[seren]

The scary part is that even if you cannot provide food to even, let's say 3% of the human population, it will create massive destabilization, initially in the part of the world affected, then globally. I remember that at the start of the various Arab Spring revolts, protests were about the cost of food.

I have never been to Egypt, and maybe I have a distorted view of the situation there, but I don't understand how it can sustain a population of 100 millions, on basically a thin strip of arable land around the Nile surrounded by a huge barren desert. It can not be sustainable.

[SiempreViernes]

First of all, the Nile basin covers 32% of the area of Egypt (330 000 km²), which is a bit more than the size of Italy who supports a population of 60 million.

Secondly, due to the climate they also get two-three harvests per year.

[jamesblonde]

That said, they still import nearly 20% of their food - https://tradingeconomics.com/egypt/food-imports-percent-of-m...

[seren]

Thanks, it put things in perspective.

[jacquesm]

The river quite literally brings life to that 'thin strip'. Without the Nile it would be desert.

[CrackpotGonzo]

Isn't food instability a contributing factor to the crisis in Syria?

[Balero]

From what I understand it led to (young) people leaving the countryside to live in cities. This lead to large congregations of unhappy unemployed young people, all new to a particular area. These people then grouped up and protested about the ruling regime, which was the start of the current crisis.

[CrackpotGonzo]

Exactly, that's a good summary as far as I understand it. In other words, we're already seeing the impacts of food insecurity as a result of climate change and it will only get worse from here.

[jtbayly]

None of the previous comments on this topic indicated that the food instability was caused by climate change. Are you just assuming that?

[Balero]

From what I can recall it is due to an overlong drought. This could be due to climate change or not.

There are arguments from both sides: https://www.inverse.com/article/25318-aleppo-syria-conflict-... http://www.sussex.ac.uk/broadcast/read/41428

Also worth remembering that something as complex as the Syrian Civil war is bound to have multiple causes.