News


Myanmar: Karen People Call for a Peace Park Instead of Big Hydropower in Their Homeland

Dec 14, 2016 | Demelza Stokes, Mongabay

The Salween Peace Park would set aside a 5,200 square kilometer (around 2,000 square miles) swathe of Myanmar’s southeastern Karen state as an indigenous Karen-led…


Afghanistan: Afghan Villagers Learn Sustainable Irrigation Practices through On-Farm Water Management Project

Dec 14, 2016 | World Bank

With a $25 million grant from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), OFWMP works to improve agricultural productivity in project areas by enhancing the efficiency…


Myanmar: Illegal Farmland Sales Prompt Calls for Action

Dec 13, 2016 | Zay Yar Linn, Myanmar Times

The Myanmar Real Estate Services Association wants the government to crack down on the illegal sale of farmland for residential development. U Than Oo, vice…


Colombia: FAO, World Bank to Support Land Reform in Colombia

Dec 13, 2016 | Wangu Mwangi, International Institute for Sustainable Development

Following the signing of a peace agreement between the Government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC-EP), the Food and Agriculture Organization…


Iraq: Iraq to Abide by OPEC Cut, Expects Output Growth in Future

Dec 12, 2016 | Rania El Gamal, Reuters

Iraq is committed to cutting its production to comply with a global pact to support prices, the country's oil minister said, adding he was nevertheless…


Food Insecurity: An Agent for Violent Conflict

Dec 11, 2016 | Dominique Von Rohr

Up to two billion people live in countries affected by violence, conflict, and fragility. Often, such political instability goes hand in hand with food insecurity.…


Weaponized Oil: Scorched Earth Warfare in Iraq

Dec 11, 2016 | Jillian Sequeira

The military tactic of “scorched earth”–destroying land and resources while entering or retreating from a territory so that enemies cannot benefit from occupying the land–dates…


Myanmar: Myanmar Farmers Hope NLD Can End Suffering of Junta-era Land Grabs

Dec 10, 2016 | Paul Vrieze, Voice of America

Kachin farmers became embroiled in a land dispute with a Burmese businesswoman named Khin Thant Zin after she purchased the title to 170 acres from…


Iraq/Kurdistan: After the Islamic State, Iraq at Risk of a New Battle for Disputed Territory

Dec 10, 2016 | Missy Ryan and Aaso Ameen Shwan, Associated press

Kurdish intentions to remain in disputed areas of northern Iraq, despite warnings from Baghdad, threaten to spark renewed ethnic conflict once the Islamic State can…


Water Wars: Donald Trump Stirs Pot in South China Sea

Dec 9, 2016 | Chris Mirasola

President-elect Donald Trump took control of the news cycle this week by seeming to adopt a hard line on US-China relations. First, he accepted a phone call…


Liberia: Lawmakers Raise Red Flag over Alterations in New Oil Law

Dec 9, 2016 | FrontPageAfrica

Liberia’s hydrocarbon sector was expected to be a blessing for the country since offshore exploration began by African Petroleum in February 2012, but conspiracies have…


Syria: US Coalition Destroys 168 ISIS Oil Tankers [Video]

Dec 9, 2016 | Scout

In the largest air strike of its kind to date, Coalition airstrikes destroyed a fleet of 168 ISIL oil tanker trucks near Palmya, Syria, Dec.…


Food Security: Civil Conflict and Unpredictable Weather Cast ‘Long Shadow’ on Food Security’ in 2016 – UN

Dec 8, 2016 | UN

This year, the world suffered many weather-related shocks and civil conflicts which pressured food security for many countries, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization,…


South Sudan: South Sudan President Orders Deployment of Troops to Oil Fields

Dec 8, 2016 | Sudan Tribune

South Sudan president Salva Kiir has ordered for the deployment of additional troops to the oil producing region, saying it would ensure no armed elements…


Conflict Minerals: Conflict-Free Sourcing Initiative (CFSI) Releases Latest Reporting Conflict Minerals Reporting Template

Dec 8, 2016 | Source Intelligence

One of the most important efforts to trace whether conflict minerals are entering global supply chains is the Conflict Minerals Reporting Template (CMRT) developed by…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq Can’t Count on Kurds or Oil Companies to Meet OPEC Cuts

Dec 8, 2016 | Sam Wilkin, Bloomberg

Iraq can’t count on self-governed Kurds in the country’s north or international oil companies to help it cut crude production as promised at an OPEC…


Armed Conflict Catches Animals in the Crossfire

Dec 7, 2016 | Kaitlyn M Gaynor

When people make war, wildlife often becomes a casualty. Explosives and war materials kill living things that are not their targets. Valuable wildlife products, like…


Land, Conflict and Sustainable Development

Dec 7, 2016 | Caleb Stevens

When I arrived in Liberia six years ago, I was tasked with facilitating the development of the country’s first national land policy. Of the many…


India/Pakistan: Kashmir, Climate Change, and Nuclear War

Dec 7, 2016 | Zia Mian, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

The White House press secretary explained that the underlying concern about South Asia was “the risk that a conventional conflict between India and Pakistan could…


Timor-Leste: East Timor is Going for Broke as Oil Runs out

Dec 7, 2016 | Damon Evans, Forbes

East Timor could be bankrupt within a decade unless it takes urgent action to diversify its economy and reassess its fixation with mega-petroleum projects. Significantly,…


Myanmar: Burma Rivers Network Calls for a Halt to Dam Projects in Conflict Areas

Dec 7, 2016 | Nyein Nyein, Irrawaddy

The Burma Rivers Network (BRN) has called for a halt to hydropower dam projects, special economic zones and natural resource extraction in ethnic areas where…


Climate Change: Dutch FM Calls on Putting Climate-Related Security Risks on UN Security Council Agenda

Dec 6, 2016 | Xinhua

Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders said on Monday that water- and climate-related security problems belong to the agenda of the UN Security Council, and the…


Colombia: Land Access and Restitution at the Heart of Peacebuilding in Colombia

Dec 6, 2016 | Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

FAO will support Colombia in carrying out a comprehensive rural reform aimed at strengthening food security and peace, including measures which address issues of land…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Exxon Pulls out of Three Exploration Blocks in Kurdistan: Iraq Oil Report

Dec 6, 2016 | Vishal Sridhar, Reuters

Exxon Mobil has pulled out of half of the six exploration blocks it operated in the Kurdistan region, the Iraq Oil Report reported. The oil…


Sudan: Sudan Pressures OVL for Higher Tax, Sits on Extension

Dec 6, 2016 | Time of India

Sudan is playing hardball with India on the issue of extending the licence for an oilfield with a view to extracting additional revenue, even though…


Land: Rural Women Demand Increased Access to Land Rights

Dec 6, 2016 | Gbatemah Senah, Bush Chicken

Amid the celebration of the UN Women-led 16 Days of Activism, a group representing rural women in Liberia has presented a list of demands for…


Livelihoods & Economic Opportunities Specialist

Dec 5, 2016 | Pact

At the heart of Pact is the promise of a better tomorrow.  The promise of a healthy life.  Of a decent livelihood. Of sustainable natural…


Farming Systems Specialist for the USAID Funded Africa RISING West Africa (WA) Project

Dec 5, 2016 | International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a non-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty,…


Technical Advisor I – Emergency WASH

Dec 5, 2016 | Catholic Relief Services

Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Within CRS the Humanitarian…


Iraq: Program Manager II - Shelter/WASH

Dec 5, 2016 | Catholic Relief Services

The Shelter/WASH Program Manager will manage shelter and WASH recovery field activities – with water and sanitation components – in Dohuk governorate in the Kurdistan…