This is the website of the Arms, Militarism and Climate Justice working group, an informal network of researchers and activists committed to ending militarisation of the climate crisis.
We have been meeting regularly since 2021. Since 2022, our working group has been under the umbrella of the Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice as we seek to build stronger links between the peace and climate justice movements.
We meet every other month to share information and analysis and to collaborate on joint areas of work including events and advocacy initiatives.
Participating organisations
We are not a formal network or coalition and are open to any groups committed to our overall goal. Our current active organisations with their respective area of focus and expertise include:
Stop Wapenhandel –
Dutch campaign against the Arms Trade
(Lead Coordinator)
- Climate and Militarism
- Climate change and arms trade
Resources
Websites
- Militaryemissions.org
A website run by CEOBS and Concrete Impacts dedicated to tracking, analysing and closing the military emissions gap. - Climate Change and the Military, Scientists for Global Responsibility
https://www.sgr.org.uk/index.php/projects/climate-change-military - Military and the Environment, Conflict and Environment Observatory
https://ceobs.org/topics/military-and-the-environment/ - Climate and Militarism, Institute for Policy Studies
https://ips-dc.org/climate-militarism-primer/
Abbreviated version of this resource available in Spanish:
https://www.nationalpriorities.org/analysis/2020/no-warming-no-war/en-espanol-no-mas-calentamiento-no-mas-guerra/ - Climate security – militarisation of climate adaptation, Transnational Institute
https://www.tni.org/en/topic/climate-security - Extinction Rebellion Peace
https://xrpeace.org/resources/ - CODEPINK – War is Not Green
https://www.codepink.org/wing - Transform Defence – An ongoing series of reports and briefing on military spending, climate emergency and sustainable human safety
https://transformdefence.org/publication/ - A project of WILPF US exposing the Military as Hidden Polluter of Water and Food with PFAS – https://www.militarypoisons.org/
Briefings and reports
-
- Lin, H.C., Buxton, N., Akkerman, M., Burton, D., de Vries, W. (2023): Climate Crossfire: How NATO’s 2% spending targets contribute to climate breakdown, Transnational Institute, Tipping Point North South, StopWapenhandel, Centre Delas https://www.tni.org/en/publication/climate-crossfire
- Philipson, D. (2023), Feminist Interventions: Resisting the Militarization of the Climate Crisis. A Focus on the US and EU, Women’s Environment and Development Organization and Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy. https://wedo.org/security-for-whom-new-report-on-feminist-perspectives-on-militarism-climate/
- QCEA (2023), Storytelling from the Frontlines: Forefronting the voices of communities most affected by militarism and the climate crisis
- Madzimure, E. (2023), A Climate of Insecurity: How Militarism Has Impoverished the African Continent, Placing it at the Epicentre of the Climate Crisis, WILPF. https://www.wilpf.org/publications/a-climate-of-insecurity-how-militarism-has-impoverished-the-african-continent-placing-it-at-the-epicentre-of-the-climate-crisis/
- Akkerman, M., Burton, D., Buxton, N. Lin, H.C., Al-Kashef, M., de Vries, W. (2022), Climate Collateral: How military spending accelerates climate breakdown, Transnational Institute/Stop Wapenhandel/Tipping Point North South. https://www.tni.org/en/publication/climate-collateral
- Parkinson, S and Cottrell, L. (2022), Estimating the military’s global greenhouse gas emissions, Scientists for Global Responsibility and Conflict and Environment Observatory. https://ceobs.org/estimating-the-militarys-global-greenhouse-gas-emissions/
- Bohigas, X. et al. (2022), Transnational corporations, warmongering and the climate crisis, Centre Delas. http://centredelas.org/publicacions/bellicismeiemergenciaclimatica/?lang=en
- Bond, P (2022), Beyond Sub-Imperial War, ‘Blood Methane’, and Climate-Debt Denialism: South Africa’s Pro-Military Lobby Risks Worsening Multiple Injustices in Northern Mozambique, The Thinker https://www.researchgate.net
- Rune, J. (2022) What is the US military doing with the climate crisis?
- TPNS/Transform Defence (2022) Military and Conflict-Related Emissions: Kyoto to Glasgow and Beyond
- TPNS/Transform Defence (2022) Stockholm+50 and Global Military Emissions
- Yeltekin, D. (2022) Militarised adaptation? How the Global South is adopting climate-security approaches, Transnational Institute. https://www.tni.org/en/publication/militarised-adaptation
- Buxton, N. (2021), Primer on Climate Security: the dangers of militarising the climate crisis, Transnational Institute. https://www.tni.org/en/publication/primer-on-climate-security
- QCEA (2021) Climate, Peace and Human Rights: Are European policies coherent?
