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1. Recycling Regime, Environment, and Exclusion of Electronic Scrap Workers in Delhi

Author:
Gayatri Jai Singh Rathore
Publication Date:
11-2026
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches Internationales (CERI)
Abstract:
In recent years, the Indian e-waste sector has undergone a process of formalisation through the implementation of E-waste Management Rules (2016), leading to the creation of what I call recycling regime. The upper and middle classes, along with NGOs and industry actors, are frontrunners in thinking about e-waste policies. They were prompted by a twofold motive: the desire for a “world-class”, clean, and pollution-free city; and seizing business opportunities by extracting value from e-waste. Rather than replacing the State, they co-opted the State so that it would legislate to safeguard the environment, and address toxicity and health problems associated with e-waste. Recycling regime relies on formalisation processes embedded in multiple technologies – technicity, capital-intensive facilities, certifications, authorisations, and licences – that work together to exclude the “informal” sector from the e-waste governance system. Recycling technologies act as “technologies of domination” that further contribute to sidelining the “informal” labour of scrap workers or e-kabadis, who as Muslims already find themselves on the margins of society. However, the recycling regime fails to safeguard the environment in the end as e-waste trickles down back to the informal sector via authorised actors.
Topic:
Civil Society, Economics, Environment, Globalization, Health, Markets, Poverty, Governance, Law, Urbanization, Emerging States, and Norms
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

2. Kuwait Country Report 2024

Author:
Arab Barometer
Publication Date:
05-2026
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Since the last Arab Barometer survey in Kuwait, conducted in 2022, major changes have taken place, significantly affecting political stability in the country. While political life in Kuwait was saturated with crises, and its indicators were clearly visible in the dissolution of the National Assembly (Parliament) repeatedly before completing its term, the shifts, changes, and political instability that dominated the public arena, between late 2022 and the current period of 2024, included even more severe events. Kuwait faced the unconstitutional dissolution of the National Assembly and the suspension of some articles in the constitution, now for the third time in Kuwait’s history. The first two such crises were in 1967 and 1986. To summarize the events that took place from June 2022 until the dissolution of the Parliament and the suspension of the constitution in May 2024, they are as follows: On August 3, 2022, the National Assembly was dissolved constitutionally, in response to the sit-in of a number of MPs inside the Parliament and their overnight stay there. The Crown Prince (the current Emir) gave a speech in which he emphasized adherence to the constitution, and also presented initiatives in electoral reform. He emphasized that the government would not vote for the candidate for the speaker of the National Assembly, and that the elections would be through the national ID card (effectively changing electoral circuits). The protesting MPs considered these reforms a victory. As a result, Ahmed al-Nawaf was appointed Prime Minister
Topic:
Corruption, Education, Environment, Gender Issues, Health, Migration, Governance, Democracy, Economy, Discrimination, Institutions, Labor Market, Freedom, and Political System
Political Geography:
Middle East and Kuwait

3. MIRAGE Model Documentation Version 2.0

Author:
Antoine Bouët, Lionel Fontagné, Christophe Gouel, Houssein Guimbard, Cristina Mitaritonna, Balthazar de Vaulchier, and Yu Zheng
Publication Date:
01-2026
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre d'Etudes Prospectives et d'Informations Internationales (CEPII)
Abstract:
MIRAGE is a multi-region, multi-sector computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, initially devoted to trade policy analysis and more recently applied to long-term growth and environmental issues. It incorporates energy, carbon pricing, imperfect competition, and rigid investment allocation, in a sequential dynamic setup where installed capital is assumed to be immobile. The model provides trade analysis with detailed treatment of trade costs and Armington specifications, drawing upon a detailed measure of trade barriers through the MAcMap-HS6 database. Production features nested CES functions with capital-energy bundles under both perfect and imperfect competition frameworks, while final demand follows a LES-CES utility function. The sequential dynamic framework enables longterm simulations by combining total factor productivity calibration with macroeconomic projections from the MaGE model. The most recent version offers significant improvements in electricity sector modeling with renewable energy representation, base-load and peak-load dinstinctions, and detailed greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions accounting with carbon market mechanisms. This documentation provides complete technical specifications, calibration procedures, and implementation guidelines for researchers and policymakers using MIRAGE for economic policy analysis.
Topic:
Environment, Trade Policy, Carbon Emissions, MIRAGE, and Computable General Equilibrium (CGE)
Political Geography:
Global Focus

4. Land Tenure in Lebanon: The Elephant in the Room of Agricultural Policy Debates

Author:
Christophe Maroun
Publication Date:
01-2026
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
“Land for those who work it.” This popular slogan, heralded by anti-colonialists and anti-imperialists worldwide, as well as by peasant movements such as La Via Campesina and the Landless Workers’ Movement in Brazil, encapsulates a global demand for agrarian reforms that put peasants at the heart of food systems. Yet while global conversations about food production and rural development have had to confront the uncomfortable issue of land tenure, in Lebanon land remains the elephant in the room of national agrarian policy debates. The question of land distribution and access in Lebanon touches on the very foundations of the country’s political economy, which is based on rent extraction, clientelism, and elite capture. A tangle of different land regimes has enabled political and economic elites to continuously convert land into speculative private assets, slowly eroding the social value of land while turning it into a commodity and a source of political power. The persistence of land-based power and elite resistance has historically blocked any meaningful structural reform. In parallel, by preferring donor-driven, technical interventions in agrarian and food policies that avoid the core issue of unequal land access, the Lebanese state functions as a guarantor of existing class structures. This article argues that reforming land access in Lebanon is the essential structural condition for cultivating a fair and sustainable agricultural system rooted in agroecology. It also proposes specific reformist policies and measures toward that goal. In the current political landscape, redistributive land reform – the transfer of tenure rights to new beneficiaries to provide more equitable access – remains distant. Nevertheless, pragmatic alternatives exist to improve land access to vulnerable communities and safeguard precarious agricultural lands. These include strengthening the use of communal amiri lands, protecting agricultural zones from speculation, and activating idle land.
Topic:
Environment, Transitional Justice, Land Tenure, and Agricultural Policy
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

5. How IPLCs Can Leverage BRICS for Inclusive Environmental Governance

Author:
Metolo Foyet
Publication Date:
02-2026
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Nkafu Policy Institute
Abstract:
As global power shifts toward multipolarity, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs)face a pivotal chance to influence the emerging governance architecture of the BRICS+ alliance.Western-led frameworks (UNFCCC, CBD) recognize Indigenous rights but still struggle withimplementation. BRICS, representing over half the world’s population and major biodiversity,offers an alternative platform to advance plural knowledge systems and South–South solidarity. This brief proposes embedding Indigenous leadership within BRICS institutions, aligning newnorms with UNDRIP and ILO 169, and creating financial and knowledge instruments that sustaincommunity-led conservation. The goal is shared sovereignty in environmental decision-making,not token participation. The central question is whether BRICS can evolve from a geopolitical and financial bloc into a rights-based governance platform where IPLCs become co-architects ofglobal environmental policy, and whether multipolar governance can close implementation gapsby embedding Indigenous authority at the design stage.
Topic:
Environment, Governance, Indigenous, BRICS, and Multipolarity
Political Geography:
Global Focus

6. Navigating the Challenges of Environmentalism in an Increasingly Authoritarian Iraq

Author:
Taif Alkhudary
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
There has been a marked increase in environmental activism in Iraq in recent years. This shift has taken place in the context of what has often been presented as a new stability, due to the absence of active armed conflict in the country since 2017. However, as “stabilization” efforts give way to “development”, Iraq is also coming to terms with the slow violence of protracted wars,1 an astronomical and rapid rise in oil production, and the impacts of climate change – most visible in the widespread incidences of pollution and public health crises, as well as in the drying up of ancient rivers and lakes and desertification, which is destroying livelihoods and causing mass migration across the country.2 The rise in interest in the environment has also come in the aftermath of the 2019 Tishreen uprising, to which the government and associated militias have responded with a widespread crackdown on freedom of expression and assembly, making any form of activism increasingly dangerous. This study examines how self-identified environmentalists active in Iraq interact with this complex context and the challenges they face. To navigate the increased authoritarianism of the Iraqi state, this research finds that environmentalists tend to adopt small, carefully framed initiatives that are usually presented as supporting the government in solving some of the environmental issues it faces, as opposed to being overtly adversarial. This approach also means that Iraq’s environmental movements lack autonomy, and that certain issues – particularly those that might harm the business interests or standing of the political elite – remain off-limits. As a result, environmental initiatives in Iraq tend to make shallow interventions that do little to address the root causes of environmental degradation or to mitigate the effects of climate change. These dynamics are compounded by the funding structures of donor organizations, who prefer to award grants to small-scale, time-bound projects the outcomes of which can be easily measured. Environmental actors active in Iraq have also begun to form coalitions with the government, the private sector, and other members of civil society, such as political activists. However, this remains in its infancy and is often limited to a small number of individuals acting alone. Coalition building remains a substantial challenge and is often actively blocked by the government, used by corporations for greenwashing, and sees the efforts of environmental activists and organizations coopted by politicians for their own political and financial ends. The findings of the current study corroborate and extend the work of Wiktor-Mach et al. on Kurdistan, especially their characterization of environmental activism in the region as “a specific type of activism that does not question mainstream policies and practices but intends to push for change within existing systems and that has a cooperative character”.3 However, it is also important to note (as will be discussed in greater detail in this paper) that in Federal Iraq, the uptake of such non-confrontational tactics is the result of the increased crackdown on civil society post-Tishreen, which has raised the stakes and dangers of more adversarial work. In addition, while in Kurdistan episodes of mass contention are relatively rare and often focus on issues such as salaries and service provision, in Federal Iraq there has been at least one episode of mass mobilization in response to environmental issues in recent years in the form of the 2018 water protests in Basra.
Topic:
Environment, Politics, Authoritarianism, and Activism
Political Geography:
Iraq and Middle East

7. Improving the Efficiency of NRC Power Reactor Licensing: Environmental Reviews

Author:
Matt Bowen and Rama T. Ponangi
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center on Global Energy Policy (CGEP), Columbia University
Abstract:
Achieving net-zero emissions in the United States by mid-century requires the rapid buildout of low-carbon energy infrastructure. One challenge to this rapid buildout is the environmental reviews required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which are part of federal approval processes for new energy projects. This process has increasingly caused significant delays and added costs, and the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) of 2023 was passed by Congress in part to address these issues through amendments to NEPA that impose timelines on environmental reviews. For nuclear power, a low-carbon energy source that has a role in many US net-zero scenarios, environmental reviews are conducted by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) as part of its reactor licensing process. Because this process has at times been lengthy and costly, Congress passed the 2024 ADVANCE Act in part to require the NRC to implement its responsibilities under NEPA more efficiently. During the 2000s and 2010s, most of the environmental impact statements (EISs) these reviews produced would not have complied with NEPA’s new FRA timeline (two years or fewer) and page limit (150, or in extraordinary cases 300). More recent NRC environmental reviews for test reactor deployments have been somewhat quicker and had shorter review documents, perhaps a recognition by the agency that the efficiency of this process needed improvement. This report, part of a series of publications on nuclear licensing reform at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University SIPA, focuses on how the NRC can fulfill the new legal mandates on time and page limits for environmental reviews and in general improve the efficiency of these reviews. The report demonstrates that earlier (1970s–80s) environmental reviews for nuclear power reactors licensed under the 10 CFR 50 licensing pathway took less time and generated shorter review documents than those conducted under 10 CFR 52 during the 2000s and 2010s. The latter reviews—all of which were for large light water reactor projects—also utilized substantial NRC resources, thereby incurring significant costs to the applicants. None of these reviews found that the reactor projects were expected to create what the NRC calls “large adverse” environmental impacts, which could destabilize environmental resources. Although some “moderate adverse” impacts were identified, they typically came from unavoidable elements such as new transmission lines and traffic that would result from any large construction project. And beneficial impacts always came in the form of jobs and taxes. At the very least, these findings raise questions about the allocation of time and resources to various aspects of the NRC’s environmental review.
Topic:
Environment, Regulation, Carbon Emissions, Nuclear Energy, and Permitting
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

8. Community Forestry Addresses Environmental Destruction in Mexico

Author:
Linda Farthing
Publication Date:
05-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:
Community-based governance structures put decision-making about Ixlán de Juarez’s forests into local hands, creating economic opportunity and reversing centuries of deforestation in the town.
Topic:
Environment, Governance, Deforestation, Forestry, and Community Initiatives
Political Geography:
Latin America and Mexico

9. Despite Regional Opposition, a Canadian Company Pursues Mining in Santander

Author:
Lital Khaikin
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:
In the face of rifts over securitization issues and calls for conservation, Aris Mining intends to launch the Soto Norte mine in Santander, Colombia, in 2029.
Topic:
Environment, Mining, Conservation, and Securitization
Political Geography:
Canada, Colombia, and South America

10. Climate Change and El Nino Phenomenon Heat Up Malaysian Waters

Author:
Thaarshini Paramasivan
Publication Date:
01-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Maritime Institute of Malaysia
Abstract:
Malaysia has recorded intense peaks of temperature due to a heatwave in the Southeast Asia region in 2024. The heatwave sweeping across the nation had a significant impact on human health, resulting in a concerning rise in heat-related illnesses. By April 2024, a total of 45 cases of heat-related illnesses, including two fatalities from heatstroke, have been reported. Alongside the health risks, significant impacts were also observed through the Malaysian waters, including a series of algae blooms and mass coral bleaching affecting the country. These events, once considered rare occurrences, are becoming more frequent and severe, largely due to the changing climate and rising sea temperatures. These issues are not just ecological concerns but have also begun to affect the economic activities tied t o t he m arine environment, such as aquaculture, specifically at the Peninsular Malaysia, which put pressure on Malaysia’s coastal economies.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Health, El Niño, and Heat
Political Geography:
Malaysia and Southeast Asia

11. US interests can benefit from stronger congressional ties with the Caribbean

Author:
Wazim Mowla and Maite Gonzalez Latorre
Publication Date:
06-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Atlantic Council
Abstract:
The Caribbean’s geographic proximity to the United States—as well as its use as a transit point for US citizens, goods, and financial services—makes it a crucial hub for US national interests. However, the relationship has suffered from inconsistent and infrequent assistance. Changes in US policy priorities bring ever-changing adjustments to US engagement, leaving the Caribbean, its leadership, and its institutions with insufficient time to benefit from US policy action. For Caribbean countries, policy continuity is critical for implementation and to see tangible and meaningful development. The region’s small populations and markets, vulnerability to natural disasters and changing global commodity prices, and limited institutional capacity slow the pace of receiving and utilizing development assistance and support. Underpinning US-Caribbean ties with stronger US congressional engagement can provide needed longevity to the relationship. Congressional actions—like newly appropriated resources and committee hearings—can bring tangible benefits to US-Caribbean relations.
Topic:
Security, Environment, Politics, and Economy
Political Geography:
Caribbean, North America, and United States of America

12. Harvard Project Releases Second Discussion Brief on Climate-Change and Trade Policy

Author:
Valerie J. Karplus
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Valerie Karplus explores relationships between trade and climate-change policy, with a geographical focus on China, the United States, and Europe. She asks how, “[a]gainst a backdrop of escalating trade tensions and signs of softening climate ambition…we can make progress — or at least minimize backsliding” on climate action. She responds by citing the need for “safe spaces”: “…in trade: could certain key inputs to the green economy be potentially exempted from tariffs, without thwarting the ambitions of protectionist programs?” “…for the emergence and diffusion of decarbonized energy technologies” “…that support infrastructure and systems necessary for decarbonization.” Karplus concludes by “…offering a few ways these safe spaces might be established.”
Topic:
International Relations, Climate Change, Environment, Renewable Energy, Trade Policy, Energy, and Green Industry
Political Geography:
Europe, North America, and Asia-Pacific

