Blogs & Opinions

Letter: New Gemstone Law Changes Little

Jan 16, 2019 | Myanmar Times

Kyaw Ko Ko’s article about Mandalay traders claiming the gemstone law is good news for the industry is extremely ill-informed. It is irresponsible for journalists…

From Conservation to Coexistence: How Peace and Security Underpin Conservation in Northern Kenya

Jan 15, 2019

The Africa Biodiversity Collaborative Group speaker series aim to foster information exchange and lessons sharing among cross-sector practitioners. As part of this series, on November 13,…

Why Is China in a Hurry to Revive the Myitsone Dam Projects?

Jan 15, 2019 | Joe Kumbun

A statement from the Chinese government on Sunday has renewed concerns among ethnic Kachin over the stalled Myitsone dam project. The sudden flurry of activity…

Groundwater Scarcity, Pollution Set India on Perilous Course

Jan 15, 2019 | Keith Schneider

Polluting industrial development, ambitious agricultural production, and grave hydrological mismanagement in thousands of rural communities have produced an economic and environmental crisis that is now…

H2O: Water Conflicts to Watch in 2019

Jan 8, 2019 | Kayla Ritter

In 2018, water sparked quarrels across the globe, from the mountains of Central Asia to the world’s driest desert. Water systems were also a casualty…

Can a South China Sea Code of Conduct Help Ensure Regional Stability? Here Are Four Ways It Could Be Strengthened

Jan 8, 2019 | Aaron Rabena

The China-Philippines Scarborough Shoal stand-off in 2012, the China-Vietnam oil-rig incident in 2014, China’s island-building and militarisation operations, the Philippines’ Permanent Court of Arbitration landmark…

Climate Change and National Security, Part II: How Big a Threat Is the Climate?

Jan 7, 2019 | Michelle Melton

The US national security establishment has been increasingly vocal that climate change is a national security threat—and the US is not alone in this regard.…

EcoPeace's Workshop on 'Water Security And Environmental Peacebuilding"

Jan 3, 2019 | EcoPeace Middle East

From the 10th to the 15th of December, EcoPeace hosted a first of its kind workshop on ‘Middle East Water Security and Environmental Peacebuilding’. Participants…

Are Afghanistan's Mineral Deposits the Answer to Country's Economic Woes?

Dec 31, 2018 | Tamim Asey

As it stands, a mineral-based economy is one of the few options available when it comes to establishing a solid foundation on which to develop…

Water Wars: New Year's Resolutions

Dec 31, 2018 | Nathan Swire

In a cabinet meeting on Dec. 18, the government of Japan adopted new National Defense Program Guidelines that call for the “drastic strengthening of Japan’s…

As Nations Fight for Control, South China Sea Coral Reefs Are Dying in Silence

Dec 29, 2018 | James Borton and Jackson Ewing

The devastation wrought by island building in the waters, mainly by China, is having a big impact on an already fragile ecosystems. Cooperation on scientific…

Editorial: Durand Line Fencing Denounced

Dec 26, 2018 | Afghanistan Times

First ever resentment/opposition against fencing of controversial Durand Line was raised by tribesmen from Shalman area of Khyber, adjacent to Lalpura area of Nangarhar province.

This Year’s Extreme Weather Showed That the Pentagon Is Not Ready for Climate Change

Dec 20, 2018 | Dan Spinelli

One year after President Donald Trump took office, his Defense Department released a survey cataloging the ways climate change has affected thousands of military installations across…

Tackling Water Shortage in Kabul

Dec 19, 2018 | Saboor Stanikzai

With rising security threats, violent crime rates, pollution, traffic congestion and so forth; the rapid population growth and the rising temperatures have left the residents…

50 Years of Water at Wilson: Water, Conflict and Cooperation (Part 1 of 2)

Dec 19, 2018 | Elizabeth Wang and Truett Sparkman

A number of countries across North Africa, the Middle East, into Central and South Asia are “at risk of failure if they can’t get the…

