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Paper short abstract:

This paper argues for the integration of Responsibility to Protect within the Triple Nexus to address polycrisis contexts.By aligning R2P’s preventive and protective principles with the nexus's cross-sectoral synergies,this approach enhances coherence,resilience,and human security in fragile states.

Paper long abstract:

The intensification of overlapping crises - climate change, conflict, and socio-economic instability - demands innovative frameworks to protect vulnerable populations. This paper critically examines the integration of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) within the Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus (Triple Nexus) to address systemic challenges in polycrisis contexts. While the Triple Nexus advocates for integrated, cross-sectoral interventions, operationalizing these synergies remains constrained by institutional silos, fragmented mandates, and competing priorities (Hanatani et al., 2018; Lie, 2020).

R2P’s normative framework, with its focus on prevention, reaction, and rebuilding, offers a valuable tool for aligning humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding efforts (Shusterman, 2021; Barakat et al., 2023). By embedding R2P principles into Triple Nexus programming, this study emphasizes their potential to address immediate humanitarian needs while fostering long-term resilience. Case studies, such as UNICEF’s Yemen Emergency Cash Transfer Project, highlight the challenges of linking these dimensions in fragile states, where peacebuilding often remains underexplored (Mena & Hilhorst, 2022; Taylor, 2022). Conflict-sensitive and participatory designs are essential for fostering local resilience and mitigating unintended consequences (Ginty, 2011; Kavalski, 2010).

Findings underscore the importance of adaptive governance and context-specific strategies to overcome structural limitations (Hilhorst, 2018; Slim, 2002). Integrating R2P within the Triple Nexus not only enhances coherence across sectors but also advances accountability in addressing systemic drivers of crises (Vaux, 2006; Seybolt, 2008). This paper provides actionable recommendations for policymakers, practitioners, and scholars to operationalize R2P and the Triple Nexus, reimagining human security in an age of polycrisis.