Blogs & Opinions
COVID-19 Shows Why Protecting Water in Conflict Is Vital
May 6, 2020
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Mara Tignino and Tadesse Kebebew
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted normal livelihoods around the world and hammered home the centrality of water and water infrastructure for human existence. In conflict-affected…
In Memoriam: Arthur H. Westing (1928–2020)
May 6, 2020
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Nils Petter Gleditsch
An in memoriam of Arthur H. Westing, forest ecologist and pioneer in the field of environmental peacebuilding.
As Nils Petter Gleditsch writes:
"On factual academic matters, I was…
Supporting Women Environmental Defenders in the Time of COVID-19
May 5, 2020
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Sara Vigil and Bernadette P. Resurrección
Both the feminist and environmental movements are amongst the most prominent challengers of this commodification. However, environmental defenders face discrimination, violence and high risks, especially women…
No, Cobalt Is Not a Conflict Mineral
May 5, 2020
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Patricia Ndagano
Wakanda’s vibranium extolled in Black Panther may be fictional but is not very far from reality. A remarkable metal used in emerging technologies – from cell phones…
Low-Income Households in Latin America More Likely to Burden Women with Responsibilities of Fetching Water
May 4, 2020
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Christian Borja-Vega and Jonathan Grabinsky
A recent publication in the health journal The Lancet makes a strong argument for how inequality could be an enabling factor in the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. It argues that people living in poverty…
How COVID-19 Puts Women's Housing, Land, and Property Rights at Risk
May 4, 2020
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Victoria Stanley and Paul Prettitore
Around the world, land serves as a foundation for security, shelter, income and livelihoods. But rights to land are not equitably distributed to all. This…
Bottom-Up Ideas about Gender Justice from Violent Contexts Need Greater Recognition in the International Women’s Rights Agenda
May 3, 2020
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Nicholas Pope and Julia Zulver
With the world reaching the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Platform for Action to end gender inequality and the 20th anniversary of the Women, Peace,…
How Individual Citizens Can Protect South Sudan’s Environment from Mining and Oil Disasters
May 2, 2020
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Philip Ayuen Dot
Our planet has been undergoing several challenges in the last Century, when it comes to its environment. As the various reports from the United Nations…
Opinion: In the Battle Against COVID-19, Women Make Somalia Stronger
May 1, 2020
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Deqa Yasin Hagi Yusuf
Brave health workers. Brilliant researchers. Responsible leaders. Solidarity. Around the world, the COVID-19 crisis reveals what makes us strong. But it also highlights what makes us fragile.
In…
Reducing Post-Harvest Losses through Better Gender Integration
Apr 29, 2020
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Maria Jones, Ismat Ara Begum, Monjurul Alam, C.K. Saha, and Abdul Awal
Post-harvest management is an important, although less visible, step in ensuring a community’s food security. Poor post-harvest management reduces both the quantity and quality of…
Women in Ukraine's Military: An Opportunity for Change
Apr 28, 2020
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Hannah Hrytsenko
While UN Resolution 1325 on women, peace, and security urges countries to increase the participation of women in the military through a top-down approach, in…
India’s COVID–19 Gender Blind Spot
Apr 27, 2020
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Bansari Kamdar
The second most populous country in the world, India, has been under a nationwide lockdown since March 24, 2020 – one it intends to continue…
Can We Make Peace with the Coronavirus?
Apr 27, 2020
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Erica Sheeran and Jeremy Moore
The field of environmental peacebuilding understands the degradation of our planet’s environment as a common human foe against which groups divided by conflict can be mobilized. “Nature…
There Have Been Repeated Warnings About the Environmental Risks Posed by Flooded Coal Mines in Eastern Ukraine, Are We Now Seeing Evidence That It Is Happening?
