Communiqué
Dr. Geoffrey Dabelko Links Climate-Change with Worldwide Fragilities
By: Tom Hodson
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Dr. Geoffrey Dabelko, Professor and Director of the Environmental Studies Program at the Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs, has just completed a G-7 commissioned report on climate change and fragility risks.
The report was commissioned by the G-7 and involved scholars from the United States, France, Germany and Great Britain.
The report has received high praise from governmental officials and diplomats across the globe for connecting climate change to other problems facing people.
United States Secretary of State John Kerry acclaims the report saying: “The analysis starkly demonstrates that climate change can increase the risk of instability and conflict across the globe. Prolonged and severe droughts have contributed to conflict, from Syria to Mali. Rising seas are already threatening low-lying lands, from Bangladesh to the Pacific and Caribbean Islands. It also underscores that those countries already struggling with fragility and conflict are often those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.”
The report identifies seven risks where climate change combines with other issues to create potential disasters. The report, however, also offers specific recommendations for solutions.
Dr. Dabelko spoke with WOUB’s Tom Hodson to explain the report and also to talk about the debate over climate change in the USA.
Dabelko also lauds the latest encyclical from the Pope that connects climate change to issues of poverty, equity, consumption and intergenerational equity.