Climate Change, Social Stress and Violent Conflict
The conference program is now online here.
Research context of this conference
Climate change is becoming a focal point for security and conflict research and poses a challenge for the world’s policymaking and governance structures. The magnitude and diversity of risks associated with global warming could trigger a sequence of cascading events, involving environmental degradation, economic decline, social unrest and political instability, that could threaten human security and societal stability and lead to violent conflict. In parts of the world (notably in Africa, Asia and Latin America) the erosion of social order, state failure and violence could go hand in hand. In the worst-affected regions, conflicts may spread to neighbouring states, e.g. through refugee flows, ethnic links, environmental resource flows or arms exports. Such spillover effects can destabilize regions and expand the geographical extent of a crisis, overstretching global and regional governance structures. The devastating impact of hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the 2003 heat wave in Europe demonstrated that not only poor countries are vulnerable to climate change but the world’s richest nations as well. Climate change could increase resource competition between major powers (e.g. in the Arctic) and induce strategies with additional risks and conflicts (e.g. nuclear power, bioenergy, geo-engineering).
The workshop aims to bring together national and international experts to explore and discuss main elements of the current “state of the art” in terms of knowledge on security implications and conflict potential of climate change. Furthermore participants will explore research needs, both with respect to problem analysis and methodologies. Besides providing a snapshot of the current debate, it aims at building connections among individuals and research groups that can provide a basis for establishing an international network on climate security and conflict. In addition to reviews of current knowledge, the workshop organizers also invite suggestions for new efforts by the research community. This concerns both traditional concerns, such as the causal relationship between resource scarcity and violent conflict, as well as future large scale and cascading effects triggered by climate change. Effects for consideration can include harvest losses, floods, droughts, sea-level rise, mass migrations and natural disaster, that together with other factors could lead to social stress, societal instabilities, security risks and violent conflicts.
Guiding questions
- What are the major causal chains between climate change and violent conflict, and what is the empirical basis for these linkages, revisiting previous assessments of environmental conflict?
- Which approaches, methods and theories are helpful for the analysis of the links between climate change, social stress and violent conflict?
- Is it adequate to call climate change a threat to national or international security?
- Are broader security conceptions (such as environmental or human security) useful for evaluating the violence risks of climate change
- What is the likelihood, potential damage and resulting risk for violent conflict of water and food scarcity, mass migrations and natural disasters induced by climate change?
- Will the international community face more violent conflict or more cooperation on climate change and the use of natural resources?
- What are the most likely and most adequate responses of the world’s policymaking and governance structures to address the climate-conflict nexus and what can institutions contribute?
Examples of possible topics
- Empirical basis of linkages between environmental stress and violent conflict, revisiting the debate on violent reactions to resource scarcity
- Empirical basis of past climate change and prediction of climate futures, in the context of potential effects on humans that might possibly cause conflicts, in particular water and food scarcity, migration, disasters
- Conceptual approaches and contributions of academic disciplines to understanding causal effects, cascading potential and tipping points in climate-security interactions
- Impacts and conflicts associated with response strategies to address climate change, such as nuclear power, bioenergy, geo-engineering, disaster management.
- Security concepts and their relations to climate change and violent conflict, connecting to the “securitization” discourse
- Regional case studies of climate-induced security risks and conflicts: Sahel zone and Darfur, Middle East, Southern Asia, Central Asia, Latin America, Mediterranean, Arctic
- Mechanisms and institutions for addressing climate security challenges and opportunities for strengthening international cooperation and peace.
Date of the conference
November 19 & 20, 2009
Conference proceedings
The papers presented will be published as a refereed book publication after the conference. Formatting instructions for the final version and further information on the publication process will be given in due time after the conference.
Editors of the book can log in here to get access to the pdf-files of the submitted papers.
Hotel accommodation
The following hotels offer accommodation to the conference participants. For those participants receiving financial support, rooms will be reserved by the organizing committee. Participants who do not receive any financial support need to make reservations by themselves.
ETAP-Hotel, Holstenkamp 3, 20525 Hamburg
This hotel is located approximately 10 minutes walking distance from subway station Emilienstrasse, from where it is three stops to Schlump, the station nearest to the conference venue.
www.accorhotels.com/gb/hotel-2711-etap-hotel-etap-hotel-hamburg-altona/index.shtml
Hotel am Stadtpark, Flüggestrasse 6, 22303 Hamburg
This hotel is located approximately 5 minutes walking distance from subway station Saarlandstrasse, from where it is nine minutes to Schlump, the station nearest to the conference venue.
www.heikotel.de/index.php?id=197&L=2
The special rate offered to conference participants is only valid until Friday, October 16, 2009. So please make your reservations as soon as possible!
NH Hotel Norge, Schäferkampsallee 49, 20357 Hamburg
This hotel is located approximately 10 minutes walking distance from the conference venue.
www.nh-hotels.com/nh/en/hotels/germany/hamburg/nh-hamburg-norge.html
Important dates
August 31, 2009: Submission of abstracts, download the Call for Papers
September 21, 2009: Notification of acceptance of submitted abstracts
November 06, 2009: End of registration period for participants
All presenters are already registered.
November 10, 2009: Submission of drafts of papers that are presented
Organizing Committee and Program Committee
Organizing Committee:
The conference will be organized by a local organizing committee of participants in the KlimaCampus, Universität Hamburg, including: Jürgen Scheffran (coordination), Michael Brzoska, Martin Claussen, Anita Engels, Lars Kaleschke, Martin Kalinowski, Jürgen Ossenbrügge.
International Program Committee:
Frank Biermann, Alexander Carius, Geoffrey Dabelko, Nils Petter Gleditsch, Bill Hare, Peter Nardulli, Karen O’Brien, Úrsula Oswald Spring, Ole Wæver, Oran Young.
Contact
Research Group Climate Change and Security
KlimaCampus Hamburg
Center for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences
Hamburg University
Bundesstrasse 53
D-20146 Hamburg
Germany
Prof. Dr. Jürgen Scheffran (juergen.scheffran[at]zmaw.de)
Dr. P. Michael Link (michael.link[at]zmaw.de)
Janpeter Schilling (janpeter.schilling[at]zmaw.de)
Last update: May 25, 2010