Blogs & Opinions

Is Food Aid Helpful or Harmful in Conflict-Affected Areas?

Oct 9, 2014 | Moses Jackson, New Security Beat

A study published in the American Economic Review offers macro-level quantitative support for critics’ claims that food aid, which is often prone to theft or capture by armed…

Obama’s New Oil Wars

Oct 9, 2014 | Huffington Post

It was heinous. It was underhanded.  It was beyond the bounds of international morality. It was an attack on the American way of life.  It…

Why Military Veterans Are Uniquely Primed for Climate Action

Oct 7, 2014 | Environmental Defense Fund

Most veterans’ climate action advocacy is not motivated only by traditional environmental issues, but also by lives lost during fuel transports amid increasing global conflicts.

My…

From Liberia to America, We Must Stop Illegal Logging

Oct 3, 2014 | Roll Call

Around the world, illegal logging threatens communities and drives deforestation. Every second, an area of forest the size of a football field disappears due to…

Liberia: Hailing the Passage of the Land Law

Oct 3, 2014 | The Inquirer Editorial Board, allAfrica

Yesterday it was reported that President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has signed into law the 'Act Against Criminal Conveyance of Land'. The Act was signed on August…

The U.S. Needs a Plan to Deal With Mideast Oil-Sharing Conflicts

Oct 3, 2014 | Wall Street Journal

Modern warfare has often involved targeting of fuel-supply lines, so the U.S. military’s recent decision to target the oil-supply chain of Islamic State is not…

Kurdistan on the Brink

Oct 1, 2014 | Samira Ghaderi, The Hill

As ISIS continues its savagery throughout Iraq, the government of Iraq (GoI) has recently transitioned its leadership with Prime Minister al-Abadi replacing al-Maliki.  Many hope…

Without Peace, Can There Be Development?

Sep 30, 2014 | Huffington Post

As UN Member States follow last week's General Assembly debates with the months-long intergovernmental negotiations around the post-2015 development agenda, this is a critical time…

Conservatives Kill Measure to Cut Money for Violent Militias in Africa

Sep 30, 2014 | Rabble

There are times when some of the most significant events in Parliament happen far from public view.

This week the chatter about politics is all about…

Preventing Water Wars: How to Build Bridges over River Disputes

Sep 30, 2014 | Ilmas Futehally, The Guardian

Fifty years ago, Lake Chad in Africa had a surface area of 25,000 square kilometres. Today, it has less than 2,000. The surface area of…

Kurdish Attempts to Sell Oil Are Not Going to Get Support from the Obama Administration

Sep 30, 2014 | Platts

For two months now, the United Kalavrvta tanker holding 1 million barrels of Kurdish crude has idled in international waters off the coast of Galveston, Texas, awaiting…

The Environmental Consequences of Targeting Syria’s Oil Refineries

Sep 29, 2014 | Toxic Remnants of War

On the 25th September, the US-led coalition conducting airstrikes in Syria began targeting oil refineries under the control of militants from Islamic State (IS). The TRWP…

Chinese Offshore Oil Company Fuels South China Sea Tension

Sep 29, 2014 | The Diplomat

The China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) announced on September 15 that the HD981 oil rig has discovered a new gas field called Lingshui 17-2, some 150…

Nepal’s Micro-hydropower Projects Have Surprising Effect On Peace Process

Sep 29, 2014 | Florian Krampe

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s fifth assessment, which has been rolling out in stages since last September, confirms a crucial divide in current climate…

Supply Chain Disclosure Laws Splutter

Sep 25, 2014 | Foreign Policy

Europe is pushing ahead with rules designed to make companies disclose whether they use minerals mined in conflict zones, but efforts already underway in the…

Could Water Scarcity Prompt A Battle Between U.S. and Canada?

Sep 25, 2014 | Water Online

Is water so scarce that it could lead to war between the U.S. and Canada over ownership of the valuable substance?

Post Media's Canada.com recently reported: "Canada…

The Search for Win-Win Solutions to the Natural Resource Issues in the Kachin Conflict

Sep 25, 2014 | Dr. Evan Hoffman, Assistant Professor of Conflict Resolution at Nova Southeastern University

Located in the northern part of Myanmar and sharing borders with China and India, Kachin state is rich in numerous different types of natural resources…

European Companies Allowed to Reap Rewards from Deadly Conflict Mineral Trade

Sep 24, 2014 | Amnesty International

The European Union is failing to stifle a deadly trade in conflict minerals, a coalition of rights groups including Global Witness and Amnesty International warned…

Message from Gaza: Israeli Policies & Climate Change, Pushing Gaza into the Grave

Sep 24, 2014 | Ahmad Abu Safieh

This message is from the city of Gaza where the annual population growth rate is 2.91% (2014 est.), the 13th highest in the world. Due…

Norway Gives Liberia $150 Million to Stop Cutting Down Trees

Sep 23, 2014 | Slate

Norway will provide Liberia with $150 million in development aid in exchange for reducing deforestation. Norway has made past attempts at this kind of policy in Brazil…

The Great New Oil and Gas Frontier of Myanmar, Warts and All

Sep 23, 2014 | Platts

Myanmar, the Southeast Asian country still called Burma by many people, is rapidly emerging from almost 50 years of military rule and related economic isolation.

The…

Vietnam and China: Conflict Over Islands Arouses Vietnamese Patriotism

Sep 23, 2014 | Mercury News

I lived in Hanoi from 2004 until 2009, down the street from the Chinese Embassy. Demonstrations were rare, if not forbidden by Vietnam's controlling government.…

Spending on Preventing Climate Wars versus Spending to Secure Sources of Oil

Sep 19, 2014 | Countercurrents

This summer, my CASSE blog featured the pending Iraq War III and argued that a steady state, true-cost, sustainable economy cannot be achieved if the US in…

Climate Change a National Security Issue, Say Local and National Leaders From Pacific Northwest

Sep 18, 2014 | New Security Beat

The effects of climate change “are here now” and pose a “serious challenge” for the United States, said Alice Hill, White House senior advisor for…

Land Disputes, Confusions & Conflicts - Liberia's Next National Challenge?

Sep 18, 2014 | All Africa

n a congratulatory message to the newly-appointed National Land Commission for its Draft Land Rights Policy recently made public for national, consultative debate and eventual…

Forget the Islamic State- the New Conflicts of the Future Could Be Sparked by Climate Change

Sep 18, 2014 | Foreign Policy

To the long list of the world's woes, add another: the growing impact of climate change, which could heighten tensions among nations and even spark…

Will Oil Make or Break the Islamic State?

Sep 18, 2014 | Gatestone Institute

Now, with the Islamic State's self-proclaimed caliphate having captured key oil wells in the Middle East this year, foreign oil has become an even more…

Climate Cast: Is Climate Change Destabilizing Iraq?

Sep 17, 2014 | Minnesota Public Radio News

The link between what we see as news events and climate change is often obscure. Does a particular extreme weather event, flood, or drought have it’s…

Canada to Vote on Conflict Minerals Legislation, Should Join Support for Mining Reforms and Livelihood Projects in Congo

Sep 16, 2014 | Enough Project

On September 24th, the Canadian House of Commons will hold a Second Reading vote on Bill C-486: The Conflict Minerals Act. The passage of C-486…

Dodd-Frank's Collateral Damage in Africa

Sep 15, 2014 | Wall Street Journal

Reminiscent of the racially discriminatory practice of "redlining" neighborhoods, a little-known measure in the 2010 Dodd-Frank law, designed to stop the trafficking of "conflict minerals"…