Blogs & Opinions
Wesley Clark Connects the Dots Linking Climate Change and National Security
May 25, 2021
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Kate Zerrenner
In March 2021, three Russian submarines broke through old ice in the Arctic. According to retired four-star general and 2004 U.S. presidential candidate Wesley Clark,…
Why the Transition to Green Economies May Fuel Demand for Conflict Minerals [Audio]
May 24, 2021
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Mark Leon Goldberg
As the world turns towards greener economies there will be a surge in demand for natural resources that enable a less carbon intensive future. This…
How Climate Action and Gender Equality Are Linked in the Pursuit of Justice
May 21, 2021
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Stephen Minas
The movements for gender equality and climate action are two of the great contemporary struggles for progress. The changes they both demand are long overdue. What is…
Want to Compete with China? Deliver on Climate Security for the Indo-Pacific
May 21, 2021
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Caroline Baxter and Erin Sikorsky
In its interim national security strategy, the Biden administration highlighted the need to “out-compete” China, and argued deterring adversaries and defending U.S. interests will require…
Iran Narrows in on Repressing Farmers’ Protests as Water Crisis Spreads
May 21, 2021
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Center for Human Rights in Iran
Protests by hard-hit farmers over Iran’s worsening water crisis are being repressed by state security forces as officials increasingly describe the protests as a “national…
Mind the Gap: Policy, Righting Wrongs and Circumventing Oil Curses in Uganda’s Albertine Region
May 20, 2021
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Dennis Jjuuko
Uganda has signed a pipeline deal with Tanzania and Total to transport crude oil from Uganda’s Albertine region to Tanzania’s Tanga port for refining, but…
It’s High Time We Listen to Indigenous Women On Climate
May 18, 2021
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Heather Mcteer Toney
For the first time in history, with the appointment of Deb Haaland as the Secretary of the Interior, the protection of natural lands in the…
Climate Change, Armed Conflict and Humanitarian Organizations: Defining Their Role, Greening Their Response
May 18, 2021
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Colin Walch
Humanitarian actors play a critical role in responding to climate-related crises, armed conflict, or a combination of both. Their response comes with an environmental cost.…
Raising Climate Ambition Should Include Environmental Peacebuilding
May 17, 2021
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Elsa Barron and Sherri Goodman
In January, the Biden Administration released the Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. It is a sweeping document that integrates climate…
Feeding Peace
May 11, 2021
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Vongai Murugani
The impact of conflict on food security is well documented. But does food security and feeding the hungry really contribute to peace, or is it…
Climate and Conflict as a Vicious Cycle: The Case of Afghanistan
May 11, 2021
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Hans-Joachim Giessmann and Charlotte Hamm
Climate change is neither a national phenomenon nor a challenge limited to individual states. Consequences of climate change can be felt more quickly or more…
This UK Campaign is Working to Close the Politics Gender Gap
May 11, 2021
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Kate Whiting
On the green benches inside London’s historic River Thames-side landmark, the Houses of Parliament, sit twice as many men as women. “At the rate we’re…
What Is behind the Escalation on the Kyrgyz-Tajik Border?
May 10, 2021
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Andrea Schmitz and Dumitru Minzarari
At the end of April, a conflict over water escalated into the most serious border clashes between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan since their independence from the…
Translating Urgency into Action on Water, Climate, and Security
May 7, 2021
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Ratia Tekenet
“We need to devote our full attention to the relationship between water, climate, and security, increase understanding of the issue, and take urgent action,” said…
Improving Resource Governance and Building Sustainable Peace
May 7, 2021
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Stacy D. VanDeveer
In a recently published piece in World Development, Florian Krampe, Farah Hegazi and Stacy D VanDeveer explore the potentially dramatic benefits of improved environmental and…
The Environmental Cost of the War on Tigray
May 7, 2021
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Teklehaymanot G. Weldemichel
It has been more than six months since the Ethiopian regime of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the 2019 Nobel Peace Laureate, declared a full-scale war…
Climate Justice and Gender Justice: An Essential Pairing to Get Resilience Right
May 5, 2021
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Molly Middlehurst and Tamar Eisen
Young women activists from around the world have been leaders in the movement to combat climate change — organizing protests, rallies, strikes, sit-ins and lawsuits…
Peace Is Possible in Afghanistan
May 5, 2021
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Mirwais Wakil and Anthony Pahnke
Few have hope for Afghanistan. Those in favour of the United States government’s decision to withdraw forces from Afghanistan see no pathway to victory by…
“Land Is Now the Biggest Gun”: Climate Change, Conflict, and the Telling Case of Karamoja, Uganda
May 3, 2021
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Daniel Abrahams
Whether and how climate change drives conflict has driven considerable debate over the past decade. Yet understandings of climate-conflict remain general, and in many respects,…
Examining the Interconnected Threats to a Biodiversity Hotspot in Columbia
May 3, 2021
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Daniel Henryk Rasolt
Sumapaz is the world's largest páramo — a type of high-altitude moorland ecosystem found in the South and Central American neotropics that functions as a…
In Colombia, Indigenous Lands Are Ground Zero for a Wind Energy Boom
May 3, 2021
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María Paula Rubiano
The northernmost tip of South America, home to the Indigenous Wayúu people, is the epicenter of Colombia’s nascent wind energy industry. But Wayúu leaders are…
Rights Watch: Turkey's Cutting off Euphrates Waters Is War Crime
May 1, 2021
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Olfa Haj Mansour
The Turkish occupation state wages a water war on the regions of north and east Syria, and resorts to locking up the Euphrates water, which…
Somalia: Somalia Is Facing Another Food Crisis: Here’s Why – and What Can Be Done to Stop the Cycle
Apr 29, 2021
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Conversation
Since the fall of Siad Barre’s regime in 1991, which led to a prolonged period of civil unrest, Somalia has been in a near-constant state…
World Water Day: Can Water Scarcity Bring Countries Together?
Apr 23, 2021
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Tara Kavaler
March 22 marks World Water Day, celebrating a precious resource in the Middle East North Africa region. In a locale seemingly prone to conflict, water can…
GERD: Renaissance Dam Should Cultivate Cooperation in the Region
Apr 23, 2021
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Ashok Swain
After being the Chairman of the African Union in February 2021, the President of Congo Félix Tshisekedi got engaged in the mediation of the long-running…
A Land Like No Other: Afghanistan’s Post-Conflict Ecotourism Potential
Apr 23, 2021
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Elizabeth B. Hessami
Stunning cobalt-blue lakes with natural travertine dams in Band-e-Amir, the pristine, soaring Pamir Mountains, through which some of the world’s last snow leopards prowl—far from…
Cobalt and the Congo: A Sustainable Green Energy Transition Cannot Be Built on Human Exploitation
Apr 23, 2021
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Prince De Makele Mounguembou
General Motors, one of the United State’s most important automakers, announced in January 2021 that it would phase out petroleum-powered cars and trucks and sell only zero-emission…
How Climate Insecurity Could Trigger More Conflict in Somalia
Apr 23, 2021
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Andrew E. Yaw Tchie
Climate change effects such as droughts, flash floods, erratic rainfall, disruption to the monsoon seasons, strong winds, cyclones, sandstorms, dust storms and increased temperature are…
How Climate Change Drives Humanitarian Crises
Apr 22, 2021
Climate change is set to unleash widespread and sustained damage across the world—even if we succeed in limiting global warming. This is not a problem for…
Climate Change Impacts Women's Lives Around the World
Apr 22, 2021
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Sammy Luffy and Samhita Rao
Climate change impacts everyone on the planet. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has placed additional stress on our communities and our economies, making both increasingly brittle with…