GCSP Side Event Paris Peace Forum
An event brought to you by the GCSP Alumni and Community Hub France
In an era defined by accelerating climate change, the traditional boundaries of peacebuilding and security are shifting. From rising sea levels to desertification, resource scarcity to extreme weather events, climate instability is no longer just an environmental issue, it becomes a geopolitical and security imperative. This side event, organised in the framework of the Paris Peace Forum’s 2025 theme “New Coalitions for Peace, People, and the Planet,” will explore how diplomacy and defense must adapt to the realities of a warming planet.
As climate shocks exacerbate tensions within and between states, the world needs new models of cooperation. The panel will bring together voices from diplomacy, defense, and regional cooperation to explore how innovative coalitions across sectors, disciplines, and borders can strengthen resilience, reduce the risk of conflict and sustain peace in a resource-constrained future.
The session will focus on the following discussion axes:
- How climate vulnerability is/has to be integrated in national security.
- How armed forces are preparing for climate-driven operations (disaster response, climate migration, infrastructure protection...).
- How diplomacy and foreign policy evolves in a resource-scarce era (conflict prevention, agreements...).
Contribution 1 - “Integrating Climate Vulnerability into National Security”
Speaker: Mr Jack Radisch, Public Governance Directorate, High Level Risk Forum, OECD
- Theme: Climate change reshapes geopolitical realities; its impacts are increasingly recognised as critical security challenges.
- Key Ideas:
- Understanding how environmental stressors such as resource scarcity, migration, and extreme weather can exacerbate conflicts and threaten stability.
- Governance models and diplomatic tools to address climate-related risks within national and multilateral security frameworks.
- Embedding Climate-Security Foresight into national, regional, and institutional strategies.
Contribution 2 – Geostrategic/Defense Perspective
Speaker: Mr Bastien Alex, Climate Advisor to the Major General of the French Armed Forces
- Theme: How climate instability reshapes defense planning and military cooperation.
- Key Ideas:
- Armed forces preparing for climate-driven operations (disaster response, humanitarian relief, climate migration).
- Military bases, logistics, and infrastructure threatened by rising seas/extreme weather.
- Climate cooperation as a new vector for defense diplomacy (e.g., joint exercises, humanitarian missions).
Contribution 3 - Sand, Water, and Peace: Pathways to Regional Cooperation in the Middle East
Speaker: Ms Shirin Golkar, Secretary General, Swiss MENA Chamber of Commerce
- Theme: How climate-driven environmental stressors (water scarcity, drying wetlands, sand and dust storms) disrupt security and stability in the Middle East.
- Key Ideas:
- “Sand and dust diplomacy” as a cross-border cooperation framework.
- Transboundary water disputes as emerging political flashpoints.
- Coalitions across defense and diplomacy to strengthen resilience and early warning systems.
Moderator:
- Ms Céline Giuliani, Strategist Global Governance and Policymaking
Welcome:
- Ms Isabelle Gillet, Head GCSP Alumni & Community Engagement Office, GCSP, Geneva
Conference Lead:
- Ms Manon Frezouls, Institutional Relations Manager, Youth Negotiators Academy
