Jérémy Lucchetti interviewed in several media

Water scarcity and rioting 

The publication of the article « Water scarcity and rioting : Disaggregated evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa » in the November 2017 edition of the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management allowed Professor Jérémy Lucchetti to express himself in several media.

The team of researchers — including Prof. Lucchetti - demonstrated the existence of a link between periods of drought and the outbreak of riots in Sub-Saharan Africa.

To support this hypothesis, Prof. Lucchetti’s team has studied the riots that occurred between 1990 and 2011 in 43 sub-Saharan countries. The scientists then cross referenced this data with the SPEI (Standardised Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index), a monthly index of drought.

Thanks to the study, the researchers have been able to conclude that a period of drought increases the overall possibility of rioting by 10%. This effect grows in function of how densely populated is the region. There are other aggravating factors such as the coexistence of ethnical groups and the absence of a lake or a river. Given these circumstances the probability of a riot jumps by 50%.

This discovery was mentioned by many scientific media, such as the American bimensual « Nexus Media », the American website « EurekAlert! » and the French magazine « Science et Vie ». The latter salutes the work of Professor Lucchetti for opening the gates to complementary research: indeed, this study could help anticipate or even prevent conflicts, for any upcoming periods of drought.

In the magazine « Nexus Media », Jérémy Lucchetti explains that conflicts in this sub-Saharan area are principally due to political, economic and social instability. He uses the image of fuel to the fire to illustrate a drought period intervening in a country under such a pressure.

Other foreign press, such as French actuality webzine « CitizenPost » and the Moroccan internet site « Barlamane » have written about this research as well.

Jérémy Lucchetti was also invited, on 10 November 2016 to the third edition of the « Water Talks Series » organized by « Genève Pôle Eau » in order to present his research and the contemporary challenges tied to water governance.

• To read the complete study of Prof. Lucchetti and his team, please click on this link.
• To read the article from « Nexus Media », please consult the magazine website.
• To read the article from « EurekAlert ! », please consult their website.
• To read the article from « Science et Vie », please consult the magazine website.
• To read the article from « CitizenPost », please consult their website.
• To read the article from « Barlamane », please consult their website.
• To listen the podcast from « RTS », please consult their website.
• To watch the interview of Prof. Jérémy Lucchetti at the « Water Talks Series », please consult the website of the event.
• To read the press release from the University of Geneva, please click on this link.