Regional dynamics of environment and security in post-conflict states

There has been little research carried out on the regional dimensions of linkages among various forms of environmental stress; security issues such as civil war, riots and state failure; and strategies for effective prevention, early warning and response. But the critical mass of the sources of many forms of environmental stress, the capacity to adapt to and mitigate these, and their social effects, rarely aligns at the local level and within established political boundaries. So while many serious outcomes - civil war, government breakdown, population displacement - may be highly localized, the level of analysis most appropriate to understanding and problem-solving may be a regional one. Developing this perspective would contribute to both our understanding of these relationships and to the formulation of effective policies and other responses. This contribution is based on a set of reflections presented at the REGov Workshop. These reflections were offered as part of a panel discussion around the topic "Regional security and the environment." Additional presentations provided in the context of this panel discussion include those of Saleem Ali, University of Vermont (this volume) and Benedikt Korf, University of Zurich (this volume). Webcasts of all presentations are available at http://www.reg-observatory.org/outputs.html. (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd.