CONCEPT NOTE

- High Level PREVIEW Conference -

The twin resolutions on sustaining peace, along with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, represent system-wide frameworks that place prevention as a key priority and shared responsibility. The concept of sustaining peace, in particular, focuses on a continuum of preventive actions that cuts across all pillars and work streams of the UN system as a whole – from humanitarian action and peacekeeping to peacebuilding and sustainable development. As an additional emerging challenge, the climate crisis has opened a new frontier in international efforts to address the many multidimensional challenges to sustaining peace: Climate change and related environmental degradation are widely recognized as a threat multiplier to international peace and stability. While not necessarily causally linked to armed conflict, natural disasters and extreme weather events reinforce underlying vulnerabilities and compound with conflict risks to destabilize already fragile regions and communities. Their effects critically challenge livelihoods, economic growth, and development in many already troubled regions of the world: It is estimated that of the twenty most vulnerable and least prepared countries to adapt to climate change, twelve are already in violent conflict. The Secretary-General’s Data Strategy recognizes the need for the whole system to make better use of UN data – with approaches grounded in UN values and human rights – as an integral part of the organization’s future and work. The peace and security pillar is highlighted in the strategy as one of the high priorities of use cases and portfolios for the 2021 roll-out of the strategy. In line with the Secretary-General's Data Strategy and prevention priorities, and given the new emerging challenge of the climate crisis to sustaining peaceful societies, this High Level Conference will convene senior policymakers, internationally renowned scientists and practitioners to:

The conference is split into two consecutive days, with the High Level first day focusing on broad policy and strategy, with the second day contributing towards concrete data science projects and work streams informed by the latest expert insights on the nexus between climate change and international peace and stability.

• Emphasize the cross-cutting challenge that climate change poses to all aspects of sustaining peace and call for increasing efforts to strengthen crisis foresight, prevention and anticipatory action to sustain peace amidst the climate crisis;
• Highlight the potential of science, data and technology as a vital basis for early warning to support evidence-based policy making, targeted adaptation strategies and proactive capacity building in predicted hot spot regions and communities;
• Define the principles for the effective communication of science and data-driven insights to policy makers and enable a conversation on new multilateral partnerships to harness the potential of data science, technology and innovation for sustaining peace amidst the climate crisis – in particular, defining the potential roles and functions of academia, states, IOs, civil society, the private sector and the general public in this larger cross-cutting collaboration at the intersecting fields of Data Science, climate action, and peacebuilding.

The conference is split into two consecutive days, with the High Level first day focusing on broad policy and strategy, with the second day contributing towards concrete data science projects and work streams informed by the latest expert insights on the nexus between climate change and international peace and stability.

CONCEPT NOTE

- High Level PREVIEW Conference -

The second day of the ministerial conference covers concrete data science projects and work streams informed by the latest state-of-the-art expert insights on the nexus between climate change and international peace and stability. On this occasion, researchers, data scientists and practitioners will focus on specific aspects of implementation, debating cutting-edge scientific understandings into the impact areas, into communities, and into violent conflict dynamics. In the afternoon, the panelists and audience will explore new technical solutions in the field of prediction and visualization, as well as advancements towards greater data availability. The conference will conclude by bringing together all disciplines to discuss how data science can help peacekeepers: The implications for the future of peacebuilding and prevention will be outlined by discussing how data-driven tools can be applied to plan and advance engagements in the field as well as inform decision-making in core political bodies.