Climate Change

Just Security’s expert authors offer in-depth analysis of the legal, security, diplomatic, and human rights dimensions of climate change. Articles span topics related to international agreements, climate-related displacement, the national security risks of climate change, and climate litigation in international, regional, and domestic courts and tribunals.

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180 Articles
Silhouette of President Donald Trump outside the White House in the evening.

The United States in Retreat

Whatever the modest cost-savings that are generated by this U.S. withdrawal from the multilateral system, the loss of long-term influence will be far greater.
The U.S. Capitol Building against a sunset

Nine Stories That Deserved More Attention in 2025 – and Might Shape 2026

What stories or topics merited more attention in 2025, and which might inform law and policy conversations in 2026?
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (C) speaks alongside Environment Minister Marina Silva (R), COP30 President Andre Correa do Lago (2nd L), and COP30 CEO Ana Toni during a press conference

COP 30 in Belem: The COP of Surprises

The U.S. State Department's former lead climate lawyer analyzes the many surprising and unusual aspects of COP 30 negotiations in Belem.
A photo of the clouds and sun

As Solar Geoengineering Enters its Startup Phase, Governments Must Address Emerging Security Risks

Without regulation, the dangers of solar radiation modification will become magnified and the security risks more unchecked.

Help Support Just Security on Giving Tuesday

This Giving Tuesday, you can help us inform a more just and secure world.
The band members march toward the left of the photo, wearing red jackets and black pants with red stripes and playing instruments including a tuba, as a red, yellow and green Ethiopian flag flies in the background in front of the dam, with water flowing down its slope.

The Brewing Egypt-Ethiopia Nile River Conflict is Ripe for “Solving”

An agreement to resolve the dam conflict has long been drafted. Trump could be the "closer" engaging Presidents Abiy and el-Sisi for a deal.
Brazilian indigenous people and others take part in a demonstration called by Stop Ecocide International (SEI) for the recognition of ecocide as an international crime, on October 20, 2022 outside the European Council in Brussels where EU leaders were gathered for a summit. (Photo by KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images)

Attacks on Nature, Atrocities Against People: The Case for Environmental Harm as a 12th Crime Against Humanity

Addressing the global environmental crisis requires urgent action, and this new treaty offers States an unprecedented opportunity to confront it directly and decisively.

Xi’s Climate Announcement: A Disappointment, Not a Breakthrough

China’s climate announcement — coupled with the U.S. withdrawal — has alarmed many in terms of the viability of the Paris Agreement’s temperature goal. 
Marshall Islands president Hilda Heine speaks during the General Debate of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York City on September 24, 2025. (Photo by Leonardo MUNOZ / AFP) (Photo by LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images)

A Human Rights Approach to Nuclear Regimes: Lessons from the Legacy of Nuclear Testing in the Marshall Islands

Acknowledgement and respect for human rights can encourage States, like the Marshall Islands, to join and actively participate in nuclear regimes.
People walk past the United Nations (UN) headquarters in Manhattan

Washington’s Multilateral Retreat Creates an Opening for State and Local Leaders

U.S. state and local leaders can fill voids left as the Trump administration cuts and even exits multilateral organizations.
In this aerial view, a forklift puts boxes of peaches on to a truck after they were harvested from the last crop off of the trees at a peach orchard on July 24, 2023 in Fort Valley, Georgia. Due to weather extremes earlier in the year, their peach season, which usually ends in August, concluded early. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

America’s Climate Diplomacy Challenge and the Path to Rebuilding Credibility

For international climate diplomacy to succeed, it cannot be tethered to partisan swings in Washington.
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Himalayan Water Disputes Awaken the Tensions and Promises of the UN Watercourses Convention

States should promote water security and minimize geopolitical risk by reading the UN Watercourses Convention as a baseline for all nations to follow.
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