African Environmental and Human Security in the 21st Century By ...

cuts across all areas of human security, as explained by the UNDP and measured by the 2000 Millennium Development Goals discussed below.

This holistic approach is not only critical for understanding the security environment, it is essential for strategists to better anticipate second- and third-order effects of their decisions and subsequent actions. Moreover, it puts the fight against terrorism in its proper context so that tactical counterterrorist actions do not undermine the strategic goals of mitigating root causes that, in the long term, will help “drain the swamp” of potential recruits. As a first step, we will briefly explain why human security matters by viewing the security environment through the lens of a biologist, using the living systems theory. Second, we will explain human security as an approach and operational concept. Third, we will emphasize the importance of the environment as it relates to all areas of human security. Our case studies on Niger and Chad from the Sahel region will illuminate these points before we conclude with environmental and policy implications.

Why Human Security Must Be Explored

In short, human security describes threats that states cannot or will not deter, that directly affect individuals. To fully appreciate this paradigm, however, requires a “shift of mind.”⁶ The living systems theory (LST) drives this shift with its biological view of the world. This perspective sheds light on the nonlinear nature of actions and behaviors. In other words, actions are not constricted to the parameters of cause-and-effect relationships. Instead, due to myriad connections and relationships, events and activities have second- and third-order effects that are not always recognizable. Moreover, there are various unintended consequences of even the best-planned events. The best we can do is study behavior from multiple perspectives to gain a holistic and empathetic understanding. According to Fritjof Capra, “The behavior of a living [system] organism as an integrated whole cannot be understood from the study of its parts alone.”⁷ For the whole is more than the sum of its parts.⁸ Robert Jervis explains that the whole is indeed different from the sum of its parts.⁹ Through the