Blogs & Opinions

Commentary: Pakistan-Afghanistan Border Clash Could Turn into a Wider Water Crisis

Dec 22, 2025 | Amit Ranjan and Genevieve Donnellon-May

With India suspending the Indus Waters Treaty and Afghanistan planning to build a dam on the Kunar River, Pakistan has reason to be anxious.

Escalating Tension: The Farmer Herder Clash in Nigeria

Dec 20, 2025 | Longbakwa Kevin Maiyaki

The farmer-herder conflict in Nigeria results in high fatality rates and the displacement of millions, with over 1.3 million people forced into IDP camps as…

Underwater Cities: Climate Change Meets Governance Crisis in Iraqi Kurdistan

Dec 17, 2025 | Farhad Mamshai

When floods struck the Kurdistan region of Iraq earlier this month, it was a deluge that demonstrated how fragmented governance and weak state capacity can…

How Climate Change Could Help Foster Peace in Yemen

Dec 17, 2025 | Tareq Hassan

Yemen’s tragedy is traditionally depicted through the limited perspective of humanitarian need and political divisiveness, but there is a greater existential crisis that is not…

The Real Reason behind US Resuming Iraqi Kurdistan Oil Imports

Dec 15, 2025 | Simon Watkins

An oil tanker carrying crude from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) unloaded its cargo at a US port at the very end of last…

The Intersection of Transboundary Water Conflicts and Human Rights

Dec 14, 2025 | Sharmista Banik

When the United Nations General Assembly, in 2010, affirmed that 'the right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation' (Resolution 64/292) is a human…

How RSF’s Seizure of Heglig Oil Field Threatens the Two Sudans

Dec 10, 2025 | John Bith Aliap

The Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) capture of the Heglig oil field represents one of the most consequential moments in the Sudanese conflict since the fall…

Environmental Peacebuilding 31Years Strong

Dec 9, 2025 | Gidon Bromberg

This week, thirty-one years ago, Jordanian, Palestinian, and Israeli environmentalists came together on the Red Sea in Taba, Egypt, to create EcoPeace Middle East.

Water Conflicts Surge Globally: A Conversation on Rising Threats

Dec 4, 2025 | Madelyn MacMurray

Events over this past year have made water’s role in global conflicts increasingly salient. India threatened to restrict water flows to Pakistan in response to…

As Solar Geoengineering Enters its Startup Phase, Governments Must Address Emerging Security Risks

Dec 2, 2025 | Scott M. Moore and Imran Bayoumi

Just decades ago, the idea of artificially cooling the planet to help fight climate change was viewed as science fiction. But as climate change impacts…

Water and Power: The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and Nile Basin Security

Dec 1, 2025 | Chourouk Mestour

When Ethiopia began filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in 2020, the dispute between Ethiopia and Egypt over the GERD and the Nile Basin…

Evidencing a Recovery Plan for Black Sea Dolphins and Porpoises

Dec 1, 2025 | Linas Svolkinas

Many human activities pose threats to cetaceans, including military activities. Russia’s war against Ukraine is no exception and there are significant concerns over its impact…

Monitoring Sudan’s Artisanal and Small Scale Gold Mining from Space

Nov 30, 2025 | Jonathan Walsh

Gold is helping fuel the war in Sudan, and its extraction is causing environmental degradation and chemical pollution that threatens human health.

Sustainability in the Wake of the Colombian Armed Conflict

Nov 30, 2025 | Ash Fowkes-Gajan

In the Colombian armed conflict, land ownership and agricultural strongholds for rebel forces were a form of political power. The peace owed to the 2016…

Replace or Reshape: Can Solar Power Alter Iraq’s Reliance on Oil?

Nov 29, 2025 | Shafaq News

Iraq’s latest drive to allocate land for solar projects around the capital has sharpened a central question in its energy debate: can renewables meaningfully ease…

Liberia’s Recurring Land Disputes: Can the JNB’s Rescue Government Spare Us This Menace?

