News

Eliminate Legal Discrimination Against Women to Advance Food Security and Nutrition

Mar 5, 2020 | Ilaria Bottigliero and Françoise Trine

In societies where there is a high degree of gender inequality, there is also a significantly higher proportion of undernourishment among women and girls.

In order to effectively…

Iraq: As Oil Prices Fall, How Will Iraq Pay the Bills?

Mar 4, 2020 | Agence France-Presse

As crude prices plunge, Iraq's oil sector is facing a triple threat that has slashed revenues, risks denting production, and may spell trouble for future…

Liberia: Resolution Underway in Boniken-Weleken Land Dispute

Mar 4, 2020 | New Dawn

A team of local authorities headed by County Superintendent, George A. Prowd have instituted measures aimed at restoring peace over a disputed farmland between Boniken…

Revisiting Conflict Minerals Compliance - Developments, Trends and Action Items for the Current Reporting Year

Mar 4, 2020 | Michael R. Littenberg, Anne-Marie L. Beliveau, and Nellie V. Binder

The EU Conflict Minerals Regulation takes effect on January 1, 2021. The EU Regulation generally will require importers of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold (“3TG”…

In Eastern Myanmar, the Karen Watch over a Revolutionary Forest

Mar 4, 2020 | Benjamin D. Hodgdon

For more than 70 years, since shortly after the country formerly known as Burma gained independence, a low-boil insurgency has fought for Karen self-determination, promised…

Myanmar: Myanmar Govt Faces Setbacks in Enforcing Compliance with EITI Database

Mar 3, 2020 | John Liu and Thompson Chau, Myanmar Times

Myanmar’s Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) unit, a government body under the finance ministry, held a press conference on February 28 to address criticisms over…

Climate Change: Report Warns of Climate Change Induced Global Security Risks

Mar 3, 2020 | Leila Mead, International Institute for Sustainable Development

National security, military and intelligence experts are warning of high to catastrophic threats to security at different warming scenarios, and urging a rapid reduction and phasing…

South Sudan: UN: South Sudan’s Oil Patch Is Living on Borrowed Time

Mar 3, 2020 | Tsvetana Paraskova, OilPrice.com

South Sudan continues to spend oil revenues in advance and its oil sector continues to lack transparency, according to a UN report that was made…

Conflict Minerals: Civil Society Calls for Transparency about Companies Subjected to the EU Regulation on 3TG Conflict Minerals

Mar 3, 2020 | Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations

EU member states seem to be adopting a loose interpretation of the text of the Regulation on the responsible sourcing of minerals from conflict-affected and…

Conflict Minerals: UN General Assembly Highlights Importance of Regime to Curb Conflict Diamonds

Mar 3, 2020 | Xinhua

The UN General Assembly on Tuesday adopted a resolution that acknowledges the successful role that the Kimberley Process, a mechanism aimed to prevent "conflict diamonds"…

Environmental Mainstreaming at the 23rd National Mine Action Directors and UN Advisers Meetings

Mar 3, 2020 | Linsey Cottrell and Kendra Dupuy

It was very encouraging to have the environment highlighted in several of the presentations at this year’s National Mine Directors Meeting in Geneva. A plenary…

Are We Radically Underestimating the Effects of Climate on Armed Conflict?

Mar 3, 2020 | Cullen Hendrix

Climate change is widely recognized as a “threat multiplier.” From the United Nations to the G7 to the US Department of Defense, there is emerging consensus that climate change poses…

Colombia: Colombia’s ‘Peace Laboratory’ Decries Government Failures in Coca Substitution

Mar 2, 2020 | Alex Diamond and Pedro Arenas, Colombia Reports

Former coca farmers from Colombia’s “Peace Laboratory” fear a return to war if the government doesn’t live up to the peace process’ coca substitution program.

The Climate-Conflict Connection: Why Aren’t We Acting on It?

Mar 2, 2020 | International Institute for Sustainable Development

Somalia is one of the most fragile states in the world, while also being among the most vulnerable to climate change and least prepared to…

DRC: Children in the Democratic Republic of Congo Mine for Coltan and Face Abuse to Supply Smartphone Industry

Feb 29, 2020 | Esdras Tsongo, ABC News

Years of violence and political conflict across the Democratic Republic of Congo have made its vast mineral wealth an attractive revenue raiser — and rebel…

Myanmar: Myanmar Seizes over 600 Tons of Illegal Timbers in Single Week

Feb 29, 2020 | Star

Myanmar authorities recently seized over 626.1 tons of illegal timbers across the country in a week, state-run media reported on Saturday (Feb 29).

