DSPO 25A90 - Environmental change, governance, and conflicts: Towards critical analyses
DSPO 25A90 · Fall semester 2026-2027
- Language of tuition
- English
- Course type
- Cours séminaire
- Number of hours
- 24
- Credits
- 5
Information
Description
The post-Cold War world has been grappling with two connected challenges. Firstly, civil wars increasingly occupied the political and academic spotlight. Secondly, interest in environmental issues led to numerous studies of human-nature relations. At their intersection, research on the impact of environmental change on civil conflicts emerged.
The seminar introduces students to research on the links between the environment and internal conflicts. It blends theories and concrete cases to
Map the issues, stakeholders and levels relevant to studying and addressing environmental conflicts.
Understand and critique existing research.
Identify and assess policy interventions in conflict-affected settings.
Reflect on the future of research and policy.
The course provides students willing to specialize in environment- and conflict-related issues with subject-relevant analytical, research, and communication skills.
Prerequisites
No prior subject-specific knowledge is required. For each seminar, students will read and analyze academic and policy texts (scholarly articles, reports, etc.) and prepare questions and arguments in view of class activities.
To prepare for the first seminar session, students will read and reflect on Busby (2018) and Kaplan (1994) (see reference list).
Teaching format
The course is taught over 12 weekly, 2-hour seminars. Each session will combine engagement with foundational concepts in the study of the role of environmental issues in internal conflicts, and practical application through case studies, simulations and other forms of discussion based on a corpus of essential and recommended readings.
Assessment
Group project critically analyzing one the seminar topics, presented orally in-class (30%) and using a visual aid (15%); final in-class essay in which students will choose and answer a question related to different aspects of the seminar (40%); student engagement and participation in class exercises and discussions (15%).
Readings
Main readings 5
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Beaumont, P. et de Coning, C. (2022) « Coping with complexity: Toward epistemological pluralism in climate–conflict scholarship », International Studies Review, 24(4), p. 1‑29
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Busby, J. (2018) ‘Warming world: Why climate change matters more than anything else’, Foreign Affairs, 97(4), pp. 49–55
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Ide, T. (2016) « Toward a constructivist understanding of socio-environmental conflicts », Civil Wars, 18(1), p. 69‑90
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Kaplan, R.D. (1994) ‘The coming anarchy’, The Atlantic, 1 February
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Peluso, N.L. and Watts, M.W. (eds) Violent environments. Ithaca: Cornell University Press
Further readings 13
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Abrahams, D. et Carr, E.R. (2017) « Understanding the connections between climate change and conflict: Contributions from geography and political ecology », Current Climate Change Reports, 3(4), p. 233‑242
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Ash, K. and Obradovich, N. (2020) ‘Climatic stress, internal migration, and Syrian civil war onset’, Journal of Conflict Resolution, 64(1), pp. 3–31
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Bobo, T. (2026) ‘Territory and nature in Zapatista discourse: Social movements, conflict and the environment’, in K. Bell, E. Foster, and S. Satheesh (eds) The Sage handbook of eco-social policy and politics. London; Thousand Oaks; Gurugram; Singapore: Sage, pp. 407–426
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Collier, P. and Hoeffler, A. (2004) ‘Greed and grievance in civil war’, Oxford Economic Papers, 56(4), pp. 563–595
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Gleditsch, N.P. (1998) ‘Armed conflict and the environment: A critique of the literature’, Journal of Peace Research, 35(3), pp. 381–400
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Hernández, C., Perales, H. and Jaffee, D. (2022) ‘“Without food there is no resistance”: The impact of the Zapatista conflict on agrobiodiversity and seed sovereignty in Chiapas, Mexico’, Geoforum, 128, pp. 236–250
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Homer-Dixon, T.F. and Blitt, J. (eds) Ecoviolence: Links among environment, population and security. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield
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Kenis, A. and Lievens, M. (2014) ‘Searching for “the political” in environmental politics’, Environmental Politics, 23(4), pp. 531–548
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Peluso, N.L. and Vandergeest, P. (2011) ‘Political ecologies of war and forests: Counterinsurgencies and the making of national natures’, Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 101(3), pp. 587–608
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Scartozzi, C.M. (2021) ‘Reframing climate-induced socio-environmental conflicts: A systematic review’, International Studies Review, 23(3), pp. 696–725. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/isr/viaa064
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Verweijen, J. and Hoffmann, K. (2024) ‘Dangerous environments: environmental peacebuilding’s technomoral imaginary and its power-knowledge effects’, Ecology and Society, 29(3)
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Verweijen, J. and Marijnen, E. (2018) ‘The counterinsurgency/conservation nexus: guerrilla livelihoods and the dynamics of conflict and violence in the Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of the Congo’, The Journal of Peasant Studies, 45(2), pp. 300–320
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Ybarra, M. (2012) ‘Taming the jungle, saving the Maya Forest: Sedimented counterinsurgency practices in contemporary Guatemalan conservation’, The Journal of Peasant Studies, 39(2), pp. 479–502
Teaching units
| Unit no. | Unit type | Teaching units | Teachers | Number of hours | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20129 | Cours séminaire | Environmental change, governance, and conflicts: Towards critical analyses | Thomas BOBO | 24 | 5 |
Teachers
- Thomas BOBO
In the curricula
- Bachelor Exchange Programme, Seminars / Bachelor, Programme d'échange, séminaires - 26/27COLLÈGE UNIVERSITAIRE - CAMPUS PARIS
- Bachelor, semestre 3 : cours séminaires - 26/27COLLÈGE UNIVERSITAIRE - CAMPUS PARIS
Contacts and resources
- Contact
- NICOULEAU Svetlana