The ability of the international community and individual states to provide for the long-term future of humanity depends on their willingness and capacity to move towards a sustainable model of governance and development. Real sustainability does not only necessitate global efforts to limit, and ideally reverse, climate change and environmental degradation, but also a revitalization of rules and institutions working for the common good and ensuring a liberal international order in which all can prosper without endangering future generations.
Systemic challenges and weaponized interdependence, mainly driven by autocratic regimes and fueled by corruption, kleptocracy and conflict economies, stand in the way of real sustainability, both nationally and internationally. States and societies that will manage to lead by example, strengthen resilience and cohesion, harness the transformative potential of new technologies to power and finance themselves, end their dependency on finite resources and thereby overcome the inherent instability and structural weakness of unsustainable modes of governance and development will have a decisive advantage in an ever more competitive world.
With its Sustainability Program, the Munich Security Conference (MSC) aims to advance the debate around the intersections of governance, the environment, security, and prosperity. To that end, MSC events and initiatives facilitate exchange between decision-makers and experts at the highest levels.
Topics from the Sustainability Program are regularly covered in the annual Munich Security Report (MSR). Additionally, the MSC regularly publishes Munich Security Briefs and MSR Special Editions on sustainability issues, most recently the "Transnational Security Report".
At the annual flagship conference in Munich, sustainability topics are regularly the focus of panel discussions and a growing number of side events.
In addition, the MSC organizes numerous events as part of the Sustainability Program, which vary in scope and size.
MSC Summits assemble an audience of up to 100 high-profile representatives from government, academia, the military, the private sector and civil society for 24 to 48 hours of open and frank debates with a particular thematic focus. MSC Summits are held on-the-record or under Chatham House rule.
MSC Roundtables bring together an intimate group of up to 35 participants for an interactive debate on a specific security policy challenge. Roundtables are held under Chatham House rule or off-the-record and take place throughout the year, frequently alongside other MSC events, such as the Munich Leaders Meetings and the Munich Security Conference.
MSC Conversations are small, confidential meetings featuring a selected high-level speaker and a group of up to 40 participants, including senior experts, thinkers, and decision-makers. MSC Conversations are typically held under Chatham House rule, but selected events can be open to the public.
On September 27, 2021, the Munich Security Conference (MSC), in cooperation with adelphi, hosted the virtual opening session of the Berlin Climate and Security Conference (BCSC), titled "Multilateral Momentum: An Agenda for Action on Climate, Peace, and Stability." The session kicked-off the BCSC, which brings together high-level representatives from government, international organizations, science, industry, and civil society to discuss the implications of climate change for peace and security. Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the MSC, moderated the discussion between Raychelle Omamo, Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Rosemary DiCarlo, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP, and Benedetta Berti, Head of Policy Planning at NATO.
