Blogs & Opinions

Boko Haram: Exacerbating and Benefiting from Food and Water Insecurity in the Lake Chad Basin

Sep 22, 2017 | Mervyn Piesse

The Lake Chad basin suffers from multiple security stressors, including widespread unemployment, poverty and conflict. Rising food and water insecurity exacerbates the tensions that arise…

What Is at Stake in Iraqi Kurdish Vote for Independence?

Sep 18, 2017 | Michael Knights

On 25 September, the residents of Kurdish-controlled areas inside Iraq will have the opportunity to vote in a referendum on their preference for the future…

Destabilizing Egypt; Ethiopia’s Nile River Dam

Sep 14, 2017 | Thomas C. Mountain

Ethiopia’s new “ Grand Renaissance Dam”, scheduled to be completed next year, will take close to half (40%) of the Nile River’s water every year…

Is the Military Prepared for Climate Crisis?

Sep 13, 2017 | Sharmini Peries

If you live in the U.S., it is not news that we have been hit by two devastating hurricanes in the last two weeks. First,…

Tomorrow May Be Too Late: Military Leaders Testify on National Security Challenges of Climate Change

Sep 13, 2017 | Amanda King

As the Senate returns from recess, passing the annual National Defense Authorization Act will be one of its top priorities—and this year it could include…

A New Film, Silas, Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, Highlights the Struggle to Fight Liberian Land Grabs

Sep 11, 2017 | Jonathan Gant

In 2012, while working for my anti-corruption NGO Global Witness, I sat down with a tribal chief in an isolated region of Liberia called Dugbeh.…

Climate Variability, Water, and Security in El Salvador

Sep 10, 2017 | Herman Rosa, Chelsea Spangler

Water-related challenges in El Salvador have acquired far greater significance over the past decade as they have intersected with other social problems including migration, criminal…

Whither Peacebuilding Initiatives? The Escalation of Herder-Farmer Conflicts in Nigeria

Sep 10, 2017 | Akachi Odoemene

There is a growing trend towards episodic, low-intensity conflicts across Nigeria, particularly in its north-central and southern zones. These conflicts often involve nomadic Fulani herdsmen…

How to Free Children Like Samira from Somalia’s Cycle of Drought, Conflict & Hunger

Sep 7, 2017 | Kevin Watkins

Humanitarian action in Somalia has saved lives. Six months ago, a full-blown famine was in prospect as the worst drought in living memory tightened its…

Big Data’s Big Role in Reducing Water Stress

Sep 6, 2017 | Nitin Donde

Water stress is not an arcane term just used by hydrologists. It is defined as the inability to meet the ‘human and ecological demand for…

Reforming Women's Property Rights in Afghanistan

Sep 6, 2017 | Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, Becky Allen

On paper, the law is clear: men and women enjoy equal property rights under Afghanistan's 2004 Constitution. But on-the-ground reality says otherwise as a combination…

Liberia: How Lack of Knowledge of Our Soils Hamper Agriculture Productivity in Liberia

Sep 5, 2017 | Solomon C. Hedd-Williams

The soil is a farmer's silent partner and the basis of farming. It is the basic resource of the agricultural development of any nation. Its…

Why Should the UN Security Council Deal with Climate Security Risks?

Sep 5, 2017 | Amiera Sawas, Florian Krampe

Over 600,000 people have been displaced in recent floods in Sri Lanka. Drought is bringing starvation and famine to 11 million people in Kenya, Ethiopia…

Rethinking Hydropower in Myanmar

Sep 1, 2017 | Michael Spolum

Electricity demand has surged past available supplies by a factor of 15 percent annually and is expected to more than double by 2020. Rolling brownouts…

GAO Report on Gold Supply Chain Reveals Little Progress in Responsible Sourcing

Aug 30, 2017 | Cooley LPP, Cydney Posner

The GAO has issued a new report on conflict minerals focused in this instance on the supply chain for artisanal and small-scale mined (ASM) gold in the…