13. Stimulating Clean Hydrogen Demand: The Current Landscape

Author:
Rachel Mural, Matt Floyd, Sebastian Berns, and Ai Takahashi
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Hydrogen is expected to play an important role in the global energy transition as a chemical feedstock and fuel; when produced with renewable energy, hydrogen offers a means of decarbonizing hard-to-abate industrial processes and the heavy transportation sector.1 To support market growth, current hydrogen programs aim to expand clean2 (also called “green”) hydrogen production by providing substantial subsidies in the form of supply-side funding and tax incentives. In 2023, global public investments in clean hydrogen reached $308 billion, with the vast bulk of funding allocated to production-side support.3 While worldwide clean hydrogen production targets4 reached 27-35 megatons (Mt) in 2023, demand targets have stalled at just 14 Mt.5 This trend reflects regional asymmetries in production and demand uptake. Under current projections, demand for renewable hydrogen in Europe is expected to hit 8.5 Mt by 2030, far behind the region’s planned 20 Mt of supply.6 Similarly, although the passage of the United States’ (U.S.) Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in 2022 spurred an explosion of announced clean hydrogen projects, project offtake has lagged behind policy ambition. Supply-side incentives alone are insufficient to build robust markets for clean hydrogen; therefore, stakeholders must investigate additional demand-side innovation policies to facilitate market growth and development. In the remainder of this brief, we summarize the hydrogen policy landscape in the United States and European Union (EU), concluding with an examination of the causes of demand-side stagnation in the clean hydrogen market.
Topic:
Environment, Science and Technology, Natural Resources, Regulation, Public Policy, and Hydrogen
Political Geography:
Global Focus, United States of America, and European Union

14. China's Green Belt and Road

Author:
Yang Jiang
Publication Date:
03-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
In the past 15 years, green industries have developed rapidly in China, and China has assumed a leading position in several global supply chains of renewable energy. Because the domestic solar, wind and biomass markets have become quite saturated, Chinese companies have intensified their search for overseas markets, and the Chinese government is strengthening its support for that pursuit under the Green Belt and Road Initiative. For the governments and businesses in the green industries in the West, the Green Belt and Road Initiative could result in more competition over market shares and geopolitical influence, but it also encompasses opportunities for cooperation. For developing countries, more competition and diversification between foreign partners can be an advantage, allowing them to negotiate with the development partners.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Development, Environment, Natural Resources, Business, and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
Political Geography:
China and Asia

15. Who counts as ‘local’ in conservation and biodiversity strategies?

Author:
Adam Moe Fejerskov and Alma Tjalve
Publication Date:
06-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
What does it mean to work 'locally' in conservation, and how can practitioners navigate the complex power dynamics this entails? A new DIIS Working Paper explores the evolving landscape of inclusive conservation approaches, examining how concepts like community-based conservation, Indigenous-led stewardship, and critical localism interpret and operationalise 'the local'. As development partners intensify their conservation engagement globally, understanding these diverse frameworks and their implications for practice has become essential. The paper maps out how different conservation approaches conceptualise locality and community participation, from collaborative partnerships to full community control over resource management. Through analysing various models — including Community-Based Natural Resource Management, Integrated Conservation and Development Projects, and Indigenous-led conservation — the authors explore how each interprets empowerment, knowledge integration, and decision-making authority differently. The study concludes with practical principles for inclusive conservation programming, emphasising that working effectively with 'the local' requires careful attention to power dynamics, rights recognition, and the integration of multiple knowledge systems across scales.
Topic:
Development, Environment, Natural Resources, Conservation, and Biodiversity
Political Geography:
Global Focus

16. Ghana’s electrification via rural mini-grids has been disappointing

Author:
Abdul-Bassit Abubakari
Publication Date:
05-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
Despite Ghana’s explicit plans to deploy mini-grids for the electrification of off-grid and remote communities, progress has been slow and disappointing. This paper explores how political dynamics and policy shifts have shaped the governance of mini-grids over time. It examines the evolution of mini-grids in Ghana in three phases: preliminary design stage (2007–2013); active implementation period, marked by policy modifications (2013–2019); and subsequent consolidation under a predominantly public-led model post-2019. Guided by an adapted political settlements framework and process tracing methodology, the paper argues that misalignment between the government of Ghana and donors over governance and ownership models, mediated by the country’s competitive clientelist politics, explains Ghana’s limited progress in the development of mini-grids. The paper provides nuanced insights into the complex ways transnational factors and domestic politics interact in shaping the development of mini-grids with wide implications for debates on energy governance and reform in sub-Saharan Africa.
Topic:
Environment, Natural Resources, Electricity, and Development Policy
Political Geography:
Africa and Ghana

17. Ocean Rights – Challenges and Prospects

Author:
Jasper Mührel
Publication Date:
07-2025
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Goettingen Journal of International Law (GoJIL)
Institution:
The Goettingen Journal of International Law (GoJIL)
Abstract:
The pressing environmental crises of the Anthropocene are inherently connected to ocean health. Yet, the oceans are currently in a critical state. The article explores the idea of giving rights to oceans as one way to enhance their legal protection. It draws on scholarship and practice regarding the existing legal rights of nature, and discusses the challenges and prospects of ocean rights. In doing so, the article raises and addresses three fundamental questions for the recognition of such rights: first, why oceans should hold their own rights in the first place; second, who, i.e. what exact entity or entities, shall hold ocean rights; and finally, how such rights could be implemented and represented and thus be given practical effect.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, International Law, Oceans and Seas, Anthropocene, and Rights
Political Geography:
Global Focus

18. The Environmental Crisis Is a Capitalist Crisis

Author:
Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research
Abstract:
One of humanity’s greatest challenges today is the environmental crisis, which threatens our very existence. Our latest dossier explores its class character, showing that the climate catastrophe is a product of capitalism’s relentless drive for accumulation.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Capitalism, and Class
Political Geography:
Global Focus

19. Solar Power and Environmental Peacebuilding in South-central Somalia

Author:
Ann-Sophie Böhle and Kheira Tarif
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)
Abstract:
In Somalia, widespread energy poverty and a heavy reliance on conventional energy sources are deeply linked to ongoing conflict dynamics. Dependence on firewood and charcoal worsens environmental degradation and intensifies competition over natural resources. These challenges are further exacerbated by the effects of climate change and limited access to basic services. To address these interconnected challenges, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Somalia is advancing rural electrification through solar power as part of a broader environmental peacebuilding strategy. This SIPRI Policy Brief explores how the IOM’s approach to solar power and the facilitation of local public–private partnerships (PPPs) can support environmental peacebuilding at three levels: the community level, the local business level and the district council level. By creating local PPP agreements to implement solar power projects, the initiatives aim to foster cooperation, reduce resource-based tensions and strengthen government legitimacy in south-central Somalia. The brief shares learnings from early implementation stages and provides recommendations for donors and implementing organizations seeking to enhance the peacebuilding potential of solar energy projects.
Topic:
Climate Change, Development, Environment, Solar Power, and Peacebuilding
Political Geography:
Africa and Somalia

20. Iran: A Report on the DACOR Bacon Foundation’s 2025 Annual Conference

Author:
Keith McCormick
Publication Date:
11-2025
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
American Diplomacy
Institution:
American Diplomacy
Abstract:
The DACOR Bacon House Foundation’s 2025 Annual Conference, held on September 12, focused on Iran. The conference brought together academics, former diplomats, and policy activists to analyze the new situation facing Iran in the Middle East after a string of military setbacks, and the prospects for diplomacy with the United States. A list of participants is appended to this article.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Demographics, Diplomacy, Environment, Human Rights, Sanctions, and Ideology
Political Geography:
Iran, Middle East, and United States of America

21. Environmental Struggle in the Middle East and North Africa: A Research Agenda

Author:
Julia Choucair Vizoso
Publication Date:
05-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Environmental struggle is increasingly salient in the Arab region. From protests over land use in Egypt or fracking in Algeria, to garbage handling in Lebanon and Tunisia, to water mismanagement in Iraq and Morocco, we have witnessed the rise of environmental mobilization born out of environmental harm and degradation. In some instances, environmental issues have triggered mass protests at the national level or become intertwined with broader demands for socioeconomic and political change. In Tunisia, many of the mobilizations in early 2011 embraced the environmental agenda as a tool of resistance against the political system.1 Iraq’s 2019 Thawrat Tishreen, in addition to its more familiar political and socioeconomic dimensions, can also be seen as an ecological rebellion by Iraq’s youth who demanded a sustainable future.2 Also in 2019, Lebanon’s mass uprisings featured environmental grievances not as niche or localized concerns, but as an epitome of widespread indignation at the status quo.3 During Algeria’s Hirak in 2019-2020, activists took up the demands of an earlier anti-fracking movement, linking the issue of shale gas to questions of democracy and national sovereignty.4 Environmental nongovernmental organizations, a more institutionalized form, have also proliferated across the region. Other civil society organizations that focus on economic policy or human rights are now more active on the environment, their members campaigning at home and representing the region more regularly and visibly at international meetings on environmental causes. Moreover, activists and scholars alike are increasingly drawing environmental connections to long-standing political-economic issues that have created social conflict. According to the Global Environmental Justice Atlas (EJAtlas), a collaborative data collection platform launched in 2012, there have been at least 239 cases in 21 Arab countries of contentious mobilizations of civil society actors in which explicit social-environmental claims were made against a specific project or economic activity.5 Considering that the EJAtlas is non-comprehensive and relies on self-reporting, the number of socio-environmental conflicts in MENA is likely significantly higher.6 Amid the resistance to Israel’s ongoing genocide of Palestinians and its indiscriminate bombing of Lebanon, condemnations of ecocide have surfaced, showing how Israel’s warfare also causes severe, widespread, and long-term damage to the natural environment in order to destroy all possibilities of life.7 At the same time, the discourse about environmental and climate action at the state level has shifted in the region. Over the past decade, all Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) have set net-zero targets and announced national development plans and strategies to meet them – though they continue to expand fossil fuel production. Saudi Arabia and the UAE – the world’s largest exporters of crude oil and liquified natural gas – are also seizing leadership positions in international climate negotiations and in the new market of carbon offsetting and carbon accounting mechanisms.8 In North Africa, governments are positioning themselves as champions of sustainability and the green transition with schemes for large-scale production of energy through solar, wind, and green hydrogen. The fact that two Arab cities, Sharm El-Sheikh and Dubai, hosted the last two editions of the largest international summit on climate action, the COP (Conference of Parties), symbolizes the ascendancy of the environment in the political landscape of the region. What these “green and energy transition” shifts at the state level will mean for the conditions that face environmental activists is an open question.
Topic:
Environment, Research, and Activism
Political Geography:
Middle East and North Africa

22. Rethinking Sudan’s Environment and Conflict Nexus: Naming, Blaming, and Claiming

Author:
Abdalftah Hamed Ali
Publication Date:
12-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Sudan faces a compounded crisis: a deadly blend of conflict and economic hardship that intersects with climate change, environmental degradation, governance breakdown, and vicious cycles of conflict.1 This environmental degradation and ecological mismanagement have exacerbated resource scarcities and public health hazards, fueling social grievances in a country already beset by civil wars and political turmoil since its independence.2 Yet dominant positivist approaches to policy analysis, with their emphasis on linear stages, technical rationality, and objective problem-solving, often fail to capture the contested, socially constructed, and power-laden nature of environmental issues in fragile contexts like Sudan.3 By treating problems as neutral facts awaiting solutions, they obscure the role of narrative, legitimacy, and agency in shaping which issues are recognized, whose voices are heard, and how conflicts evolve. Hence, in moving past the dominance of prevailing positivist approaches, this analysis employs an interdisciplinary lens rooted in the sociology of social problems to interrogate how Sudan’s environmental crises have been framed or ignored over time, including any justifications; and how this framing has shaped policy action (or inaction) and conflict dynamics.4 The dynamics of environmental grievances in Sudan are not simply technical challenges; they are embedded in broader struggles over narratives, priorities, power, legitimacy, and justice. The suppression of local claims has transformed ecological issues into catalysts that create deeper crises, as unresolved grievances accumulate and resurface in violence. In this sense, interpretatively, this demonstrates that environmental policy cannot be separated from broader questions of governance: who defines problems, who bears responsibility, and who gains or loses in their resolution. Understanding this nexus is essential for designing interventions that, beyond treating symptoms, can address the underlying structures that perpetuate vulnerability, exclusion, and disputes. This paper traces the historical and institutional trajectory of Sudan’s environment conflict crisis through four phases: (1) marginalization and disregard (pre-1990s), when environmental issues were ignored or suppressed; (2) official recognition and internationalization (1990s-2000s), when Sudan’s environmental problems belatedly received official recognition due to global contexts (often due to conflict linkages); (3) environmental integration into policy (2000s-2018), when the regime began incorporating environmental considerations in laws and treaties, though mainly in form rather than substance; and (4) post-revolution reframing (2019-present), when Sudan’s popular uprising opened space to redefine environmental issues within a justice and peace narrative, until the new conflict emerged. These stages reflect not linear progress but cycles of recognition without resolution. Each stage reveals blocked attempts to transform grievances into claims, showing how authoritarianism and conflict repeatedly reset environmental governance. Across these stages, the paper highlights critical episodes that expose failures in claims made regarding environmental justice, from toxic and nontoxic waste dumping and pesticide scandals to climate discourses and communities’ struggles for redress. Drawing on Sudanese newspaper investigations, NGO reports, and studies, the analysis shows how these issues were repeatedly brought to light by claimants only to be met with issue reframing, denial, repression, confinement, or authorities’ inaction. We argue in this paper that for environmental policy to be effective, it must be designed in response to communities’ legitimate grievances and demands, rather than framed in ways that delegitimize their suffering or avoid their mobilization. The cases presented underscore how power asymmetries and secrecy have systematically blocked accountability. Using this framework, the paper demonstrates how governance failures at each stage prevented ecological crises from driving policy reform, instead allowing them to become catalysts of instability and violence. Ultimately, in analyzing the societal conditions under which environmental issues emerged as social concerns and tracing their transformation into public action, the paper illuminates the conflictual and demand-driven dynamics that shape the production of public policy.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Governance, Public Policy, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Sudan and North Africa

23. Just Transition Green Bridge: Tunisian Case Study

Author:
Yasmina El Amine
Publication Date:
03-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Tunisia's increasing energy demand, depleting oil and gas reserves, limited access to foreign currency, and dependence on Algerian gas have significantly strained its energy sector and national budget (Council of Energy Sciences, 2023). Despite these challenges, the country’s energy transition has remained largely stagnant over the past decade (World Bank, 2024). Recent shifts in national governance and geopolitical developments have created conditions that could accelerate the deployment of renewable energy (Al Bawsala, 2024). The rise in authoritarianism under President Saied, following his July 25th coup, and its subsequent influence on the governance of the energy sector appear to have unblocked some long-standing barriers to renewable energy expansion. These political changes align with Europe’s carbon neutrality goals for 2050 and its escalating energy crisis since 2022, which prompted the EU to prioritize “green” energy security and reduce its dependence on Russian gas (EC, 2022). This agenda includes importing renewable energy, particularly green hydrogen, from North Africa—positioning Tunisia as a potentially key player in this evolving landscape. Against this backdrop, Tunisia has set ambitious goals for its energy transition, aiming to increase the share of renewables to 35 percent of its energy mix by 2030 (MoIME, 2023). Since 2021, an initial wave of concessions approved 500 MW of renewable energy projects (El Amine, 2023). This was followed by the launch of a second phase targeting the installation of 1,700 MW under the 2024–2027 concession scheme (Zawya, 2024). Within this framework, the Ministry of Industry Energy and Mines, in collaboration with international actors, envisions transforming Tunisia into a “green growth engine” (World Bank, 2024). The action plan to meet these targets is driven by large-scale, foreign, and private sector-led projects, as well as investments in green hydrogen initiatives intended primarily for export (MoIME, 2023). While these developments have been presented as “win-win solutions,” they have not been without contestation. Trade unions and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) initially opposed and blocked this trajectory, citing concerns over job security and socio-economic impacts (Depluche and Poletti, 2021; Ben Rouine and Roche, 2022; Ben Ammar, 2022; Louati, 2022; El Amine, 2023). From strikes, sit-ins, and protests to the blockade of a solar farm project in Tataouine, resistance to large-scale, foreign-led renewable energy projects emerged over the years. In response, there has been an increasing call for alternative energy transition pathways that prioritize energy sovereignty and justice, democratic participation, and community ownership through decentralized solutions (Ben Ammar, 2022). However, at this point, energy transition pathways remain confined to strategies, agreements, and Memorandums of Understanding with limited tangible outcomes. This gap highlights the need for a critical assessment of potential trajectories, particularly from socio-economic and justice perspectives. In this context, key questions become pertinent: what does Just Transition mean in the Tunisian context? Who are the winners and losers of this transition? Who benefits and who is left behind? How will this transition be financed and who bears the costs? What role, if any, can CSOs play in shaping inclusive and equitable processes and outcomes? Lastly, can a just transition truly occur in the face of Tunisia’s deepening erosion of democracy?
Topic:
Environment, Civil Society Organizations, Energy, and Green Transition
Political Geography:
North Africa and Tunisia

