This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the micro-geographies of young people and draws attention to the social practices, discourses and networks that directly or indirectly (re)shape how they make sense of and negotiate life in Belfast. It focuses on how everyday life is accomplished by young people living in divided cities, using Belfast as a case study. The book explores the historical development of Belfast as a segregated city, focusing particularly on the outbreak of the 'Troubles' in 1969 and the subsequent division of territory by peace walls. It demonstrates the continuing segregated nature of Belfast in terms of housing and education. The book discusses young people's attitudes to the marking of territory through a range of visual ethno-national emblems and assesses the extent to which this influences their spatial movements.

A basic feature of the universal human condition is the need to find commonality with others and form larger associations at the individual, group, and community level. This is at the heart of the concept of identity. A variety of factors ranging from physical attributes, language, and culture to societal norms and structures work to promote a self-awareness and self-consciousness of sameness with a larger collective. Probably nowhere else in the world is group identity—be it ethnic, racial, religious, sectarian or communal—so closely associated with persistent, and even genocidal, violence than in Africa. This makes identity conflict a primary threat to peace and security on the continent.

Paradoxically, as much as Africa’s current problems are often rooted in the past, the continent today finds itself squarely at the forefront of new security thinking. Although the international community historically has played a critical role in shaping the African security agenda, true security—and solutions—begins at home. The often misappropriated mantra of ‘African solutions for African problems’ has taken on real and significant meaning in recent years with the development and implementation of new national, sub-regional, and regional approaches to advancing peace and security. This chapter examines these approaches, past shortcomings of the modern African state and its limitations, and looks at ways the African Union, regional NGOs, and civil society are seeking to fashion a cooperative security culture for 21st century needs. Without doubt many obstacles and challenges still remain, but these efforts are already proving useful in recasting the continent’s security priorities and, moreover, in establishing a direction for future engagement by Africans and non-Africans alike.

Resource conflict and environmental degradation are in reality two-sides of the same security challenge coin. Both address the issue of natural resource abundance and scarcity and how societies deal with these challenges and their implications, but from vastly different perspectives. While the first addresses access and control over existing natural resources in terms of resource competition, the second addresses the environmental impact of declining or the misuse of resources. Regardless of the perspective, however, both present a serious threat to African peace and stability through their ability to generate and sustain violent conflict, fuel corruption or undermine governance. Moreover, some of these types of conflicts are the most difficult to resolve given the life or death nature of the stakes involved for individuals and entire communities.

In this chapter, the author discusses the contemporary tensions of social change inspired by the Polanyian concept of the double movement. He interprets the double movement as a simultaneous combination of dis-embeddedness which destroys established social bonds and habits in order to accommodate new market opportunities, and re-embeddedness creating new social bonds and institutions. The author locates the interpretative frame in a more precise historical and sociocultural context where the double movement happens within the present globalised and individualised processes of change in the industrially advanced countries. He discusses the current perspectives of contemporary societies and the possibility of capitalism ending. The author considers the European context, while not ignoring the impact of global interdependence. He elaborates the analysis in order to take into account the effects of the long-lasting economic and financial crisis.

Since September 2001, the struggle against international terrorism and extremism across the globe has become a defining security paradigm of the 21st century. Africa is now an inescapable and increasingly critical part of this new security equation. This presents an enormous political and socio-economic challenge for many African countries and organizations that are already over burden trying to cope with longstanding and other newly arising security threats. Terrorism and extremism, however, are certainly not new to Africa, but what has changed in the post-September 11th world for Africa is the apparent melding of domestic and international terrorism and extremism. Accordingly, much of the success or failure to counter these threats will be as much affected by the actions and policies of external forces than on the capabilities (or lack thereof) of African governments and institutions.

States are the only contemporary political organizations that enjoy a unique legal status under international law—sovereignty—and are deemed to possess an exclusive monopoly on the legitimate use of force within their borders. A central feature of the state is to provide for the delivery of public goods (such as security) to its citizenry, and states fail to function as states when they can no longer do this. While the concept of “state failure” or “failing states” is much debated, the consequences of such failure are all too real, especially in Africa. Endemic violence, ethnic and religious tensions, rampant human rights abuses, rising terrorism and crime, along with a lack of legitimacy and political inclusion, as well as an inability to exercise effective control over territory are hallmarks of failing states.

This chapter provides the reader with background material and a basic understanding of Africa’s uniqueness. It looks at the highly diverse and unique set of security challenges--from traditional to non-traditional—facing the continent and provides an overview of the nature of the threat to the continent and its people. It also sets the stage for an in-depth examination of the key threats to African security (and by extension to the global community) and identifies some emerging trends that present both opportunities and challenges for improving security in the decades ahead.

Africa is a security environment fraught with many dangers, but one too that presents great opportunities for addressing the most pressing global—and not just African—challenges. With more than its share of fragile, unstable states, impoverished societies, and endemic conflict, the continent was once seen almost exclusively as an incubator of instability and insecurity; a venue for addressing rising challenges and an exporter of global security threats. But this is no longer the case. Africa, like everywhere else in the world, is becoming increasingly integrated into a globalized security system, whereby Africans are just as vulnerable to threats emanating from outside the continent as they are from home-grown ones. Thus, Africa—and what happens there—matters more than ever. Simply ignoring it and hoping for the best through a policy of containment and isolation is not a viable option in today’s globalized and interdependent world.