Environmental Peacebuilding Association

International

Liberia: Liberia's Biggest Palm Oil Project Quits Eco-Certification Scheme

Jul 21, 2018 | Reuters

Liberia’s largest palm oil company, Golden Veroleum, has quit a global eco-certification scheme in response to accusations from a global watchdog that it failed to…

Brazil: Interview: 'They Should Be Put in Prison': Battling Brazil's Huge Alumina Plant

Jul 21, 2018 | Jonathan Watts, The Guardian

In Brazil, Maria do Socoro Silva is leading Amazonian forest people against alleged land-grabbing, corruption and pollution. The intimidation of Maria do Socorro Silva has come…

Colombia: 'This is a Last Hold-Out': Son of a Murdered Farmer in Colombia

Jul 21, 2018 | Jonathan Watts, The Guardian

Hernán Bedoya was shot 15 times on 5 December while he was riding his horse to the vet in Pedeguita y Mancilla, Chocó. It was broad…

South Sudan: A Crude Role in South Sudan’s War

Jul 20, 2018 | Zeinab Mohammed Salih, US News & World Report

So long as South Sudan's oil exports enrich the people in the country who have strong ties to arms suppliers, a United Nations-imposed arms embargo…

Iran/Afghanistan: Iran and Afghanistan at Loggerheads over Water

Jul 20, 2018 | Ahmad Majidyar, Middle East Institute

Tension between Iran and neighboring Afghanistan over water rights has reached new heights as declining rainfall, prolonged droughts, and mismanagement of water resources have severely…

Liberia: EPA Flexes Muscle

Jul 19, 2018 | New Dawn

The EPA mandated dated 13 July says Bea Mountain Mining Corporation should pay the fine with an official receipt presented to EPA within 72 hours…

Sudan/South Sudan: Khartoum, Juba Deploy Joint Forces to Protect Oil Fields

Jul 19, 2018 | Sudan Tribune

South Sudan and Sudan have effectively deployed a joint border joint force to protect oil fields, said South Sudan’s Minister of Petroleum Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth.…

Iraq: More Turmoil in Iraq as Deadly Protests Ravage Oil-Rich South

Jul 19, 2018 | Natasha Turak, CNBC

Protests that began last week in Iraq are continuing amid widespread anger over abysmal public services provision by the government. The unrest threatens to delay…

Syria: US-Backed Forces, ISIS Clash over Oil-Rich Areas in Syria

Jul 19, 2018 | OilPrice, Tsvetana Paraskova

Clashes between Islamic State militants and U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) continue in eastern Syria, where the Islamist terrorists try to keep control over an…

Afghanistan/Pakistan: CASA-1000 to Start Power Supply in Next Two Years

Jul 19, 2018 | Israr Khan, The News

The much-awaited regional power project CASA-1000 is about to supply electricity from central Asian states to Pakistan and Afghanistan within next two years, a senior…

Colombia: Colombia Peace Deal Brings New Threat to Country's Rainforest

Jul 19, 2018 | St John's College and University of Cambridge

A historic peace treaty which brought an end to half a century of violence has led to mass deforestation in Colombia, scientists have warned. The…

Colombia: Colombia’s Wild Land is Prime for Fly-Fishing and Brimming with Adventure

Jul 19, 2018 | Aaron Gulley, Men's Journal

After decades of civil war, a new peace deal has finally opened the country’s remote interior to hardy travelers, making Colombia the hottest adventure destination on…

Myanmar: Unused Land Seized from Farmers Has Been Returned, Myanmar Military Says

Jul 18, 2018 | Radio Free Asia

Myanmar’s military said Wednesday that it has been returning to its rightful owners all unused land it confiscated for decades from farmers, a day after…

Afghanistan: Parkour for Peace: Kabul Youth Turns War-Pocked Landscape into a Playground for Dare Devils

Jul 18, 2018 | Getee Ramazan Habibi, Global Voices

Parkour, a form of urban acrobatics born in France, has found a welcome home in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. There, in a city that…

Myanmar: Myanmar Must Provide Justice in Decades-Old Land Grab Cases: HRW

Jul 17, 2018 | Richard Finney, Radio Free Asia

Myanmar should move quickly to settle decades-old claims by farmers forced from their land by the country’s military, a rights group said on Tuesday, adding…

Afghanistan/Iran: In Parched Afghanistan, Drought Sharpens Water Dispute with Iran

Jul 17, 2018 | Rupam Jain, Reuters

Severe drought across much of Afghanistan is spurring plans to build new dams to help farmers. It is also aggravating tensions with Iran over supplies…

Colombia: Colombia Pledges Deforestation-Free Cocoa by 2025

Jul 17, 2018 | Oliver Nieburg, Confectionary News

The world’s tenth largest cocoa producer has joined the Cocoa & Forests Initiative as it looks to combat a 46% increase in tree cover loss…

Liberia: New Report Spotlights Financiers of Palm Oil Giant Clearing Liberia’s Forests

Jul 17, 2018 | Daniel Pye, Mongabay

An Indonesian-owned plantation company operating in Liberia has come under renewed scrutiny for allegedly clearing hundreds of hectares of protected forestland, including chimpanzee habitat, wetlands…

South Sudan: South Sudan Minister Summoned over Oil Pollution

Jul 16, 2018 | Joseph Oduha, East African

A South Sudan parliamentary committee has summoned Oil minister Ezekiel Gatkuoth Lol for failure to report on the pollution in the Upper Nile states. Mr…

Iraq: Roots of Iraq’s Protests Run Deep – Corruption, Mismanagement: Analyst

Jul 15, 2018 | Rudaw

With the end of the war against ISIS, the many problems of Iraq that had been on the back burner have resurfaced, according to Yaseen…

Afghanistan: Afghan Saffron Coming to US Stores

Jul 14, 2018 | NPR

NPR's Renee Montagne asks Keith Alaniz and Emily Miller about the spice company they founded with a group of veterans who served in Afghanistan.

Myanmar: Landslide at Myanmar Jade Mine Kills at Least 15, Injures 45: Official

Jul 14, 2018 | Shoon Naing, Reuters

A landslide killed at least 15 people in northern Myanmar on Saturday, with 45 others injured after the latest disaster in the Hpakant jade mining…

Liberia: Oil Block #13: Did NOCAL Circumvent 2002 Petroleum Law?

Jul 13, 2018 | John H. T. Stewart, Daily Observer

Former legal advisor to President Sirleaf, Cllr. Seward Cooper, one of those persons named by Global Witness (GW) in the ExxonMobil alleged bribery scheme, has…

Afghanistan: Kabul’s Underground Water Reserves 'to Dry up within Years'

Jul 13, 2018 | Sharif Amiri, TOLOnews

The National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA) has warned that underground water reserves in Kabul will dry up within the next 10 years amid an increasing…

Climate Change: UN Security Council Addresses Climate Change as a Security Risk

Jul 13, 2018 | Leila Mead, International Institute for Sustainable Development

The UN Security Council convened a session to discuss the nexus between climate change and global conflicts and to deepen understanding of climate-related security risks.…

Climate Change: 11 July: Climate Security Takes Centre Stage at UNSC

Jul 12, 2018 | Planetary Security Initiative

On the 11th of July, the UN Security Council will host a debate on the risks relating to climate security. It will take place at…

Climate Change: Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström at the UN Security Council Debate on Climate-Related Security Risks

Jul 12, 2018 | Government of Sweden

National statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Margot Wallström, on behalf of Sweden, at the United Nations Security Council Debate on Climate-Related Security…