June and July are traditionally slow in Washington, but not this year: ECSP and GHI hosted several big events at the Wilson Center, Roger-Mark traveled to the ICPD Human Rights Conference, and the UN released new population projections – coverage of which all made the top 10 most popular posts last month. Also joining the top 10 were two posts from the China Environment Forum and a cross-post from ChinaDialogue. Clearly China’s natural resource and climate change challenges are the minds of many. The final newcomer is Elizabeth L. Chalecki’s preview of her new primer on environmental security.

According to the UN, the planet has warmed faster since the turn of the century than any other period on record. Sea-level rise has also increased pace to 0.12 inches a year – almost double the rate observed during the 20^th century. This “unprecedented” rate of climate change is expected to disproportionally impact developing countries, whose socio-economic, political, and physical landscapes make them particularly vulnerable to the effects. The GAIN Index, an interactive mapping tool recently acquired by the University of Notre Dame, can help policymakers prepare for these changes by comparing the climate change vulnerability and readiness of countries around the world.

Fire needs oxygen to burn. When a fire starts inside a building, the floors, ceilings, walls, doors, and windows can constrict the flow of air. Breaking in to fight the fire thus carries the risk of opening a new airway. If that happens, a smoldering fire can expand explosively, bursting into roaring flames as it sucks air in through the new passageway. This sudden inrush of air to fuel a burst of fire has a name: backdraft.

Afghanistan’s youth, including more than seven million girls currently in school, are leading the call for new leadership, but many Afghans fear the chilling effect of a resurgent Taliban, said panelists at the Wilson Center during the second half of “Afghanistan Beyond the Headlines.” As the United States prepares to withdraw its forces over the next year, a halt in the country’s progress on women’s health may be the first sign of backsliding on many of the gains made over the last decade. [Video Below]

As the United States approaches its 2014 deadline for military withdrawal from Afghanistan, one often overshadowed aspect of the conflict is the hard-won progress made by previously marginalized segments of the Afghan population, particularly women, girls, and young people.[Video Below]

The original version of this article, by Margarita Mora, appeared on Conservation International’s Human Nature blog.

I first visited Peru’s Alto Mayo Protected Forest in 2008. At the time, deforestation rates there were among the highest in the country. CI-Peru wanted to find a way to help communities and Peru’s National Service of Natural Protected Areas (SERNANP) keep their trees standing.