Journal article "Imbuing Climate Security with Positive Peace: A Peace Continuum Approach to Sustaining Peace During Climate Crisis", published by the International Affairs, March 2025.
Security, in the age of climate crisis, can no longer be defined by military might or territorial defence. Climate change is not a distant threat—it is already destabilizing nations, fuelling displacement, and intensifying resource conflicts. Yet, global security responses remain reactive, treating climate-induced crises as isolated emergencies rather than symptoms of a deeper, systemic fragility. This article challenges this reactive approach, advocating for a peace continuum approach—one that shifts from short-term containment to long-term resilience.
The peace continuum framework redefines security beyond the mere absence of conflict (negative peace) to focus on structural stability, economic equity, and climate adaptation (positive peace). In many vulnerable regions, peace is precarious—climate disasters erode livelihoods, intensify political tensions, and push already fragile societies to the brink. Without strong institutions, sustainable economies, and proactive adaptation strategies, climate insecurity will continue to exacerbate migration, conflict, and governance breakdowns.
The Horn of Africa serves as a critical case study illustrating these dynamics. Years of prolonged droughts, resource depletion, and agricultural collapse have deepened ethnic and political strife. Instead of prioritizing long-term resilience strategies, the global response has largely relied on humanitarian relief and military interventions—measures that address symptoms but fail to resolve root causes. A peace continuum approach would integrate sustainable water governance, agricultural adaptation, and economic reforms—ensuring that climate resilience is woven into the fabric of peacebuilding.
Security governance must evolve as well. Traditional, state-centric security models are ill-equipped to handle borderless climate threats. Climate-induced instability does not stop at national boundaries, yet most security policies remain confined within them. This article emphasizes the need for networked climate security governance, where international institutions, regional coalitions, and local communities collaborate to implement early warning systems, coordinated adaptation projects, and knowledge-sharing hubs.
Despite growing recognition of climate security as a global issue, climate finance remains inadequate and misallocated. Funds are channelled toward disaster relief rather than proactive investment in resilient infrastructure and building sustainable economies. Without a fundamental shift in climate financing, the world will remain trapped in piecemeal crisis response mode.
Governance failures further compound these challenges. In politically fragile regions, climate stressors expose and accelerate institutional weaknesses. Governments struggling with corruption, weak enforcement, and lack of public trust are often unable to implement effective climate adaptation policies. Without transparent governance, equitable resource distribution, and climate-informed policymaking, even the best adaptation strategies will fail to prevent climate-induced conflicts.
While climate risks must be taken seriously, framing climate security solely as a threat leads to militarized, exclusionary policies—border security crackdowns, securitization of resources, or reactive force deployments. True security lies not in fortification, but in prevention. The world must move beyond crisis containment toward a holistic model of security, where climate adaptation, economic justice, and governance reforms form the foundation of lasting peace.
This is not just a climate agenda—it is a security imperative. The longer the world delays this shift, the deeper the fractures of climate insecurity will grow. Without climate resilience, there can be no true peace.
This text is based on extracts from a journal article written by Louise Wiuff Moe in the International Affairs, March 2025. The original article can be found here.
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