24. Environmental Organizations and Mobilization in Tunisia

Author:
Mohamed Ismail Sabry
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
With the outbreak of significant social protest in Tunisia’spost–2011 Revolution period, environmental mobilization received much attention. New environmental campaigns – such as Manish Msab (I Am Not a Dump) and Stop Pollution behind which local communities rallied – gained recognition at the national level, raised awareness of environmental harms, and succeeded in inducing state action. Yet social protest was only one of the forms of environmental mobilization that Tunisia witnessed in the revolution’s aftermath. Several movements with different organizational forms and affiliations, operating in various geographical locations, have been active since 2011, and some even prior. This study investigates environmental mobilization in Tunisia, focusing on the period from 2011 until the end of 2024. It relies on an empirical study based on a survey and interviews conducted with 11 environmental civil society organizations (ECSO) based in Tunisia, many of which played a considerable role in various forms of environmental mobilization in the country. The mission of most of these organizations is hardly confined to achieving environmental objectives. Rather, environmental objectives mingle with social, political, and economic ones, and these other objectives often take precedence. Environmental movements engage in various forms of mobilization and interact among themselves and with various other actors – such as the state, business, labor, and international organizations – in ways that vary between cooperation and confrontation and in their level of trust and coordination. Such interactions shape their environment-oriented activities and their outcomes. The study is a part of a wider research project entitled “Developing Inclusive Research through Activism and Informed Advocacy”, bringing together the Arab Reform Initiative (ARI) and the Moroccan Institute for Policy Analysis, and funded by the Canadian International Development Research Centre. The project’s main aim is to investigate environmental mobilization in the Arab world with the purpose of creating knowledge on the various forms, expressions, and demands of environmental movements, their organizational parameters, interactions with other state and non-state actors, and the conditions they face.1 Considering the multidimensional environmental challenges faced on a global scale, exploring the dynamics of ECSOs is of utmost importance given that they are the actors often most concerned with addressing these challenges. Tunisia, located at the center of North Africa and one of the closest points to Europe, highlights the environmental dimensions of north-south disparities and discourses about green colonialism. Moreover, the nature and pace of political changes in the country since 2011 demonstrate how changes in governance – i.e., a democratic transition and authoritarian resurgence – and ongoing, unsettled sociopolitical struggle reverberate and interact with environmentalism. The study starts with exploring the political-economic context in post-2011 Tunisia and how the opening of the political field led to the emergence of various ECSOs. This section also explores the most important environmental challenges that the country faces, with a focus on industrial and service sector pollution, water usage, and the green transition. The study then engages in a mapping of ECSOs, their modes of organization, geographical distribution, strategies and tactics, objectives and priorities, and the challenges they face. A subsequent section studies how ECSOs interact with each other and with state, social, and international actors, with a focus on the fields and the extent of cooperation, confrontation, and coordination. An assessment of the successes and failures of ECSOs then follows. The study concludes with a summary of findings and practical implications.
Topic:
Civil Society, Environment, Protests, and Mobilization
Political Geography:
North Africa and Tunisia

25. Participatory Approaches to Conflict, Climate Change and Environment: Case Studies from the Middle East and North Africa

Author:
Sammy Kayed, Shivan Fazil, Hussam Hussein, Asma Khalifa, and Abeer Butmeh
Publication Date:
03-2025
Content Type:
Book
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
The MENA countries have been confronting profound and far-reaching climate shocks. Experts widely agree that human-driven activity intensely shapes escalating climate stressors—including extreme weather events—dwindling natural resources, and persistent environmental degradation. These climate dynamics are expected to deepen existing conflicts, destabilizing an already fragile landscape. Conflict contributes to further visible environmental deterioration, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake. Despite this intimate interplay, environmental and climate considerations are often ignored during peacebuilding efforts. More than ever, the situation in the region is shaped by conflict and war. The climate-conflict nexus takes on greater urgency in the Middle East and North Africa. The unpredictable security situation, coupled with rapidly changing conditions on the ground, has presented challenges for this publication: the inclusion of a dedicated chapter on Lebanon had to be reconsidered due to war. The remaining country analyses, however, capture and present the current situation. This publication marks a collaborative effort between the Arab Reform Initiative and the Robert Bosch Stiftung as part of our joint program, “Conflict, Climate Change and Environment in the Middle East”, which we launched in 2021. The program’s central aim is to create spaces for exchange and sharing expertise among diverse local, national and regional actors, practitioners, and scholars from the MENA. By fostering these connections across sectors and geographies, we are building networks and alliances that support local actors, amplifying the voices of those most affected by both conflict and environmental change. Due to unforeseeable events on the ground, some of the chapters in this publication have been rendered outmoded, a testament to the environment’s volatility during times of conflict. We extend our deep gratitude to the dedicated contributors of this publication, particularly Hussam Hussein, Sammy Kayed, and Tobias Zumbraegel, whose commitment has helped bring this work to fruition; and to the authors’ meticulous contributions towards each of the chapters. Special thanks go to Zaki Boulos for his careful editorial guidance. Lastly, we are grateful to all the local stakeholders and sources who enriched this publication with their insights and expertise, adding depth and nuance to the analyses. This publication is both a call to action and a resource, designed to catalyze collaboration and informed action on the complex relationship between climate, conflict, and environment in the MENA. We look forward to continuing this vital work alongside all those committed to building resilience and fostering sustainable peace in the region.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Conflict, and Participation
Political Geography:
Middle East

26. Planetary Health and the Perils of Progress: A Framework for Governing the Global Commons

Author:
Pey Peili
Publication Date:
08-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
As the Planetary Health movement marks its tenth anniversary, the global community faces a critical dilemma, exemplified by the debate over deep-sea mining for the green transition. This NTS Insight argues that this is not a new challenge but a recurring historical pattern of progress-driven environmental degradation, with a clear precedent in the 19th-century annihilation of the American bison. This analysis demonstrates how the Planetary Health framework, by integrating principles of systems thinking, precaution, and justice, provides the essential governance lens needed to diagnose and break this destructive cycle. The piece concludes with policy pathways for embedding a Planetary Health approach into the governance of the global commons, including navigating regional norms like ASEAN’s non-interference principle, to ensure that the pursuit of sustainability does not create new zones of ecological sacrifice and geopolitical inequity.
Topic:
Environment, Governance, Mining, Sustainability, ASEAN, and Green Transition
Political Geography:
Asia and Global Focus

27. A Decade of Planetary Health: Learning from the Past and Securing Earth’s Future

Author:
Pey Peili
Publication Date:
08-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
A decade after its conception, Planetary Health remains a vital framework linking human and planetary well-being. It challenges a dangerous historical pattern where progress was accompanied by wanton environmental destruction, from the 19th-century bison slaughter to increased production of palm oil and modern deep-sea mining. To secure a resilient future, a shift towards integrated and systemic governance is required.
Topic:
Environment, Governance, Mining, Global Health, and Extinction
Political Geography:
Global Focus

28. In Remembrance of Dr Jane Goodall: Systematising Empathy for a Planet in Crisis

Author:
Pey Peili
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
Dr Jane Goodall’s passing is a reminder that the era of relying on singular charismatic “giants” to lead the environmental movement has passed. Confronting today’s planetary health crisis now demands collective, systemic action. As this necessary transition unfolds, her legacy of uniting scientific rigour and empathy must be integrated into institutions and policies for enduring and collective change.
Topic:
Environment, Global Health, Empathy, and Jane Goodall
Political Geography:
Global Focus

29. Addressing the Nexus of Planetary Health and Mental Health in Asia

Author:
Pey Peili
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
On World Mental Health Day, it is pertinent to examine the growing psychological impact of environmental degradation in Asia. This commentary assesses the phenomenon and argues that climate policies, such as integrating nature into urban planning and empowering local communities, can serve as effective public mental health strategies.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Mental Health, Empowerment, and Urban Planning
Political Geography:
Asia

30. Constitutionalizing the Environment in 21st Century Europe: Innovations for Greener Constitutions

Author:
Goce Kocevski
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:
Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:
This paper analyzes and systematizes innovations in the constitutional entrenchment of environmental protection provisions, moving beyond the mere recognition of the right to a healthy environment or the affirmation of general policy declarations. Using the comparative constitutional method, it examines relevant provisions in the constitutions of France, Montenegro, Hungary, Austria, and Slovenia. The findings reveal significant diversity in the scope and manner of environmental constitutionalization, contrasting with the similarities observed among constitutions adopted in the 1990s. Identified approaches include the integration of environmental law principles, the constitutional recognition of procedural environmental rights, and the establishment of institutions dedicated to environmental protection. These constitutional innovations demonstrate significant potential for broader adoption, thereby strengthening frameworks for environmental protection and enhancing the safeguarding of human rights and liberties.
Topic:
Environment, Human Rights, Constitution, Innovation, and Amendment
Political Geography:
Europe

31. LNG Projects Are a Bad Deal for Germans and Americans

Author:
Milena Pressentin, Josefin Schmidt, and Julian Schwartzkopff
Publication Date:
06-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for American Progress - CAP
Abstract:
Subsidizing fossil gas, especially long-term contracts for liquefied natural gas (LNG), undermines Germany’s energy independence, national security, public health, and climate goals, while also raising energy prices and pollution for Americans. On the other hand, accelerating the deployment of affordable and cleaner technologies across sectors could lower costs and pollution.
Topic:
Climate Change, Diplomacy, Environment, Trade, Donald Trump, and Energy
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, North America, and United States of America

32. Addressing environment-related risks in the EU’s crisis management: From greening to foresight and preparedness

Author:
Emma Hakala
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA)
Abstract:
The EU and its crisis management efforts are increasingly challenged by environment-related risks, such as extreme weather events and their implications for stability, migration and food security. Greater recognition of environmental risks could bolster resilience and preparedness not only within specific crisis management missions, but also across the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy. The integration of environmental issues into crisis management has been hindered by unclear mandates, lack of knowledge and expertise, and a failure to recognize the potential benefits for preparedness. For better mainstreaming, the environment needs to be seen as a key part of comprehensive preparedness, for example by producing foresight data, identifying linkages between the environment and security, and contributing to early-warning systems.
Topic:
Security, Climate Change, Environment, European Union, and Crisis Management
Political Geography:
Europe

33. Sustainable cost of quinoa production in Bolivia: A landscape approach integrating the recovery of agricultural heritage (COSPH)

Author:
Javier Aliaga Lordemann and Adriana Caballero Caballero
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for Advanced Development Studies (INESAD)
Abstract:
This study analyzes the sustainable production cost, integrating the recovery of agricultural heritage (COSPH), for quinoa cultivation in the Bolivian High Plateau (Altiplano), seeking to answer: How much does it cost to make quinoa production sustainable over time in Bolivia? And, How does this change when considering agricultural heritage conservation? Specifically, the study evaluates how good agricultural practices (GAP) can mitigate climate change impacts and whether they are cost-effective, integrating the costs of agricultural heritage, which are particularly important for the quinoa real (royal quinoa) crop in Bolivia. Methodologically, the research combines a microeconomic model of imperfect competition calibrated for quinoa — capturing price differentiation based on sustainability and heritage conservation — with the NL-CROP model (Non-Linear Crop Optimization Model), which simulates non-linear interactions between climate, soil, and farming practices. Key findings show that GAP significantly reduce yield losses: under moderate climate conditions, productivity declines decrease from 5-7% to 1.8-2%, while in extreme events, losses drop from 16-30% to 2.5-6.2%, attributed to sustainable soil management. GAP remain viable in scenarios with up to two to three standard deviations, where profit margins cover additional costs. However, in severe crises (50% yield losses), negative margins (-4.7%) make agricultural insurance necessary (premiums of 7-10%), as well as tailored policies to balance climate adaptation with smallholders’ economic viability. When heritage conservation costs are included (COSPH), results show improved resilience (yield loss reduced to 10.5% under a moderate climate scenario) at a moderate additional cost (5.75% compared to 5%), suggesting that preserving agroecological heritage contributes to long-term sustainability. These findings highlight the strategic role of combining sustainable agriculture with the protection of cultural landscapes in vulnerable highland farming in Bolivia.
Topic:
Agriculture, Climate Change, Economics, Environment, Heritage, Farming, Adaptation, Production, and Quinoa
Political Geography:
South America and Bolivia

34. A Glimpse of Environmental Procedural Democracy in Poland: Thwarting the Civil Society’s Pursuit of Legal Action Against Environmental Plans

Author:
Karolina Karpus
Publication Date:
06-2025
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Public participation in environmental matters through access to justice is an indispensable aspect of environmental democracy. It has become increasingly evident that this type of democratic social control over the activities of public authorities should also encompass legislative acts. This poses a significant challenge for the contemporary political-legal system, as is demonstrably evident in the case of Polish environmental plans. Civic control of the legality of such general acts, enacted by public administration bodies in legislative or special procedures, is implemented in two steps. Firstly, it takes the form of participation through comments or questions on the draft of a plan submitted by civic society during the preparatory stage of the law-making process. Secondly, the control focuses on the plans after they are enacted. At this point, it takes the form of legal actions brought by members of the public before national courts in order to investigate the material and procedural legality of environmental plans. However, at present the access to justice in this respect is limited. The aim of the article is to analyse the legal reasons for this deficiency of Polish environmental procedural democracy and to assess it in the light of Poland’s international obligations.
Topic:
Civil Society, Environment, Democracy, Legislation, Justice, and Political Participation
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

35. Navigating Indo-Pacific Waters: Maritime Governance and Why Australia and Japan Must Lead in Capacity Building in Southeast Asia

Author:
Aaron Magunna
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
Southeast Asian countries continue to face various maritime policy challenges. Beijing’s aggressive conduct toward other littoral states in the South China Sea and increased China-US tensions have highlighted the pervasiveness of traditional security threats while prospects for a more stable maritime order are undermined by the stalled negotiations between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) over a Code of Conduct for the South China Sea. Regional countries are also concerned about issues such as piracy and armed robbery at sea, the effects of the climate crisis, and illegal, unreported, and undocumented (IUU) fishing, which is estimated to cost ASEAN members up to $6 billion annually. Notably, these challenges are not solely linked to narrow maritime security issues but broader maritime governance capabilities, meaning the “capacity to enforce the framework of laws, regulations, policies, and institutions generated both within the legal jurisdictions of states and the international community.” As the new Trump administration has shifted US policy on aid, countries like Australia and Japan will have to increasingly step up in the delivery of maritime capacity-building programs in Southeast Asia.
Topic:
Crime, Environment, Governance, Maritime, and Regional Security
Political Geography:
Japan, Australia, Southeast Asia, and Indo-Pacific

