“Water wars”—violent clashes over scarce water resources—have for decades been predicted as likely or certain to happen. But while water-related issues can be contributors to conflict, Jeroen Warner and Sumit Vij dispel the water wars hypothesis in last month’s top post, arguing that it diverts attention “from issues like human security and governance of natural resources.” 

In our second top post of the month, Giulio Boccaletti’s explores the history of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and how the deteriorating security situation in Ethiopia shows that green growth, economic development, and regional geopolitics are “inextricably bound” in ways that are difficult to unpack and overcome.  

The complex connections between environmental change and security are further explored in an interview with former Greek Naval Officer in the Hellenic Navy and current environmental security scholar, Dimitrios Kantemnidis, in another top post for January. In the interview, conducted by Alexis Aberlien, Kantemnidis provides insights into the environmental security approaches of civilian and military actors. 

In the fourth top post for the month, Justin Bernstein reports on a recent Wilson Center event hosted by the China Environment Forum exploring the often overlooked connections between climate change and plastic production.   

And finally, in our final top 5 post for the month, Sam Sellers raises questions about recent pronatalist moves by countries like China, Iran, and Poland to restrict access to family planning services. With many countries experiencing sub-replacement fertility (or “depopulation”), Sellers argues for efforts to “reassert the centrality of human rights in family planning.”   

1. No, There Will Not Be a War for Water by Jeroen Warner and Sumit Vij 
2. When Climate Change Meets Geopolitics by Giulio Boccaletti 
3. Merging the Environmental and Security Sectors in Climate Risk Responses by Alexis Eberlein 
4. The Climate Footprint of Plastics and the Need for a Global Solution by Justin Bernstein 
5. Keeping Human Rights in Family Planning Policy as Depopulation Fears Mount by Sam Sellers