ABSTRACT
The possible environmental consequences of thermonuclear war—radioactive contamination, nuclear winter, and genetic mutations—were widely feared during the Cold War, especially by citizens of the United States and Soviet Union, which the report called "prisoners of their own arms race. The environment—along with the related challenges of health and poverty—has become a key area of focus within that new space. The commissioners stated that environmental stress could contribute to interstate or subnational conflict "when political processes are unable to handle the effects of environmental stress resulting, for example, from erosion and desertification." The Soviet Union attempted—and failed—to institutionalize environment and security links at the United Nations prior to the Rio conference. Analyzing the multiple roles environmental factors play before, during, and after conflict supports a much more robust research and policy agenda than does focusing exclusively on the environment's potential to cause conflict.