Nov 28, 2025 | Mohamed M. Komara

For years, Liberians have echoed the principle that “Liberia is a country of law, not of men.” It was a powerful slogan for those resisting…

Sunk: Another Bid to Redefine Conflict Diamonds

Nov 27, 2025 | John Jeffay

At the end of the day it was the inclusion of state-armed actors that sank the latest Kimberly Process attempt to redefine conflict diamonds.

Post-Conflict Reforestation in Colombia

Nov 27, 2025 | Caroline Sheehan

Deep in the Colombian Amazon, where only recently thick tree canopies concealed guerrilla movements, a different kind of revolution is taking root.

Cultivating Women’s Leadership for Resilient Agrifood Systems

Nov 26, 2025 | Sabrina Trautman
Alliance Biodiversity & CIAT

Women’s representation and leadership have long been recognized as drivers of more inclusive, equitable, and resilient food systems. Yet, too often, leadership is confused with…

How the Nile Water Dispute Threatens Counter-Terrorism Efforts

Nov 26, 2025 | Daniel Swift and Susan Soh

The Horn of Africa is a volatile geopolitical crossroads where water rights, energy ambitions, military operations, and port access converge—with direct implications for US national…

How Climate and Gender Shape Peace and Security: From Mandates to Meaningful Change

Nov 25, 2025 | UN Climate Security Mechanism
UN Climate Security Mechanism

October 2025 marked twenty-five years since the landmark Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. Amid rising polarization, escalating conflicts, and the intensifying…

Echoes in the Current: Water, Conflict, and the Elusive Hope for Environmental Peacebuilding in a Warming World

Nov 20, 2025 | Florian Krampe

A warming climate disrupts the global water cycle with an intensity that alters the very predictability of life. Climate change makes the availability of freshwater…

COP30 and the Climate-Security Paradox: Strategic Competition, Fragile States, and the Erosion of Collective Security

Nov 20, 2025 | The Soufan Center

The 30th United Nations climate conference (COP30) concludes tomorrow in Belém, Brazil, against a backdrop of increased global competition surrounding critical minerals, mounting climate-linked instability,…

Gender is the Key to a Healthy Planet and People: Reflections from the Biodiversity-Health Press Conference at SBSTTA-27

Nov 19, 2025 | Alejandra Duarte
Women4Biodiversity

Traditional health systems, rooted in centuries of empirical knowledge, reveal the interdependence between ecosystems and human health. However, women’s ecological and health-related knowledge has often…

How Water Scarcity Is Forging a New Era of Conflict

Nov 19, 2025 | Rao Farman Ali

The water crisis in Tehran, compelling Iranian authorities to warn about water rationing and evacuation of the country’s capital, may sound dystopian.  

DRC: M23, Minerals, and Geopolitics in Eastern DRC

Nov 12, 2025 | Vedant Shinde
Geopolitical Monitor

The Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is experiencing one of the most severe security and humanitarian crises of the 21st century. The renewal…

From Readiness to Resilience: Strengthening Institutions for Climate Action

Nov 12, 2025 | Stephanie Speck

In many fragile contexts, ministries of environment or climate change may have limited resources, yet they are often deeply embedded in national coordination efforts. They…

Innovative Approaches to Climate, Peace and Security: Opportunities for India–Germany–Australia Collaboration

Nov 12, 2025 | Ambika Vishwanath and Treesa Shaju

Emerging research on the nexus between climate, peace and security (CPS) supports the integration of climate adaptation and mitigation methods to advance sustainable peace.  While…

The Influence of Climate Change on Conflict

Nov 11, 2025 | Beatrice Mosello and Alexandra Steinkraus

When climate change enters global conversations, attention often turns to melting glaciers and catastrophic storms. Yet, beneath these headlines lies a deeper challenge: climate change…

COP30: What to Expect on Conflict, Climate and Militarism

Nov 10, 2025 | Ellie Kinney

COP30 is taking place against a backdrop of armed conflicts and rising military spending. With wars affecting every corner of the globe and spending at…