News


Myanmar: Myanmar Seizes over 27,000 Tons Illegal Timber in 7 Months

Oct 31, 2016 | Xinhua

Myanmar authorities seized over 27,000 tons of illegal logs and timber in the first seven months of the 2016-17 fiscal year, the the Ministry of…


Rising Water Wars between Indian States

Oct 30, 2016 | Dr. Yogesh Sharma

India has been facing friction over the sharing of river waters. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have been fighting like two warring nations over sharing of…


In Palm Oil, Liberia Sees Economic Boom — but Forests May Lose

Oct 28, 2016 | Sophie Bertazzo

Liberia views palm oil development as a huge opportunity for economic growth and international trade. But embracing the booming industry is not without its costs. Without proper…


Liberia's Land Bill in Limbo

Oct 28, 2016 | Sumit Galhotra

A narrow window is quickly drawing shut for Liberia to enact a landmark law that would guarantee millions of its people the right to formally…


Water Wars: Sifting through the Tea Leaves in the South China Sea

Oct 28, 2016 | Chris Mirasola

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s visit to Beijing last week precipitated a busy news week as commentators and government officials tried to discern how closer Philippine-Chinese cooperation would…


ICC Expands Remit to Environmental Crimes: Is This What the People of Cambodia Have Been Waiting for?

Oct 28, 2016 | Hannah Gerber

Cambodia’s land reforms in 2001 have led to over 10 years of violent and coercive land grabs, damaging the livelihoods of nearly 10,000 Cambodian citizens.…


Afghanistan: How Opium Fuels the Taliban’s War Machine in Afghanistan

Oct 28, 2016 | Hashim Wahdatyar, Diplomat

The nexus between the Taliban and opium cultivation stems from the establishment of its regime. In 1997, only Pakistan and Saudi Arabia recognized the Taliban…


Myanmar: From Secret Meetings to Public Exhibitions: A New Era of Environmental Activism

Oct 28, 2016 | Samuel Schlaefli, Myanmar Times

Environmental activists have enjoyed more freedom since the “opening up” of the country five years ago, but challenges remain – especially regarding access to information.…


EU Regulation on Conflict Minerals Has Low Potential to Trigger Dynamic Changes in Supply Chains

Oct 27, 2016 | Chiara Macchi

The first version of the EU draft Regulation on conflict minerals came as a disappointment to the many civil society actors. EU institutions were split,…


Colombia: Colombia’s Coca Growers Fear New Peace Accord

Oct 27, 2016 | Erika Piñeros, IRIN

In the wake of the shock referendum result earlier this month that derailed the peace agreement between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Mosul Battle Shows Link between War and Environmental Degradation, Says UN agency

Oct 27, 2016 | Chris Mooney, Washington Post

The United Nations Environment Programme is highlighting the battle by Iraqi forces to reclaim Mosul from the Islamic State as the latest instance in the complex but very…


South Sudan: Following the Herd: How Cows Fuelled the War in South Sudan, and How They Can Consolidate the Peace

Oct 27, 2016 | Simon Allison, Daily Maverick

As South Sudan struggles with the aftermath of its bloody civil war, the fate of its estimated 12-million cattle will be crucial in helping the…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Sulfur Dioxide Plume Moving Across Iraq, Satellite Images Show

Oct 27, 2016 | Elizabeth McLaughlin, ABC News

New images released by NASA show a dangerous sulfur plume moving across northern Iraq in the wake of the battle to retake Mosul. As the…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Mosul Battle Brings Environmental Damage, with Serious Impacts on Health, Prospects of Recovery

Oct 27, 2016 | UNEP

Civilians in Northern Iraq are falling victim to additional suffering - including near suffocation and respiratory illnesses - due to what appears to be a…


How to Make Peace with the Forest: Development and War in Colombia

Oct 26, 2016 | Hannah Meszaros Martin

On September 26, the Peace Agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC-EP was signed with a pen made from a bullet, while the Air…