Indian Company Wins Tender to Construct CASA-1000 Power Project

Aug 25, 2017 | Energy World

Kabul: An Indian company has won the tender for construction of 1000 Electricity Transmission and Trade Project for Central Asia and South Asia (CASA). As per Tolo News,…

Serenity Amid Conflict at Myanmar’s Indawgyi Lake

Aug 25, 2017 | Hugh Scobie

Hugh Scobie takes a journey to a serenely remote lake in northern Myanmar that is largely inaccessible due to surrounding military conflicts. Indawgyi Lake, located in…

Tackling Ozone Depleting Substances as Casualties Mount in Afghanistan

Aug 25, 2017 | UN Environment

Kabul – On a recent Monday morning on 24 July, the Director General of National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA), H.E.Mostafa Zaher and his environment team along with…

Afghanistan- Improved Irrigation Canal to Benefit over 7,500 People in Taloqan

Aug 25, 2017 | MENAFN - Wadsam

Afghan authorities and the Afghan-German Cooperation signed a contract for the reparation and rehabilitation of the Gurg irrigation canal in Taloqan, Takhar's provincial capital on…

Tatmadaw to Continue Clearing out Illegal Mines in Tanai and Hpakant

Aug 25, 2017 | Htoo Thant

Lieutenant Colonel Soe Myint Aung pointed out that without peace, stabillity and rule of law at those mines, they cannot become legal businesses. “There are questions…

Khartoum Negotiating Teams Say Abyei is Sudanese Territory

Aug 25, 2017 | Sudan Tribune

Sudanese delegation for the talks on the Abyei area Monday said they will focus on the need for a peaceful coexistence between the communities there,…

How Not to Create a State: Lessons from South Sudan to Kurdistan

Aug 25, 2017 | Diliman Abdulkader

As the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) prepares to hold a long awaited independence referendum on September 25 of this year, it's wise to look…

Kurds’ Risky Dream of Independence

Aug 24, 2017 | New York Times

After yearning for independence for generations, Kurds in Iraq are scheduled to take a major step in that direction with a nonbinding referendum set for…

Water Wars: a “Suspicious” Flotilla that May “Not Mean Anything”

Aug 19, 2017 | Jared Dummitt, Eliot Kim

The week began with signs that the détente between the Philippines and China was coming along smoothly. Philippine Defense Minister Delfin Lorenzana told a congressional hearing on…

What Happens the Day after the Kurdish Referendum?

Aug 16, 2017 | Michael Rubin

On September 25, Iraqi Kurds will head to the polls not only in Iraqi Kurdistan, but also in territories disputed between Erbil and Baghdad to…

Addressing Women's Burdens from Water Risks Could Help Reduce World Hunger

Aug 10, 2017 | Ayushi Trivedi, Natalie Elwell, and Sara Walker

For hundreds of millions of women, providing food to feed their families is a daily imperative. Many of them depend solely on the meager yields…

Where Will Myanmar's Energy Come From?

Aug 4, 2017 | Amara Thiha

Myanmar’s high growth in electricity demand — rising by around 13 percent annually — is a challenge for the government. Demand is estimated to reach 4,500 MW by 2020 and 13,410…

How the Conflict Minerals Rule Failed

Aug 4, 2017 | Rick Paulas

Between 1998 and 2007, more than 5.4 million people died in the Democratic Republic of Congo due to mass displacement, food shortages, lack of medical infrastructure, and other causes…

From Reports to Results: How the Liberia Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative Makes Transparency Count

Aug 3, 2017 | Christoph Buchberger

How do you make sure that increased transparency in the natural resource sector yields the desired results? The Liberia Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (LEITI) asked…

Solar Energy — Putting Power back into the Hands of Ordinary Gazans

Aug 3, 2017 | Sara Badiei

"We have electricity for two hours every 24 hours," says a high-ranking energy official in Gaza. Up to just 10 years ago, Gaza enjoyed full,…