News
DRC: DRC Declares First New National Park in 40 Years
Jul 12, 2016
|
Morgan Erickson-Davis, Mongabay
Late last week, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) government announced the creation of the country’s first new national park in more than four decades. Spanning…
Myanmar: Vice President Issues Farmers Temporary Land Ownership Documents
Jul 12, 2016
|
Kyaw Ko Ko, Myanmar Times
The so-called Form 3 certificates were issued at a ceremony on July 9 in Madaya township, Mandalay Region, to allow 32 former owners to take…
South Sudan: South Sudan Oil Revenue Drops amid Renewed Conflict
Jul 12, 2016
|
Oil Review Africa
South Sudan oil revenues have dropped by 75 per cent in June to US$60 million a month and the International Monetary Fund has warned of…
DRC: Gorillas Are Being Killed and Eaten by Miners in the Congo
Jul 12, 2016
|
James Temperton, Wired
An endangered gorilla subspecies is being pushed towards extinction as mineral miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) hunt it for bushmeat. Concerns have…
China/Vietnam/South China Sea: China Sank Fishing Boat in the Disputed Region: Vietnam
Jul 12, 2016
|
The Hindu
Vietnam has accused the Chinese coastguard of sinking a fishing boat near a disputed island chain, authorities said on Tuesday. Two Vietnamese boats were chased…
China/South China Sea: The Tribunal Renders its Award
Jul 12, 2016
|
Permanent Court of Arbitration
A unanimous Award has been issued today by the Tribunal constituted under Annex VII to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea…
Afghanistan: An Unlikely Fight to Protect Nature in War-Torn Afghanistan
Jul 12, 2016
|
Jenny Peng and Tamsin Walker, Deutsche Welle
War doesn't only destroy human lives, but also land and ecologies - and therefore livelihoods. Afghanistan is a case in point. Enter a woman with…
Oil and ISIS: If We Hadn’t Needed One, the Other Wouldn’t Exist
Jul 11, 2016
|
Ian Reifowitz
The moral responsibility for murders lies solely with those who carried them out, those who ordered them, and those who encouraged them. But beyond responsibility…
Livelihoods Research Consultant – Syria, Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq
Jul 11, 2016
|
International Alert
International Alert is requesting ‘Expressions of Interest’ from qualified and experienced specialists for a research assignment that begins in August 2016. As part of its…
Myanmar: Re-launched Committee to Manage Water Resources
Jul 11, 2016
|
Aye Sapay Phyu, Myanmar Times
U Htun Lwin Oo, director general of the Directorate of Water Resources and Improvement of River Systems, said the National Water Resources Committee abolished by…
Myanmar: Palm Oil Drive under Review in Tanintharyi
Jul 11, 2016
|
Aye Nyein Win, Myanmar Times
A failing scheme to expand oil palm plantations in Myanmar’s southern Tanintharyi Region is under review, as the government hopes to concentrate on increasing yield…
Liberia: Liberia’s Forest in Danger- International Conservationists Alarm
Jul 11, 2016
|
Front Page Africa
Several international conservationist have alarmed over a proposed plan by the Forestry development Authority (FDA) to develop a regulation to allow for forest destruction or…
Sierra Leone: Agriculture is the Future of the Artisanal Diamond Miner – Chairman Kono Diamond Dealers
Jul 11, 2016
|
Awoko
Agriculture is the hope of the artisanal miners as diamonds are dwindling. It is now time to discuss with the people about diversification and on…
China/South China Sea: In a Chinese Port Town, South China Sea Dispute is Personal
Jul 11, 2016
|
Anthony Kuhn, NPR
The atmosphere in Tanmen has become more tense since an international tribunal in the Hague announced that it would release a ruling on July 12…
New Approach Needed for Urban Planning in Yangon
Jul 10, 2016
|
Sithu Aung Myint
IN LATE May, U Phyo Min Thein, the chief minister of Yangon Region, declared that he would rid Myanmar’s largest city of squatters as a…