- Meulewaeter, C. et al. (2020) Militarism and Environmental Crisis: a necessary reflection, Centre Delas. http://centredelas.org/publicacions/militarismandenvironmentalcrisis/?lang=en
- Belcher, O. (2020), Hidden carbon costs of the ‘everywhere war’ : logistics, geopolitical ecology, and the carbon boot‐print of the US military, Durham University, https://dro.dur.ac.uk/28618/
- Parkinson, S (2020, The environmental impacts of the UK military sector, Scientists for Global Responsibility. https://www.sgr.org.uk/publications/environmental-impacts-uk-military-sector
- Svenska Freds (2020), Frikortet – en Granskning av Foersvarets Klimatarbete, (Swedish only):
- TPNS/Transform Defence (2020) Indefensible: The true cost of the global military to our climate and human security
- TPNS/Transform Defence (2020) Global military spending, sustainable human safety and value for money
- Parkinson, S. and Cottrell, L. (2020), Under the radar: Carbon footprint of Europe’s military sectors, Scientists for Global Responsibility and Conflict and Environment Observatory, Available at https://www.sgr.org.uk/publications/under-radar-carbon-footprint-europe-s-military-sectors
- Crawford, N. (2019), Pentagon Fuel Use, Climate Change, and the Costs of War, Watson Institute, Brown University. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/papers/ClimateChangeandCostofWar
- Steichen, L. & Koshgarian, L. (2019) No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis — and Vice Versa, Institute for Policy Studies. Available at https://ips-dc.org/climate-militarism-primer/
- Smith, L. (2019) The Environmental Consequences of Asymmetric War: A Panel Study of Militarism and carbon Emissions, 2000-2010, https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X19832615
- Bradford, J. (2017). The Treadmill of Destruction in Comparative Perspective:A Panel Study of Military Spending and Carbon Emissions, 1960-2014. https://tinyurl.com/2hr98d
- Lorincz (2014), Demilitarization for deep decarbonization, International Peace Bureau. Available at http://www.ipb.org/books/demilitarization-for-deep-decarbonization-reducing-militarism-and-military-expenditures/
Media articles
- World’s militaries avoiding scrutiny over emissions, scientists say (2021, The Guardian)
- Scorched Earth: The climate impact of conflict (DW, 2021)
- Machines of War Take a Heavy Toll on Ukraine—and the Planet (Wired, 2022)
- Imagine If We Had Spent the Last 20 Years Fighting Climate Change Instead of the War on Terror (In These Times, 2021)
- Congress Plans Climate Resiliency—But Mostly for the Military (The Intercept, 2021)
- Climate Change Can’t Be an Excuse for More Militarization (Gizmodo, 2021)
- How the US Military Fuels Climate Change (Boston Globe, 2021)
- This coastal town needs federal aid for climate adaptation. Instead it’ll get a military truck. (Grist, 2021)
- Ukraine war threatens climate targets (DW,2022)
Books
- Buxton N. & Hayes B. (2015), How the Military and Corporations are preparing for a climate-changed world (Pluto Press): https://www.tni.org/en/publication/the-secure-and-the-dispossessed
- Crawford, N. (2022), The Pentagon, Climate Change and War: Charting the rise of US military emissions, MIT Press: https://direct.mit.edu/books/book/5413/The-Pentagon-Climate-Change-and-WarCharting-the
- Dalby, S. (2022), Rethinking Environmental Security, Edward Elgar Publishing: https://www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/rethinking-environmental-security-9781800375840.html
Videos
Abby Martin confronts Nancy Pelosi over Military Emissions at COP26
Climate change, militarism and war: Reelnews documentary
COP26: Countdown to Glasgow Webinar
Movement for the Abolition of War: Extinguish War and save the Earth
The Plan (theplandocumentary.com)
Ice Sculpture Video “Global Military, Big Oil & Climate Change”
Climate change and the military: tracking their carbon emissions
No War, No Warming – COP 26 GGJ Alliance
War Helps Fuel the Climate Crisis, Democracy Now!
Is COP26 enough? Peace, Militarism and the Climate Crisis: A Missing Piece
How The Military Pollutes Our Planet and Gets Away With It
Downloadable resources
- IPPNW-Germany Information-Leaflet “Risks & Side-Effects of the Military and War”
- IPPNW-Germany Information-Leaflet “Risks & Side-Effects of Nuclear Energy”
- Global Campaign on Military Spending (UK) “Militarism Fuels Climate Crisis” (A6 booklet)
- IPS Climate and Militarism Graphics
- TPNS Transform Defence COP26 Resources (ice video, visuals, open letters and reports)
Frequently Asked Questions
Coming soon
Online actions
To Join
If you would like to join the network, email w.de.vries [AT] stopwapenhandel.org. Please note we don’t have a secretariat or staff so the network has limited capacity and runs on the collaborative goodwill of its member organisations.
Transnational Institute also runs an informational listserv on the intersection of climate and militarism / security. To join the list, please email us using the contact form below:
Contact
To follow-up, you can either contact one of the organisations most actively working on these issues – see participating organisations or fill in this form: