Evaluation of climate change policies in the context of environmental security: The case of Turkey

The relationship between environment and security has drawn attention since the late 1960s. In International Relations, the concept of environmental security has become one of the approaches that emerged with the deepening and widening of the concept of security in the post-Cold War period. Today's one of the most prominent environmental problems is climate change due to its transboundary and international nature and its increasing effect and intensity. Thus, it has been considered as an environmental problem that needs to be tackled at the global level, leading to the beginning of international diplomacy process. In this context, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the perception of climate change in Turkey, which is located in the Mediterranean Basin, one of the regions expected to be affected mostly by climate change. More specifically, the study examines the climate change discourses, plans and policies of Turkey during the 2000s under one-party rule, discourses of the society on environmental issues within the framework of the Copenhagen School. In sum, this study reveals the perception of climate change in Turkey in the context of the relationship between environment and security at the government level and the perception of the society on environmental issues at the society level. In this framework, this study claims that Turkey perceives climate change as a problem but politicizes it, while the society considers environmental issues both as environmental and economic security. Keywords: Environmental Security, Climate Change, Turkey, Politization