Journal of Christian Religious Studies

Climate-induced conflicts pose a significant security and development challenge in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, particularly in Plateau State, where environmental degradation, shifting rainfall patterns, and land scarcity intensify communal violence. While the climate-conflict nexus has attracted considerable scholarly attention, the ethical dimensions of peacebuilding, including faith-based and indigenous frameworks, remain underexplored. This study examines the intersection of climate-induced conflict and ethical deficits in peacebuilding in Plateau State, using Environmental Security Theory and Christian Virtue Ethics as analytical lenses. Employing a qualitative documentary research design, the study systematically analyzes the literature, policy documents, and conflict reports through thematic content analysis. The findings indicate that climate variability functions as a threat multiplier, exacerbating socioeconomic disparities, governance failures, and resource-based grievances. For instance, recent reports document more than 200 deaths in Plateau State in late 2023 resulting from communal violence linked to competition for land and water (AP News, 2023; WANEP, 2024). Peacebuilding efforts in Plateau State remain predominantly reactive and often neglect ethical principles such as stewardship, distributive justice, and inclusion, as well as the potential contributions of indigenous ecological knowledge and interfaith ethical frameworks. The study concludes that sustainable peacebuilding requires integrating environmental security, ethical transformation, governance reform, and collaboration with local knowledge systems. This article advances the climate justice discourse by demonstrating that climate-induced conflict in Plateau State constitutes an environmental, security, and ethical governance challenge that requires holistic, context-sensitive peacebuilding strategies

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