Search Climate Insights Directory

The report identifies Burkina Faso as highly vulnerable to climatic shocks, epidemics, and environmental degradation, with 44.5% of the population living below the absolute poverty line. It highlights the critical role of agriculture, particularly cotton, and the risks associated with rainfall variability and drought. The document details the sensitivity of vulnerable groups—especially women, children, and nomadic pastoralists—and examines migration as a key coping strategy. It concludes that reducing vulnerability requires integrated environmental management, improved food security, and targeted support for marginalized populations.

The report argues that climate change and armed conflict act as mutually reinforcing drivers of harm, creating a polycrisis that disproportionately affects vulnerable populations. It highlights how climate change serves as a 'threat multiplier' by exacerbating resource scarcity and instability, while military activities contribute significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions and environmental degradation. The document emphasizes the resulting collapse of health systems and the emergence of infectious diseases in conflict zones. It calls for integrated climate, health, and peacebuilding strategies, including a transition to renewable energy and greater military accountability for emissions, to break this cycle of harm.

The document examines the 'hunger-climate-conflict nexus,' where food insecurity acts as a 'threat multiplier' for instability. It argues that while military forces have historically played ad-hoc support roles in humanitarian aid, the increasing frequency of climate-driven food crises necessitates a shift in military training, doctrine, and interagency coordination. The author highlights barriers to this transition, including the risk of 'over-securitisation' and existing institutional silos between defence and development agencies, while specifically noting the implications for the Irish Defence Forces regarding peacekeeping and domestic disaster response.

The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) is launching the TECH 4 Resilience Challenge to identify and scale AI innovations that enhance humanitarian preparedness and response to climate shocks. The initiative targets entrepreneurs and organisations operating in low- and middle-income countries, offering winners up to US$50,000 in funding, alongside mentoring, a virtual Leadership Academy, and investment mobilisation support. Eligible solutions must address extreme climate events or strengthen Anticipatory Action frameworks, with a priority on locally led innovations benefiting women and youth. The challenge opens on 1 August 2025, with final winners announced in November/December 2025 for implementation throughout 2026.

The document analyzes the conflict in the Nuba Mountains, attributing its origins to systematic marginalization of Nuba communities, inter-ethnic tensions with Baggara groups, and national political-economic deterioration. It highlights the role of the Sudanese government and the SPLM/A in orchestrating the conflict and argues for renewed international pressure on the signatories of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement to ensure its successful implementation in South Kordofan.

The document examines the misalignment between European interests and the local political economy of migrant smuggling in Niger, specifically focusing on the hub of Agadez and the broader Niger-Libya corridor.

A joint declaration from the European Commission and the African Union Commission following their fourth College-to-College meeting on 1 October 2008 in Brussels. The document outlines agreements to implement the Africa-EU Strategic Partnership across eight thematic areas, including security, governance, economic integration, health, energy, climate change, migration, and science and technology.

The document analyzes the January 2013 escalation of conflict in Mali, where Islamist rebels captured the city of Konna, prompting a French military intervention. It attributes the rebel offensive to a lack of progress in negotiations and delays in the deployment of the UN-authorized African-led International Support Mission in Mali (AFISMA). While the French intervention is viewed as timely due to the Malian army's limited operational capacity, the author warns of humanitarian risks and the long-term challenge of controlling liberated areas. The briefing concludes by questioning the effectiveness of previous initiatives to strengthen African national armies and calls for a rethink of regional defense strategies.

The document assesses the African Union's (AU) counter-terrorism efforts, noting that despite the 1999 Algiers Convention and various peace support operations, terrorism has expanded across the continent. It identifies two primary gaps: the failure to treat deep-seated governance challenges and a reliance on militaristic responses over sustainable preventive measures. The author concludes that while recent AU decisions to enhance the African Standby Force are positive, the AU must prioritise non-military responses targeting poverty and marginalisation to effectively reduce insecurity.

The report examines SFA in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Somalia since 2010, finding that billions in spending have often been ineffective or counter-productive. It identifies a 'piecemeal approach' where multiple providers with diverging interests create fragmented security forces, undermining professional standards and civilian oversight. Case studies of Mali and Somalia highlight issues such as high personnel turnover, a focus on technical skills over ethics, and the diversion of equipment to illicit markets. The authors recommend long-term, coordinated partnerships based on detailed local capacity assessments to foster cohesion rather than fragmentation.

The WARICC codebook details the construction of a dataset designed to analyze the frequency and intensity of domestic water-related conflict and cooperation. Using BBC Monitoring as its primary source, the project employs an 11-point Water-Events Scale (WES) to categorize events from substantial national improvements (+5) to overt physical violence or national deterioration (-5). The methodology addresses potential data biases related to urban areas, regime types, and extreme events, while providing a comprehensive system of country and actor codes for standardized reporting.

Chad's updated NDC aims for a 19.3% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to a business-as-usual scenario, primarily through energy efficiency and reforestation. The plan identifies agriculture as the dominant emission source (95%) and emphasizes extreme vulnerability to droughts and floods. Implementation requires an estimated 6.7 billion USD for mitigation and between 5 and 14 billion USD for adaptation, with a heavy reliance on international financial support.

Since 1982, Mali's Direction Nationale de la Météorologie (DNM) has implemented a government-sponsored agrometeorological project to help farmers manage climate variability. By providing weather forecasts, rainfall gauges, and 10-day bulletins via radio and television, the project has trained over 2,500 farmers to make informed decisions on sowing and input application. Evidence indicates that farmers using this information achieve higher yields and incomes compared to those relying on traditional indicators. The project's success is attributed to its multidisciplinary approach and community-level focus, though challenges remain regarding the reliability of local-scale forecasts and the needs of herding families.

The African sulcata tortoise is an endangered species subject to poaching and illegal trade, posing a moderate risk for pet ownership. Prospective owners must ensure animals are sourced from reputable captive breeders and provide specialized care, including high-fiber diets and specific temperature and UV light requirements, for an animal that can live over 80 years and weigh up to 120 lbs.