PEOPLE PLANET PEACE: AFRICA PEACE AND ENVIRONMENT SUMMIT.

The Africa Peace and Environment Summit (APES) highlighted the deep connection between peace, justice, and environmental sustainability. It underscored that environmental degradation can lead to conflict, while sustainable practices can contribute to harmony. The summit also focused on empowering women and youth as crucial players in peacebuilding. It called for collective action to address the intertwined challenges of peace and environmental conservation across Africa.

Peace is not merely the absence of conflict but the presence of justice and equality. Without them, there can be no true peace, as injustice breeds contempt and inequalities spur division. Moreover, a peaceful community is rooted in the serenity of its environment. A healthy environment is the foundation of a healthy community.

This message echoed throughout the Africa Peace and Environment Summit (APES) convened by the Amani Communities Organization at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa from the 12th to the 16th of August. The summit brought together over five hundred delegates from across fifteen countries to deliberate on the theme ‘People Planet Peace,’ which explored the intricate linkages between peace and the environment.

According to the African Union Agenda 2063, ‘The Africa We Want’ envisions a stable and peaceful continent established on environmentally sustainable and climate resilient economies and communities. The agenda emphasizes the importance of managing natural resources, ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns, water security, climate resilience and a just transition to renewable energy.

Furthermore, it emphasizes the linkages between environmental stewardship and long-lasting peace. Some of the root causes of conflicts are linked to environmental degradation and climate change. When the environment is compromised, peace becomes unattainable. Ensuring access to clean water, fertile land, and a stable climate can foster harmony and guarantee economic stability. Building a peaceful society, therefore, demands that we address the environmental challenges we face today.

Peace and Environment Linkages

The relationship between peace and the environment cannot be overstated. Environmental degradation disrupts livelihoods, especially amongst communities that rely heavily on agriculture. This loss of livelihoods often leads to economic instability and increased poverty, which can escalate into conflicts. Similarly, climate change influences erratic weather patterns such as drought and floods that contribute to food insecurity, property loss, and displacement of people, which can worsen conflicts.

At the Africa Peace and Environment Summit 2024, a pressing question emerged: How can we achieve peace in a world rife with inequality, poverty and environmental degradation? It is in the midst of this dilemma that environmental stewardship and conservation become imperative. Effective management of natural resources ensures equitable access, limiting competition and enhancing peaceful co-existence. Additionally, restoring degraded ecosystems through initiatives such as reforestation boosts agricultural produce, which restores livelihoods and consequently fosters peace.

On the other hand, the absence of peace threatens food systems, displaces populations and undermines environmental conservation efforts.

Women as Front Runners

As the impacts of climate change escalate, women and children remain disproportionately affected by climate disasters and resulting conflicts. They bear the brunt of displacement, which perpetuates the cycle of vulnerability and abuse. They are also more susceptible to climate change-related health issues such as waterborne diseases, respiratory diseases and malnutrition.

The Africa Peace and Environment Summit ‘Women’s Day’ was dedicated to discussing the place of women in peace and environment, highlighting the challenges they face and their potential to inspire collective action towards sustainability.

‘When natural resources become scarce, conflicts arise, and often the frontline managers of these resources are more vulnerable to bearing the burden of the conflict. Among these frontline protectors, the majority are women,’ noted Prof Judi Wakhungu, EGH, during her keynote address.

Women risk their lives to protect natural resources from overexploitation while upholding traditional knowledge in agriculture, environmental conservation and grassroots peacebuilding. The summit called upon stakeholders to empower women to realize their environmental rights, especially in vulnerable areas such as rural communities and to promote active leadership of women in governance at all levels.

Harnessing Youth Power

The APES Youth Day, which coincided with the International Youth Day, featured young people as powerful agents of change in peacebuilding and environmental sustainability. In Africa, over seventy percent of the population comprises the youth, presenting a golden opportunity for growth and transformation. Young people are leading efforts in environmental conservation and actively engaging in peace processes across the continent.

The Youth Peace Integration Forum in Uganda is a compelling illustration of a youth-led initiative actively involved in peacebuilding. The initiative is resolving conflicts between refugees and host communities over land rights through reconciliation programs.

‘We listened to both the refugees and the host community and proposed a joint program focusing on agro-economy to foster peace and reconciliation between the two communities. We found land and used it as a demonstration site, bringing together participants from both sides of the community,’ noted Rodgers Mwanza of the Youth Peace Integration Forum.

Drawing lessons from Uganda and other countries, such as South Africa, represented at the summit, it is clear that education plays a critical role in equipping young people with the knowledge and skills to resolve conflicts, advocate for peace, and promote environmental sustainability.

Call to Action

After five days of fruitful deliberations, the summit concluded with a resounding call to build an inclusive movement to address the intersectional challenges in peace and environment in Africa and beyond.

There was an emphasis on lobbying for gender-responsive policies, laws, and financing, to support women in peacebuilding and climate action. Delegates also stressed the urgency of youth inclusion in decision-making processes.

Another key takeaway was the need to ground ourselves in indigenous knowledge, such as food systems, to promote sustainable practices, thus protecting our environment and fostering peace. Equally important is embracing technology and creativity to effectively tackle the impacts of climate change and provide innovative solutions to conflicts.

Furthermore, by leveraging existing structures of family and faith communities, we can foster unity and promote peaceful co-existence. Finally, there was a clarion call to localize the definition of peace by ensuring that it speaks to the unique realities of individual communities, thereby making peacebuilding and environmental conservation more effective even at the grassroots level.

Edited by Pius Okore.