CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND PEACEBUILDING

The report details a workshop in Addis Ababa focused on the nexus of climate change adaptation and peacebuilding in Africa. It emphasizes that climate change exacerbates resource scarcity and conflict, necessitating 'conflict-sensitive' adaptation planning. The proceedings cover the application of the 'Do No Harm' (DNH) framework, the USAID Climate Change and Conflict Annex, and the role of population dynamics—particularly youth bulges and rapid urbanisation—in increasing vulnerability. Through a site visit to Sululta, Ethiopia, the report highlights the gap between conceptual tools and practical implementation. It concludes with recommendations to integrate conflict assessments into National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and to sustain a multidisciplinary community of practice to influence policymakers and donors.

• Climate change in Africa acts as a threat multiplier that can damage food and water security, increase forced migration, and either exacerbate existing conflicts or trigger new ones, particularly over scarce natural resources.
• The 'Do No Harm' (DNH) framework is proposed as a tool for climate adaptation to ensure interventions do not inadvertently fuel conflict by interacting negatively with 'dividers' (factors that create tension) and 'connectors' (factors that bring people together).
• Population dynamics, specifically high fertility and a 'youth bulge', significantly increase the risk of conflict in fragile societies; 80% of new civil conflicts between 1970 and 2007 occurred in countries where at least 60% of the population was under age 30.
• Rapid urbanisation in sub-Saharan Africa, projected to reach almost 2 billion people by 2100, compounds climate vulnerability as government services are overwhelmed, leading to the expansion of slums and increased urban conflict over basic provisions.
• A site visit to the Sululta community in Ethiopia revealed that while indigenous knowledge and traditional conflict resolution (via elders and social courts) exist, the primary barrier to adaptation is a lack of implementation mechanisms and basic tools to access resources like groundwater.
• National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) currently lack integrated conflict sensitivity; the report recommends that NAPs incorporate full conflict assessments that examine the interaction between climate change, institutional performance, and the interests of key actors.

APA

Tadesse, D., & Lyons, A. (2013). CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND PEACEBUILDING. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/14Oct2013WorkshopReport.pdf

Chicago

Tadesse, Debay, and Aly Lyons. CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND PEACEBUILDING. Institute for Security Studies, 2013. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/14Oct2013WorkshopReport.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tadesse |first1=Debay |last2=Lyons |first2=Aly |title=CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND PEACEBUILDING |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2013 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/14Oct2013WorkshopReport.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tadesse2013climate, author = {Tadesse, Debay and Lyons, Aly}, title = {{CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND PEACEBUILDING}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2013}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/14Oct2013WorkshopReport.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }