Search Climate Insights Directory

The document argues that violent conflicts, poverty, and repressive regimes have fueled an unprecedented flow of migrants to Europe, which is facilitated by a violent and opportunistic smuggling industry. This industry has generated sustainable profits, leading to the creation of transnational networks that threaten human security and state stability. The authors assert that effective policy responses require a nuanced understanding of how migration journeys are shaped by the migrants' ethnicity, income, and origin, as well as the adaptability of the smuggling networks.

This policy brief by the Institute for Security Studies argues that Europe's increasing focus on returning migrants to Africa may be counterproductive and damaging if costs are ignored.

The brief uses International Futures (IFs) software to model scenarios where Africa could become a net food exporter within 10 years through aggressive policy interventions. However, it warns that increasing production alone may lead to food exports benefiting rich countries while local hunger persists. To ensure human development, the authors argue that a green revolution must be coupled with programs to increase low-income consumption and improvements in water and sanitation to prevent diarrheal diseases from undermining health gains.

This report summarizes a seminar held on October 17, 2008, at the United Nations Conference Center regarding the implications of the 2008 US Presidential Election for Africa. The event featured presentations by Dr. Steven Erkovich and Dr. Joseph Vincent Ebode, who analyzed US foreign policy motivations, the specific propositions of candidates Barack Obama and John McCain, and the strategic rationale behind Obama's candidacy.

The guide outlines NRK's ambition to integrate environmental considerations into all production decisions, drawing on international experience from organizations like Albert. It identifies transport, energy consumption, and material use as primary areas for reduction, offering specific tactics such as choosing local locations, using LED lighting, and implementing reuse plans for sets and props. The document emphasizes the need for a designated environmental lead for each production and suggests using carbon calculators to identify the most significant impacts.

The document presents a classification of financial instruments for climate adaptation, categorised by their maturity level (mature, emerging, or pilot) and their applicability to specific sectors and regions. It identifies three main categories of instruments: debt instruments, results-based financing instruments, and financial risk management instruments.

The document establishes the San and Khoi people as the original knowledge holders of rooibos (Aspalathus linearis), citing a 2014 South African government study. It outlines the legal framework for Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) under the Convention on Biological Diversity and South African law, and notes ongoing negotiations between the rooibos industry and the National Khoi & San Council and South African San Council to ensure compliance with bioprospecting regulations.

The Private Equity Stakeholder Project calls for the private equity industry to adopt a comprehensive labor rights platform to counter a 'low road approach' that reduces wages and staffing. The platform includes demands for a $25 sustainable minimum wage, equitable scheduling, paid sick leave, and protections against discriminatory practices and harmful technology. It also urges institutional investors, particularly public pension funds, to establish enforceable mechanisms to prevent the support of unethical labor practices.

The report finds that 2025 was the third most violent year since 1989, with 245,000 battle-related deaths. It highlights a record high of 65 state-based conflicts and a concerning doubling of international conflicts to eight in 2025. While non-state conflicts decreased slightly, one-sided violence surged to 76,500 fatalities, primarily driven by massacres in Sudan.

The review finds a general scholarly consensus that higher levels of education have a pacifying effect on civil conflict, though this relationship is complex and varies by the type of violence. While low education is often linked to recruitment in civil wars, higher education levels are frequently observed among terrorists and genocide perpetrators. The authors highlight that inter-group educational inequalities—particularly along ethnic and religious lines—significantly increase conflict risks, whereas rapid expansions in tertiary education do not appear to drive destabilization. The document concludes that while education generally promotes peace, its impact is mediated by factors such as regime type, gender equality, and the specific nature of the political violence.

The research examines nine donor-supported active citizenship programs implemented between 2010 and 2015 in Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, and Tunisia. The authors argue that these programs, primarily funded by the US and Europe, employ a 'neo-liberalization of citizenship' approach that emphasizes formal participation and technical skill-building over political dissent and social mobilization. Through interviews with approximately 250 activists, the study finds a significant gap between the normative, Western-inspired training modules and the actual political constraints in the MENA region, such as secretive decision-making, unreliable judicial systems, and the dominance of informal power networks. The paper concludes that these programs risk bolstering the legitimacy of non-democratic regimes by encouraging tokenistic engagement and disconnecting activists from their local communities.

