Resources

Environmental Scarcity and Violent Conflict: The Case of Chiapas, Mexico

June 1, 1995
Philip Howard and Thomas Homer-Dixon

Philip Howard and Thomas Homer-Dixon | This paper identifies the different forms of environmental scarcities that affect the people of Chiapas, Mexico. In recent years, these scarcities have become acute.

Urban Growth and Violence: Will the Future Resemble the Past?

June 1, 1995
Peter Gizewski and Thomas Homer-Dixon

Summary Many social, economic, and political problems have accompanied urban growth in the developing world. Will further growth result in violent behavior as expectations of…

Environmental Scarcities and Violent Conflict: Evidence from Cases

June 1, 1994

Within the next fifty years, the planet’s human population will probably pass nine billion, and global economic output may quintuple. Largely as a result, scarcities of renewable resources will increase sharply. The total area of high-quality agricultural land will drop, as will the extent of forests and the number of species they sustain.

Is Anarchy Coming? A Response to the Optimists

May 10, 1994

What is the human prospect? Will our future be marked by rising prosperity, health and happiness for all?  Or will population growth, environmental crisis and ethno-nationalism drive large parts of the world into violence and anarchy?

Environmental Change and Violent Conflict

February 1, 1993
Thomas Homer-Dixon, Jeffrey H. Boutwell and George W. Rathjens

Growing scarcities of renewable resources can contribute to social instability and civil strife.

Destruction and Death: As Resources Are Wasted, Mass Violence Will Rise

January 31, 1992

As the Clinton administration develops foreign and defense policies for a quickly changing world, it should consider the long-term links between the planet’s ecological balance and mass violence.

On the Threshold: Environmental Changes as Causes of Acute Conflict

October 1, 1991

A number of scholars have recently asserted that large-scale human-induced environmental pressures may seriously affect national and international security. Unfortunately, the environment-security theme encompasses an almost unmanageable array of sub-issues, especially if we define “security” broadly to include human physical, social, and economic well-being.

Graphical Argument Analysis: A New Approach to Understanding Arguments Applied to a Debate about the Window of Vulnerability

December 1, 1989
Thomas Homer-Dixon and Roger S. Karapin

with Roger S. Karapin | Arguments and debates about politics are activities central to a democracy. Understanding arguments according to common frames of reference is not a straightforward task but demands much critical intelligence and skill.

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