CHA Conference 2024: Climate Change and Conflict
chaberlin.org, 18. September 2024 (auf Englisch)
News publ. 04. Oct 2011
At the third of four dialogue forums on the subject of climate change and security held on 30 September in the German Federal Foreign Office, the focus this time was on Latin America. The forum looked in particular at the ability of national and regional institutions to cope with anticipated climate changes and thereby prevent conflicts.
The German Federal Foreign Office teamed up with adelphi, the Research Group Climate Change and Security from the University of Hamburg’s KlimaCampus, and the university’s Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH) to invite experts from Latin America to the dialogue forum in Berlin.
In Latin America, the Andes region is particularly affected by melting glaciers and increasingly drastic fluctuations in precipitation. Although many Latin American countries have prospered in recent years, a lack of sustainability measures to govern the exploitation of resources has led to a widespread worsening of the environmental situation. Furthermore, social divides in the region have become wider, which could increase the potential for conflicts between various population groups, as well as between countries.
Expanding the knowledge base on climate impacts, developing cross-sector and international networks as well as increasing participation and institutional adaptation to climate change were identified as core measures. Without these efforts, climate change has the potential to cause even greater social and political fragmentation in the region. Germany and the EU can play an important role here by exchanging knowledge and supporting capacity-building measures.
Dialogue forums have already been held on the southern Mediterranean area and Central Asia, while a final forum on South Asia is planned for 21 November.