36. Beyond Scarcity: Social Inequality and the Politics of Water in Morocco

Author:
Zakaria Ibrahimi
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Water in Morocco is a political issue, as it is in most human societies, but it also presents itself primarily as a cultural and social one.1 The history of Moroccan society and the structure of its social and cultural institutions can be unreservedly characterized as shaped by water. This is due to facts confirmed by historical texts on Morocco, which document, for example, conflicts between Moroccan tribes over water, pastures, and all water-related resources.2 Others reveal the position of water in the policies of the Moroccan state throughout its history. Writings on the history of famines and epidemics also showed the role that water played in the demographic, social, cultural, and political changes that the country experienced throughout its history after each drought year.3 Perhaps this is what prompted General Lyautey, one of the founders of the French Protectorate, to say, "To rule in Morocco is to rain." Researchers on Morocco's political affairs, including Rémy Leveau, draw attention to the role that water played in establishing and legitimizing governance in Morocco.4 Equally, historian Abdallah Laroui revealed the succession of political unrest in Morocco after each drought year.5 The issue of water in Morocco is not and has never been a natural one. Rather, it has always been a public and collective issue, one that has shaped and organized most Moroccan institutions and through which social inequalities have emerged. This is why many Moroccan researchers did not find it awkward to distinguish between state water and community water, between sacred water and ordinary water, between water of God and water of the state, etc. These binaries emerged historically through the water policies adopted by Morocco from at least 1914 until today following the introduction of the first law under the French Protectorate, which refers to state ownership of water and natural resources and prohibits all forms of collective ownership by tribes, groups, and individuals who historically considered water to be the property of the group and an integral part of its identity and social organization, and have collectively built systems, sites, and authorities to regulate water and its distribution and to settle conflicts over it. Water has been used in the contemporary Moroccan state as a direct source for building the legitimacy of the political system, legitimizing some of the economic and political choices on which the post-independence state was built, penetrating political elites, and excluding others from any political ambitions.6 Therefore, the political economy on which the post-independence state was built, which favored agriculture and ensuring food security in a society living under an accelerated demographic transition, put in one way or another water and water-related policies in a central position. This paper seeks to uncover the political character of water in Morocco, and how discourses on water have evolved in recent decades, moving from a discourse of abundance to one of scarcity, from the water of God to the water of the state, of the community, and of the engineer, as well as the transformation of water within the current public space into a resource for struggle, protest discourses, temporary waves of discontent, and one of the key elements of contestation in various Moroccan spheres.
Topic:
Environment, Water, Inequality, and Scarcity
Political Geography:
North Africa and Morocco

37. Tunisia’s Climate Justice Movement

Author:
Mariem Madhi
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
As a hotspot for climate change risks, Tunisia faces pressing challenges. One of the most water-scarce countries in the world, Tunisia ranks 20th globally in water stress.1 In 2023, the country's per capita water availability was just 400 cubic meters annually, well below the 1000 cubic meters threshold for water poverty set by the UN. Climate change is projected to decrease rainfall by up to 30% by 2050,2 impacting agriculture, which contributes 9% to the country's GDP and employs 16% of the workforce.3 Coastal zones will likely experience rising sea levels, increased temperature, salinity, and acidity, causing significant impacts, including loss of urban areas, infrastructure, and ecosystem degradation. Over 3100 hectares of urban land are at risk of submersion, and 44% of the coastline is highly vulnerable to these effects. The tourism sector faces significant threats from coastal erosion and sea-level rise, with an estimated loss of 1000 jobs per year by 2030.4 Climate change will increase vector-borne, water-borne, and food-borne diseases, exacerbate air pollution-related health issues, and raise the risk of floods damaging infrastructure. These effects are already being felt. In the Kerkennah Islands off the east coast of the mainland, for example, local fishermen are facing declining fish stocks and increasing water salinity due to climate change, jeopardizing their livelihoods – a case that shows how climate change disproportionately impacts marginalized groups and underscores the urgent need for policies that address both ecological challenges and social inequities (Hafsi and Azouni, 2024).5 Most research to date on Tunisia’s climate politics has focused on governmental policies to address climate challenges. This study turns instead to the role of grassroots activism, particularly youth movements and civil society organizations (CSOs), in shaping Tunisia’s post-revolution climate actions. Through the lens of social movement theory, we investigate two central questions: How have grassroots movements shaped environmental governance in Tunisia following the revolution? How does Tunisian civil society engage international climate frameworks to influence local climate actions in Tunisia?
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Activism, and Climate Justice
Political Geography:
North Africa and Tunisia

38. Lebanon’s Climate Actors

Author:
Karen-Jo Mourad Karam and Mariem Madhi
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Due to its geographic location and socio-political landscape, Lebanon is particularly vulnerable to climate change and is already experiencing its impact. Increasing temperatures, declining rainfall, and prolonged droughts and heatwaves are degrading the country’s natural resources and people’s health and livelihood. Further exacerbating the country’s vulnerability to climate change are rapid urbanization, political instability, fragmented governance, war, and ongoing economic and financial crisis – all of which hinder effective adaptation and mitigation strategies. To confront these challenges, and in an attempt to fill the gaps left by governmental inaction, Lebanese civil society organizations (CSOs) and activists are increasingly engaging with climate governance. Based on interviews with 16 of the main CSO actors involved in climate activism and advocacy in Lebanon, this brief delineates the landscape of climate activism identifying the actors involved, their demands, the challenges they face, their policy impact to date, and opportunities for progress.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Civil Society Organizations, and Activism
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

39. Toward Inclusive Climate Action in Jordan

Author:
Hussam Hussein
Publication Date:
04-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Jordan’s vulnerability to climate change and its reliance on external resources make it a key case study for understanding how inclusive approaches can drive meaningful climate action. This report explores Jordan’s evolving climate action landscape, focusing on grassroots mobilization and institutional engagement. It takes an inclusive approach and is rooted in research-based evidence that a participatory, rights-based approach can produce more effective, accountable, and legitimate outcomes. The insights derived from this report provide diverse recommendations for responding to barriers and opportunities for inclusive climate action.
Topic:
Civil Society, Environment, Water, Activism, and Inclusion
Political Geography:
Middle East and Jordan

40. Energy Transition Challenges in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region

Author:
Diana Kaissy
Publication Date:
11-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Iraq faces formidable obstacles in shifting to a cleaner and more equitable energy system. In 2023, Iraq ranked third globally in gas flaring – behind Russia (~59 billion m³) and Iran (20.4 billion m³) – burning roughly 17 billion cubic meters of associated gas, according to the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Tracker.1 This flaring not only wastes potential fuel and revenue but also pollutes the air and exacerbates climate change. Most of this flaring involves associated gas produced alongside oil, which could be captured and utilized. Non‑associated flaring is comparatively minor and usually linked to operational upsets, so Iraq’s pervasive flaring is largely avoidable if policy and infrastructure gaps are addressed. A significant portion – around 20% of Iraq’s flared gas – comes from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region (KRG) in the north.2 Unlike in remote deserts, many KRG oil fields are near towns and villages, meaning local populations are heavily exposed. An estimated 1.19 million Iraqis (mostly in the north) live within 1 km of multiple flare sites, suffering elevated health risks​.3 These conditions underscore the environmental justice issues at stake: rural and minority communities near oil sites bear the brunt of pollution and health impacts​. In fact, Iraq flares more gas than it imports from Iran to power its electricity grid, underscoring an energy‑security paradox: the country wastes domestic gas while relying on costly imports. Beyond flaring, Iraq’s broader energy transition challenge stems from heavy dependence on oil for revenues and power generation, weak infrastructure for gas capture, and decades of conflict and underinvestment. Iraq’s national grid is underpowered and often supplemented by diesel generators, while renewable energy is only beginning to be introduced. Crucially, political fragmentation between Baghdad’s federal government and the KRG has led to disjointed energy policies. However, deeper than this territorial divide is the closed nature of Iraq’s energy policymaking. Decisions about oil and gas are dominated by a narrow set of actors with minimal parliamentary oversight and no comprehensive legal framework, creating a “limited access order” that hampers investment, transparency and regulatory enforcement across both federal Iraq and the KRG. This briefing focuses on Iraq’s main energy transition challenges and the power dynamics impeding progress, with a special lens on the KRG. It also examines implications for gas flaring policy and offers recommendations – including engaging regional coalitions – to advance a just energy transition, one that is fair, inclusive, and transparent.
Topic:
Environment, Politics, Energy, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:
Iraq, Middle East, and Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI)

41. Regulating a Pluralistic and Decarbonized Electricity Supply through Public Service Principles of Equity and Solidarity

Author:
Alix Chaplain and Éric Verdeil
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
“Chaos”, “individualism”, “waste of resources”: while some experts see the boom in Lebanon’s solar market — now exceeding 1.3 GW of installed capacity — as an opportunity for “energy transition”, others denounce the unequal, uncontrollable, and erratic nature of this phenomenon.1 Promoted by public authorities until 2020, then driven by the collapse of Électricité du Liban’s (EDL) production and the rising cost of diesel for generators, decentralized photovoltaic (PV) systems are accessible in Lebanon only to a privileged minority of the population. The public authorities currently insufficiently regulate this electricity service commodification. Indeed, the Decentralized Renewable Energy (DRE) Law 318/2023 provides electricity exchange mechanisms in a horizontal market and facilitates the development of renewable energies by encouraging private actor investment.2 The reform is based on the assumption that lower costs will ultimately automatically benefit all households. However, this seems unrealistic, leaving social justice out of reach in the current state of affairs. This policy brief aims to reflect on the development of a structurally pluralistic and decarbonized electricity supply, where public infrastructure is the main tool for mutualization and equity. To be effective, it requires the definition and implementation of public service principles. The great heterogeneity in electricity supply — combining the grid, generators, and renewable energies — requires a rethink in public service. It can no longer be based on the principles of a uniform service and equal user treatment that characterize conventional grid-based services. 3 Instead, it should be based on universal and equitable access to a diversified and increasingly decarbonized service. In supplying a public service, solidarity between users is key. Solidarity is socio-technical, involving pooling, sharing, and regulating between a wide range of systems that optimize national supply from an economic, technical, and environmental perspective. But solidarity above all is socio-political, with public services theoretically embodying equity and socio-spatial integration among citizen-users, thereby giving substance to fundamental rights inherent to national solidarity and citizenship in Lebanon. Our proposal is therefore to rethink these principles of public service, considering the electrical transformations currently underway in Lebanon. This work is based on the doctoral thesis defended by Alix Chaplain in 2023 and comparative research carried out as part of the Hybridelec project coordinated by Eric Verdeil and Sylvy Jaglin, updated with recent data.4
Topic:
Environment, Electricity, Public Service, Decarbonization, Equity, and Power Sector
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

42. Unlocking Solar Energy Access in Lebanon through Innovative Finance and Blended Models

Author:
Nicolas Farhat
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Lebanon’s chronic electricity crisis has left citizens and businesses with only a few hours of daily power, forcing a reliance on costly private diesel generators. In the absence of public alternatives, solar adoption has grown rapidly since 2020. The rollout, however, has been fragmented and largely self-financed,1 leaving low-income households, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and municipalities excluded from access. While solar offers a clean and viable alternative, the lack of enabling policies, regulations, and finance has meant that benefits remain concentrated among wealthier groups, undermining national recovery and energy justice. To address these gaps, Lebanon should adopt targeted financing solutions that make solar accessible to all segments of society. Priority actions include supporting microfinance institutions (MFIs) that extend small-scale loans for households, expanding blended finance vehicles such as SoLR& that can provide lease-to-own and rental packages for MSMEs, and developing risk-mitigated Public Private Partnership (PPP) frameworks that enable municipalities to host solar farms. In parallel, the government must reinstate tax and customs exemptions on solar equipment, issue the implementing decrees of the Distributed Renewable Energy Law, and operationalize credit- and risk-mitigation tools.
Topic:
Environment, Finance, Innovation, Solar Power, and Power Sector
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

43. Thirst for Water Justice in Tunisia

Author:
Yasser Souilmi
Publication Date:
11-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
This research explores the multifaceted landscape of water justice in Tunisia, a country experiencing chronic water scarcity, institutional fragmentation, and growing socio-political tensions over resource distribution. Through a justice-centered framework that includes distributive, procedural, recognition, and capabilities dimensions, the study examines how inequalities in water access and governance disproportionately affect rural populations, small farmers, and marginalized groups. By combining a desk review of legal, institutional, and policy studies, with empirical methods, this report uncovers the systemic power imbalances and political choices that shape Tunisia’s water priorities. It also highlights the limited influence of civil society organizations (CSOs) in formal policy making, despite critical advocacy efforts. Ultimately, this research argues that achieving water justice in Tunisia requires a shift away from technocratic and donor-driven solutions toward inclusive, context-sensitive governance that puts at its center equity, public participation, and community needs.
Topic:
Civil Society, Environment, Water, Inequality, and Transitional Justice
Political Geography:
North Africa and Tunisia

44. Bridging the Energy Gap in Lebanon: Natural Gas, Renewables, and Regional Connectivity

Author:
Laury Haytayan
Publication Date:
10-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Lebanon is still waiting for its own natural gas. Since the ratification of the offshore petroleum law in 2010,1 the country has been struggling to find gas. Political deadlocks led to institutional instability, a collapse in the financial and banking systems in the country, and international companies’ interests in bidding for exploration and production contracts. In this policy brief, I argue Lebanon can still pursue its strategy to attract international oil companies to invest in its offshore oil and gas sector under certain conditions; in addition, it should focus more on enabling the private sector to invest in renewable energies; and it should connect the country to major regional economic and energy projects to prevent it from economic isolation and being excluded from energy connectivity projects.
Topic:
Environment, Renewable Energy, Energy, Natural Gas, and Power Sector
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

45. Pathways Towards Food Sovereignty in Lebanon

Author:
Zeead Yaghi
Publication Date:
09-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Lebanon faces a profound and compounding food crisis. According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) – an initiative comprised of 21 organizations and intergovernmental institutions to jointly classify the severity and magnitude of food insecurity and malnutrition – 1.26 million people in Lebanon are currently in crisis phase (IPC Phase 3), of whom 85,000 are in emergency phase (IPC Phase 4). This indicates an urgent need for humanitarian action.1 Syrian and Palestinian refugees are disproportionately affected, with 34% and 45%, respectively, in Phase 3 and above.2 The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Program (WFP) now consider Lebanon a “very high concern” hotspot for food insecurity, due to conflict escalation, displacement, and economic deterioration.3 The roots of this crisis are neither recent nor simply economic. They are entrenched in political legacies of colonial governance, neoliberal reforms, and a state structure that has repeatedly failed to support rural and agriculture development, persistently privileging an export-oriented agriculture sector over local needs. The obstacles impeding Lebanon’s path toward food sovereignty are shared across many states in the Global South: years of financial mismanagement and extractive developmental schemes that benefit a tiny local moneyed elite and global financial actors; physical challenges, such as the increased stress of climate change on local agricultural practices in the form of heat waves and droughts; and administrative and political blocks to major land reform that could democratize local farming. Over the past half-century, local policy makers, international experts, and major food business representatives molded Lebanon’s food system into one largely dependent on food imports for everyday consumption, while centering the agricultural sector on export-oriented products. These circumstances have undermined the food system’s ability to withstand financial, climate, and political shocks, subsequently diminishing the autonomy, livelihood, and political power of local growers. Furthermore, over the last two decades, Lebanon has witnessed the harms of climate change and a rise in temperatures, with fires, droughts, and dust storms becoming common occurrences. Lebanon is also located in a geopolitically tenuous region. To its South lies an ever-expansionist, intransigent, and militarized Israel whose latest war against the country decimated the urban fabric of its southern districts, killed thousands of people, and irreparably harmed thousands of acres of farming land in Lebanon’s fertile valleys to the East and South. Israeli actions have also repeatedly threatened Lebanon’s water security.4 Lastly, Lebanon is yet to emerge from a six-year financial crisis brought on by its kleptocratic political class, and which has decimated the middle and working classes, diluted their purchasing power, and made them more dependent on imports for sustenance.5 At the same time, in response to deepening precarity, food sovereignty initiatives and grassroots movements are emerging in Lebanon – as they are globally – to try to retain control over food systems through resistance, innovation, and advocacy. This study highlights the difficulties facing farmers and food sovereignty activists in organizing a coherent and influential political bloc, due to fragmented efforts, structural political obstacles, limited resources, and a lack of institutional support. A particular focus is placed on governance and accountability mechanisms, both within the Lebanese government and among international financial institutions and other key stakeholders. Attention is given to the availability and transparency of information on food-related projects and initiatives, as well as the roles and responsibilities of different actors in shaping policy and implementation. The research argues that a food-sovereign system that centers local producers is internally self-sufficient, provides dignified wages for farmers, satisfies local market needs, and is durable and adaptable to climate change – imperative for food security. To make progress on food sovereignty, farmers, advocacy groups across the political spectrum, as well as experts, educators, and civil society organizations must organize at the local, municipal, national, and regional levels into an effective political block capable of challenging the status quo, forcing their demands on the state, and ensuring the sovereignty of farmers. Moving beyond food security toward food sovereignty, Lebanon must invest in land reform, support grassroots cooperatives, and resist donor-driven input models. Only by returning power to producers and communities can the country build an adaptive, robust, just, and sovereign food system.
Topic:
Environment, Food Security, and Food Sovereignty
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

