An Insecure Climate: Dialogue in South Africa in the run up to the World Climate

Two months ahead of the World Climate Conference in Durban, adelphi, the think tanks OneWorld and the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) invited representatives from politics and civil societies to discuss risks and policy options in the light of increasing resource scarcities in Souther

The countries of the Southern Africa will be among the most severely affected by climate change. Rising temperatures and sea levels as well as changing precipitation patterns will challenge especially food and water security in Southern African countries. Although these impacts are quite well documented, decision makers in the region are not very well aware of the risks ahead as Admore Kambudzi, Secretary of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), outlined during the dialogue event “Climate Change, Conflict and Cooperation in Southern Africa“, 23rd September 2011 in Pretoria.

The dialogue highlighted the importance of local approaches to the sustainable and peaceful use of natural resources. However, regional cooperation needs to be strengthened in order to use this potential also in transboundary settings and to address climate change challenges. To this end information on risks and policy options should be brought closer to the attention to decision makers within the African Union and Regional Economic Communities. The results of this dialogue should contribute to a systematic consideration of climate change and security in this region.