Natural Resources
Resources
Egypt/Ethiopia/Sudan: Can AI Help Solve Diplomatic Dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam? [Video]
International
Ethiopia's hydropower dam on the Blue Nile River has angered downstream neighbors, especially Sudan, where people rely on the river for farming and other livelihoods.…
DRC: Artisanal Cobalt Mining Swallowing City in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Satellite Imagery Shows
International
As officials around the world call for a transition to a greener economy, one city is being transformed to accommodate the growing demand for one…
Gender and Climate Change
International
In this chapter, I focus on the negative consequences of climate change for women’s rights. This chapter is divided into two parts. In the first…
The Mining Conundrum — Responsibly Sourcing Green Technology Minerals in Conflict Zones
Blog
Responsible sourcing should be at the top of the agenda for multinationals. But many green technologies — which we advocate in our war on climate…
Afghanistan: UN Employ Technology to Stop Afghanistan’s Illicit Opium Cultivation
International
On Monday, a British University, Cranfield, released a statement indicating a research partnership with United Nations. The report said that the researchers from the University…
Assessing Damage to Agricultural Fields from Military Actions in Ukraine: An Integrated Approach Using Statistical Indicators and Machine Learning
Briefs & Development
The ongoing full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to widespread damage of agricultural lands, jeopardizing global food security. Timely detection of impacted fields enables…
Afghanistan Drought Early Warning Decision Support (AF-DEWS) Tool
Briefs & Development
This report summarizes the development of the Afghanistan Drought Early Warning Decision Support (AF-DEWS) Tool, a cloud-based online platform with near real-time information on drought…
Toward the Remote Monitoring of Armed Conflicts
Briefs & Development
The war in Ukraine has pushed the role of satellite imagery in armed conflicts into the spotlight. For a long time, satellite images were primarily…
Knowledge Gaps in the Nexus of Climate, Peace and Security
Briefs & Development
There is a growing body of research on the relationship between climate change and peace and security. Research shows that the effects of climate change…
Using Machine Learning and Remote Sensing to Track Land Use/Land Cover Changes Due to Armed Conflict
Briefs & Development
Armed conflicts have detrimental impacts on the environment, including land systems. The prevailing understanding of the relation between Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) and armed conflict…
Blockchain for Environmental Peacebuilding: Application in Water Management
Briefs & Development
The purpose of this paper is to spur further exploration of blockchain technologies for environmental peacebuilding, specifically through water management. Although the environmental peacebuilding field…
Climate Change and Fragility: Improving Early Warning and Climate-Proofing Development and Conflict Interventions (chapter in "Handbook of Fragile States")
Briefs & Development
Climate change knows no political boundaries, yet political boundaries shape much of the response (or lack of response) to that change. In recent years, rapid…
Aqueduct: Using Cutting-Edge Data to Identify and Evaluate Water Risks around the World
Library
Water risks are an urgent global challenge. Most public health crises are already driven by water, including floods, droughts and water-borne diseases. Climate change is…
War and Deforestation: Using Remote Sensing and Machine Learning to Identify the War-Induced Deforestation in Syria 2010–2019
Briefs & Development
Armed conflicts and other types of violence are key drivers of human-induced landscape change. Since March 2011, Syria has been embroiled in a prolonged and…
Toxic Floods? Climate, Natural Hazards and Risks to South Sudan’s Oil Infrastructure
Briefs & Development
The discovery and subsequent exploitation of oil fields in South Sudan has brought the country both wealth and woes. Armed conflicts and civil wars fought over…
Liberia: Mapping Nature for People and Planet in Liberia - A Project to Create 'Maps of Hope'
International
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Liberia's Environment Protection Agency (EPA) bring together decision makers to map the country's essential regions for biodiversity, climate…
Blood Diamonds: How Do They Fuel Violence, and What Africa Is Doing to Curb This
International
Blood diamonds are diamonds that are mined in territories which are under the control of terrorists and insurgent groups, which are seeking to overthrow the…
Iraq: Billions of Dollars of Oil Theft in Iraq: Technology One Potential Solution, Experts Argue
International
Technology promises to succeed where tonnes of laws have failed in Iraq, the Arab country’s experts believe. They say hundreds of millions of dollars can…
Sierra Leone: Whose Land Is It, Anyway? Sierra Leone Gives Locals a Voice.
International
Many parts of Sierra Leone have been ravaged by foreign mining firms seeking gold, diamonds, and bauxite, among other minerals, and by palm oil plantations.…
Ghana: First Fully Traceable Mineral Extracted in Ghana
International
For the first time in Ghana’s mining history, Minexx, in collaboration with Solidaridad, a civil society organisation, has successfully exported 11.62 grams of gold fully…
Colombia: Colombians Are Occupying Land to Protest Inequality. Here’s the History.
International
In Colombia, Indigenous, peasant and Afro-descendant groups have escalated land occupations in recent months, seeking to ensure the government carries out long-standing land redistribution promises.…
Liberia: Govt Commits US$ 50,000 for Environmental Knowledge Management System Sustainability
International
The Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning has committed US$ 50,000 for the management and sustainability of the Environmental Knowledge…
DRC: Can the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Mineral Resources Provide a Pathway to Peace?
International
Minerals like lithium and cobalt are key components in the batteries that could support the world’s transition away from fossil fuels. The Democratic Republic of…
Using Game Theory Mathematics to Resolve Human Conflicts
International
Game theory mathematics is used to predict outcomes in conflict situations. Now it is being adapted through big data to resolve highly contentious issues between…
Colombia: Use of GIS Tools for Land Expansion in Colombia
International
Local indigenous youngsters have mapped the boundaries and sacred sites of their village, Gunmaku in the Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta, northern Colombia, and the…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan Reels from Deadly Flash Floods and Landslides
International
Several provinces across the eastern, central, southern and western regions of Afghanistan have been hit by heavy rains, resulting in flash floods and landslides that…
Colombia: Ripple Blockchain Plans for Colombia Real Estate Fail to Get off the Ground
International
Two weeks before newly elected President Gustavo Petro was sworn to the highest public office in Colombia, the previous administration’s Ministry of Information Technology and…
Ukraine: Drones Are Sniffing out Landmines in Ukraine
International
The landmines that plague Ukraine following six months of drawn-out fighting have a new enemy as minesweeping teams get a boost from high-tech drones.
Colombia: Large Swath of Colombian Amazon Region Being Wiped out for Cattle Farms
International
Although the Colombian government and dissident rebel groups prohibit deforestation in the Guaviare department, the Amazon jungle that once covered nearly every inch of that…
Colombia: Colombia Enlists Ripple Labs to Put Land Deeds on Blockchain
International
Colombia’s authorities has launched a partnership with Ripple Labs, the corporate behind the cryptocurrency XRP, to place land titles on the blockchain, a part of…