Between the 16th and 18th of February 2024, the international community’s most prominent figures in the field of defence and security will gather in Munich for the 60th Munich Security Conference to “debate on the world’s most pressing security challenges”. Within the overarching aim of building peace through dialogue, one of the crucial topics that will be addressed are the security implications of climate change. This year's Munich Security report has dedicated a whole chapter to the climate concerns shared by transatlantic partners. It focuses on the geopolitical risks and need for greater global cooperation if the world is to meet the targets set for itself.
Topics such as European energy security and climate implications of energy policies are also featured during side events of the conference. The Clingendael Institute will host a panel discussion on the implications of the energy transition. The panelists will discuss the applications and consequences of the REpower EU initiative and the impact of the energy crisis and energy dependency on European security. Fossil fuel dependency from petrostates is a vulnerability that endangers European energy security and the transition towards more sustainable energy sources offers an opportunity to address this problem. The event will feature high level officials and experts from different institutions, including:
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Kadri Simson, EU Commissioner for Energy
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Hanke Bruins Slot, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands
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Daniel B. Poneman, Consultant with the Stanton Foundation; former Deputy Secretary of Energy of the USA
Alongside the conference, several other events will be held to discuss in more detail the growing impact of the climate crisis on peace and security and potential policies that could be studied to counter this phenomenon. New challenges and dependencies originating from the energy transition, insufficient levels of international cooperation to meet the sustainable development goals and the excessive burden carried by fragile regions and populations’ sectors are some examples of the complex dynamics that will be discussed.
One of these events is the panel discussion on “Resilient Horizons: Charting a Course for Climate Change and Implications for Global Security”, organized by the Bertelsmann Stiftung in collaboration with the German Foreign Office and U.S. Department of State. The event will feature panellists from different institutions such as the US Department of Defence, NATO and the German MFA and organizations such as the International Rescue Committee and Adelphi Consulting. These experts will delve into analysing the role of the international community in assessing the interconnection between climate change and security and the national and international policy responses. The impact of technological innovations influences the capabilities of the states and the international community and is therefore another point of discussion. Lastly, the event will also include a conversation about the possibilities and ways to involve the private sector into forging more sustainable practices with the least possible environmental impact.
The event will take place on the 15th of February at the Amerikahaus. More information can be found via the link here.
For more information on the Munich Security Conference and the potential to attend some of their online events, please use the link here.