Apr 27, 2020
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Eoghan Darbyshire
On the 12th March reports emerged on social media of contamination and discoloration at a reservoir in the town of Yenakiyevo, northwest of Donetsk. A follow up article by Free…
Africa: Triple Threat - Conflict, Gender-Based Violence and COVID-19
Apr 26, 2020
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Nontobeko Mlambo
The new coronavirus, officially called SARS-CoV-2, has infected more than three million people worldwide – 31,000 in Africa by 26 April – with Egypt, South Africa,…
Improve Gender Equality to Better our Island
Apr 25, 2020
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Lauren Swaddell
The Guam Green Growth Initiative was launched earlier this year, and dozens of leaders from the government, business, nonprofit and academic community came together to…
Taxes, COVID-19 and Nuclear Weapons Funding -- Our Nation's Priorities
Apr 25, 2020
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Robert Dodge
This is the time in April we traditionally fund our nation’s priorities. There is nothing traditional this year. In the midst of the international COVID-19…
Russia's Arctic Development Poses Risks for Combating Climate Change in the Baltics
Apr 24, 2020
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Viktorija Rusinaite
The EU is hoping to curb effects of climate change by implementing the European Green Deal — a policy package aimed at reaching a carbon-neutral economy by…
The Limits of Energy Independence
Apr 23, 2020
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Economist
Even when American policy in the Middle East has been about more than oil, it has been about oil. That has sometimes been jarringly obvious, as…
On Earth Day and Every Day, We Need to Focus on the Intersection of Gender Data and the Environment
Apr 22, 2020
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Elizabeth Black
The effects of climate change are widespread, but not all are well-known. Nowhere is this clearer than in the lack of gender data on how…
Making Gender a Key Focus of Inclusive WASH Practices and Facilities
Apr 21, 2020
The United Nations recognises that girls and women with disabilities are among the most vulnerable and marginalised members of society. CBM Australia recognises the value…
How Oil and Water Create a Complex Conflict in the Niger Delta
Apr 21, 2020
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Abosede Omowumi Babatunde
In the Niger Delta’s coastal communities, oil pollution of the marine environment has depleted the fishing and water resources that people have traditionally depended on for their…
How to Soften the Impact of Coronavirus During Conflict
Apr 20, 2020
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Gerardo Noto
The COVID-19 crisis will be felt in education, human rights and, in the most severe cases, basic food security and nutrition, especially for the estimated…
Colombia's Environmental Crisis Accelerates Under Duque
Apr 20, 2020
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Evan King and Samantha Wherry
On 16 February 2020, six gunmen fatally shot Albeiro Silva Mosquera and his brother Luis Hugo and severely injured Indigenous leader and activist Daniel Remigio…
A Gender-Equal Ethiopian Parliament Can Improve the Lives of All Women
Apr 19, 2020
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James Jeffrey
Recent gains by women in the Ethiopian political landscape offer a chance to improve gender equality around the country and put an end to long-standing…
Demilitarizing the Response to Climate Change
Apr 17, 2020
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Peace Science Digest
A range of policy options are available to countries to address and respond to climate change. Looking specifically at the U.S., the authors of this…
Conflict to Conservation: How Guerrilla Fighters Became Environmentalists
Apr 17, 2020
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Eleanor Whitworth
The unlikely protectors of Columbia’s wildlife and flora. They were guerrilla fighters in a lengthy civil war. Now they're protecting Colombia's pristine, richly biodiverse jungles and…
COVID-19 Shows How Reckless Jordan Valley Annexation Would Be
Apr 17, 2020
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Gidon Bromberg, Yana Abu Taleb, and Nada Majdalani
“Cutting off the nose to spite the face” is an apt expression to describe the lack of rationale behind Israeli government policies calling for unilateral…
A Gender Lens for COVID-19
Apr 16, 2020
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Susan Papp and Marcy Hersh
When pandemics strike, world leaders and health responders must adapt quickly to the looming threat. Often the last factor they consider – if it makes…
Women Leaders Are Doing a Disproportionately Great Job at Handling the Pandemic. So Why Aren’t There More of Them?
Apr 15, 2020
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Leta Hong Fincher
CNN’s Alisyn Camerota and former US Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power discuss how seven female world leaders are spearheading a strong response to…