On 8 October 2024, the German Federal Foreign Office, adelphi and Climate Diplomacy organized the sixth edition of the Berlin Climate and Security Conference under the slogan 'How to Secure a Climate for Peace'. The conference focused on exploring the link between climate change, peace and security objectives, and explored innovative ways to assess climate risks and develop early warning systems.
The Climate Conflict Vulnerability Index (CCVI) was developed in collaboration with various partners by researchers from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). It was presented at the Berlin Climate and Security conference and aims to support decision-makers in identifying and managing a wide range of risks related to aspects such as food and water security, health, peace and migration.
“The index makes it possible to localize a range of climate- and conflict-related risk factors in a timely and geographically precise manner. This is an important way to understand and resolve climate and conflict risks”
explains Barbora Šedová, a FutureLab leader at PIK.
By mapping the vulnerability of regions to climate- and conflict-related risks on a subnational level, potential crisis areas can be identified at an early stage. Particularly in fragile states, where climate impacts, social vulnerability and conflict are often closely linked, the CCVI offers an additional tool to enable preventive measures and avoid escalation.
The CCVI differs from similar indices due to its detailed spatial and temporal resolution and ease of use. All data, codes, and methods used are built with public data sources and are openly shared under an open-source license. The CCVI was presented by German Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock during the Berlin Climate and Security Conference (BCSC) and a validated version of the index is expected in June 2025.
The CCVI is a joint research project between the Center for Crisis Early Warning at University of the Bundeswehr Munich, the FutureLab Security, Ethnic Conflicts and Migration at PIK, and the German Federal Foreign Office.
This is a news item originally published by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) which can be accessed here. Further information on the Climate-Conflict-Vulnerability Index can be found here.
Photo credit: Axel Buehrmann/Flickr