69. Environmental and Natural Resource Security

Dr. Elizabeth Hessami is a professor at Johns Hopkins University and a licensed attorney. She has served as a visiting attorney for the Environmental Law Institute for nearly a decade, researching post-conflict natural resources management and specializing in armed conflict and the environment. And she was actually my professor for Environmental and Natural Resource Security in my masters program.  Resource security refers to a state in which a country or region has sustainable, stable, timely, adequate and economical access to necessary natural resources and resource products, and the capability to maintain a sustained state of security. The UN states: As climate change accelerates, its impacts exacerbate existing social, economic, and environmental challenges in many contexts, which can contribute to insecurity at local levels and internationally. Security concerns linked to climate change include impacts on food, water and energy supplies, increased competition over natural resources, loss of livelihoods, climate-related disasters, and forced migration and displacement. Despite growing recognition of the interlinkages between climate change, peace and security, few examples of integrated programmatic approaches that address specific risks at the intersection of climate change and insecurity exist.  Conflict and crisis affected contexts are more susceptible to being overwhelmed by climate change, but too often peacebuilding and stabilisation efforts often do not consider climate-related impacts or environmental hazards. At the same time, insecurity hinders climate change adaptation efforts, leaving already vulnerable communities even poorer and less resilient to interlinked climate and security crises, but climate change adaptation initiatives often fail to fully integrate peacebuilding or conflict prevention objectives. With Dr. Hessami, we talk about her background, work in Afghanistan, the phenomenon of the resource curse, some of the biggest threats, challenges, and what the future looks like. Contact and connect: [email protected]  Dr. Hessami’s Work: “Conflict, Crisis, and Peacebuilding: Afghanistan and Regional Water Security,” Elizabeth B. Hessami, New Security Beat, The Wilson Center, June 12, 2023 “New Legal Protections for the Environment in Relation to Armed Conflict,” Elizabeth B. Hessami and Karen Hulme, International Union for the Conservation of Nature, July 16, 2022 “The Uncertain Future of Afghanistan’s Nascent Environmental Laws,” Elizabeth B. Hessami, Bloomberg Law, September 2, 2021 Environment and Natural Resource Security https://read.oecd-ilibrary.org/development/better-policies-for-development/overview-the-environment-and-natural-resource-security_9789264115958-12-en#page1