Indigenous women and girls are making significant contributions to global peace agendas through their traditional knowledge of natural resource management and valuable insights on how to cope with the negative impacts of climate change. In our most read post, Marisa O. Ensor highlights the importance of these “Unsung Sheroes” in moving global agendas forward.

The world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter, China, is projected to fulfill its Paris commitment to reduce the proportion of coal in its energy mix ten years ahead of schedule. However, the country remains the world’s largest producer and consumer of coal, and coal conversion practices are steadily on the rise. In this month’s top post, China Environment Forum’s Richard Liu, Zhou Yang, and Xinzhou Qian track China’s risky gamble on coal conversion.

In our most read post of the month, Adilsonio da Costa outlines the environmental and livelihood risks Timor-Leste citizens face if the government and proponents of a petroleum infrastructure project do not implement environmental protections and follow Timor-Leste’s environmental laws, and dismiss affected communities while continuing to build the project.

In November, New Security Beat launched a new series, “Uncharted Territory: The Next 25 Years of Environment, Health, and Security.” In the most read post of November, Kayly Ober’s contribution to the special series offers creative policy solutions to the climate migration debate.

In September and October, the Maternal Health Initiative grabbed the No. 1 spot as Nazra Amin took a look into one of the world’s largest brothels in the village of Daulatdia, Bangladesh. She examined the legality of sex work in Bangladesh, maternal mortality, and barriers to health services among sex workers.

In August’s most-read post, Nathanial Matthews explains how globally, most water infrastructure isn’t designed to meet the demands of a changing climate. Matthews showcases highlights from a new report, Wellspring: Source Water Resilience and Climate Adaptation, which explores innovative approaches to source water protection in the context of a changing climate. The complications of a changing climate are not always so clear, especially its connection to armed conflict. Our fourth most popular post, by Cullen Hendrix and John O’Loughlin, shares the results of a study that aimed to provide a consensus regarding climate-conflict links.

In the top read post for July, Marisa O. Ensor offers the case for using “Positive Peace” as a framework for analyzing the resilience of countries and communities suffering from climate stress and resource challenges. The 2019 Global Peace Index, produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace, factors climate change into its assessments and finds that climate change and resource availability can create or exacerbate tensions, but they can also be a source for cooperation.

Two of June’s top posts related to conflict and the well-being of a country’s population. In our most-read post this past month, Matt Luizza investigates herder-farmer conflict in Africa’s Sudano-Sahel and urban elites’ increasing militarization of transhumance, the practice of moving livestock seasonally to access available pastures and water. In our third most popular post this month, Wim Zwijnenburg discusses the importance of protecting civilians by protecting the environment during armed conflicts.