Summary

This session introduced IGES’s new initiative, the Asia Pacific Climate Security (APCS) project, and discussed the associated theoretical and practical perspectives. In the framing presentation, the first speaker outlined the development of the climate security debates so far, which is a new climate security initiative that was launched at COP28. The second speaker delivered the keynote speech, which underscored the importance of differentiating vulnerability and insecurity because the locations where climate impacts are being felt are not necessarily the locations where there are security and conflict concerns. Then, the third speaker discussed the human mobility issue in Fiji and the importance of ontological security, stressing that it is important not to overlook local community aspects, such as identity and place attachment. The fourth speaker discussed the complexities associated with guaranteeing food security and underlined the difficulties in articulating policies that ensure local justice, such as gender inequality and contested land rights. The fifth speaker discussed the security and geopolitical implications of the rapid transition to net zero and how traditional notions regarding energy and resource diplomacy need to undergo fundamental changes. In the Q&A, the discussion covered the role of the private sector and the prospects of technological developments.