The Natural Environment and Atrocity Crimes
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Author(s): Kieran Mitton
Date: 2020
Topics: Climate Change, Governance, Land
The relationship of the natural environment to war has long been the subject of study, but its connection to atrocity crimes in particular has received far less attention. In this chapter I explore the rich literature on the role natural resources play in shaping violence, examining it through two broad areas of focus that define the scholarship: scarcity and abundance. In doing so, I provide an overview of the key thematic debates linking resources to violence, from early Malthusian concerns over demographic pressures to more recent focus on climate change and urbanization.