Evaluating the Environment and Security Initiative ENVSEC

The impacts of environmental change are becoming increasingly difficult to combat. Climate change and resource degradation are converging with increasing global demands due to economic development and population growth. There is therefore a need for cooperative arrangements to prevent political tensions. To address these challenges, various UN organisations – the UN Environment Program (UNEP), UN Development Program (UNDP) and UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) – as well as the OSCE, Regional Environmental Centre for Europe (REC) and NATO joined forces in 2003 to create the Environment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC).

Following an evaluation in 2010, the ENVSEC seeked to strengthen the security dimension of its work. In particular, ENVSEC aims to:
(1) further develop its security concept
(2) review and assess current and emerging environment and security linkages in the ENVSEC regions, namely Eastern Europe, South Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia
(3) develop guidelines on how to implement the results.

adelphi was contracted by the ENVSEC Secretariat to support the initiative and its partners in this process.