46. Beyond a Technocratic Solution: Iraqi Farmers and Local Climate Adaptation

Author:
Taif Alkhudary
Publication Date:
09-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
The government of Iraq and international organizations operating in the country have taken a technocratic approach to climate change adaptation. In the agricultural sector, the government has provided incentives for farmers to adopt sustainable farming methods in the form of subsidies and loans for the purchase of drip irrigation systems and solar panels. The government also buys wheat at a slightly higher price from farmers who use sustainable farming techniques. For their part, international organizations have both shaped the Iraqi government’s policies on climate adaptation and equipped small numbers of farmers with solar and drip irrigation systems. They have also endeavored to provide training to farmers in sustainable farming techniques and in maintaining renewable energy systems. These technical approaches have failed to address the socio-economic inequalities and political hierarchies that farmers must navigate to practice agriculture, and which makes some social groups more vulnerable to climate change than others. Many farmers cannot afford to take out loans to purchase sustainable agricultural systems and corruption at various levels continues to hamper the efforts of both international organizations and the Iraqi government, limiting the effectiveness of these schemes. Moreover, the post-2003 neoliberalization of the Iraqi economy and the fact that the country’s political elite and affiliated militias have captured the agricultural sector has left Iraqi farmers without a market for their produce. In response, Iraqi farmers have adopted unstructured, spontaneous local adaptation strategies to try to navigate extreme weather conditions, political corruption, and neoliberalism. For example, to manage water scarcity, farmers have begun to dig wells and use groundwater for irrigation purposes. While well-digging risks depleting groundwater reserves, it is also a means for farmers to circumvent centralized, regularly politicized water allocations. In the face of extreme weather events, farmers have begun to grow new types of drought-resistant crops, planting more than one type of produce, so that if a particular crop fails during a season, they are still able to harvest and sell others. Yet often, they select crops they believe will be better able to compete with cheap imports from neighboring states. Iraqi farmers’ adaptation strategies point to the need to move away from mere technical solutions and to challenge existing structures in a bid to achieve transformative adaptation; that is, a system-wide transformation that addresses the root-causes of vulnerabilities to climate change, taking into consideration socio-economic factors and a fairer distribution of political, cultural, and institutional power in society.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Farming, Technocracy, and Adaptation
Political Geography:
Iraq and Middle East

47. Environmentalism and Disenchantment in a Destabilizing World: The Case of Lebanon

Author:
Sammy Kayed
Publication Date:
07-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
This study interrogates environmentalism as a concept and contemporary practice in Lebanon by tracing how actors are positioned in relation to the Lebanese state when navigating changemaking, abandonment, and the imperative of persistence. It understands environmentalism as emerging from socio‑ecological transformation and as fundamentally different from environmentalization, which arises from reproductions within the current order—namely today’s variations of neoliberal capitalism and the prevailing everyday mindset treating it as the most reasonable way to live.1 Lebanon’s current order is organized around a sectarian form of aggressive neoliberal capitalism—marked by puzzling tendencies such as championing free markets while selectively shaping them to serve entrenched power.2 The study highlights how prefigurative politics—the enactment of desired futures by meeting everyday material needs for persistence—is emerging from Lebanon’s political margins3 and can give way to environmentalism.
Topic:
Civil Society, Environment, Destabilization, Activism, and Environmentalism
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

48. Youth Participation in Global Climate Governance: A Study on Contemporary IGO-NGO Relations

Author:
Buse Mina Tümkaya
Publication Date:
12-2025
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Novus Orbis: Journal of Politics & International Relations
Institution:
Department of International Relations, Karadeniz Technical University
Abstract:
The evolving relationships between youth environmental movements and intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) within the framework of global climate governance are complex. Focusing on movements such as Extinction Rebellion (XR), Fridays for Future (FFF), Last Generation (LG), and Just Stop Oil (JSO), this article examines how these groups leverage contemporary tactics and mass mobilization to influence policy and public opinion. Utilizing the theoretical framework of Tana Johnson, this research categorizes and analyzes the intricate relations between these movements and IGOs through the 4Cs Taxonomy. While trying to determine which category these relations fall into (cooperative, co-optative, competitive or conflictual), the study also traces the shifts between categories over time and their reasons.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Governance, Youth, NGOs, Political Movements, and Intergovernmental Organizations
Political Geography:
Global Focus

49. The Devastating Impact of Lebanon’s Environmental Failures

Author:
Peter S. Germanos and Samara Azzi
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:
For decades, Lebanon has suffered under a systematic and intentional mismanagement of country resources and capital, with devastating repercussions. Poverty rates in Lebanon have skyrocketed, and the healthcare and education systems have crumbled, leaving millions vulnerable. Less discussed but no less dangerous is the environmental degradation that the country’s elite have allowed to occur. Lebanon’s deteriorating environment adds another layer of tragedy to the widespread economic crisis; sewage contaminates drinking water, generators spew toxic fumes, excessive groundwater usage renders it saline, and irrigation with sewage water contaminates agricultural produce. The price for Lebanese is becoming increasingly well documented. Cancer cases have surged, and the Lebanese people can expect to continue to suffer in the future as well. This situation was not, however, a foregone conclusion, or due solely to global climate change outside of Lebanese control. Rather, Lebanon’s significant environmental degradation is due in large part to systemic corruption and a total lack of effective regulation. Understanding the scope of this issue is vital to realizing what the people of Lebanon are facing, along with developing a plan to address some of these interconnected environmental and governance challenges.
Topic:
Corruption, Environment, International Cooperation, Pollution, and Public Health
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

50. “Condemned to Sacrifice” in the Shadow of Argentina’s Vaca Muerta

Author:
Patricia Rodríguez
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:
From Patagonia, an environmental activist discusses her community’s struggle against a new oil pipeline and the threats of expanding extractivism in their territory.
Topic:
Environment, Oil, Pipeline, and Activism
Political Geography:
Argentina, South America, and Patagonia

51. The Racist Undertones of Bolivia’s Environmental Movement

Author:
Benjamin Swift and Laura Barriga Dávalos
Publication Date:
02-2024
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:
As massive wildfires swept across Bolivia in late 2023, a classist, racist, and capitalist public outcry deflected from the primary drivers of drought and deforestation.
Topic:
Environment, Capitalism, Political Movements, Racism, Deforestation, Drought, Wildfires, and Classism
Political Geography:
South America and Bolivia

52. MIT reflects on COP28

Author:
MIT Center for International Studies
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
This is the Zoom recording of the COP28 debrief and reflections event held on January 17th at the MIT Center for International Studies. Professional captioning will be added soon. Approximately 30 members of the MIT community were among the 100,000 attendees at COP28. While there were some major takeaways from the conference that have already been shared in the media and more that will continue to be published into the new year, much of the progress happened on a smaller scale in meetings and side events. Some attendees gathered to debrief and learn about some of the specific interests and goals that members of the MIT delegation had in attending the COP, and the value that they gained from participating.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Conference, Sustainability, and Conference of the Parties (COP)
Political Geography:
Global Focus

53. Mercosur and Environment: progress in promoting the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda

Author:
Regiane Nitsch Bressan and Tatiana de Souza Garcia
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional (RBPI)
Institution:
Instituto Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais (IBRI)
Abstract:
This article aims to reveal how the UN’s 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially the environmental ones, are being incorporated into Mercosur. Firstly, the paper presents a brief evolution of the environmental agenda in the history of Mercosur. Then, to subsidise the analysis, using quantitative data, we discussed the gradual incorporation of the SDGs in the different Mercosur bodies. In order to understand the evolution of the environmental SDGs, the research required the collection and analysis of qualitative data within the framework of the Environment Working Subgroup (SGT-6), which revealed the main environmental issues and their interrelationship with the 2030 Agenda. Finally, Brazil’s role and the prospects for the environmental agenda in Mercosur are discussed.
Topic:
Environment, Sustainable Development Goals, Regional Integration, Mercosur, and Agenda 2030
Political Geography:
Global Focus

54. Regionalism Beyond Land Borders: Strengthening regional integration in Latin America and the Caribbean through blue economy policies

Author:
Thauan Santos and Charles S. Colgan
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional (RBPI)
Institution:
Instituto Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais (IBRI)
Abstract:
This article seeks to highlight the key role of the blue economy in fostering regional integration of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) based on the 2030 Agenda. By proposing a “beyond the boxes” approach, SDG 14 is not the only driver that stands out. Hence, we propose a regionalism beyond the state-centric and land borders, which will require reflecting on and rethinking theories, policies, and practices related to the foundations of regional integration, IR, and the 2030 Agenda itself. The methodology combines UN reports and data from ECLAC, WRI, FAO, UNEP-WCMC, UNESCOMAB, WWF, UN-DESA, and NOAA.
Topic:
Environment, Regional Integration, Oceans and Seas, Regionalism, and Blue Economy
Political Geography:
Latin America and Caribbean

55. EU-LAC inter-regionalism as a driver to achieve the environmental Sustainable Development Goals

Author:
Bruno Theodoro Luciano and Miguel Ayuso
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional (RBPI)
Institution:
Instituto Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais (IBRI)
Abstract:
This article assesses how environmental issues have been incorporated into the strategic association between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean. It analyses whether the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals are reflected in the EU-CELAC declarations, and what bi-regional programmes and projects have been developed in relation to the environmental SDGs. The analysis shows how the environment has become a key priority in both the political dialogue and development cooperation pillars, although it has only recently been included in the trade pillar, and in an incipient way.
Topic:
Environment, European Union, Sustainable Development Goals, Regional Integration, and Trade
Political Geography:
Europe

56. Tunisia: Public Opinion Report 2023

Author:
Arab Barometer
Publication Date:
02-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Over the past dozen years, Tunisia has experienced dramatic political change. In 2011, the Jasmine Revolution led to the fall of its long-standing leader, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, ushering in a period of political instability. Following the rewriting of the constitution, free and fair elections were held but yielded only weak and largely ineffective governments. Although Tunisians enjoyed far greater political rights, economically the country regressed. A decade after the revolution, GDP per capita had declined significantly. Stories of corruption within government institutions remained common, yielding an increasingly frustrated public. Elections may give voters a say, but the outcomes of the system often appeared no better than in the days of Ben Ali. Citizens demanded radical change and looked for a leader who they believed could deliver actual results. In the 2019 presidential elections, many Tunisians turned to Kaïs Saïed as a solution. Saïed ran a populist campaign as a political outsider, calling for ending corruption and reforms to the electoral system. In the final round of voting, he captured nearly three-quarters of the vote for an overwhelming victory and strong electoral mandate. In July 2021, Saïed dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament. Ruling by decree, many members of the judiciary were dismissed and many opposition politicians were arrested. Despite international criticism of these actions, results from the 2021 Arab Barometer demonstrated that most Tunisians were in favor of his actions.1 Just three months after the events of July 25, 2021, most Tunisians had confidence in the president, a majority were optimistic about their economic future for the first time in years, and most believed the government was finally tackling the problem of corruption. In short, many Tunisians had hope for their country’s future. In late 2023, Tunisians remained more optimistic than they had been before the election of Saïed, but Arab Barometer’s survey suggests that some are starting to lose hope. Promises of economic improvements have not been realized—just one-in-ten rate the economy as good, which is largely unchanged since 2013. Economic optimism has also fallen, dropping by 14 points since 2021. During this period, hunger has also increased dramatically, with twothirds of Tunisians saying they have gone without food at least once in the previous month. Moreover, the most common perception is that government mismanagement is the source of food insecurity. Views of most political institutions are relatively weak. Just over a third have confidence in the government while less than a quarter trust parliament. However, trust in President Saïed remains strong, with about three-quarters expressing confidence in their leader. Still, this level is a six point decrease from 2021.
Topic:
International Relations, Corruption, Environment, Migration, Governance, Public Opinion, Democracy, Economy, Institutions, Freedom, and Gender
Political Geography:
North Africa and Tunisia

57. Mauritania: Public Opinion Report 2024

Author:
Sahel Foundation
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Mauritania has begun a new phase of peaceful rotation of power, being an embodiment of democracy. This democratic transition has been seen through the country’s last government. Therefore, we observe the rising trend of citizens’ trust in the current government. Nine percent of Mauritanians say they trust the government to a great extent, and more than a quarter (27 percent) say they trust it. In contrast, 38 percent say they have little trust in the government, while nearly one-fifth (22 percent) have no trust in their government at all. In order to increase citizens’ trust in the government, it may be worthwhile to enhance communication between the government and citizens and transparently explain decisions and plans. Moreover, it could be important to that end to improve the quality of public services such as health, education, and infrastructure; strengthen the role of citizens in decision-making and participation in the political process; and take effective measures to combat corruption and promote good governance.
Topic:
Corruption, Environment, Gender Issues, Public Opinion, Democracy, Economy, and Freedom
Political Geography:
Africa and Mauritania

58. Morocco: Public Opinion Report 2024

Author:
Arab Barometer
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Morocco has endured multiple crises in recent years including the Coronavirus pandemic and the earthquake that hit the country on September 9, 2023. The aftermath of these crises produces what could be described as two Moroccos: one for the wealthier and better educated, another for the poorer and less educated. Moroccans are clearly divided in their views of almost all issues based on their socioeconomic status (SES). Economic pressure persists, with only a third of Moroccans rating their economy positively. While optimism about the future of the economy has increased, it is largely driven by those with a higher socioeconomic status. Their less-fortunate compatriots are far less optimistic and more concerned about increasing inequality and food insecurity. Trust in the Moroccan government remains relatively low, but trust in parliament, regional government, judiciary, and civil society organizations has increased. Still, those struggling financially tend to be less trusting of all these bodies. Similarly, satisfaction with government performance on economic issues is low, especially among the poor. Moroccans are more satisfied with the provision of certain services, including security and infrastructure. On the other hand, education in particular is among the public services in which Moroccans exhibit the lowest levels of satisfaction. Corruption remains a major concern, with the government seen as not doing enough to combat it. This view is especially true among people with lower socioeconomic status. Wealthier and more educated Moroccans are more positive in their rating of the government’s work on combating corruption. However, many Moroccans are resorting to bribery or connection to navigate the bureaucracy. Economic conditions and corruption are causing Moroccans to consider emigrating. Youth and those facing financial pressure are far more likely to have a desire to leave their country, mainly in pursuit of better economic opportunities. Western countries remain the preferred destination for most of the potential migrants in Morocco, many of whom are willing to leave even if they did not have the required documents to do so. While support for democracy has fluctuated over the past few years, recent trends suggest an increase in support for democratic governance. Moroccans acknowledge that democratic systems have their shortcomings, yet they maintain a belief that democracy is preferable to other forms of governance and particularly support a multi-party parliamentary system.
Topic:
International Relations, Corruption, Environment, Gender Issues, Governance, Public Opinion, Democracy, Economy, Institutions, and Freedom
Political Geography:
North Africa and Morocco

59. Climate action: Implications for factor market reallocation

Author:
Robert Z. Lawrence
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE)
Abstract:
This paper considers climate policies, not from the perspective of their environmental impacts, but rather their likely effects on labor and investments. While the aggregate impact of the green transition on jobs and investment may be modest, it will require significant reallocation of labor and capital within and across industries. Although the green transition brings new opportunities for employment and investment in renewable technologies, many workers and communities tied to the fossil fuel industry may not benefit from these advances due to skills mismatch and geographic constraints. Both the United States and the European Union acknowledge the importance of achieving “climate justice” and “leaving no one behind” in their decarbonization efforts. However, current policies and resources in the United States may fall short, with inadequate assistance reaching too many communities and a narrow focus on green jobs. In Europe, while the Just Transition Fund complements existing programs, effective implementation of place-based policies remains challenging due to the need for specific, localized responses.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Labor Issues, European Union, and Energy
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

60. Geoeconomic fragmentation and net-zero targets

Author:
Shirin Hakim and Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Atlantic Council
Abstract:
The second half of the twentieth century experienced significant economic integration. International trade, cross-border migration, capital flows, and technological diffusion increased per capita incomes across countries and reduced global poverty. However, events such as the global financial crisis of 2007 to 2009, Brexit, and the COVID-19 pandemic—all against the backdrop of escalating great power rivalry and tensions between the United States and China—have demonstrated the rise of geoeconomic fragmentation (GEF). Since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, a growing numberof world leaders have addressed the impacts of GEF on global energy and agricultural markets. For one, higher and increasingly volatile food and energy prices have made it increasingly difficult for developing nations to prioritize environmental concerns and implement sustainable development initiatives.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, International Trade and Finance, Economy, Economic Growth, Inclusion, Energy, Geoeconomics, and Net Zero
Political Geography:
China, Asia, and United States of America

