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Yemen is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change, and for the past decades political conflicts have fragmented its society, strained its economy, and caused extreme humanitarian suffering. In this context of multifaceted political, humanitarian, and environmental crises, innovative entry points for dialogue are sorely needed.

The Environmental Pathways for Reconciliation (EPfR) project set out to support local and national actors to identify these entry points, with an innovative approach using environmental issues as a starting point for dialogue, reconciliation, and trust-building in Yemen.

Through consultations and community dialogues, the project reached out to Yemenis across 13 governorates. We convened local decision-makers, traditional leaders, civil society, and subject experts to identify key concerns, priorities, and opportunities to tackle environmental risks as part of conflict resolution and prevention. Through these dialogue spaces, Yemenis can identify locally led peacemaking solutions to address these risks and enhance resilience.

In this video, Yemeni citizens recount how their daily lives have been affected by environmental degradation, and discuss how taking part in the EPfR consultations and community dialogues has given them an arena to make their voices heard and to reflect upon the role of environmental changes and natural resources in peace efforts.

The EPfR project is implemented by the European Institute of Peace and is supported by the German Federal Foreign Office. It is part of the Weathering Risk Peace Pillar implemented by adelphi, the Berghof Foundation, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue and the European Institute of Peace. Learn more about the Weathering Risk Peace Pillar: https://weatheringrisk.org/en/peacepillar.