Colombia: Environmental Peacebuilding Training for Executives from Colombia

Oct 26, 2016 | Meredith Smith, Earth Institute

With colleagues at the Center for Information and Earth Sciences Information Network, AC4 designed and offered a one-week intensive executive training program in Environmental Peacebuilding. Fifteen professionals,…


Myanmar: Myanmar to Consider Becoming Full Member of Mekong River Commission: President

Oct 26, 2016 | Xinhua

Visiting Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw said Wednesday that his country agreed to consider becoming full member of the Mekong River Commission (MRC). U Htin…


Nigeria: Nigerian Militants Say They Bomb Chevron Oil Export Pipeline

Oct 26, 2016 | Hilary Uguru and Michelle Faul, Associated Press

Nigerian militants have bombed an oil export pipeline operated by U.S.-based multinational Chevron, according to the attackers and residents, and the militants are warning companies…


Iraq/Kurdistan: How the Islamic State is Using Scorched Earth Tactics as it Retreats

Oct 26, 2016 | Laris Karklis, Washington Post

Satellite imagery of the current operations by Iraqi forces to retake Mosul reveal how the Islamic State can inflict damage even when the militant group…


Climate Security: Charlie Rose and Director Clapper on Climate and National Security

Oct 26, 2016 | Center for Climate and Security

On October 25, 2016 Director of National Intelligence James Clapper sat down with PBS’s Charlie Rose to look back on his career and six years as…


Iraq/Kurdistan: In the Aftermath of Islamic State's Retreat in Iraq: Destruction, Fire and Toxic Fumes

Oct 26, 2016 | Molly Hennessy-Fiske, Los Angeles Times

A coordinated campaign by Iraqi and Kurdish forces to retake the city of Mosul has left more than 20,000 people stranded here near the west…


Iraq: Iraq Balks at Oil Production Cuts, Needs Funds to Fight ISIS

Oct 26, 2016 | Tim Daiss, Forbes

More disorder among OPEC ranks comes as Iraq says that it will not likely reduce oil output because it needs funds to keep up…


IUCN AEL Call for Papers: Workshop 2017

Oct 25, 2016 | IUCN Academy of Environmental Law Research Committee

Notwithstanding the protection afforded by domestic, regional and international legal instruments, the environment is often the mute victim of armed conflicts, from civil wars, drug…


Climate Security Policy Recommendations - Request for Support

Oct 25, 2016 | The Center for Climate and Security

The Climate Security Working Group-International would like to produce a useful guide to existing recommendations in this field for the defense, diplomacy, development and multilateral…


Environmental Damage as a Weapon of War? Open Source Industrial Risk Analysis of the Mosul Battle

Oct 25, 2016 | Wim Zwijnenburg

The start of the operation to retake Mosul from the Islamic State (IS)  has seen unprecedented use of environmental pollution as a means to hinder…


Afghanistan: Opium Fuels the Stalemate in America's Longest War

Oct 25, 2016 | Peter Bergen, CNN

The resurgent Taliban have captured almost all of the key poppy-growing Afghan province of Helmand. If Helmand were a country, it would be the nation…


Conflict Minerals: Report: Gunmen Still Control Metals Mined for Modern Gadgets

Oct 25, 2016 | Associated Press

Violent gunmen still menace pick-and-shovel miners in eastern Congo, a new report finds, despite years of efforts to loosen their grip by local reformers, Western…


Afghanistan: There's a Massive Water Crisis Looming over Afghanistan

Oct 25, 2016 | Omair Ahmad, Scroll

Hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees are starting the long trek back home after the latest donors’ conference to rebuild Afghanistan. As they do so,…


Myanmar: Food Security and Livelihood Head of Department

Oct 24, 2016 | Action Contre la Faim

Action Against Hunger is a global humanitarian organization that takes decisive action against the causes and effects of hunger. Recognized as a leader in the…


Iraq: WASH Manager – Mosul Preparedness

Oct 24, 2016 | CARE

CARE International (CARE) in the Kurdish Region of Iraq (KR-I), together with our partners, has been providing humanitarian assistance to people affected by the current…