| |
| author |
Alexandra Koeck
| | title |
Identity, Political Ecology, and Human Security: A Study of Climate-Induced Intra-Ethnic Conflict among the Fulani in the Sahel Region of Nigeria
| | abstract |
The recent climate changes occurring globally are having extreme implications on
livelihoods and human security in sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, the Fulani are facing
increased tensions stemming from changes in resource availability due to competition
and deviations from traditional movements to cope with these changes. The Fulani's fluid
ethnic identities have historically maintained cohesion among pastoralists and
horticulturalists. As the Fulani are forced to compete for resources among different
subsistence practices, intra-ethnic tensions and violent conflicts have increased,
threatening the security and stability of the Nigerian state. The negative implications of
the complex connection between climate change and conflict are explained through
indirect causal factors. These indirect causal factors include climate-induced resource
reductions which impact social interactions between people, the current political ecology
of Nigeria, the complex interactions between identity and social structure, the failure of
traditional and modern institutions to prevent conflict caused by the inequalities and
differences reflected within the plural composition of Nigeria, and the related feelings of
disenchantment and anomie among the Fulani. These negative implications of climate
change all contribute to a reduction in human security which has been shown to
contribute to greater occurrences of violent conflict that are now more deadly than that of
Boko Haram. The causal influences that are discussed provide insight into this human
security issue with regard to the Western and British colonial influence on the conflict
and its framing, showing a holistic representation of the conflict and its surrounding
discourse.
| | school |
The College of Liberal Arts, Drew University
| | degree |
B.A. (2019)
|
| advisor |
Allan Dawson
|
| committee |
Timothy Carter
Jonathan Golden
|
| full text | ALKoeck.pdf |
| |
