International
Afghanistan: Glacial Melt Stokes Fears in Northeast Afghanistan
Jun 5, 2019
|
Naimatullah Ahmadi and Abubakar Siddique, Gandhara
Melting glaciers in a remote Afghan province pose a major threat to the country’s water resources, climate, and economic prospects. Ziaul Haq Kamran heads Afghanistan’s…
Gaza: Collapsing Environmental State of Gaza Poses Threat to Israel's National Security, Report Warns
Jun 5, 2019
|
Zafrir Rinat
Sewage dumping and air pollution could severely effect desalination plants and smog levels, experts say, warning none of Gaza's groundwater will be fit for human…
Syria: Vital Cropland Destroyed by Escalation of Syria's Violence - WFP
Jun 5, 2019
|
Kuwait News Agency
The senior spokesperson of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) in Geneva Herve Verhoosel on Tuesday said, "The latest outbreak in violence in Idlib and…
South Sudan: South Sudan Sets up Transparent Mechanism to Boost Non-Oil Revenue
Jun 5, 2019
|
Xinhua
South Sudan said Wednesday its efforts to boost non-oil revenue collection will be enhanced with the recently set up harmonized system code aimed at ensuring…
Climate Change: Global Peace and Stability Depend on Climate Security
Jun 5, 2019
|
Government of the UK
Foreign and Commonwealth Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific, Mark Field, highlighted the importance of factoring the risks of climate change into all…
Myanmar: Karen Groups Aim to Strengthen Customary Land Management System in KNU Areas
Jun 4, 2019
|
Karen News
The Kaw Customary Land Seminar was attended by 519 people including representatives from local community and civil society, donors, INGOs, political parties, and officers of…
Colombia: Avocado Diplomacy: Supporting Peace in Colombia
Jun 4, 2019
|
Marc Gilkey, American Foreign Service Association
Avocado market access was at the core of all issues. It was a talking point in nearly every speech by Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos.…
Colombia: Colombia's Push for Land Titles Brings Hope for Farmers amid Fragile Peace
Jun 4, 2019
|
Anastasia Moloney, Reuters
Granting land titles is part of government efforts to promote rural development as set out in the 2016 peace deal signed with the Revolutionary Armed…
Climate Change: Germany Pushes Climate Change as Security Risk
Jun 4, 2019
|
Austin Davis, Deutsche Welle
Floods, drought and mass migration: all factors why Germany has made the UN's response to climate change its priority at the Security Council. But political…
Climate Change: Germany Wants UN Security Council More Involved in Mitigating Climate Crisis
Jun 4, 2019
|
Alicia Prager, EURACTIV
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas launched a call for action on Tuesday (4 June) that aims to develop real solutions that would mitigate the security…
Middle East: How the Middle East's Drought Cycle Will Probably Lead to Even More Refugees
Jun 4, 2019
|
Rachel Delia Benaim, Weather Channel
The Middle East is experiencing its most severe drought in 900 years, according to NASA-- one which is seemingly endless. The drought peaked between 2006-2010,…
DRC: Cobalt: The Dark Side of a Clean Future
Jun 4, 2019
|
James Gordon, Raconteur
An estimated 35,000 children work in perilous conditions to extract cobalt from the ground in the Democratic Republic of Congo. So what will the impact…
Afghanistan: Greenhouses Could Hold the Key to Tackling Afghanistan’s Food Shortages
Jun 4, 2019
|
ACTED
While Afghanistan continues to import a large proportion of its most basic food needs, ACTED is working in Samangan province to help rural women become…
Iraq: Torching and Extortion: OSINT Analysis of Burning Agriculture in Iraq
Jun 3, 2019
|
Wim Zwijnenburg, Bellingcat
In early May 2019, it was reported that agricultural areas of central and northern Iraq were being set ablaze — allegedly by remaining pockets of fighters…
Myanmar: Govt to Introduce More Control in Jade Mining Sector
Jun 3, 2019
|
Chan Mya Htwe, Myanmar Times
The authorities are expected to limit the issue of new licenses for jade mining in the future, said U Aung Nyunt Thein, managing director of…
