Blogs & Opinions

The Critical Minerals Scramble: How the Race for Resources Is Fuelling Conflict and Inequality

Mar 20, 2025 | Emily Iona Stewart

The extraction and trade of some critical minerals is intensifying new geopolitical tensions and reinforcing long-standing patterns of exploitation. Many of these resources are concentrated…

Border Breakthrough: Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan End Decades of Dispute

Mar 19, 2025 | Yevgeniya Mikhailidi

When Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon exchanged firm hugs after signing a historic border treaty last week, they signaled relief over…

The GROMADA Project: Citizen Science for Environmental Protection and Accountability in Ukraine

Mar 19, 2025 | Iryna Babanina and Doug Weir

Participatory environmental monitoring in areas affected by armed conflict has always been an important area of interest for CEOBS. Alongside documenting the severe environmental damage…

Can Climate-Resilient Agriculture Become an Engine for Syria’s Post-Conflict Recovery?

Mar 19, 2025 | Frans Schapendonk and Sara Rabie

Syria finds itself at a crossroads. Faced with the imminent need to prevent a relapse into renewed short-term insecurity, its government also must start to…

CEOBS’ Citizen Science Water Quality Hackathon for Ukraine

Mar 19, 2025 | Conflict and Environment Observatory

Armed conflicts disrupt water systems that are critical for human wellbeing and environmental safety, and since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, CEOBS has been documenting…

The Heat and the Fury: On the Frontlines of Climate Violence (Review)

Mar 16, 2025 | Marc Martorell Junyent

Although climate change does not directly cause conflict, it makes violence more likely to occur and to be more intense. The effects of climate change…

Environmental Peacebuilding: The Year in Review and the Year Ahead

Mar 14, 2025 | Angus Soderberg

As 2025 marches into its third month, the governance challenges that accompany rising demand for natural resources are not only on the front burner—they are…

‘Resource Curse’ in the Oil-Wealth Countries: Lessons from South Sudan, Venezuela, and Indonesia

Mar 12, 2025 | Lengga Pradipta

Countries with abundant natural resources, including fossil fuels, typically experience economic prosperity. For decades, many economists have claimed that resource richness significantly impacts economic development;…

From Navigational Disruptors to Ecocriminals: The Environmental Impact of the Houthi Anti-Shipping Campaign in the Red Sea

Mar 12, 2025 | Leonardo Jacopo Maria Mazzucco

The Houthi assaults on shipping traffic in the Red Sea are deliberate acts of marine pollution and environmental destruction. While security and economic considerations have…

Why South Asian Militaries Need to Reduce Their Carbon Footprint

Mar 12, 2025 | Mahmud Hussain

Militaries, which are among the biggest consumers of fuel, account for 5.5 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. If the world’s militaries were a…

Seabed Diplomacy Stirs Global Currents of Cooperation and Conflict

Mar 11, 2025 | Melissa Metos

The seabed is not only a source for critical metals such as cobalt and nickel, but also for geopolitical tensions as both the U.S. and…

Women’s Land Rights: The Missing Key to Climate Action

Mar 8, 2025 | Lily Maxwell-Lwin
Common Dreams

This year’s International Women’s Day theme, #AccelerateAction, calls on the world to address the structural barriers slowing progress. If we are serious about climate, we…

In Praise of Matriarchal Environmental Wisdom

Mar 8, 2025 | Dr. Marisa O. Ensor
Georgetown University

Since 1911, March 8th has been International Women’s Day, observed around the world as a day to recognize women’s contributions to society and work towards…

How Six Women are Helping their Communities Adapt to Climate Change

Mar 6, 2025 | UN Environment Program
UN Environment Program

As the planet warms, the fallout from climate change – from droughts, to floods, to superstorms – is getting worse. But not everyone has felt…

Intelligence Analysis: The Risks, Opportunities, and Geopolitical Impact of DRC’s Critical Minerals Deal with the US & Europe

Mar 5, 2025 | Evarist Chahali

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has proposed a strategic exchange: offering the United States and Europe direct access to its vast mineral resources in…

