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The blog of the Wilson Center's Environmental Change and Security Program
Showing posts from category Afghanistan.
  • A Loss of Ecological Security: The Demise of the Sistan Basin

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    Guest Contributor  //  April 29, 2022  //  By Laura Jean Palmer-Moloney
    Aerial_photograph_of_Helmand_River_at_Gereshk_in_2011

    Water is one of the most critical factors for regional security and stability because it is multidimensional. It is an essential resource in ecosystem services & environmental security, yet its importance creates significant possibilities for insecurity—including corruption, environmental crimes, and other illegal activities.  

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  • No, There Will Not Be a War for Water

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    Guest Contributor  //  January 10, 2022  //  By Jeroen Warner & Sumit Vij
    Hyderabad,telangana,india,,November,20,,2019,,An,Indian,Man,Carries,Water,In

    Some people falsely believe that the Afghanistan takeover by the Taliban during a drought increases the risk of violence over shared waters such as the Helmand and Kabul Rivers. Violent clashes over scarce resources have been predicted as “likely,” or even “certain” for 35 years, and despite such “water wars” never having happened, hypotheses about them keep cropping up around conflict-affected regions such as the Middle East and South Asia. In reality, conflicts are multidimensional with social, political, economic, and ecological drivers producing conflicts through their complex interrelations. Because of these multidimensional conflict drivers, the water war message is wrong-headed and needlessly scaremongering.

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  • Afghans that Remain Are in Dire Need of Humanitarian Support

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    Dot-Mom  //  On the Beat  //  September 1, 2021  //  By Sara Matthews
    New,Delhi,,India-aug,24,2021:,Afghan,Women,Holding,Placard,Protesting

    Although large-scale evacuation efforts have dominated international attention, evacuation is only an option for a “tiny fraction” of the Afghan population, said Vicki Aken, Country Director for Afghanistan at the International Rescue Committee, at a congressional briefing hosted by the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. The briefing was focused on the evolving humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and the need for civil protection in the country. “More than 40 million Afghans will remain in Afghanistan,” said Aken. “And half of them already face critical humanitarian needs.”

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  • Water and (in-)Security in Afghanistan as the Taliban Take Over

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    Guest Contributor  //  August 20, 2021  //  By The Water, Peace and Security (WPS) Team
    Kabul,,Afghanistan,,Mar,2004:,Women,Carrying,Water,In,Kabul,,Afghanistan

    This article originally appeared on Water, Peace, and Security.  

    The takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban not only threatens people’s lives, security, and fundamental freedom, but also significantly increases risks of water insecurity both immediately and in the long term. While our hearts and minds are with the people struggling for survival and freedom in Afghanistan today, we should not forget that the implications of Taliban rule will add yet another challenge to the long-term future of the Afghan people, and possibly also to the entire region’s stability.

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  • Local Environmental Governance to Reduce Conflict and Deforestation in Afghanistan

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    Guest Contributor  //  June 28, 2021  //  By Mishkat Al Moumin & Anna Kasradze
    3614246316_d0a20f47f8_c

    How should the international community support the stabilization of Afghanistan after U.S. and NATO troops withdraw? Answers from President Biden, high ranking U.S. administration officials, and lawmakers have focused on funding the Afghan military and police and remotely retaining U.S. lethal capacity. Development aid is mentioned only in the vaguest of terms. But as withdrawal plans solidify, peace and resilience against insurgencies urgently require the administration to shift the focus to development and include support for local environmental governance. Looking at how crucial forests are to Afghanistan’s local economy and governance systems, we sketch the resource-conflict links and propose possibilities for local, environmental governance that the international community could support to quell insurgency and build the political, economic, and environmental foundations for peace in the country.

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  • A Land Like No Other: Afghanistan’s Post-Conflict Ecotourism Potential

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    Guest Contributor  //  April 12, 2021  //  By Elizabeth B. Hessami
    Hindu Kush Matt

    Stunning cobalt-blue lakes with natural travertine dams in Band-e-Amir, the pristine, soaring Pamir Mountains, through which some of the world’s last snow leopards prowl—far from the simplistic, violent, and drab images preferred by the media, Afghanistan is a beautiful and multifaceted nation. Lonely Planet once described Afghanistan as a “vastly appealing country.” Having married into an Afghan family many years ago, I can attest that the culture is also extremely hospitable. Welcoming tourists to visit their beautiful nation is a logical extension of the Afghan culture. 

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  • COVID-19 Causes Dire Disruptions in Maternal, Child, and Reproductive Health Services

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    Covid-19  //  Dot-Mom  //  Reading Radar  //  March 31, 2021  //  By Sara Matthews
    COVD SRHR Cover photo

    “The pandemic has undoubtedly resulted in more deaths and more illness – particularly for the most vulnerable women and children,” write the authors of a new United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) report examining the direct and indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Asia. The report found that the disruptions in several essential health services due to the COVID-19 pandemic had a “substantial impact” on maternal and child mortality in the region.

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  • How Natural Resources Could Help Build Peace in Afghanistan

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    Guest Contributor  //  March 16, 2020  //  By Elizabeth B. Hessami
    AfghanAgriculture

    Potential water wars due to plans for multiple dams, violent opium cartels supporting world heroin markets, and many conflict-financing minerals including everyday talc used for baby powder. These are the types of natural resources stories that usually make front page news about Afghanistan. But natural resources have a significant role to play in stabilizing Afghanistan. Instead of being a source of conflict, they may help with peacebuilding by creating livelihoods and creating opportunities for ex-combatants.

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