold War, conflict is increasingly fought within,
rather than between nations, and is killing and displacing
civilians as never before. Likewise, the frequency and impacts
of disasters are on the rise, driven in part by an unpredictably
changing climate. The poor and the marginalized are disproportionately
affected by conflicts and disasters, and are the least equipped
to recover. Evidence is emerging that natural resources and
the environment can drive conflict and shape disaster vulnerability.
Resource mismanagement that leads to degradation and scarcity,
as well as inequitable access and benefits sharing, factor
in to the growing threats of conflict and disaster.
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2.
Why should conservationists care?
Among
those groups who have developed a keen interest in understanding
the connections between environmental change, security and
conflict is the conservation community. Among the reasons
for this interest are:
- Mismanagement
of the environment can increase social pressures, aggravate
tensions within and among communities and, in the worst
cases, lead to conflict. Sustainable environmental management
can be a cost-effective means of building social cohesion,
reinforcing mechanisms for collaboration and dissipating
the pressures that threaten to increase vulnerabilities
to disaster and conflict;
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Conservationists may find themselves increasingly called
upon to operate in tense and even violent situations, working
in areas where conflict is ongoing and participating in
post-conflict assessments and rebuilding. Understanding
the links among environment and security will be valuable;
-
Understanding the link between conservation and social cohesion
may offer important new avenues for disseminating the message
of sustainable development and present a strong argument
in favour of investing resources in conservation action.
Upon recognizing the relevance of environment and security
issues to conservationists and the unique contribution they
can make in the field, IUCN and the International Institute
for Sustainable Development embarked on a unique collaboration
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3.
The CEESP Task Force on Environment and Security
The
CEESP Task Force on Environment and Security was established
in 2000 to examine the links between conflict, disaster and
environmental management, focusing particularly on the identification
of the issues and next steps of particular relevance to IUCN
and its members. One of its central recommendations, underscored
by the consensus of participants at the Task Force's presentation
at the World Conservation Congress, was that CEESP should
carry on its work in this field.
To that end, CEESP has incorporated the theme of Environment
and Security into its work programme, and is seeking in collaboration
with the International Institute
for Sustainable Development (IISD), an IUCN member and
secretariat to the Task Force, to develop within the Union
a set of projects in the field of Environment and Security,
as part of its message to the world's decision makers and
peoples at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, in
Johannesburg in 2002.
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4.
Work Programme
A
detailed overview of the work programme for this joint initiative
is available at: http://www.iisd.org/natres/security.
Currently, the main project areas are:
- Natural
Resources, Livelihoods and Security (http://www.iisd.org/natres/security/nrls.asp)
What are the links between conservation, conflict and disaster?
Chaired by the special envoy of the UN Secretary-General
in Africa, the IUCN/CEESP-IISD Task Force on Environment
and Security commissioned a series of case studies around
the world to map out these linkages and highlight potential
roles for environmental conservation in mitigating disaster
risk, reducing social tensions and avoiding costly conflicts.
- Environment,
Security and Development Cooperation
(http://www.iisd.org/natres/security/esdc.asp)
What do development practitioners need to know about the
linkages between environment and conflict? What are the
positive synergies between trade, development assistance
and natural resource management that can promote social
stability? IUCN provides a compelling introduction to environment
and security and its implications for development practice
through its state-of-the-art review of research in the field.
Working in close collaboration with IISD, the Union has
also just launched the "Trade, Aid and Security"
project, which seeks to initiate dialogue on how aid can
best support trade in natural resources such that it leads
to more peaceful and sustainable societies.
- Climate
Change, Vulnerable Communities and Adaptation
(http://www.iisd.org/natres/security/ccvca.asp)
Ecosystems can provide a natural buffer against extreme
events, but their value in enhancing the adaptive capacity
of societies, particularly rural communities, is under-utilized.
IUCN, IISD and the Stockholm
Environment Institute (SEI) are working together to
promote the use of environmental management and policy tools
to reduce vulnerability of communities to the growing threat
of climate change and climate-related disasters, and therefore
offer options for climate change adaptation.
- Environment,
Business and Conflict
(http://www.iisd.org/natres/security/ebc.asp)
What can companies do to prevent and resolve environment-related
conflicts that result from or impact on their operations?
Companies can create or augment environment-related conflict
either directly through exploitation and degradation of
natural resources such as oil and minerals, or indirectly
by supporting governments that sustain inequitable resource
allocations. Private sector activities may therefore be
a vital element in the protection of the environmental basis
for security and peace.
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