ECSP Director Geoff Dabelko’s look at seven ways seven billion people affect the planet led the top 10 last month (by unique page views), followed by a number of posts on trends: visualizations of population, health, and climate trends; what El Niño and conflict patterns say about the relationship between the two; the policy decisions that led to a commitment to family planning in Rwanda; and the effects of global population on “peak water.” Captain Wayne Porter and Colonel Mark Mykleby’s new national security narrative presentation at the Wilson Center also remained popular, and a new guest contributor, American University student Olimar Maisonet-Guzman, joined the list for the first time:

October brought plenty of talk about population – the UN estimates that the seven billionth person alive today was born on the 31st and that brought a flurry of media coverage from all corners. Elizabeth Leahy Madsen broke down how we got to that number and where we’re going. Peter Gleick explained “peak water,” Jon Foley impressed at the first South by Southwest Eco conference, and we highlighted some of the debate around Solomon Hsiang et al.’s article about El Niño and conflict. Here are the top 10, measured by unique pageviews:

Two Pop Audio interviews – from Rich Thorstein and Karen Seto – joined the top 10 last month (measured by unique pageviews), as well as the launch of Brahma Chellaney’s new book, Water: Asia’s New Battleground, a look at “land grabs” in the context of water access, a crosspost from Edward Carr on food security maps, and Shannon Beebe’s event from last year on his book, The Ultimate Weapon Is No Weapon.

August brought a crop of newcomers to the top 10 (measured by unique pageviews). Joining Richard Cincotta’s popular look at Tunisia’s demographics and the Mr. Y white paper launch at the Wilson Center were ECSP’s “Backdraft” event; PRB’s new population data sheet; interviews with Aaron Wolf and Alecia Fields; and guest contributions from Lukas Rüttinger, Moira Feil, and Jim Duncan.

July was a great month for NSB: we launched the blog anew with a new design and better functionality, with the aim of making content better organized, easier to find, and just plain nicer looking. We also continued to see some great traffic on a number of posts, including Richard Cincotta’s dive into Tunisia’s demographics and the Mr. Y “National Strategic Narrative” launch at the Wilson Center.

Newcomers to the top 10 (according to unique pageviews) were posts on the Nature article detailing rare earth finds in the Pacific, the role of water in “land grabs,” profiles on the climate-vulnerability of the Philippines and an ecological tourism outfit in Cambodia, and Geoff’s look at the UN Security Council’s debate about the security threat of climate change.

Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen joined his former staffers (see “In Search of a New Security Narrative“) on the New Security Beat top 10 list last month after speaking at the Wilson Center in the inaugural Lee Hamilton lecture. Richard Cincotta’s look at Tunisia’s demographics also remained popular, joined by several posts on climate, security, and development, including ECSP’s “Yemen Beyond the Headlines” event.

1. In Search of a New Security Narrative: The National Conversation at the Wilson Center

2. Tunisia’s Shot at Democracy: What Demographics and Recent History Tell Us

3. Connections Between Climate and Stability: Lessons From Asia and Africa

4. Admiral Mullen: “Security Means More Than Defense,” Inaugural Lee Hamilton Lecture at the Wilson Center

5. Climate Adaptation, Development, and Peacebuilding in Fragile States: Finding the Triple-Bottom Line

Climate vulnerability, water access, the role of family planning in U.S. foreign policy, and the UN’s latest population projections joined the top ten list last month, while Captain Wayne Porter and Colonel Mark Mykleby’s new national strategic narrative, Tunisia’s demography, and India’s Maoists remained popular.

1. In Search of a New Security Narrative: The National Conversation at the Wilson Center

2. India’s Maoists: South Asia’s “Other” Insurgency

3. Tunisia’s Shot at Democracy: What Demographics and Recent History Tell Us

4. Eye on Environmental Security: Where Does It Hurt? Climate Vulnerability Index, Momentum Magazine

5. Population and Environment Connections: The Role of Family Planning in U.S. Foreign Policy

The launch of the “Mr. Y” national security narrative here at the Wilson Center topped the list of most popular stories last month, but IFAD’s latest rural poverty report, two interview features on population and development, and Richard Cincotta’s predictions on Tunisia also made the top 10.

1. In Search of a New Security Narrative: The National Conversation at the Wilson Center

2. Rural Poverty: The Bottom One Billion

3. Watch: Roger-Mark De Souza on the Scaling Advantages of Population, Health, and Environment Integration

4. Watch: David Lopez Carr and Liza Grandia on Rural Population Growth and Development in Guatemala

5. India’s Maoists: South Asia’s “Other” Insurgency