61. The flaws in project-based carbon credit trading and the need for jurisdictional alternatives

Author:
Byron Swift, Ken Berlin, George Frampton, and Frank Willey
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Atlantic Council
Abstract:
This issue brief highlights several significant, and at times unresolvable, problems with the project-based approach to carbon credit trading, the purpose of which is to reduce deforestation and sequester carbon. Beginning with first-hand observations of the principal author during his experience with forest conservation efforts in the tropics, the brief describes the challenges that arise when this crediting model is implemented in the field, particularly in rainforests and other remote areas of the world. The publication then assesses the three critical structural problems with project-based credit trading that lead to a fundamental lack of integrity in such programs: The intractable challenges of a project-based regulatory structure involving difficult-to-prove requirements of additionally and leakage prevention. The major transaction and intermediary costs that can amount to half of project funding. The credit duration that is far less than the life of the additional CO2 emissions that are consequently emitted. The analysis also explains how economic forces and incentives exacerbate these problems, particularly with programs that are carried out by commercial credit traders as opposed to nonprofit entities. Finally, this brief discusses better alternatives, such as jurisdictional programs administered by governments or Indigenous associations, that could more effectively reduce emissions and strengthen the social fabric of communities required to assure credit integrity, accurate measurement, and adequate co-benefits.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Markets, Governance, Carbon Emissions, Energy, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:
Global Focus

62. On the Role of Local Government in Promoting Peace and Political-Environmental Sustainability

Author:
Kim Noach
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Mitvim: The Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies
Abstract:
The paper discusses the rising power of local government and its ability to independently create and/or advance foreign relations in order to promote peace and good neighborly relations. One of the prominent areas in which local government engages and cooperates with others today is the environmental and climate field, notably in light of the foot-dragging of nation-states around these issues. Given this reality, the paper examines whether relationships and cooperation on the environment might be built between local authorities when their respective nation-states maintain no relations or only cold ones, or are in ongoing conflict. The paper analyses three theoretical axes: 1) the rising political power of local authorities vis-à-vis their nation-states, and as significant actors in global diplomacy; 2) growing local involvement with environmental problems; and 3) the promotion of environmental peacebuilding. The paper analyses the feasibility of joining these axes, and gives relevant examples, focussing on the Israeli-Palestinian-Jordanian space. The main argument arising from the analysis is that local government has the tools and the effective opportunity to advance environmental cooperation as a stimulus to making peace; and further, that processes of this sort are particularly important when there is no political horizon. While Israel and its region are indeed the focus of this paper’s examination of local government and its potential for building relationships, the general insights derived are applicable to other regions of conflict.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Politics, Peace, Sustainability, and Local Government
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Jordan

63. Challenges and Recommendations for the Amazon through the voices of women defenders of human rights and the environment: Colombia

Author:
Renata Avelar Giannini, Katherine Aguirre, and Caitlin Wiley
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Igarapé Institute
Abstract:
In the Colombian Amazon, women defenders play a crucial role in combating climate change by protecting their territories and communities. Given that Colombia ranks among the most dangerous countries for environmental and human rights activists, these women confront numerous risks. The conflicts mainly focus around access to, evaluation, distribution, management, and use of natural resources. This study shares their personal experiences, challenges, and achievements, and details their interactions with various actors — including government bodies, mining and fossil fuel companies, as well as the extractive and agribusiness sectors. Their mission is dedicated to safeguarding the Colombian Amazon biome, which is currently the site of 27 major environmental conflicts, as reported by the Sinchi Institute of Scientific Research of the Amazon. This report seeks to amplify the voices of Colombian defenders, whose efforts to protect the Amazon biome are often overlooked and receive limited social and economic support.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Human Rights, Natural Resources, Women, Conflict, Activism, Extractive Industries, Biometrics, and Amazon Rainforest
Political Geography:
Colombia, South America, and Amazon Basin

64. Challenges and Recommendations for the Amazon – Peru

Author:
Renata Avelar Giannini, Igor Novaes Lins, and Katherine Aguirre
Publication Date:
02-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Igarapé Institute
Abstract:
Women in the Peruvian Amazon face multiple pressures – environmental, economic, and social. Against a backdrop of profound social inequality in Peruvian society, exacerbated by the historical marginalization of indigenous communities, the defenders interviewed for this study conducted by the Igarapé Institute highlight the pressing need for inclusive policies that ensure territorial rights, land demarcation, and access to essential services. This report aims to analyze the intricate relationship between indigenous women and their territories in Peru, exploring their experiences, challenges, and achievements in protecting territories and mitigating climate change. It employs a participatory methodology that encompasses social and territorial mapping, classification of challenges and solutions, discussion groups, and in-depth interviews with key informants across four focus regions: Ucayali, San Martín, Madre de Dios, and Loreto. The study is divided into four sections and begins by framing the current state of the Peruvian Amazon, proceeds to outline the research methodology, then delves into the key challenges unearthed through interviews, and concludes with a compilation of recommendations aimed at strengthening the protection of territories and enhancing the living standards of indigenous women in Peru.
Topic:
Environment, Women, Inequality, Land Rights, Indigenous, Inclusion, and Amazon Rainforest
Political Geography:
South America, Peru, and Amazon Basin

65. Conservatism and the Climate Crisis

Author:
Sam Hall, Pilita Clark, Rachel Coxcoon, and Robert Saunders
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:
The climate crisis poses new challenges to all parties and traditions, and will require the intellectual resources of both right and left to meet it effectively. In this event in May 2024, the Mile End Institute brought together Sam Hall (Director of the Conservative Environment Network), Pilita Clark (leading environmental journalist), Rachel Coxcoon (Director of ClimateGuide) and Dr Robert Saunders to explore what Conservatism can contribute to the climate debate. They explored the Conservative Party's record in government, the place of the environment in the Conservative tradition, and the challenges facing Conservative environmentalists at a time of growing political polarisation.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Politics, Conservatism, Crisis Management, and Polarization
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

66. Resource-based conflict early-warning system in the Hammer, Nyangatom, and Dassanech community of South Omo, Ethiopia

Author:
Asmare Shetahun Alemneh
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Conflict Trends
Institution:
The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:
Conflict refers to actual or perceived incompatibility of interests, goals, and actions in relationships between individuals or groups. It is a dynamic process where attitudes, behaviours, contexts and structures are constantly changing and influencing one another.1 Conflict in pastoral areas has long been linked to the need to gain control of scarce and strategic resources, particularly water and pasture. However, the key issues here are not merely scarcity, which, as highlighted above, has always been a determining feature of life in the rangelands, but also the increased inability to manage scarcity.2 In the Horn of Africa, there are common factors contributing to conflict and violence within and between pastoralists, such as inappropriate government policies, socio-economic and political marginalisation, inadequate land tenure policies, insecurity, intensified cattle rustling, proliferation of small arms and light weapons, weakened traditional governance in pastoral areas, vulnerability to climatic variability, and competition with wildlife.3 In Ethiopia, the pattern and forms of the recent violent conflicts in pastoral areas indicate that they have been involved in resource control and utilisation competition.4 Conflicts are a common phenomenon in the South Omo Zone pastoralist and agro-pastoral communities due mainly to resource competition (pasture and water-points) and negative perceptions.5 However, conflict, by its nature, is dynamic; the drivers or causes and their nature are changeable through time due to many natural and human-made phenomena. Accordingly, an in-depth investigation of natural resource-based conflict and its dynamics in the South Omo Zone in Ethiopia is the focus of this article. This article is based on a study conducted in the Dassanech, Hammer and Nyangatom Woreda collective pastoralist community, and based on empirical primary and secondary data sources. Primary data were collected through semi-structured interviews, document analysis and focus group discussion (FGD).
Topic:
Security, Environment, Conflict, Pastoralism, Peace, Competition, Early Warning, and Resources
Political Geography:
Africa and Ethiopia

67. Leveraging Charging Strategies to Reduce Grid Impacts of Electric Vehicles

Author:
Christine Gschwendtner
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Electric vehicles (EVs) can challenge or support electricity systems depending on how they are charged. Uncontrolled charging may strain electricity systems, e.g., by increasing peak demand in the evening,1 which may require cost- and emission-intensive infrastructure investments, such as grid reinforcements and peak generation capacity. In contrast, controlled charging can benefit electricity systems by providing flexibility,2 e.g., by shifting charging demand away from evening hours. Controlled charging that combines technical solutions with heterogenous EV user behaviors, supported by charging infrastructure at diverse locations, e.g., at work during midday, and incentives, can reduce peak demand to avoid grid constraints and support the integration of renewable energy.
Topic:
Environment, Natural Resources, and Electric Vehicles
Political Geography:
Global Focus

68. Sodium: An Alternative to the "White Gold" of the Energy Transition?

Author:
Nicola De Blasio
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
As the world transitions towards low-carbon energy systems, scaling up clean energy technologies will drive demand for critical minerals and metals, such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, graphite, and rare earth elements. Stakeholders in the private and public sectors must work together to implement effective and efficient strategies, policies, and regulations to ensure that supplies are secure, reliable, sustainable, and equitable. Over the past years, the price volatility of minerals and metals has increased due to rising demand, supply chain disruptions, and concerns about tightening supplies. In addition, today’s markets are highly concentrated in a small number of countries. Although supply diversification investments are increasing, most near-term growth is expected from existing major producers, resulting in an even higher geopolitical risk.1 The transportation sector offers a stark example of these dynamics. Every year, the world increasingly relies on batteries. In 2022, electric vehicles (EVs) accounted for about 10 percent of global vehicle sales and are expected to reach 35 percent by the decade’s end.2 Announced policies around the world are accelerating these trends. For example, recent climate legislation in the United States is deploying billions into battery manufacturing and incentives for EV purchases.3 Lithium-ion batteries, a technology also used in computers and cell phones, power most EVs today. Typical of innovation cycles, years of development and deployment have resulted in significant cost reductions and improved performances. Today’s EVs are becoming increasingly competitive with internal combustion vehicles and can be driven for hundreds of kilometers between charges. Lithium is used in EVs because it is lightweight, has high energy densities, is relatively low maintenance, and can be repeatedly charged. From a market and geopolitical perspective, analysts estimate that lithium demand will increase tenfold before the end of this decade.4,5 In 2021, China dominated lithium global markets with 79 percent of all lithium-ion battery manufacturing capacity; this figure is expected to decrease slightly to around 65 percent by 2025 (see Figure 1).
Topic:
Environment, Natural Resources, Lithium, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, Energy Transition, and Sodium
Political Geography:
Global Focus

69. The need for a ‘peace continuum’ approach to climate security

Author:
Louise Wiuff Moe
Publication Date:
02-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
Climate change is a priority area in European and broader Western initiatives for global security, with a significant focus on Africa. This DIIS Working Paper argues that advancing the climate security agenda requires approaches that integrate climate adaptation and finance into a ‘peace continuum’, spanning prevention, peacebuilding, and development. The paper shows where the current climate security-agenda falls short, in particular regarding climate finance and the prioritisation of conflict-affected contexts. It asserts that addressing these gaps is essential both for climate justice and for fostering partnerships in Africa amid growing global geopolitical competition. Drawing on insights from Africa’s Horn, the paper also discusses concrete opportunities for advancing a ‘peace continuum' approach to climate security. Specifically, it underscores the importance of strategic engagement and accessible, conflict-sensitive climate finance, notwithstanding challenges posed by institutional fragmentation and conflict. Recommendations are supported by examples of UN, AU and IGAD initiatives and case studies from Somalia and Somaliland.
Topic:
Climate Change, Development, Environment, Natural Resources, Peace, and Strategic Engagement
Political Geography:
Denmark, Somalia, Somaliland, and Horn of Africa

70. Politicization, Ratification of International Agreements, and Domestic Political Competition in Non-Democracies: The Case of Iran and the Paris Climate Accords

Author:
Reşat Bayer and Bijan Tafazzoli
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
International Relations Council of Turkey (UİK-IRCT)
Abstract:
While some degree of competition is present in many authoritarian regimes, the implications of such controlled competition on international issues have not received much consideration, including towards international environmental accords. We attempt to rectify this through a framework where we focus on internal political competition in a hybrid, nondemocratic system where national elections are held regularly. Specifically, we argue that the presence of multiple actors competing in elections in nondemocratic settings results in them assuming positions on various issues, justifying their positions, and attempting to mobilize their supporters with considerable implications for international environmental policies. We display our argument in the context of Iranian debates on the ratification of the Paris Climate Accords. Our findings demonstrate that the competing Iranian sides rely on different justifications for their environmental positions, resulting in extensive (negative) competitions of rhetoric where the international dimension emerges as an important feature in the internal competition. Overall, we show that political competition within non-democracies is likely to add to the complexity of international (environmental) negotiations and cooperation.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Politics, Treaties and Agreements, Sanctions, Authoritarianism, Elections, Paris Agreement, Narrative, and Regime Survival
Political Geography:
Iran and Middle East

71. Carbons of War: The Environmental Impact of Military Activity in Conflict and Peace

Author:
Jahangir E. Arasli
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Baku Dialogues
Institution:
ADA University
Abstract:
Climate change is the supreme challenge of our times, poised for human civilization. Its facets are diverse: the rise of temperatures, trending natural disasters and enduring weather extremes, droughts and floods, fluctuations of the sea level and hydrographic regimes, distressed ecosystem balances, and other aberrations. Climate change affects human health and demography, increases food and water insecurity, accelerates environmental degradation (such as deterioration of arable and grazing lands, deforestation, or desertification), shrinks biodiversity, and produces other similar effects. Climate change escalates competition for dwindling resources and, subsequently, generates frictions and tensions between states and within individual groups of populations, thus forming a stage for geopolitical and geoeconomic rivalry as well as potential violent conflicts and wars. The snowballing impact of climate change on a global scale steadily approaches the point of irreversibility. The grim irony is that climate change, in many ways, represents a result of different forms of anthropogenic activity, including increased carbon emissions. Although the climatic transformation is already acknowledged as the ultimate challenge of global magnitude, one particular aspect remains often overlooked. Warfare is one of the countless varieties of human performance. Wars and armed conflicts naturally yield an enormous impact on the anthroposphere and habitat. Beyond that, the existing military forces and their routine activities unwillingly affect the environment even in peacetime. Therefore, this essay examines different patterns related to the damaging impact of wars and military activities on the climate and the environment, with a particular focus on carbon emissions. Furthermore, it addresses the subject of climate changedriven conflicts and evaluates measures taken at the international and national level to mitigate the effects projected by military forces on the environment. The overall objective of this paper is to provide analytical support in the course of preparations for the 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Azerbaijan.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Conflict, and Carbon Emissions
Political Geography:
Global Focus

72. Great Powers, Climate Change, and Global Environmental Responsibilities

Author:
Sezen Kaya-Sönmez
Publication Date:
08-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
International Relations Council of Turkey (UİK-IRCT)
Abstract:
The increasing deleterious effects of climate change have led to the emergence of multilateral environmental regimes and different understandings of responsibilities. Great Powers, Climate Change, and Global Environmental Responsibilities, edited by Robert Falkner and Barry Buzan, is an excellent book covering case-based examples of special environmental responsibilities. It aims to close the gap between International Relations (IR) theories on great powers and Global Environmental Politics (GEP) to illuminate the definition of environmental great power, differences in global environmental responsibilities, and the role of great powers regarding global environmental issues, particularly climate change. Buzan and Falkner argue that climate change is a global threat to international society that requires great powers to assume special responsibilities. Hence, this book seeks to bring together IR approaches to the study of great power and Great Power Management (GPM) to explain how great powers acquire legitimacy to justify their unequal status by accepting special rights and responsibilities as an institution of international society and how GEP perspectives shape the roles played by major powers (p. 6). The research questions of this study are as follows: (1) What are the features of environmental great powers? (2) Do environmental powers accept special responsibilities to combat climate change that correspond with their positions in global environmental politics? and (3) Have great powers securitized climate change, that is have they evaluated it as an issue that is related to maintaining international order and conserving stability in international society? The main argument of the book is that great powers have not developed a common understanding of their environmental responsibilities because they do not evaluate climate change as a systemic threat to the international system. Furthermore, whether it is a developed or developing country, the interests of great powers have blocked the securitization of environmental issues.
Topic:
International Relations, Climate Change, Environment, and Great Powers
Political Geography:
Global Focus

