DISASTERS triggered by climate change leave deep scars. The impact is not just about the loss of lives and damage to properties; disasters also threaten social cohesion and exacerbate local economic, sociopolitical, religious, sectarian, and ethnic divides. In Pakistan, these are now being compounded by frequent and severe climate disasters. Emergent climate-triggered conflicts at the community level are complex and of long duration. Addressing them requires fresh approaches, governance systems, and climate-smart and participatory conflict resolution processes.

Climate threats have not spared any region in Pakistan. They manifest themselves in floods, droughts, heatwaves, glacial outbursts, seawater intrusion, and tropical storms. The list is long — and growing. In fact, some areas now face what climate scientists call compound impact disasters; that is, one extreme weather event (EWE) triggering another. The climate-conflict nexus often intensifies resource-based clashes arising from the absence of clear land tenure systems, water insecurity, crop failure, commodity price hikes, and environmental degradation. The last one also reduces the ecosystem’s capacity to support our growing population.

Climate-triggered disasters potentially stoke new or old and simmering community-level tensions that turn into outright conflicts. These are intensified by the slow onset of climate change. Growing social inequalities, low economic growth, displacement, migration, and weak institutions make matters worse.

It must be recognised that climatic change does not always cause conflicts. It does, however, provide the fuel for prevailing environmental, economic, and social factors to turn into conflicts. It is important to recognise that EWEs accelerate the need for adaptation by communities, but also reduce the........

© Dawn