Defense News has just published an article (broken link, see PDF of article here) co-written by CNA’s Sherri Goodman and The Center for Climate and Security’s Francesco Femia and Caitlin Werrell. The commentary seeks to answer the question: What does the appointment of Jens Stoltenberg as the next NATO Secretary General mean for NATO’s climate change mission?
While NATO certainly has its hands full with recent developments in and around Ukraine, it will have to be able to address multiple security risks on multiple fronts. Given that NATO has long recognized that climate change is a threat to security, addressing climate-related risks should not fall too far to the wayside. Stoltenberg has experience in taking firm stances on both traditional matters of national security during his tenure as Prime Minister of Norway, and on climate change as a UN Special Envoy.
With the strong support of key member states like the United States, Germany and the UK, who have also supported addressing the security risks of climate change, the next Secretary General of NATO could make substantial gains in preparing the alliance for these risks. But it won’t be easy.
For more on the opportunities and challenges that await NATO’s next Secretary General, read the article here.
Updated 10/5/2017: The original link to the Defense News article is now broken. A PDF of the article produced by the Center for Climate and Security can be found here.
You rightly written : «NATO secretaries general have taken on climate change before. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer highlighted the threat in 2008 , and in 2009 , Anders Fogh Rasmussen integrated climate concerns into NATO’s 2010 Strategic Concept. And then … nothing very significant happened … » Similar situation in Russia is quite a lot of talk about the risks of climate change , but nobody wants to do anything . Everyone remembers the terrible summer of 2010 , it was very hot , there were multiple foci of fires, destroyed infrastructure , loss of life , etc. In the past, in 2013 , in the east of Russia was unprecedented flooding in the area of the Amur River . Now – there is – formed many fires : burning forests, the people perish . Currently, the scientific and technological potential is sufficient to prevent catastrophic climate change – for humanity – nature . But – there is no political will. I have already drawn attention to the fact that (IMHO) the most active and visionary man – to solve the problems and future challenges – is the Secretary of State, John Kerry. His initiatives to real efforts to reduce or – even – Elimination of risks from climate change , are already encouraging. Once again, I believe that it is necessary to initiate a rewarding Secretary of State, John Kerry, the Nobel Peace Prize . This action will draw additional attention to the human and practical issues facing shifting of . As for the new NATO Secretary General – very useful that Jens Stoltenberg is a native of Norway. This country first affected if changes in the Atlantic ( which is already happening ) circuit currents : instead of 8 -shaped ring will be two currents, and Norway would be – rather quickly – unfit for human life