Human security starts with people and what it means for us to be safe and secure. It means security from harmful disruptions and calamities – in our homes, our jobs, our communities, and our environment.
It’s also about our needs and hopes, our chance to develop our potential, especially those of us who are the most vulnerable.
Human security is about empowering people to participate in making choices on how they can be most secure and resilient in face of current and future risks.
Often policies and solutions assist people with one aspect of human security. But when a crisis comes along, it affects us in many ways.
Consider COVID-19, which threatened our lives and health but also our economies – many lost their jobs and their ability to put food on the table. Others, confined to their homes, experienced threats to their personal security.
Or consider people who have been forced to leave their homes due to natural disasters. People who are displaced need places to live and be safe, jobs and income to survive, but also community networks, a sense of belonging and ways to sustain their culture and their dignity.
In response to these and other threats, our needs and hopes must be heard and heeded – our insecurities must be tackled together, comprehensively.
Without human security, there is no national or global security