73. Enhancing the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific through Sub-Regional Initiatives: The Case of the BIMP-EAGA Initiative

Author:
Hafiizh Hashim
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
Dr. Hafiizh Hashim, Head Consultant at Sociable & Co. and Assistant Lecturer Universiti at Brunei Darussalam, explains that "[g]reater US engagement in the BIMP-EAGA [a subregional grouping encompassing states and subnational jurisdiction in eastern Southeast Asia] could deepen US-ASEAN relations" and "find convergence between US and ASEAN Indo-Pacific frameworks."
Topic:
International Relations, Climate Change, Economics, Environment, ASEAN, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:
Southeast Asia, Asia-Pacific, and United States of America

74. Protected areas, indigenous communities, deforestation and the role of institutions: evidence for the lowlands of Bolivia

Author:
Pedro Cayul
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Centre for International Environmental Studies, The Graduate Institute (IHEID)
Abstract:
Protected areas and indigenous communities play a crucial role in controlling deforestation, which is responsible for carbon emissions related to land use and land use change, contributing to global warming and climate change. However, the effectiveness of protected areas is conditioned by their administration and the quality of the institutions in their countries. In this paper, I will analyze the effectiveness of protected areas (Both at the national and sub-national levels) and indigenous territories and the institutions' role in the case of Bolivia's lowlands. I computed deforestation rates for four different periods between 1986 and 2021 to test the impact of institutions on different types of protected areas by using satellite images at 30m resolution and combining them with official data on protected areas and indigenous communities, which includes specific locations and dates of creation. Using a spatial regression discontinuity design, the results show that protected areas at the national level are the most effective in controlling deforestation, particularly after the creation of institutions taking care of them. Departmental protected areas have some impact on preventing deforestation, while municipal ones have no influence. For indigenous communities, there was a significant effect on reducing deforestation with the first reservations created, but the effect wears off over time. Regarding mechanism, being close to cities and routes is a threat for indigenous communities and departmental PAs, while it is an advantage for national PAs. Finally, protected areas and indigenous communities show, in general, greater levels of deforestation when they are exposed to cattle ranching settlements, mines, and oil wells.
Topic:
Environment, Institutions, Mining, Indigenous, Deforestation, and Protection
Political Geography:
South America and Bolivia

75. Centering Access, Quality, and Equity and Justice in a Beyond 30×30 Ocean Strategy

Author:
Angelo Villagomez, Jasmin Graham, and Alia Hidayat
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for American Progress - CAP
Abstract:
The Biden administration should deliver an ocean conservation framework that includes new metrics for success.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Oceans and Seas, Joe Biden, and Equity
Political Geography:
Global Focus and United States of America

76. Environmental Peacemaking in Somalia: Integrated Climate and Conflict Analysis of the Newly Liberated Areas of Hirshabelle and Galmudug

Author:
Arthur Brochen, Mohamud Mohamed Khadar, Abdirashid Artan, Delphine Virnot, and Albert Martinez
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
European Institute of Peace (EIP)
Abstract:
This analysis assesses both the short and long-term impacts of environment- and climate-related security risks in the Newly Liberated Areas (NLA) of Somalia in Hirshabelle and Galmudug. The analysis had the objectives of (1) understanding the pathways in which environmental and climate risks can affect conflict better and (2) developing actionable recommendations for environmental peacemaking and peacebuilding in these states of Somalia. This integrated climate and conflict analysis employed a methodology based on the conflict analysis guidance from the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the climate security guidance developed by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Topic:
Security, Climate Change, Environment, Conflict, and Peacemaking
Political Geography:
Africa and Somalia

77. The Inequalities-Environment Nexus: Tools for Catalyzing a Just Transition

Author:
Roshni Menon and Paula Sevilla Núñez
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:
Transitioning to a green economy is imperative for all countries, and many have already started their journeys. The process of planning and executing a transition presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ensure the movement toward an environmentally sustainable and climate-safe future that benefits society as a whole and occurs in a just and equitable manner. A transition towards a greener economy is fundamentally also a matter of justice: it can save lives and improve livelihoods, as well as address historic injustices. Importantly, a just green transition can address people’s fears and uncertainties about potential negative effects on economies, livelihoods, and the environment, thus preventing backlash to the coming change and instead, widening political support. As part of collaborative effort between the Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies hosted at the Center on International Cooperation (CIC) at New York University (NYU), the International Climate Initiative for a Just Energy Transition (IKI JET) by the German Agency of International Cooperation (GIZ), and the Ministry of Development Planning of the Republic of Indonesia (BAPPENAS), this report was developed in preparation for a workshop on just green transition administered in Bogor, Indonesia on November 2–3, 2023. This resource covers the following topics: Conceptual definition, sector affected, opportunities, and challenges for just transition. Fundamental pillars in catalyzing a just transition, including distributional impact assessments (DIA), an intersectionality-based policy analysis (IBPA) framework, and social dialogue.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Sustainability, Green Transition, and Green Economy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

78. Policy impacts of the Climate Change Conferences in the Mediterranean

Author:
Jérémie Fosse and Haiat Jellouli
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
IEMed/EuroMeSCo
Abstract:
The Mediterranean region, a recognized climate and biodiversity hotspot, faces accelerated and multifaceted impacts from climate change, with implications for its socio-economic stability, ecosystems, and public health. Rising temperatures, extreme climate events, sea-level rise, water scarcity, and biodiversity loss threaten the environmental, social and economic foundations of the region, especially in sectors like agriculture, tourism, and fisheries taking place in densely populated areas with fragile ecosystems. Both terrestrial and marine temperatures in the region have already increased by 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This trend is expected to continue, with projections suggesting a further rise of between 0.5 and 6.5°C by the year 2100. Other alarming projections include an increase in surface water temperatures by 1 to 4°C throughout the century and a significant reduction in rainfall. Furthermore, sea levels in the Mediterranean have already risen by 6 cm over the past two decades, with an expected increase of 43 to 84 cm by the end of the century. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conferences of the Parties (COP) have been instrumental in galvanizing global attention and action on climate issues. From the early COPs that focused on foundational agreements like the Kyoto Protocol to the more recent and ambitious Paris Agreement at COP21, these conferences have played a crucial role in shaping the global climate regime. For the Mediterranean, the COP process has provided a framework within which regional and national efforts can align with broader global objectives, particularly in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and enhancing climate resilience. The Paris Agreement, with its goal to limit global warming to well below 2°C, and ideally to 1.5°C, is especially significant for the Mediterranean, where even small increases in temperature can have outsized impacts. The commitment to both mitigation and adaptation, alongside the establishment of mechanisms for climate finance, technology transfer, and capacity building, has offered Mediterranean countries the tools to confront their unique challenges. The post-COP21 era has seen Mediterranean countries implement adaptation measures in critical areas, such as water management and coastal resilience, while also working to enhance renewable energy sources like solar and wind. However, regional progress is uneven, hampered by financial limitations, political instability, and capacity gaps. Scaling up climate finance, strengthening regional cooperation, and bridging technological and institutional divides are essential for the region to meet Paris Agreement commitments effectively. The future of the Mediterranean depends on the region’s ability to build resilience and adapt to these multifaceted climate challenges. This will require enhanced regional cooperation, as no country can effectively tackle these issues in isolation. Regional frameworks such as the Union for the Mediterranean and the Barcelona Convention must be strengthened to foster collaboration on climate action, with a particular focus on shared resources like water and energy. Equally important is the need to scale up climate finance. Mediterranean countries, particularly those with fewer resources, need more robust support from international funding mechanisms like the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund. These resources must be directed towards projects that address the most pressing issues, such as water management, renewable energy infrastructure, and coastal protection. Reinforcing institutional capacity is therefore a critical step. Many Mediterranean countries face significant governance and technical challenges that impede the effective implementation of climate policies. Investing in education, capacity building, and governance reforms can help bridge this gap, enabling countries to better execute national climate plans and make use of international support. Furthermore, technology transfer must be accelerated. For Mediterranean nations to effectively mitigate emissions and adapt to climate impacts, they need access to cutting-edge technologies that can enhance energy efficiency, improve water use, and protect ecosystems. In conclusion, urgent and coordinated action is needed to safeguard the Mediterranean from escalating climate risks. Strengthening regional frameworks, enhancing access to international funding, and accelerating technology transfer will be vital in supporting Mediterranean countries. By fostering resilience through sustained commitment to climate adaptation and mitigation, the Mediterranean region can protect its future and offer valuable insights for other vulnerable areas worldwide.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Treaties and Agreements, Resilience, and Conference of the Parties (COP)
Political Geography:
North Africa and Mediterranean

79. Macroeconomic Modeling in the Anthropocene

Author:
Yannis Dafermos, Andrew McConnell, Maria Nikolaidi, Servaas Storm, and Boyan Yanovski
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET)
Abstract:
Recent years have seen an increasing use of environmental dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (E-DSGE) models for analyzing the macroeconomic effects of the climate crisis. This paper explores to what extent these models are fit for purpose. We identify the limitations of the benchmark E-DSGE framework and explain how these limitations restrict the ability of this framework to meaningfully capture the macroeconomics of the climate crisis. We then explain how the assumptions behind these limitations can be relaxed, but argue that simply relaxing some of these assumptions in isolation is insufficient to address the problem. We therefore call for a broader use of other macroeconomic models, such as ecological stock-flow consistent (E-SFC) and ecological agent-based (E-AB) models, that address these limitations simultaneously. We explain how these models do not suffer from the pitfalls of the E-DSGE framework and outline how they need to improve to increase their usefulness as tools that can inform macroeconomic policy making in the Anthropocene.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Monetary Policy, and Macroeconomics
Political Geography:
Global Focus

80. Responsible Change: How Governments Can Address Environmental, Social and Governance Challenges When Petroleum Assets Change Hands

Author:
Nicola Woodroffe
Publication Date:
02-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Natural Resource Governance Institute
Abstract:
As the world moves toward a future beyond oil and gas, petroleum assets will change hands, with different kinds of companies replacing others. Since 2014, around USD 88 billion in assets have moved from publicly listed to private companies. The roles of sub-Saharan African and Latin American companies in their home countries have expanded. Globally, the role of national oil companies (NOCs) is growing. NOCs have acquired around $24 billion in assets from non-NOCs since 2014. The growing role of private and local companies and NOCs potentially gives producer countries greater control over their petroleum sectors, including the pace of an eventual phaseout. However, these companies often have less capacity and fewer transparency, environmental, social and governance commitments than publicly listed international companies. This increases the risk that these companies’ operations will negatively impact the environment and communities, and that they will be unable to pay for decommissioning when production ends. Many assets that sub-Saharan African and Latin American NOCs have acquired appear vulnerable to energy transition risks. Governments should exercise approval rights over asset transfers to ensure buyers have requisite capacity to operate with high standards. They should ensure transparency to allow host communities and the public to better understand transfer impacts and how the government and/or companies will manage them, and strengthen regulations to address key issues arising from transfers including emissions management and reporting, and decommissioning funding. Governments should require NOCs to make adequate disclosures about their acquisitions to ensure NOCs manage risks to the public purse.
Topic:
Environment, Oil, Governance, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:
Global Focus

81. Responsible Exit Principles for Oil and Gas Companies

Author:
Nicola Woodroffe and Erica Westenberg
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Natural Resource Governance Institute
Abstract:
Asset transfers in the oil and gas industry are not new. Yet, as the energy transition accelerates, there is a growing risk that oil and gas companies sell assets in response to pressures to decarbonize. However, transferring assets to operators with lower standards can lead to higher emissions and increased risks. This briefing offers a framework to guide these transactions and ensure that environmental and operational integrity is upheld. Designed for use by a range of stakeholders, these principles set out best practices to help companies manage financial, legal, environmental and reputational risks during asset transfers. They were developed with input from representatives of the oil and gas industry; investors, the financial, legal and accounting professions; the insurance industry; standard-setting bodies; academia; and civil society. All stakeholders can adopt and refine these standards to support a responsible, low-emissions future and harmonize regulatory practices across the industry.
Topic:
Corruption, Environment, Oil, Gas, Accountability, Fossil Fuels, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:
Global Focus

82. Behind the Schemes: Anticorruption Gaps in Mining Sector Certifications

Author:
Susannah Fitzgerald, Robert Pitman, Matthieu Salomon, and Phesheya Nxumalo
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Natural Resource Governance Institute
Abstract:
Decisionmakers are increasingly looking to certification schemes to provide information on the sustainability of mining operations, yet these schemes have significant room for improvement regarding how they address corruption in their standards. The report assesses the content of the performance standards used by the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA), The Copper Mark, and Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM). Schemes address some topics, such as revenue and payments and anticorruption procedures, relatively well; this may reflect the extent to which legislation and regulations address these topics. Schemes’ standards less frequently covered other issues, such as beneficial ownership and allegations of corruption. Many schemes, and the mining companies that use them, are missing an opportunity to assess the implementation of corporate-level anticorruption policies in mine-site assessments. The quality of certification schemes’ governance and assurance processes is essential to their effectiveness, yet many fall short of best practice. This undermines their credibility. Key governance challenges include the unbalanced representation of different interests within schemes and the risk of conflicts of interest in the auditing process. Decisionmakers risk becoming overreliant on certification schemes as indicators of responsible business conduct, which may be facilitated in part by industry influence over policymaking processes. Certification schemes are not a replacement for ongoing, robust due diligence into the environmental, social, and governance impacts of mining operations, including corruption, and the design and enforcement of robust regulatory frameworks. In a shifting standards landscape where there are efforts to both consolidate and review existing certification schemes, and a moment where the risk of corruption is heightened by growing demand for transition minerals, governments, mining companies, and certification schemes themselves must do more to address the topic of corruption. To do so effectively, they should focus their attention on solutions that will have the most impact in addressing this issue.
Topic:
Corruption, Environment, Governance, Accountability, Mining, Transparency, and Minerals
Political Geography:
Global Focus

83. From Conflict to Collaboration: Co-funding Environmental Peacebuilding in South-central Somalia

Author:
Kheira Tarif
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)
Abstract:
Somalia is experiencing significant impacts of climate change. Its climate-related vulnerabilities are exacerbated by the enduring effects of more than three decades of violent conflict and fragmented governance. As the effects of climate change become more pronounced, their interaction with social, economic and political realities threatens to create challenges that are complex and difficult to address. There is a need for policies and programmes that tackle climate change and conflict in tandem, but gaps persist in knowledge and evidence to inform actions under such policies and programmes. This SIPRI Policy Brief explores how the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Somalia uses a co-funding mechanism for facilitating collaboration between groups in conflict on addressing shared local priorities. In south-central Somalia, IOM has applied the co-funding mechanism to projects that aim to address local climate-related vulnerabilities, build relationships between communities in conflict and strengthen the role of district councils. This policy brief finds that elements of this approach to project design can support environmental peacebuilding in contexts exposed to climate change and affected by conflict and offers recommendations for organizations and other donors with relevant mandates.
Topic:
Environment, Conflict, Peacebuilding, and International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Political Geography:
Africa and Somalia

