Canada has the fourth-largest tar sands (oil deposits) in the world. Separating the bitumen used in industries and construction creates large volumes of toxic wastewater, which is stored in tailings ponds that now cover a staggering 270 square kilometers. Unresolved infrastructure mishaps at one such site in Alberta operated by Imperial Oil means that contaminants have polluted nearby waters so significantly that it has affected public health and the livelihoods of indigenous communities in downstream areas.
As a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Canada has been influential in the integration of climate change policy with the alliance’s mission. It supported the development of NATO’s Climate Change and Security Action Plan aligning with the alliance’s core tasks of deterrence and defense, crisis prevention and management, and cooperative security. Following the Canadian proposal 2021, Global Affairs Canada and the Department of National Defense jointlylead NATO’s Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence (CCASCOE) to research and identify best practices to address climate change and security-related challenges.
Mildred is a fish trader in Kenya. I met her a few years ago, when I was conducting research. (“Mildred” is not her real name; I promised all my participants anonymity as I worked.) She mentors, trains, and educates young women on how to dry, gut, fry fish, and run successful fish businesses.
Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group, recently released a report outlining the plight of Latin American Indigenous communities battling against international mining corporations. The study details several examples of transgressions, including an episode from the early 2000s involving Bear Creek, a Canadian mining company awarded a license to explore Indigenous Aymara territories. Their activities sparked organized protests, road blockades, and even violent clashes with police that resulted in deaths and injuries—and forced Peru’s government to revoke Bear Creek’s license.
The Guna Indigenous people of Gardi Sugdub—an island in Panama’s San Blas Archipelago—are moving to new mainland homes in Carti Port’s Isber Yala neighborhood. This move is part of a larger relocation effort supported by the country’s government since 2010 to address the impacts of climate change on its indigenous peoples.
In today’s episode of New Security Broadcast, ECSP’s Claire Doyle and Angus Soderberg speak with Dr. Mizan Khan, Technical Lead at the Least Developed Countries Universities Consortium on Climate Change. Dr. Khan was formerly the Deputy Director at the International Center for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD), a research institute based in Bangladesh.
Dr. Khan describes Bangladesh’s vulnerability to climate change and its unique role as an adaptation leader. He also discusses what he believes the core principles of the Loss and Damage Fund should be, and the legacy of the late Dr. Saleemul Huq.
Today’s episode of New Security Broadcast is hosted by ECSP in collaboration with the Environmental Peacebuilding Association as part of a special series: “Thought-leaders and Frontline Workers in Environmental Peacebuilding: An Oral History.” The series features interviews with academics, practitioners, and frontline workers to trace the history and evolution of the field of environmental peacebuilding.
Freshwater consumption is growing at a steady rate, driven largely by agriculture, yet roughly 50% of the world’s population experiences severe water scarcity for at least part of the year. Poor water quality in low-income countries is attributable to low wastewater treatment, whereas in high-income countries, agricultural runoff does the damage. Extreme droughts or heavy rainfall, exacerbated by climate change, also have worsened in frequency and intensity, creating a deepening impact on global water security.