Food Security: Conflict Resolution Crucial for Food Security, Poverty Alleviation, Say Experts

Feb 28, 2020 | Ibe Wada, Guardian

Professionals have explained that food insecurity is aggravated by conflicts, crimes, terrorism and religious extremism, especially from the grain and arable crop-producing zones of the…

South Sudan: South Sudan Targets 200,000 b/d Production This Year: Official

Feb 28, 2020 | Namala Doreen, S&P Global Platts

South Sudan crude production is stuck at 185,000 b/d, hindered by rising water shortages and power rationing, but the country is targeting 200,000 b/d this…

South Sudan: Ruweng Community Demands Compensation for Oil Spills

Feb 28, 2020 | Viola Elias, Voice of America

Residents of South Sudan's oil-rich Ruweng County have petitioned the country's Supreme Court, demanding millions of dollars in compensation for oil spills that have polluted…

Can Artificial Intelligence Predict the Middle East's Next Conflict?

Feb 28, 2020 | Robert Tollast

In January 2014, most Iraq analysts knew security in the country was rapidly deteriorating. Beyond general warnings, however, few predicted exactly how bad the situation…

Silicon Valley Insider: The Intersection of Food and Gender

Feb 28, 2020 | Fiorella Riccobono

When examining the Sustainable Development Goals of The United Nations; zero hunger, responsible production, and climate action are three of the main focal points. In…

Myanmar: Myanmar Court Jails 9 People for Timber Smuggling

Feb 27, 2020 | Myat Moe Aung, Myanmar Times

A local court sentenced nine people to 10 years in jail each for timber smuggling, an official of the Yangon Region Forestry Department said. They…

Climate Change Leads to More Violence Against Women, Girls

Feb 27, 2020 | Jeannette Cwienk

Ntoya Sande was 13 years old when she got married — against her will. "I was sent to be married because of a shortage of food in…

What Can National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights Do for Women's Rights?

Feb 27, 2020 | Nora Götzmann and Wangui Kimotho

National action plans (NAPs) are currently applied by states as one of the key policy tools for the implementation of the United Nations Guiding Principles…

Gender Gap Is Causing Wars Says Defence Forces Chief

Feb 26, 2020

“In the context of eco-system governance, perhaps the most invasive species of all is human beings,” he said.

The gender gap is one of the biggest…

Youth Transitions in the Drylands: Gendered Rights in Land Access and Control

Feb 26, 2020 | Esther Njuguna, Shambel Getachew, Brenda BoonaBaana, Dismas Mwaseba, and Eleanor Mavis

In 2019, the CGIAR Research Program on Grain Legumes and Dryland Cereals (CRP-GLDC) initiated a study to understand ‘youth realities, youth aspirations and youth opportunity…

Myanmar: Rising Sea Levels Put Myanmar's Villages on Frontline of Climate Change

Feb 26, 2020 | Rozanna Latiff and Zaw Naing Oo, Reuters

Ta Dar U is among hundreds of villages at the frontline of Myanmar’s climate crisis, where extreme weather patterns and rising sea levels have amplified…

Rwanda: Rwandan Tin Smelting Firm Certified as Conflict Free

Feb 25, 2020 | Collins Mwai, New Times

A Rwandan tin smelting plant, LuNa Smelter, has been certified as a conflict free smelter by the Responsible Minerals Assurance Process (RMAP). The qualification is…

Colombia: Colombian Armed Forces to Form Special Unit to Protect National Parks

Feb 25, 2020 | Reuters

Colombia will create a special military unit to protect its national parks and step up operations against illegal armed groups who burn vegetation to clear…

Environmental Peacebuilding Association 2020 Board of Directors Special Election Results

Feb 25, 2020 | Environmental Peacebuilding Association

The Environmental Peacebuilding Association is pleased to announce the results of the Special Election for the EnPAx Board of Directors. Kelly Anne Bridges has been…