84. The Global Impact of China’s Water and Related Environmental Problems

Author:
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Hudson Institute
Abstract:
The quantity, location, and quality of water resources in China have long been a distinguishing and even defining characteristic of its history. Records at least as far back as the Ch’in era in the third century BC note the presence of massive waterworks such as irrigation and transportation canals. Terraced rice fields in hilly areas in central and southern China remain iconic images of Chinese civilization. During a contentious and important debate in the mid-twentieth century, geographers and political scientists asked whether the erection of a “hydraulic society” was the explanation for what political scientist Karl Wittfogel identified as “oriental despotism.”1 The German-trained academic argued that the existential requirement to contain endemic flooding and move water from the massive rivers of central and southern China to agricultural areas necessitated an authoritarian system for deploying labor on the scale required for hydraulic engineering projects spanning the continent. Chairman Mao Zedong drily noted at the beginning of his reign that “there is a lot of water in the south and not much water in the north . . . borrowing some water would be good.”2 Mao was soon to unleash the massive workforce of China to renew and expand efforts over the centuries to get water to farmland, control flooding, and reengineer the landscape of modern China. Even without exaggerating the centrality of water issues for historical China, in the modern era water resources are clearly still vital to the country’s economic and ecological health. And hydraulic engineering projects have become increasingly important, both to China’s Asian neighbors and to the global environment. An important new survey of the “ecological history” of modern China concludes that “in growing from impoverished giant to wealthy superpower in seventy years, China has sacrificed whatever resilience its ecosystem once possessed. It has polluted and poisoned its air, water, and soil . . . it has turned forests into plantations and seen deserts expand . . . and has seen lakes come to resemble green paint.”3 Unfortunately, China’s ecological problems have increasingly had negative impacts outside its borders. China’s unprecedented geoengineering to move water from the south to the north is now imperiling both the water resources available downstream from Tibet and the Hindu-Kush mountains, and the economy and ways of living of literally billions of people. China needs ever more land to grow higher quality food and produce higher yields, which frees up land for housing its population. These efforts have led to deforestation not only in China but also in South America and South Asia. And the consistent choice of Beijing’s leadership to drive economic growth at the expense of environmental health has led to dangerous levels of water pollution and poor soil health in China. Environmental degradation has become a growing political issue in China, and its export of this problem has incited considerable international concern. This study explores these issues with a focus on water resources, and it outlines the regional and global impacts of Chinese policy. The study concludes with a discussion of China’s ability and ambition to address these problems as well as how affected countries can help move Chinese leadership toward a more constructive and cooperative effort to develop a solution.
Topic:
Economics, Environment, and Water
Political Geography:
China and Asia

85. Green Soft Power? Checking in on China as a Responsible Stakeholder

Author:
Agnieszka Nitza-Makowska, Kerry Anne Longhurst, and Katarzyna Skiert-Andrzejuk
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
By assuming a proactive role in international environmental regimes and extending the ‘green’ dimensions of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China has been seeking to promote itself as a leader and responsible stakeholder in global environmental governance. This article examines this development concerning the notion of China’s ‘soft power’ and, more specifically, the notion of ‘green soft power’ – which aims to bridge the traditional concept of soft power with a state’s behavior on environmental and climate issues. China presents an interesting case since it has accrued a considerable amount of green soft power through its multilateral environmental diplomacy practiced at the Conferences of the Parties (COPs), the high-profile annual United Nations Climate Change Conferences, but its patchy deployment of environmental standards in the bilateral engagements under the BRI highlights the contradictions in referring to China as a green soft power. With these ideas in mind, this article holds that in the search to understand the evolving nature of China’s responsible stakeholder role, attention should be given to exploring the notion of green soft power.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Environment, Soft Power, and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
Political Geography:
China and Asia

86. Nationalism, Capitalism and Hostility Towards Environmental Policies: A Theoretical Study

Author:
Piotr Walwicz
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The article explores a possible connection between nationalism, capitalism, and nationalist movements’ common hostility towards environmental policies. It draws from materialist assertions about the capitalogenic nature of ecological degradation and modernist theories of nationalism, which explain it as a product or by-product of capitalist modernization. By employing theories of nationalism’s instrumentality in preserving the existing social hierarchies, the article proposes that this approach might be extrapolated onto socioecological hierarchies, which are contested or have their fundamental rules challenged by many environmental policies. Nationalism may then be seen as an instrument of capital – personified by the privileged elites – taking advantage of an ideology that appeals to those ‘left behind’ by modernization and globalization to thwart or delay changes to the socioecological status quo. An identity-based movement is thus utilized to protect the continuing exploitation and appropriation of nature. This proposed connection underscores the need for further empirical research, which is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of the topic and its potential impact on environmental policies.
Topic:
Environment, Nationalism, Capitalism, and Modernity
Political Geography:
Global Focus

87. Enhancing Plastic Reuse and Recycling with a Full Life-Cycle Approach

Author:
Aulia Salsabella Suwarno and Ivana Suradja
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
Abstract:
Plastic pollution poses both environmental and economic challenges for Southeast Asia, underscoring the urgent need for a transition to a circular plastics economy driven by reuse and recycling strategies. Although AMS have incorporated these strategies within their National Action Plans, they are struggling to achieve the scale necessary to counteract rising plastic waste. This policy brief identifies key barriers hindering the growth of plastic reuse and recycling initiatives in the region and provides targeted recommendations based on a full life-cycle approach. By adopting this approach, AMS can maximise the economic potential associated with effective plastic waste management and pollution mitigation.
Topic:
Environment, Pollution, Recycling, ASEAN, and Plastic
Political Geography:
Asia

88. Blue Economy in Myanmar

Author:
Zaw Oo and Ngu Wah Win
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
Abstract:
Myanmar’s commitment to the Blue Economy is driven by the Sustainable Development Goals, and it has developed a long-term plan to guide its efforts in reaching these goals. Myanmar’s vision of a Blue Economy involves various sectors, such as fisheries, tourism, and energy. However, the sustainable development of these sectors is facing many challenges, such as conflicts in coastal townships and the departure of foreign businesses. Myanmar must actively seek international cooperation with neighbouring countries and organisations such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to form a stronger framework for sustainable use of ocean resources; invest in research, data collection, and capacity building; and strengthen the governance of Marine Protected Areas.
Topic:
Environment, ASEAN, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Development
Political Geography:
Asia, Southeast Asia, and Myanmar

89. Lebanon’s Solar Rollout: In What Ways Has It Been an Unjust Energy Transition?

Author:
Yusra Bitar
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Lebanon’s national electricity supply has nearly collapsed, with the country’s residents experiencing constant power cuts over the past three decades and total blackouts since 2020.1 This has led residents across the country to find their “coping strategies” - which have become somewhat normalized - to deal with the national shortages, including purchasing or subscribing to diesel generators.2 More recently, these coping strategies have started to include solar energy installations, which have been deemed revolutionary for Lebanon,3 although in reality, the story is much more complex. As the climate crisis worsens and global institutions start to advocate and fund just transitions,4 it is imperative to reflect on what this means to prevent the repetition of collective injustices. This paper briefly outlines the solar energy landscape in Lebanon and asks some questions about the country’s solar rollout, including who benefits from it and how, as well as how this process repeats past energy injustices. It then presents some case studies of initiatives that have addressed some community energy needs while offering lessons for future energy planning. The paper concludes with recommendations to policymakers, civil society organizations, and the private sector as they transition to solar energy.
Topic:
Environment, Solar Power, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:
Middle East and Lebanon

90. Modelling the environmental impact of agri-food trade policies

Author:
Jan Hagemejer
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Social and Economic Research - CASE
Abstract:
In the era of globalization, international trade policies significantly influence the economic and environmental conditions of countries. As environmental concerns grow, it’s important to understand how these trade policies affect sustainable development and identify the strategies needed to achieve positive outcomes for the climate and environment. This analysis aims to evaluate the impact of international agricultural trade on achieving certain climate and environmental goals, particularly those outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), mainly Goal 13, but also parts of other environment-related goals. We examined the effects of specific trade agreements, considering the current energy and climate policies, using modeling tools to focus on CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions like N2O and CH4. This helps us understand how international trade can reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally and find ways to prevent pollution from simply moving to other regions due to changes in trade. This working paper provides arguments for developing new and improved trade policies that incorporate environmental measures as tools to mitigate climate change.
Topic:
Agriculture, Environment, Food, Trade, and Sustainability
Political Geography:
Global Focus

91. Explaining the State of Environmental Enforcement in Nigeria’s Niger Delta Region: some Theoretical Consideration

Author:
Zephaniah Osuyi Edo, Joshua Olatunde Fajimbola, and Frederick Imuebe Braimah
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
There are several theories that elucidate the current condition of environmental enforcement and laws in Nigeria, as well as the subsequent deterioration of the Niger Delta ecosystem by oil multinational corporations. These theories are not exclusive as they relate with other theories to advance a holistic view. This study examines three theories in connection to the continuous and unresolved environmental challenges confronting the Niger Delta area in Nigeria. These are the dependency theory, the rentier state theory, and the regulatory capture theory. Anchored on historical research design and the use of secondary data, the findings indicated that Nigeria's enforcement programmes had been seriously affected by its total reliance on oil proceeds and the subsequent capture of its regulatory agencies by oil multinationals. The paper discovered that Nigeria's oil dependency, rent-seeking behavior, and corruption had been the greatest obstacle to the enforcement regime in the country. This situation led to a condition where though the laws exist to address environmental injustice, the various governments, especially at the centre, have made sure that they are not applied stringently as it would mean a reduced income on a resource that has been defining the country's economy trajectory for over 60 years. The paper, therefore, recommended holistic approaches that are measurable and achievable to resolving the problem and dilemma of the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.
Topic:
Environment, Law Enforcement, Rentier State Theory, Environmental Justice, and Sustainable Development
Political Geography:
Africa, Nigeria, and Niger Delta

92. Meeting Skill Needs for the Global Green Transition: A Role for Labour Migration?

Author:
Samuel Huckstep and Helen Dempster
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Center for Global Development (CGD)
Abstract:
The green transition will generate an enormous demand for workers. This paper reviews demand for, and supply of, skills relevant to the green transition in five countries in the Global South and five in the Global North. It focuses on the installation and maintenance workforce needed in two sectors: solar photovoltaic panels and heat pumps. It finds that in almost all of the 10 countries studied, supply of the necessary skilled workers is unlikely to meet demand. In particular, Global North countries, which must cut more emissions sooner, face challenges in obtaining sufficient workers against a backdrop of ageing populations. If green transition targets are to be met, migration is likely to be needed as a complement to domestic training and reskilling. Given that the shortage of green-skilled workers is global, however, migration must be accompanied by support for training and retaining workers at home.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Migration, Labor Issues, and Green Transition
Political Geography:
Global Focus

93. Dammed in the Mekong: Averting an Environmental Catastrophe

Author:
International Crisis Group
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Hydropower, sand mining and other development projects are threatening the ecological balance in the Mekong basin and the livelihoods of its residents. Policymakers would better serve the public by anticipating the problems of over-exploiting the river than by reacting to the consequences.
Topic:
Development, Environment, Livelihoods, and Hydropower
Political Geography:
Asia, Southeast Asia, and Mekong River

94. Environmental Crimes and Forced Migration: An Overlooked Nexus

Author:
Chiara Scissa
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:
The nexus between climate change, disasters and migration has been, and still is, widely explored by scholars. Yet, most research studies focus on the role of extreme weather events in shaping migration flows, and how climate change aggravates their intensity and frequency, especially in climate-vulnerable and disaster-prone countries. Few sources instead shed light on another key scenario triggering forced migration movements both within and across borders, namely when climate-related harm or disasters result from, or are associated with, environmental crimes.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, and Forced Migration
Political Geography:
Africa, Colombia, South America, and Nigeria

95. Addressing Zambia’s Water Security Challenges

Author:
Leleti Maluleke
Publication Date:
08-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Good Governance Africa (GGA)
Abstract:
This policy briefing outlines the scale of Zambia’s current water crisis and examines its impact on agriculture, the environment, and the economy. Based on this analysis, it recommends a multifaceted approach to improve water management and distribution. Key recommendations include enhancing governance frameworks, investing in infrastructure, promoting sustainable agricultural practices, and addressing gender inequalities in water access.
Topic:
Security, Agriculture, Environment, Water, and Economy
Political Geography:
Africa and Zambia

96. Inequality and the Environment: Global Inequality Research Award Lecture

Author:
James K. Boyce
Publication Date:
07-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), University of Massachusetts Amherst
Abstract:
This lecture, delivered at the ceremony for the inaugural Global Inequality Research Award at Sciences Po in Paris, provides a trajectory of the author’s work on inequality and the environment that was recognized by the award. Thirty years ago, many economists and environmentalists saw inequality as a non-issue. Today there is widespread recognition of its importance. The lecture reviews how inequalities in the distribution of wealth and power affect both the magnitude and incidence of environmental harms and discusses some of the synergies between policies to reduce inequality and to improve environmental quality.
Topic:
Economics, Environment, and Inequality
Political Geography:
Global Focus

97. Plastic Pollution in Seas and Oceans: Challenges and Responses

Author:
Konstantinos Topouzelis and Ifigeneia Tsakalogianni
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Abstract:
Plastic pollution is a serious global problem, with significant environmental, health and economic impacts. The need for global action is imperative, as plastic pollution affects all levels of society and ecosystems. The lack of strict regulations on the production, use and disposal of plastics, as well as weak enforcement and imposition of penalties are some of the main reasons for the increase in plastic pollution. Implementing policies to promote the circular economy is critical, with the aim of reducing plastic waste generation and increasing recycling. The planning of the response to the problem requires the creation of a mechanism for observing and tracing plastics, i.e. recording the current situation in a scientific and indisputable way. Cost-effective solutions, such as incentives to use biodegradable materials and the development of innovative recycling methods, need to be promoted. Enhancing environmental education and public awareness is essential to change behaviors and promote sustainable consumption practices. International cooperation is needed to create common standards and rules and cooperative inspection and enforcement mechanisms, as plastic pollution is a cross-border issue. Governments must support research and development of new technologies to reduce plastic litter and clean up the oceans. Imposing taxes and fees on plastic products will reduce their use and fund initiatives to protect the environment. A flexible, adaptive institutional framework, stricter enforcement of laws by strengthening administrative capacity to enforce rules and imposing penalties with the cooperation of all actors involved are needed, with the common goal of reducing the “plastic footprint”.
Topic:
Environment, Pollution, and Plastic
Political Geography:
Oceans

98. Government Procurement, Financial Services, and Environment: Linkages and Implications for the EU and Brazil

Author:
Adeet Dobhal and Lucas Moreira Jimenez
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Abstract:
The relationship between trade agreements and the environment is increasingly a priority for policymakers and civil society today. However, some of the disciplines covered by modern trade agreements have not received enough attention when it comes to their potential impact on the environment. Financial services and government procurement are two such areas, even though they are increasingly consequential topics for international trade policy and negotiations. This blind spot merits greater consideration as the connections definitely exist: the regulation of government procurement and financial services can have positive or negative implications for environmental outcomes on the ground, which makes understanding these links a crucial task. Engaging in this very task, this report focuses on the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement, with a particular attention to the case of Brazil. Using the Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) as an analytical base, the report examines recent and relevant trade agreements entered into by Brazil and the EU to contextualize and understand the links between environmental protection on the one hand and government procurement and financial services on the other. The insights generated are then applied to the analysis of the government procurement and financial services chapters of the EUMTA, in an effort to understand how these rules affect parties’ ability to regulate in pursuit of environmental outcomes.
Topic:
Environment, Treaties and Agreements, Trade, WTO, and Procurement
Political Geography:
Global Focus

99. Do No Harm: Toward an Environmental Audit of Military-Managed Civilian Projects in Egypt

Author:
Yezid Sayigh
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
In order for Egypt to respond effectively to the alarming environmental threats it faces, it must bring the large number of military-managed projects and production in the civilian domain under a single, integrated national framework for climate change mitigation and adaptation planning, monitoring, and accountability.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Accountability, Civil-Military Relations, and Mitigation
Political Geography:
North Africa and Egypt

100. Jordan: Public Opinion Report 2024

Author:
Arab Barometer
Publication Date:
07-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Arab Barometer’s Wave VIII survey captures public opinion in Jordan at a critical time. As the COVID-era restrictions and changes receded, many of the challenges Jordan had been facing over the previous decade returned to the fore. From the early 2010s until Arab Barometer’s 2022 survey, there had been consistent declines in views of government and economic challenges continued to mount. However, in the weeks before the planned survey, the events of October 7, 2023 shook the region, but particularly Jordan as a country bordering Israel. Israel’s subsequent military campaign in Gaza deeply affected Jordanian public opinion, particularly given the large number of Jordanians of Palestinian descent. Results from the survey strongly suggest that the impact from the war in Gaza not only shaped views of international actors, but also influenced perceptions of domestic issues in Jordan. In effect, it is difficult to overstate the importance of this issue for Jordanian public opinion or to accurately understand it separately from the situation in Gaza.
Topic:
International Relations, Corruption, Environment, Migration, Public Opinion, Democracy, Economy, Survey, Freedom, Gender, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East and Jordan