The Mediterranean Basin is extremely vulnerable to climate change. It is already experiencing the effects of higher-than-average temperatures and the increasing incidence of extreme events such as unprecedented heat waves, severe droughts, and major floods. A new book co-written by Ecologic Fellow Katriona McGlade examines the water-related impacts of climate and global change in the UNESCO Intercontinental Biosphere Reserve of the Mediterranean (IBRM) that straddles Spain and Morocco.

Climate change has and will continue to have far-reaching impacts on environmental, social and economic conditions. Increasingly, climate change and the associated increase in the frequency of extreme weather events such as floods, droughts and rising sea level is recognized as not only having humanitarian impacts, but also creating political and security risks that can affect national/regional stability and the welfare of people. This report presents a comprehensive regional assessment of these questions in the CLICO study area – the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Sahel – and is available for download.

The Mediterranean, Middle East, and Sahel regions form a climate change "hot spot" that is expected to experience large climatic changes, with negative consequences for human security in the region. A new report by Ecologic Institute provides insights and recommendations on the policies and institutions needed to address water-related risks to human security and also prevent or reduce potential conflicts over water that may be caused or exacerbated by climate change. Effective climate change adaptation approaches are identified, and recommendations are given for policy makers at the EU and national level as well as for donors and actors at the international level. The report is now available for download.

The final policy brief of the European Union research project "Climate Change, Hydro-conflicts and Human Security" (CLICO) presents the results of three years of research in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and the Sahel (MMES). It also gives policy recommendations. The policy brief is available for download.

The wide scope of the United Nations system permits coverage of a wide range of issues, but encounters challenges with institutional coordination, conflicting state interests and limited control over national or sub-national developments. Cross-sectoral work on climate, water, human security and conflict is limited, but improving. Overall, initiatives focusing on information collection and sharing, capacity-building and promoting cooperation are considered to have the highest potential for addressing climate and water-related human insecurity and conflict. The case study is available for download.

This case study reviews the effectiveness of EU-level policies and measures for addressing the impacts of climate change on water, conflict and human security. It draws attention to gaps in the current policy framework and outlines actors' expectations and demands for a future framework. The case study is available for download.

This case study provides an overview of the current policy framework in Morocco for addressing the impacts of climate change on water, conflict and human security. It presents insights into the effectiveness of Moroccan policies and examines actors' expectations and demands for a future policy framework. The case study is available for download.

This case study analyses policy-frameworks in Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territory (oPT) which are relevant for addressing water-related impacts of climate change that could have negative impact on human security and conflict. The effectiveness of these policy frameworks is analyzed, based mainly on interviews with Israeli and Palestinian experts. The case study is available for download.

This case study for Ethiopia is a contribution to the study "Current policy frameworks for addressing climate-induced risks to human security and conflict – an assessment of their effectiveness and future perspectives".

This is the short version of a longer analysis of the effectiveness of policy frameworks for addressing hydro-climatic hazards and their impacts on human security and conflict, which is based mainly on interviews conducted with policy-makers and experts in Ethiopia, Morocco, Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territories (oPT), as well as representatives of the EU and the UN. This short version is available for download.

The Ecologic Institute report is based, inter alia, on over 70 interviews conducted with policy-makers and experts in Ethiopia, Morocco, Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territories (oPT), as well as representatives of the EU and the UN. The report assesses not only the effectiveness of existing measures for addressing hydro-climatic risks, but also collects perspectives on how these policies should develop.

The EU-funded research project "Climate Change, Hydro-conflicts and Human Security" (CLICO) investigates how climate change influences water, human security, and conflicts in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and the Sahel region. Ecologic Institute recently published a working paper written by Elizabeth Tedsen that examines current initiatives of the European Union and United Nations relating to these themes of climate, water, human security, and conflict.

The third policy brief of the EU-funded research project "Climate Change, Hydro-conflicts and Human Security" (CLICO) presents preliminary results on the relationship between climate change and conflicts related to water in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Sahel region. The policy brief, written by Christiane Gerstetter and Rodrigo Vidaurre of Ecologic Institute, and a summary in eight different languages are available for download.

Using a case study approach, selected policies have been reviewed in specific countries in the Mediterranean, Middle East and Sahel region region; case studies of individual strategies and initiatives were also conducted at the United Nations and European Union level. As the case studies have shown, very few policies today explicitly address the link between climate change, water, human security and conflict or cooperation. Of the few policies that explicitly address the link, most are located at the international level. However, at the national level, some adaptation and sectoral policies do address risks for human security linked to water and climate change in more indirect manners, such as water user associations in Egypt or an agricultural insurance scheme in Turkey.

Together with more than 10 partners from the EU and the Middle East, Ecologic Institute is carrying out the EU-funded research project on "Climate change, hydro-conflicts and human security" (CLICO). CLICO investigates how climate change influences water availability and, consequently, human security and conflicts in the Mediterranean region. The 2nd CLICO policy brief, written by Ecologic Institute, is available for download.