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Since I began working in the environmental security field, climate change has never drawn this much attention from the security community. We are flooded with reports from foreign policy think tanks, military strategists, and scientists around the world on climate. This unprecedented level of interest represents the dawning of a new era for environmental security—especially in the United States, where the field is emerging from the shadows.

We can thank climate change for making environmental security “hot” again. Our challenge now is to utilize this attention wisely and avoid overplaying our hand by fueling false fears. We can view climate change as an existential threat to our security and trace its impacts on local conflicts or community vulnerability. Yet we must also avoid a range of pitfalls that could undermine our progress.

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About the Author

Geoffrey D. Dabelko

Geoffrey D. Dabelko, PhD

Senior Advisor, ECSP; Former Director, ECSP;
Professor and Associate Dean, George V. Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs, Ohio University; Associate Senior Fellow, Environment of Peace Initiative, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
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Environmental Change and Security Program

The Environmental Change and Security Program (ECSP) explores the connections between environmental change, health, and population dynamics and their links to conflict, human insecurity, and foreign policy.  Read more

Environmental Change and Security Program

The Environmental Change and Security Program (ECSP) explores the connections between environmental change, health, and population dynamics and their links to conflict, human insecurity, and foreign policy.  Read more