How Gender and Climate Change Can Be Integrated into Military Operations (Book Preview)

Dec 18, 2018 | Jody Prescott

As the United States develops a strategy to guide all military services on how to promote the participation of women in conflict prevention, management, and…

Refugees Returning To Syria Face Devastated Water, Sewage Infrastructure

Dec 17, 2018 | Kayla Ritter

Islamic State (IS) militants were ousted from key Syrian cities in 2018, and the country’s civil war, approaching its eighth year, is winding down. Despite…

Southeast Asia Must Integrate Gender Considerations in Coastal Resource Management - Regional Gender Study

Dec 14, 2018

A Regional Gender Study completed in 2018 has shown that many countries in Southeast Asia are not adequately integrating gender considerations into their national policies…

The Islamic State's Toxic Legacy Is an Environmental Catastrophe, Too

Dec 14, 2018 | Richard Pearshouse

When ISIS was forced to retreat from Iraq, its fighters took to eviscerating the landscape in ways that gave no immediate military advantage. According to…

Lapis Lazuli Project to Create Vibrant Transit Route for Afghanistan

Dec 13, 2018 | Neelapu Shanti

Lapis Lazuli transit route is set to emerge as an economic corridor for an inclusive development by which Afghanistan could connect to Europe via Turkmenistan,…

Opinion: Connecting The Dots- Land Rights And Inclusive Economic Growth in Colombia

Dec 8, 2018 | Jolene Sanjak

With no shortage of development dollars flowing to Colombia, how can that investment translate into an inclusive model of private sector-led economic growth? And how…

At What Cost to Develop Timor-Leste’s Oil Resources?

Dec 6, 2018 | Vijayalakshmi Menon

In March, Timor-Leste and Australia signed a treaty resolving the issue of the long-disputed maritime boundaries between the two countries. This treaty recognised Australia’s and…

The New Rebels of Colombia's Forests

Dec 5, 2018 | Lucy Sherriff

Colombian forests had protected Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) fighters from attacks and surveillance. In turn, FARC’s presence in the Magdalena River Valley, nestled…

Power Play: Can Micro-Hydropower Electrify Remote Afghanistan and Promote Peace?

Dec 4, 2018 | Elizabeth B. Hessami

After close to 40 years of armed conflict, Afghanistan may be poised to begin a period of economic recovery. Electrifying remote areas and establishing pervasive…

Refining the UN's Approach to the Water-Security Nexus

Dec 3, 2018 | Danilo Turk

Today, the world is increasingly aware of the dramatic meaning of water. Water stress and water-related disasters are among the main consequences of global warming…

Water Wars Won’t Be Won on a Battlefield

Dec 2, 2018 | Bill Frist

It’s an astonishing finding: “Two countries engaged in active water cooperation” will “not go to war, for any reason." According to an extensive analysis by…

Opinion: Malnutrition In Conflict Zones is Rife- Here's How To Save Lives And Build Peace

Nov 30, 2018 | Michael Klosson

Conflict has been repeatedly cited by the United Nations as a major driver of hunger in 2018. Failure to get nutritious food to children trapped…

Aaron Wolf on Transboundary Water Conflict and Cooperation [Podcast]

Nov 30, 2018 | Wilson Center

“Countries—even countries that don’t like each other much—have, and continue to have, conversations over water resources, even when they won’t about other issues,” says Aaron…

Back to Business as Usual in Myanmar’s Jade Mines?

Nov 28, 2018 | Hanna Hindstrom

For over two decades, the world-famous jade mines in Hpakant in Kachin State have been associated with the horrors of Tatmadaw rule and civil war:…

International Water Cooperation Opens the Doors to Peacemaking

Nov 27, 2018 | Adrien Detges and Tobias Ide

Although water is an essential input for agriculture and industrial production, it is also scarce in many regions. When it crosses international borders via shared…