How Climate Change Helped lead to the Uprising in Syria

A new study draws links between a record drought in Syria and the uprising that erupted there in 2011. In a Yale Environment 360 interview, Colin Kelley, the study’s lead author, discusses how the severity of that drought was connected to a long-term warming trend in the region.

by diane toomey

Before Syria devolved into civil war, that country experienced its worst drought on record. The consequences of this disaster included massive crop failures, rising food prices, unemployment, and a mass migration to urban areas. In a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers suggest that the drought and its ensuing chaos helped spark the Syrian uprising.

viaHow Climate Change Helped Lead to the Uprising in Syria by Diane Toomey: Yale Environment 360.