Cyber and Climate Threats: Shared Risks, Resilience, and Response Strategies

Mar 5, 2025 | Carolyn Gruber and Allison Pytlak

Cybersecurity and climate security may seem unrelated, but both pose escalating risks that demand innovative, cross-sector solutions. The Stimson Center’s Cyber and Environmental Security Programs…

Resource Wars: The Hidden Fuel behind Most Conflicts

Mar 3, 2025 | Eman Fatima

From ancient conquests of land, agricultural products, and trade routes to modern geopolitical struggles for natural gas, oil, and minerals, the control over resources has…

Global Biodiversity at a Crossroads: The Need for Data in Conservation and Peacebuilding

Mar 3, 2025 | VisionRI

The World Bank’s study highlights the urgent need for reliable biodiversity data to drive conservation efforts, especially in conflict zones and transboundary ecosystems. It argues…

Property Rights in Colombia: Reality and Challenges

Mar 1, 2025 | Omar Hernandez

According to the International Property Rights Index, prepared by the Property Rights Alliance, Colombia ranks 80th out of 125 countries. While this result reflects some…

Navigating Security Challenges in the Horn of Africa: The Interplay of Climate Change, Resource Scarcity and Regional Stability

Feb 28, 2025 | Abraham Ename Minko

The Horn of Africa is a region marked by a complex tapestry of challenges, where political instability, economic underdevelopment, and social fragmentation intersect. In recent…

Leveraging Cooperation for Human Rights and SDGs in Conflict Zones

Feb 26, 2025 | Sara Ketabi

The challenges of achieving sustainable development in conflict-ridden regions demand an integrated approach that not only addresses immediate humanitarian needs but also reinforces the foundational…

Q&A: Julian Higuera-Florez on Harnessing Environmental Peacebuilding in Latin America and the Caribbean

Feb 25, 2025 | Angus Soderberg

Environmental peacebuilding offers a promising framework to address deeply intertwined environmental challenges and conflict dynamics in Latin America and the Caribbean. So why has it…

South Sudan’s Natural Wealth: A Double-Edged Sword for Development

Feb 25, 2025 | VisionRI

South Sudan’s natural resources hold the key to its economic transformation, but weak governance, environmental threats, and poor infrastructure pose significant challenges. The World Bank’s…

Ukraine/Russia: Putin Offers Russian and Ukrainian Rare Minerals to US

Feb 25, 2025 | Hafsa Khalil and Vitaliy Shevchenko, BBC

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he is open to offering the US access to rare minerals, including from Russian-occupied Ukraine. This comes after US President…

Oil, Conflict, and Promise

Feb 24, 2025 | Pablo Hill

The oil industries of Sudan, South Sudan, and Ethiopia are a case study in the perilous tension between immense opportunity and inevitable catastrophe. Long at…

Iraq/Kurdistan: US Piles Pressure on Iraq to Resume Kurdish Oil Exports, Sources Say

Feb 21, 2025 | Maha El Dahan, Ahmed Rasheed, and Jarrett Renshaw, and Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is piling pressure on Iraq to allow Kurdish oil exports to restart or face sanctions alongside Iran, eight sources with…

Liberia: Liberia Discovers Critical Mineral Deposits in Latest Survey

Feb 21, 2025 | Energy Capital & Power

Wilmot JM Paye, Minister of Mines and Energy, Liberia, shared insights into the country's mining opportunities in an exclusive interview with Energy Capital & Power.

G20: Food Security Is Vital for Peace, Stability and Human Dignity, FAO Says

Feb 20, 2025 | Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN

Food security is about peace, stability, and human dignity, the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), QU Dongyu, told…

Colombia: Colombian Deforestation Picks up after Record Low Level

Feb 20, 2025 | Agence France Presse

Land grabbers in Colombia destroyed a forested area the size of Hong Kong last year in the South American country that had vowed to eradicate…

Colombia: Indigenous Fight Stalls Colombia's Massive Wind Energy Push [Video]

Feb 20, 2025 | Stuff

Colombia's push for renewable energy faces Indigenous resistance in La Guajira, where the Wayuu community fears wind farms threaten their land, culture, and livelihoods.