30 October 2024
Climate change continues to pose grave threats to the security and livelihoods of millions worldwide. This is particularly apparent when considering the intersection of the effects of climate change with the threat of violent extremism conducive to terrorism. Violent extremist terrorist groups have identified and exploited the vulnerabilities that have resulted from climate crises and fragilities which include resource competition, conflict, and displacement, among others.
However, this relationship between climate change and violent extremism conducive to terrorism is little researched and requires further investigation. To this end, the Initiative on Addressing the Nexus Between Climate Change and Violent Extremism conducive to terrorism – led by Germany and Kenya with the support of implementing partner, the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund – held an in-person workshop exploring the evidence and approaches to address the challenges posed by violent extremism conducive to terrorism within the context of climate fragility.
Building upon a previous exploratory workshop held virtually in June 2024, the event in Nairobi brought together governments, civil society organizations, think tanks, and academia to generate further insights on the topic. Participants discussed the current evidence and approaches on the nexus between climate change and insecurity, with a focus on the challenges posed by violent extremism conducive to terrorism in Africa, especially in the East and Southern Africa regions. They also explored the challenges posed by violent extremist armed terrorist groups in climate-fragile contexts and identified cross-sectoral understanding and responses in the regions.
Under the leadership of Germany and Kenya, the Initiative will continue to work towards collating and discussing diverse experiences and evidence-based research to better understand the links between climate change and preventing and countering violent extremism, supporting the development of a GCTF Framework Document to be presented in September 2025.