In February’s most read post, Isabella Caltabiano reports on how the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment includes a wider scope of perceived environmental threats to America’s national security than earlier reports. This year’s report warns of extreme weather events, high temperatures, diminishing Arctic sea ice, among others, and takes a strong stance against the current administration’s views on climate change.  

In our second most popular post for February, Kyla Peterson recaps the recent Wilson Center launch of the book, The Snow Leopard Project: And Other Adventures in Warzone Conservation by Alex Dehgan, CEO and founder of Conservation X Labs. As Dehgan discovered, establishing Afghanistan’s first national park started to look more like an exercise in building a democracy.

Our third and fourth most popular posts cover international peacebuilding and security. In this month’s third most popular post, adelphi’s Stella Schaller and Benjamin Pohl provide an overview of a meeting where leaders called for the UN Security Council to improve international peace and security by integrating climate-related risks into its discussions and actions around international security.

Last year, 2018, was an exciting year for environmental peacebuilding. In the fourth most popular post, Environmental Law Institute’s Carl Bruch and Sierra Killian describe efforts that reflect the institutionalization of the new field of environmental peacebuilding. They report on the first massive open online course (MOOC) on Environmental Security and Sustaining Peace and the launch of the Environmental Peacebuilding Association.

Our fifth most popular post takes us to Wuxi, China, where a system of river chiefs drastically improved the water quality of their rivers and lakes and spurred a national movement to improve China’s waterways. Jiameizi Jia with the Wilson Center’s China Environment Forum introduces readers to China’s unique partnership between citizens, NGOS, companies, and water keepers that could make better accountability and cleaner water in China a reality.

1. U.S. Intelligence Community Recognizes Climate Change in Worldwide Threat Assessment by Isabella Caltabiano
2. Warzone Conservation in Afghanistan: Build a National Park, Build Democracy by Kyla Peterson
3. Security Council Debates how Climate Disasters Threaten International Peace and Security by Stella Schaller and Benjamin Pohl
4. New Developments in the Field of Environmental Peacebuilding by Carl Bruch and Sierra Killian
5. On Tap: Seeking a Game Changer to Stop China’s River Pollution by Jiameizi Jia