Climate Change Seen as Threat to U.S. Security

Article in the New York Times, 9. August 2009

The changing global climate will pose profound strategic challenges to the United States in coming decades, raising the prospect of military intervention to deal with the effects of violent storms, drought, mass migration and pandemics, military and intelligence analysts say.

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Statement form the Climate Justice Now! alliance on the Poznan climate talks

Poznan statement from the Climate Justice Now! alliance
12 December 2008

Members of Climate Justice Now! ? a worldwide alliance of more than 160 organisations - have been in Poznan for the past two weeks closely following developments in the UN climate negotiations.

This statement is our assessment of the Conference of Parties (COP) 14, and articulates our principles for achieving climate justice.

THE URGENCY OF CLIMATE JUSTICE
We will not be able to stop climate change if we don't change theneo-liberal and corporate-based economy which stops us from achieving sustainable societies. Corporate globalisation must be stopped.
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Mohan Munasinghe
Vice Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC); Chairman, Munasinghe Institute for Development (MIND)

Wednesday, September 10, 2008 at 13.15 hours

Venue: Auditorium 3, H.C. Ørsted Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 5, DK-2100 Copenhagen.

Abstract:
The lecture will begin with a review of the main findings from the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) relating to climate change science, impacts and adaptation, and mitigation. Their importance and relevance for policy and implementation will be explored. Climate change response policies (adaptation and mitigation) need to be fully integrated into sustainable development strategy. A practical framework called Sustainomics, based on making development more sustainable (MDMS), permits us to address traditional development issues like poverty, food security, health, employment, etc, while simultaneously taking steps to deal with longer term problems such as climate change. CC will undermine SD prospects, and future development paths will affect climate change, in a circular fashion. Synergies between CC and SD may be exploited, while trade-offs need to be resolved. The importance of trans-disciplinary analysis will explained, including the role of scientists and engineers in developing practical solutions. Case studies will be briefly summarized, which illustrate the approach at global/transnational, national/macroeconomic, sectoral/ecosystem, and local/project.

The lecture is based on a recent book Making Development More Sustainable: Sustainomics Framework and Practical Applications? by Mohan Munasinghe. Copies (personally autographed) will be available for sale after the lecture.

More info on the INESPE Lecture Series on the Social Responsibility of Engineers and Scientists at http://inespe.org/lectures. The Lecture Series is organized in collaboration with Center for the Philosophy of Nature and Science Studies at the University of Copenhagen.

30.10.2007

INES Council member Prof. Mohan Munasinghe shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize,

as Vice Chairman of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Media Briefing note
Sri Lankan Prof . Mohan Mungashinghe shares Nobel Peace Prize for 2007

As Vice Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Prof. Mohan Munasinghe shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with other IPCC colleagues and Al Gore, for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change. Prof. Munasinghe is the first Sri Lankan to receive this coveted award.
 The IPCC is a UN "Think Tank" consisting of the world's leading experts on climate change. It was created by the World Metorological Organisation (WMO) and United NationsUnited Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) over 20 years ago. Prof. Munasinghe has contributed to all four of the authoritative assessments on climate change produced by the IPCC in 1990, 1995, 2001 and 2007.

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15.10.2007
International Peace Bureau (IPB) Says:

No Solution to Climate Change without Reclaiming Resources spent on the Military

Geneva, 13 Oct. 2007. The International Peace Bureau congratulates the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Al Gore on the award of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

The work they have done in waking up the world has been decisive said IPB President Tomas Magnusson, especially over the last 12 months - although the scientific work underpinning the case for radical steps to save the planet from climate disaster goes back several decades.

Worldwide climate change is not only a peace question because of the risk of new conflicts that may follow, as stated by the Nobel Committee, but also on account of the enormous negative impact the military itself has on the environment through pollution, use of scarce resources, and diversion of colossal sums of money away from sustainable development.

For Al Gore, under pressure to enter the US Presidential race, the challenge will be to live up to the widespread expectations generated by the new way of thinking, not only on climate issues, but also, for example, in withdrawing the American troops from Iraq.

The IPB is pleased to announce today the publication of a new IPB paper 'A Climate of War' which addresses these issues*. In essence, the argument made in the paper is that there is a real danger that the growing competition for resources (resulting in part from climate change) may cause the leadership of the big powers to claim greater legitimacy for inflated military budgets - and even more dangerous weapons systems. This is absolutely not the way to go. The message of today's Prize is surely that we are all in the same boat and we had better develop peaceful ways of sharing our resources before the boat capsizes.

www.ipb.or

INES is a member organisation of the IPB