Discussing the Natural Resources-Conflict Nexus
by Michael S. Wilson-Becerril, Colgate University | @mwilsonbecerril
Each year, hundreds of people around the Global South die resisting and contesting resource extraction. While reports attending to this matter are growing, the phenomenon itself is not particularly new. Indeed, violent extractivism is central to the project of Western modernity.
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by Jan Sändig, SFB 923, University of Tübingen
Land grabbing has been widely discussed in recent years. It seems quite evident why: Corporate investment in farmland has increased significantly and severely impacted many local communities. But this is only one reason why land grabbing has become a prominent topic. As I discuss in this article, it has also been “successfully” made visible by activists.
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by Julia Renner, University of Koblenz-Landau
“The water levels are currently enormous, but local people lack adequate provision of water!” This observation struck me during my field research around Lake Naivasha in Kenya. Therefore, enlarging the research puzzle on the water-conflict nexus, I investigate how water shortages at water abundant areas impact low-key conflicts in Kenya.
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by Janpeter Schilling1, Christina Saulich2 & Nina Engwicht3
How do global schemes of resource certification and global demand for valuable resources like diamonds and land influence local conflicts? How do local resource and conflict dynamics influence global processes related to resource demand and certification? To address these questions, we have edited a special issue in the journal Conflict, Security and Development that introduces a local to global framework to examine resource governance and conflicts across scales.
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by Sören Köpke, University of Braunschweig – Institute of Technology
The conflict dimensions of large-scale land acquisitions and water management issues have gained a lot of scholarly attention over the last decade. A small, but growing research community is investigating the social consequences of extractive industries. There is a need for integrative approaches bringing these topics together – inquiries into the food-water-energy-mining nexus. Read more
by Tobias Ide, Georg Eckert Institute & TU Braunschweig
Adrien Detges, adelphi, Berlin
The links between climate change and conflict receive increasing scholarly attention. But which places are analysed most frequently by researchers working on the issue? Read more
by Louisa Prause, Freie Universität Berlin
The term ‘shrinking spaces’ describes state actions that aim to restrict civil societies’ activities. In this article I investigate in how far spaces for civil society action are also influenced by changes in land control by looking at two cases of large-scale land transformations in Senegal. Read more
by Sandra Koch, Green Scenery/AGEH-Civil Peace Service
Christian Schulze, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Sierra Leone
In Sierra Leone, the livelihoods of the majority of the population, particularly the rural poor, are based on secure and equitable access to land, fisheries and forests. Increasing pressure on these resources in the last decade alongside their highly unequal distribution have contributed to disputes and conflict over access and user rights, which were already a key driver of the Sierra Leone civil war from 1991-2002. Read more
Jun. Prof. Dr. Janpeter Schilling attended the UN World Climate Conference (COP23) in Bonn. In the interview with R&C he shares his impressions and assesses the progress made at the conference. Read more
by Linda Wallbott & Judith Kreuter, Institute of Political Science / Technische Universität Darmstadt
Renewable energies are often regarded as a silver bullet to abundant social and ecological problems, amongst them the rising energy-hunger and the challenges of anthropogenic climate change. However, the transition towards renewable energies is paved with conflict – be they discursive contestation, resource competition (including access to land), or concerning policy aims and trade-offs. Read more