Afgahnistan: Nearly Half of Rural Afghans Face Food Insecurity: UN
Jun 3, 2019
|
Agence France-Presse
Nearly half of all rural Afghans now face some level of food insecurity, a UN agency said Monday, as a historic drought and deteriorating security…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq’s Ambitious Oil Plan Faces One Major Problem
Jun 3, 2019
|
Simon Watkins, OilPrice
The Federal Government of Iraq (FGI) in Baghdad moved swiftly when the U.S. re-imposed sanctions against Iran, ordering its Oil Ministry to breach part of…
India: Running Dry: Competing for Water on a Thirsty Planet
Jun 3, 2019
|
Laurie Goering, Reuters
Bangalore’s groundwater is running dry. A government think tank last year predicted the city - like others in India, including New Delhi - could run…
Myanmar: Myanmar Seizes over 326 Tons of Illegal Timbers in NW Region
Jun 2, 2019
|
Xinhua
Myanmar authorities seized a total of 326.8 tons of illegally harvested timbers in Sagaing region during the month of May, police said Sunday. The illegal…
Vietnam/South China Sea: Revisiting Vietnam’s Efforts to Resolve the South China Sea Conflict
Jun 1, 2019
|
Your Say, Independent
As a coastal state and a jurisdictional party in the South China Sea, Vietnam has played an active role to solve the conflict based on…
Timor-Leste: The Looting of Timor-Leste’s Oil Wealth
Jun 1, 2019
|
Bardia Rahmani, Diplomat
In development speak, a “white elephant” is a building project that is extremely expensive but that has little use or practical value. It would not…
Iraq: Explosions in Iraqi Oil Hotspot Kill Five
May 31, 2019
|
Julianne Geiger, OilPrice
A series of explosions in Iraqi oil hotpot Kirkuk has killed at least five people and injured 18 more, medical sources reported to Reuters on…
Colombia: Land Grabbing, Cattle Ranching Ravage Colombian Amazon after FARC Demobilization
May 30, 2019
|
Taran Volckhausen, Mongabay
In 2017, the first year following the FARC’s demobilization, deforestation in the Colombian Amazon region exploded, more than doubling from 70,074 hectares (173,000 acres) the…
Iraq/Syria: Deliberate Crop Burning Blamed on ISIS Remnants Compounds Misery in War Torn Iraq and Syria
May 30, 2019
|
Associated Press
It was looking to be a good year for farmers across parts of Syria and Iraq. The wettest in generations, it brought rich, golden fields…
Sudan: Land Grabbing and Its Implications for Sudanese – Views from a Scholar
May 30, 2019
|
Fredrick Mugira and Annika McGinnis, Water Journalists Africa
Investors from largely food-insecure Gulf countries are increasingly buying vast swaths of fertile land irrigated by the Nile River in Sudan to grow food crops…
'I'll Keep Fighting': Philippine Women Keep Alive Memory of Sex Slave Horrors During World War II
May 30, 2019
|
Regine Cabato
MANILA — Rosa Henson, a survivor of wartime sexual slavery at the hands of Japanese forces, went public in 1992 with her story. She had no…
Myanmar: Go Fish! But, Please, Do So Legally
May 30, 2019
|
Kundhavi Kadiresan, Myanmar Times
The people of Myanmar love fish and both demand and consumption of fish is on the rise. On the one hand that’s good, because fish…
Diamond Development Initiative Seeking Executive Director
May 29, 2019
|
Rob Bates, JCK
The Diamond Development Initiative (DDI), the Ottawa, Canada–based group that works on the issues surrounding artisanal diamond diggers, is looking for a new executive director to replace longtime…
Myanmar: Illegal Jade Trade Still Thriving Despite Mining Suspension
May 29, 2019
|
Chan Mya Htwe, Myanmar Times
Myanmar jade is still being smuggled across the border to China in large quantities despite the government having suspended new licenses for two years now,…
Liberia: Locals Accuse Salala Rubber Company, Liberia Agricultural Company of Land Grabbing
May 29, 2019
|
FrontPage Africa
Two major Liberian rubber plantation companies, including the Salala Rubber Corporation (SRC) and Liberia Agricultural Company (LAC) are under intense pressure from project-affected communities to…