Athaulla Rasheed’s doctoral research proposes to explore the impact of small island developing states (SIDS) in building international awareness about climate security. The research will particularly focus on the UN Security Council (UNSC) debates on climate change. While the UNSC has raised the issue of climate change as a potential security threat, climate security has not been institutionalised in the international security context.

The research proposes to explore SIDS’ engagement with the climate security debate. Specifically, it will look at the states of Bahamas, Belize, Maldives, Samoa, Seychelles, and Vanuatu. It seeks to explain how SIDS’s engagement can drive a climate security agenda to promote a holistic and integrated approach. The research considers a social constructivist approach to explain SIDS’ climate security agenda using identities and discourses generated during their interactions with crises at national, regional and international levels.