by Daisy Kosgei
Have you heard the tale of a hummingbird saving a huge forest from a fire? While all other animals fled in fear and panic, the tiny bird said, “I’m going to do something about the fire!” So it made countless trips to carry water drops to the flames and managed to put out the fire. This story resonates deeply when I think of the women of North Turkana, especially during migration seasons when survival depends on their resilience and resourcefulness.
Much like the hummingbird, these women take on an immense challenge despite all odds. In search of water and pasture for their livestock, they embark on long treks, often walking many kilometres in a day to identify new areas for settlement where water is accessible. Once they reach these new locations, they prepare shelters not just for their families, but also for their livestock, ensuring that both can survive the harsh conditions.
The story of a hummingbird opened the Water, Peace and Climate Conference in Kenya last month, setting the tone for our discussions about improving collaboration on water, peace and security issues. At this event, I presented our Water, Peace and Security (WPS) partnership work and joined a panel with colleagues from the International Organization for Migration, University of Nairobi, and Kenya's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Several messages particularly stood out to me:
- There’s an urgent need for collective action on climate security, and local communities must be at the centre of shaping solutions
Dr. Monica Juma, Advisor on National Security in Kenya, described climate security as "one of the largest public good portfolios." Her emphasis on community-centered approaches mirrors what we've witnessed in our WPS work – solutions developed with and by local communities last longer and work better.
For successful initiatives that resolve conflicts and build resilience against climate change and water scarcity, we need inclusive engagement from all affected groups. When one person takes positive action while their neighbour doesn't, progress stalls. Our work has shown that when communities get a voice in negotiating resource-sharing agreements, dialogue and cooperation replace conflict and reinforce mutual understanding.
- Military and defence sectors have a critical role
General (Ret.) Tom Middendorp, Chair of the International Military Committee on Climate and Security, highlighted how climate change intersects with security through three factors: geopolitical fragmentation, population growth and resource scarcity.
In Kenya's climate-stressed regions, we've witnessed how these factors play out. Communities clash over scarce water and land more frequently, leading to violent incidents that disrupt daily life and traumatise residents.
This reality underscores the need for civil-military cooperation in fragile contexts. Building trust between military and civilian actors is essential for sustainable security outcomes, especially when implementing water and climate adaptation programmes in vulnerable communities.
- We need a shared understanding about connections between water, peace and climate issues that all stakeholders can agree upon and work from.
Fragmented or one-sided approaches to water management and climate security often fail to mitigate and prevent conflicts and can even worsen existing tensions. H.E. Mohamed Abdi Ware, Deputy Executive Secretary of Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), explained how this became an issue in infrastructure projects, when boreholes were set up along the traditional migration routes of pastoralist communities without consulting them.
This example shows why approaches that consider all perspectives and conflict dynamics are more effective. This is why water, peace and climate security must be part of national security policies, disaster response planning, and regional cooperation agreements.
Partners from all sectors need to work together, sharing expertise and resources rather than duplicating efforts or working at cross-purposes. But to break the silos, we must continue to enhance awareness and education at the highest levels of decision-making.
- Knowledge must translate to action
During our panel, I emphasized that sharing knowledge on the water, peace and security agenda must result in practical solutions that bridge the gap between policy discussions and community realities and needs.
Our WPS work is a good example of blending traditional knowledge and local practices with data-driven insights for everyone’s benefit. Local and national authorities can use water-related analysis to map resource availability and identify possible conflict “hotspots”. In parallel, they can validate these insights with local communities at dialogue sessions and discuss how to address challenges fairly and inclusively. This approach allows for finding optimal ways of sharing scarce resources and promoting cooperation at different levels.
Moving forward
The conference reinforced what drives our work: bringing together diverse voices, working with communities and stakeholders, providing data and translating good ideas into meaningful action.
By bridging policy and practice and using peacebuilding as an entry point for interventions around water and climate, we can enhance community resilience and contribute to a peaceful, equitable future for all.
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Water, Climate and Peace conference was organised by the Dutch trade mission in Kenya and brought together climate and security experts, civil society, international organisations and academia. The event also included a visit from King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, accompanied by the Netherlands Minister of Defence, Ruben Brekelmans. Their presence highlighted the international significance of the water peace and security agenda.
Daisy Kosgei is a Senior Project Officer at International Alert Kenya and the Horn of Africa that implements the Water, Peace and Security partnership work in Kenya.