Recent studies have attempted to explain the mixed results in the literature on environmental scarcity and intrastate conflict by exploring factors that might enable or mitigate the effects of...Show moreRecent studies have attempted to explain the mixed results in the literature on environmental scarcity and intrastate conflict by exploring factors that might enable or mitigate the effects of scarcity. However, the role of one of these factors, political corruption, remains underexplored. While scholars have made strides in uncovering whether corruption influences the scarcity-conflict relationship, they have failed to analyze its role in the causal mechanism connecting environmental scarcity to intrastate conflict. In this study, I address this gap in the literature by examining the role of political corruption in the causal mechanism linking environmental scarcity to intrastate conflict incidence. Using theory-testing process tracing in a case study of the 2012-2013 Kenyan Tana River District clashes, I demonstrate that political corruption in environmental governance can play a crucial role in the environmental scarcity-conflict mechanism by further diminishing natural resource availability. This increases confidence in the notion that political corruption might explain the mixed results in the literature. However, future research should test these findings in multiple different contexts to explore their generalizability and rule out possible alternative explanations.Show less
Due to climate change and rising temperatures, the world is more often facing extreme weather conditions like drought. Such conditions of water scarcity especially cause problems in countries...Show moreDue to climate change and rising temperatures, the world is more often facing extreme weather conditions like drought. Such conditions of water scarcity especially cause problems in countries dependent on agriculture, where failed harvests can cause negative income shocks and grievance development, influencing conflict. Focusing on the relationship between conflict intensity and water scarcity, this research explores the case of the Syrian civil war from 2011-2017, finding that over-time differences in temperatures can explain monthly variations in number of deaths. This research thereby confirms the fact that rising temperatures can lead to more intense conflict and concludes with brief discussion of policy recommendations to tackle drought-related conflict.Show less
