Iraq: Beyond Oil and ISIS

May 22, 2019 | Austin Bodetti
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As Iraq continues its lengthy recovery from a ruinous four-year showdown between the Islamic State (ISIS or IS) and an American-led coalition, Iraqi officials are determining which aspect of their country’s reconstruction to prioritize. Among the most pressing challenges remains confronting the twin phenomena of climate change and environmental degradation, problems that weighed on Iraq well before the rise of IS. Though overcoming environmental issues from desertification to water scarcity in the wake of a conflict seems daunting, Iraqi environmentalists have begun preparing themselves for the task.