Climate Change and Human Security in the Context of the Global Pandemic: Emphasising Responses that Maximise Synergies

ABSTRACT

COVID-19 has changed the way we understand risk and vulnerability. The pandemic provides a more in-depth understanding of how systemic risks work and how they affect lives, livelihoods and economies at a broader scale. Consequently, a range of impacts was observed, including loss of human health, livelihoods, loss of general wellbeing, protracted poverty and loss of developmental gains. The pandemic has exacerbated social and economic inequalities as most affected are vulnerable groups of people, including the elderly or part-time workers with low-income jobs. The impacts of the pandemic on political decision-making resulted in security consequences spanning national and regional scales. The pandemic directly affected human security as people's ability to live peacefully, free of fear and live with dignity has been severely affected. These pandemic experiences call for revisiting the concepts of human security in developmental planning. With this background in view, the chapter evaluated the nexus between human security, climate change and pandemics. It also provides essential pointers that can help identify suitable policies and practices to promote human security while mitigating climate change and pandemics. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer 2022.