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Environment and Security
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Acknowledging the multifaceted character of environmental
sources of human insecurity, four organizations with differ-
ent mandates, expertise, and networks — the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Na-
tions Development Programme (UNDP) and the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) — joined together to
form the Environment and Security initiative (ENVSEC).
Among the various forms of interaction between environ-
ment and security, ENVSEC seeks to identify and map
situations in which environmental problems threaten to gen-
erate tensions (left-hand circle in the diagram) – between
communities, countries or regions, where for example:
Water or air pollution in one community is a source of
insecurity in another;
Allocation or use of land resources creates instability
between neighbouring regions;
The environment and natural resources can be (per-
ceived as) a means of control and persuasion exerted
by one country or community over another (upstream-
downstream relations)
At the same time (right-hand circle in the diagram) ENVSEC
looks at situations where environmental cooperation may
help build a common understanding of other more general
issues. For example, joint collection of data or manage-
ment of a transboundary nature reserve will not immedi-
ately reduce insecurity per se, but may help to build trust
and strengthen cooperation. Ultimately, it is believed that
transboundary environmental cooperation can contribute
to peace building (Conca and Dabelko, 2003).
By providing a framework for cooperation on local and trans-
boundary environmental issues, ENVSEC seeks to promote
mutual confidence and peace. It builds on the combined
About the Environment and Security initiative
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environment
society
economy
culture
politics
ENVSEC will assess and
help eliminate the identified
environmental threats
when the environment is
a factor of instability
when the environment is
a bridge to cooperation
ENVSEC will strengthen
environmental cooperation in
conflict-prone situations and
propagate its momentum to
other domains
life
two facets of the environment and security
conflict