ABSTRACT

This chapter addresses the nature and evolution of security studies, before applying the role of expertise and think tanks to security and international affairs specifically. It considers soft security under the umbrella of non-traditional security. Which we define as all security matters that are non-military in nature, have a transnational range, emerge rapidly as a result of globalization, cannot be tackled at the national level alone, and involve the state as well as the citizens. Non-traditional security comprises five specific foci: political security, economic security, human security, peace and conflict studies, and environmental security. However, non-traditional security has indeed begun to dominate. It is becoming increasingly clear that traditional military force cannot eradicate extremism, although it is as of yet unclear what direction the security response to several problems will take. As the final subset of non-traditional security, environmental security generally involves issues of natural resources depredation, environmental degradation, climate change, and energy security.