The document analyzes the 'East Asian Peace', a significant reduction in battle deaths in East Asia between 1980 and 2005 compared to the 1946–1979 period. The author argues that this peace was not the result of a single event but a series of staggered political transitions across the region. Key drivers identified include a shift in leadership priorities toward export-driven economic growth and a strategic alignment with the United States. The paper contrasts this with the 'European Peace', noting that the East Asian case does not fit the liberal peace model due to a lack of widespread democratization and political integration.

The authors present the During-Conflict Justice (DCJ) dataset, which catalogues 2,205 justice processes across 204 internal armed conflicts in 108 countries between 1946 and 2011. The research identifies that DCJ is a common tool, appearing in over 60% of conflicts since WWII, with governments being the primary adopters (70.4%). The study finds that democratic governments are more likely to use DCJ, particularly trials, truth commissions, and reparations, compared to autocracies. Rebel groups tend to use DCJ more frequently when fighting democracies and as their own relative military strength increases. Analysis suggests that government-initiated DCJ is correlated with a reduction in battle deaths in the following year and a higher likelihood of the conflict ending in a negotiated settlement rather than a military victory.

The authors examine the methodological debate surrounding the use of mosques as recruiting grounds for research on Muslims in Europe. While acknowledging critiques regarding sampling bias and the 'lived religion' perspective, they argue that terms like 'organized' or 'member' are too imprecise to invalidate mosque-based sampling. Using the FINEX project in the Nordic countries as a case study, they suggest that the 'technologization' of mosques (via social media and email) and their institutional role in European societies actually increase their utility as research entry points. They recommend a stratified approach to sampling and the separation of recruitment from the actual data collection environment to ensure ecological validity.

The Middle East has hosted the world's deadliest conflicts over the last decade, with Syria being the deadliest since 1989. While state-based conflicts and battle-related deaths declined in 2019, internationalized civil wars reached record levels since 2015. Non-state conflicts peaked in 2014 and have since declined, though they remain higher than pre-2011 levels. One-sided violence fatalities doubled from 2018 to 2019, driven by IS, Syrian insurgents, and Iran. Despite an increase in ceasefires, peace agreements are rare in the region compared to Africa and Asia, with only one full peace agreement recorded between 1989 and 2018.

The authors argue that Proportional Representation (PR) is often adopted not due to electoral competition, but as a response to systemic threats of revolution. Using Norway's 1919 reform as a case study, they demonstrate that incumbents viewed PR as a de-radicalization tool to strengthen parliamentary legitimacy and isolate revolutionary radicals. Quantitative analysis of roll-call votes shows that MPs facing local industrial conflicts and soldiers' councils were significantly more likely to support PR, regardless of the actual electoral strength of socialist parties in their districts.

The authors present Urban Social Disorder 3.0, a global event dataset covering 186 cities from 1960-2014, containing 13,324 events. The study finds that global urban social disorder increased after the early 2000s, driven largely by Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Contrary to some previous research, the authors find a positive relationship between city population size and the frequency of lethal disorder events, while urban growth rates show no such association. The analysis also suggests that autocratic regimes may be more effective at suppressing lethal urban disorder than democratic ones.

The research examines why some international armaments collaborations succeed while others fail, challenging the 'process' approach of institutional reform. By comparing the failed Viking submarine project (Norway, Denmark, Sweden) and the successful Storm Shadow missile project (UK, France, Italy), the authors argue that formal alliance bonds—specifically NATO membership—provide the necessary incentives for governments to overcome domestic opposition and industrial rivalries. The paper concludes that security ties and high politics outweigh the influence of similar political economies, cultural affinities, or complementary industrial capabilities.

QuotaClimat calls for a voluntary 20% quota of audiovisual media space to be dedicated to the ecological crisis, arguing that current coverage (averaging 3%) is insufficient given the urgency of climate change and biodiversity loss.

Reclaim Finance criticizes Amundi for voting in favor of TotalEnergies' 'Say On Climate' plan despite its failure to align capital expenditures (CAPEX) with a 1.5°C trajectory. The letter highlights inconsistencies in Amundi's voting patterns across seven oil and gas majors, noting that Amundi approved plans for Repsol, TotalEnergies, and BP while rejecting those of Woodside Petroleum, Shell, and Equinor. Reclaim Finance argues that Amundi's current approach ignores the IEA Net Zero scenario, which mandates no new oil and gas fields, and calls for a systematized engagement policy that includes commitments to divest from companies continuing fossil fuel expansion.