Climate-related Security Risks - Introductory Training

4-6 December 2024

From December 4th to 6th, 2024, IGES, in collaboration with adelphi, Germany, hosted an introductory training focused on climate-related security risks at its headquarters in Kanagawa, Japan. This event was part of the broader "Asia-Pacific Climate Security Project," funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. It was implemented together with adelphi global’s Climate Diplomacy and Security program as part of their project “Strengthening Climate, Peace and Security Action” supported by the German Federal Foreign Office.

The training aimed to enhance the capabilities of policymakers, professionals, and researchers by providing dedicated Climate, Peace, and Security Training. The objectives were to:

  1. 1. Understand and analyse the risks that climate change poses to international peace and security, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region.
  2. 2. Conduct localised climate risk assessments with a focus on inclusion and vulnerabilities.
  3. 3. Learn how to address climate-related risks through integrated programmatic approaches.

The workshop was led by Mr Lukas Rüttinger from adelphi and Dr Naoyuki Okano, Policy Researcher in the Adaptation and Water team at IGES. A total of about 20 participants, including students, researchers from IGES, and officers from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), attended the training. The event underscored the importance of understanding and addressing climate-related security risks in policy and practice, emphasising collaborative efforts and integrated approaches.

Day 1 - Understanding Climate-Related Security Risks

The first day started with an interactive ice-breaker session to encourage participant engagement and cover some basic understanding of climate change.

Dr. Naoyuki Okano provided an introduction to the challenges posed by climate change in the Asia Pacific Region.
Mr. Lukas Rüttinger then explored the multifaceted impact of climate change on security and peace, highlighting how it can exacerbate conflicts, especially in fragile contexts, through its effects on natural resource availability and livelihood security.

Participants were divided into 3 groups for a climate-security hotspot mapping exercise, brainstorming methods to identify future hotspots of climate-security risks, choosing three hotspots, and presenting their reasoning to the rest of the training participants.

The session also included an insightful input presentation by Mr. Koji Mitomori, Senior Director, Office for Sustainability Management at JICA, outlining JICA’s approach to climate change adaptation and peacebuilding, including details on their sustainability policy and climate finance efforts.

Day 2 - Assessing Climate-Related Security Risks

Mr. Rüttinger introduced adelphi's "Weathering Risk: Climate Analysis and Action for Peace" initiative, focusing on assessing climate-related security risks. He outlined the methodology for identifying current and future risks, entry points for interventions, and response measures, building upon existing peace, conflict, and environmental assessment frameworks.

A panel discussion facilitated by Dr. Okano featured speakers including Mr. Rüttinger, Dr. Nanda Kumar Janardhanan, Deputy Director & South Asia Regional Coordinator at IGES and Dr. Pankaj Kumar, Research Manager in Adaptation and Water at IGES, discussing why climate security risks are relevant to Japan. Topics ranged from geopolitics, Japan's energy security, and the importance of considering human mobility as a key factor in climate change adaptation strategies.

The day ended with group work where participants built a pressure map, to visualise and analyse areas where environmental stresses interact with societal pressures, potentially leading to conflict. Participants were divided into three groups, each group focusing on a different case study from Colombia, Haiti, or Lake Chad.

Day 3 - From Analysis to Action: Integrated programming

The final day focused on developing integrated programming to mitigate climate-related security risks. The input presentation by Mr. Rüttinger highlighted various entry points for ensuring equal access to natural resources and climate resilience. Discussions included innovative practices such as the development of peacebuilding committees to manage conflict in communities and the importance of diversifying livelihoods to reduce vulnerabilities and prevent recruitment into the armed forces. The session emphasised the need to develop theories of change in interventions for integrated responses to climate-related security risks.

Participants engaged in group work to design pilot projects with an integrated approach in their respective case studies, which were later pitched to the other participants and discussed comprehensively.

The session also explored global and regional enforcement processes to address climate-related security risks, discussing the roles of the UN Security Council and recent developments in integrating climate security into peacebuilding programs.

The training concluded with a reflection session on how to apply the learned concepts to the participants' work, ensuring a practical application of the knowledge gained.

This three-day introductory training constituted a key contribution to the Asia-Pacific Climate Security (APCS) project, a research initiative by IGES funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. The APCS project investigates how multiple security approaches can address climate change-induced risks and uncertainties in the Asia-Pacific region and aims to provide concrete policy recommendations for enhancing climate security strategies in the region. The training assembled a diverse group of participants, including IGES researchers from the APCS project, students and other researchers who were new to the field, as well as individuals from different parts of the world, including from conflict-affected regions and professionals with field experience in climate-vulnerable areas. The interactive sessions and discussions throughout the training provided practical insights and fostered collaboration, essential for advancing the APCS project's objectives and enhancing regional climate security strategies.

Event Details

Date/time
4-6 December 2024
Venue

IGES Hayama Headquarters

Languages
English

Photos