Toward a New Global Security Paradigm

Amidst accelerating global change, including the triple planetary crisis: global warming, biodiversity loss, and pollution, and shifting geopolitical equations, the global security framework, inherited from the post-WWII era, has become ineffective. It is contributing to a crippling dysfunctionality in international cooperation. The current security framework focuses almost exclusively on a narrow notion of military security. Respective multilateral institutions are insufficient to address mounting social and ecological challenges which increasingly endanger the lives and dignity of all populations.

In this session, we will explore the potential of a novel, global socio-ecological security framework, grounded in a science-informed understanding of both social and biophysical realities, to effectively address the evolving needs and interconnected challenges of the 21st century.

A new socio-ecological security paradigm would be based on the following foundations:

1) Human survival depends on the health of ecosystems. Taming the global change should be an imperative of our collective global security rather than a voluntary act of conservation.

2) Societies where everyone’s basic needs and rights are met are less prone to conflicts.

Ensuring guaranteed access to food, shelter, education, and primary healthcare should be foundational to security, rather than merely a matter of humanitarian crisis management. An essential pre-requisite for embracing socio-ecological security is renewing the global commitment to multilateralism and peace.

In this session, we will explore the feasibility of implementing a socio-ecological security framework. We will examine key mechanisms such as development aid, green finance, and public participation, assessing how these major levers can be effectively utilized. We will also discuss both the practical steps needed for the establishment and maintenance of this framework, as well as the barriers that may hinder its implementation and sustainability.

A window of opportunity still exists to foster a positive security framework enabling sustainable well-being for all as opposed to negative security from the external enemy. Making socio-ecological security a key piece of the post-2030 agenda for sustainable development would be a major step to ensure sustainable well-being for all.