Kenya: Environmental Assessment Consultant
Jul 10, 2016
|
UNDP
Over the last 10 years no significant environmental assessment has been conducted to document the state of the Somali ecosystems, habitats and human and animal…
Illegal Mining is Fuelling Conflict in Afghanistan and China Can Play a Major Role in Curbing This
Jul 9, 2016
|
Stephen Carter
For 6,500 years, Afghanistan has been famous for the brilliant blue lapis lazuli, coveted by everybody from the Egyptian pharaohs to the common jewellers of…
There is a Fourth Option on the Myitsone Dam
Jul 9, 2016
|
Joern Kristensen
In his column in the June 16 edition of Frontier, Sithu Aung Myint wrote that the Chinese Ambassador, Mr Hong Liang, with a delegation from…
War, Peace, and Climate: How Carbon Trading Can Help Avert Resource Wars
Jul 8, 2016
|
Steve Zwick
Liberian environmentalist Silas Siakor knows all too well what can happen to a fragile nation when a dictator hijacks its commodity sector, as warlord Charles…
UN Legal Experts Consider Principles Guiding Environmental Protection After Conflicts
Jul 8, 2016
|
Doug Weir
UNEP’s 2009 report on the state of legal protection for the environment in relation to armed conflicts found that numerous bodies of law may provide…
Sierra Leone: Energy Advisor
Jul 8, 2016
|
Adam Smith International
Adam Smith International was selected by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) to implement the second phase of the Presidential Delivery Unit project in…
Africa: The Nile Project: Resolving Conflict into Harmony
Jul 8, 2016
|
Deutsche Welle
The Nile flows through 11 African nations and serves as key source of freshwater - but sharing this resource is politically tricky. A unique project…
Iraq: Email to Clinton: U.S. Pressured Iraq to Increase Oil Production “to Pay the Greatest Dividends”
Jul 8, 2016
|
Ben Norton, Salon
A 2011 email to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton shows how the U.S. pressured Iraq’s new allied government to increase oil production in order “to…
China/South China Sea: Will China Respect International Court’s South China Sea Decision?
Jul 8, 2016
|
Michael D. Mosettig, PBS
From Beijing to Washington and all across Asia, eyes will be on an obscure tribunal in the Hague this coming Tuesday. The panel’s words could…
Whose Land is it Anyway?
Jul 7, 2016
|
Caitlin Pierce
The farmers of Kyon Dayel Village were ecstatic to read in the newspaper that Ayer Shwe Wah was releasing 40,000 acres of land that the…
U.S. House Votes to Undermine Transparency and Conflict-Free Supply Chains in Democratic Republic of Congo
Jul 7, 2016
|
Enough Project
Efforts to support peace, corporate accountability, and transparency in the Democratic Republic of Congo faced a setback today, as the House of Representatives passed an…
Climate, Conflict, and Commodities: the Calculus of Peace on a Changing Planet
Jul 7, 2016
|
Steve Zwick
Liberian environmentalist Silas Siakor knows all too well what can happen to a fragile nation when a dictator hijacks its commodity sector, as warlord Charles…
China/United States/South China Sea: China Warns U.S. on Sovereignty ahead of South China Sea Ruling
Jul 7, 2016
|
Reuters
The United States should do nothing to harm China's sovereignty and security in the South China Sea, China's foreign minister told U.S. Secretary of State…
Myanmar: Farmers Fight to Mortgage Their Farmland
Jul 7, 2016
|
Htin Linn Aung, Myanmar Times
Farmers and agricultural industry bodies are demanding that farmland is accepted as collateral for bank loans, but implementing such a system is fraught with problems.…
Iraq/United Kingdom/United States: US and Britain Wrangled over Iraq's Oil in Aftermath of War, Chilcot Shows
Jul 7, 2016
|
Terry Macalister, Guardian
The US and British governments fought bitterly over control of Iraq’s oil following the toppling of Saddam Hussein, the Chilcot papers show. Tony Blair seemed…