Menu

United States Institute of Peace

Home ▶ Events

The Climate Challenges of South Asia’s Megacities

Date: Tuesday, April 27, 2021 / Time: 9:00am - 10:30am EDT

Center: Asia Center

Share This
Print the Page

South Asia is home to over 1.8 billion people, many of whom live in extreme poverty in megacities or urban centers with over 10 million inhabitants. These urban centers are increasingly suffering from the pressures of climate change and contribute immensely to environmental degradation in the region. These environmental stresses exacerbate the dynamics of violent conflict by affecting livelihoods, widening social fissures, and increasing the displacement of communities dependent on natural resources — with religious, ethnic and political minorities at the receiving end of the worst impacts.

On April 27, USIP held a discussion on the growing stress faced by urban centers in South Asia due to climate change. Experts discussed how megacities are contributing to environmental degradation and societal conflict, as well as addressed what policies might best combat these challenges and reflect on President Biden’s latest climate change summit. 

Continue the conversation on Twitter with #SAsiaClimate.

Panelists

Aditya Bahadur
Principal Researcher, Human Settlements Group, International Institute for Environment and Development (India)

Sara Hayat
Environmental Lawyer and Asia Foundation Fellow (Pakistan)

Huraera Jabeen
Consultant, World Bank (Bangladesh)

Jumaina Siddiqui, moderator
Senior Program Officer, South Asia, U.S. Institute of Peace

Related Publications

A Delicate Balance: Promoting Nuclear Energy While Preventing Proliferation

A Delicate Balance: Promoting Nuclear Energy While Preventing Proliferation

Thursday, November 21, 2024

By: Brittany Croll;  Andrew Cheatham

As global energy demands intensify and the urgency of addressing climate shocks mounts, the role of nuclear energy has come to the forefront of discussions for governments, businesses and those concerned about sustainable development. Just last week, the Biden administration released a plan to triple U.S. nuclear capacity by 2050. While nuclear energy promises efficiency gains and significant emissions reductions, public opinion remains divided about the tradeoffs of increased investment, the safety risks and the implications for international security. This puts the U.S. at a crossroads as it tries to navigate its role in a world with new demands for nuclear energy and heightened risks of conflict between nuclear-armed states. Such risks were highlighted this week when Russia lowered its nuclear threshold in response to new U.S. authorizations for Ukraine to use long-range weapons.

Type: Analysis

Environment;  Global Policy

Why Early Warnings Are Critical for Climate Action and Conflict Prevention

Why Early Warnings Are Critical for Climate Action and Conflict Prevention

Tuesday, November 19, 2024

By: Brittany Croll;  Cassandra Schneider

Amid a changing climate, understanding the interplay between extreme environmental events and conflict is only growing more important. Droughts, floods and other natural disasters can exacerbate socioeconomic vulnerabilities, highlight weaknesses in governance, disrupt livelihoods and increase perceptions of marginalization.

Type: Analysis

Environment;  Violent Extremism

Back to the Future? Kazakhstan’s Nuclear Choice

Back to the Future? Kazakhstan’s Nuclear Choice

Thursday, October 17, 2024

By: Gavin Helf, Ph.D.

Although Kazakhstan denuclearized over three decades ago when it split from the Soviet Union, the Central Asian nation held a referendum on October 6 over whether it should build a nuclear power plant. With 73% voting yes, the referendum could reverberate beyond Kazakhstan and the Central Asia region. Safe nuclear power would be a boon for Kazakhstan, decreasing its reliance on fossil fuels while increasing economic resilience and helping it to address its immense climate change challenges. There are also important U.S. interests at stake here. The U.S. and Western allies should constructively engage with Kazakhstan, including helping to build a new reactor, to avoid Russian or Chinese control of Kazakhstan’s new nuclear energy sector and its valuable uranium resources.

Type: Analysis

Environment;  Global Policy

How U.S. Leadership Can Elevate the Food-Climate-Security Nexus

How U.S. Leadership Can Elevate the Food-Climate-Security Nexus

Wednesday, October 16, 2024

By: Brittany Croll;  Erin Sikorsky;  Tom Ellison;  Siena Cicarelli

Today, environmental, economic and political shocks have pushed more than 250 million people into food insecurity. Climate change, extreme weather events, conflict, and supply and distribution issues are impacting what the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) considers the four pillars of food security: availability, access, utilization and stability. Food insecurity can lead to social unrest, economic instability and political challenges — impacting individual countries and broader regions. Unpredictability and disruptions in food systems can open the door for food to be wielded as a weapon or source of influence by state and non-state actors. Along with the worrying human toll, these dynamics have important implications for U.S. and global security, which means that increasing the ability of global food systems to withstand these acute and slow-onset shocks is a U.S. security imperative.

Type: Analysis

Environment

View All Publications