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ECSP Weekly Watch | September 4 – 8
›A window into what we are reading at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program
Peace and Prosperity in the Sahel: Climate Security is Key
Liptako-Gourma is a landlocked region located on the borders of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. It possesses significant mineral, water, and biodiversity resources, and strategically positioned for both economic opportunities and cultural exchange.
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ECSP Weekly Watch | August 14 – 18
›A window into what we are reading at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program
Thirst for Relief: Prolonged Drought Intensifies Afghanistan’s Humanitarian Crisis
Afghanistan is the world’s sixth most affected country by climate-related threats—and its present acute challenge is water scarcity, intensified by climate change. The country is heavily reliant on agriculture, which makes up a third of its GDP.
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No Water, No Food – Glacier Loss Threatens US and Chinese Agriculture
›Picture this: A parade of yaks carrying insulated boxes containing meter-long ice core samples from Tibetan glaciers. “Yaks are like cats,” elite glacier scientist Lonnie Thompson explained in a 2023 Wilson Center webinar. They like to wander off — and it takes experienced Tibetan yak herders to keep them moving in the same direction.
Yet these yak-schlepped ice cores are essential to climate science, added Ellen Mosely Thompson. They store thousands of years of atmospheric dust and gasses in distinct layers and serve as a record of our changing climate.
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ECSP Weekly Watch | July 10 – 14
›A window into what we are reading at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program
Rough Waters: Sri Lanka’s Fishermen Face Climate Challenges and Economic Woes
Close to 2.4 million Sri Lankans are employed in that nation’s fisheries, and the bounty of its seas and freshwater bodies make up close to half of the country’s animal-based protein. But now the livelihood that has sustained these workers for generations faces growing constraints.
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ECSP Weekly Watch | July 3 – 7
›A window into what we are reading at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program
In Conflict-Affected Somalia, Climate Change Adds to Migration Pressures
In the Somalian coastal town of Hobyo, thousands of residents—some of whom settled there to flee the country’s civil war—are starting to leave. Why? Their homes are being engulfed by sand.
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Water @ Wilson | The Significance of the Coming El Niño: Understanding the Science and Preparing for Its Impacts
›When the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) declared the beginning of an El Niño event on June 8, 2023, the recurring climate pattern featured in headlines all over the world as media outlets sought to cover its anticipated impacts.
A recent Water @ Wilson event –“The Significance of the Coming El Niño: Understanding the Science and Preparing for its Impacts”—brought together experts at the Wilson Center to explain the complex science behind El Niño and explore its regional implications. The speakers also surveyed the policy tools at our disposal to prepare for its significant climate effects.
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Bottom-up Moo-vement: Reducing Methane Emissions from US and Chinese Cows
›When cows eat, they burp. And what they exhale generates almost a third of global methane emissions – a greenhouse gas 80 times more potent in warming the climate than CO2. So tracking this short-lived climate gas is crucial.
Six miles from Bakersfield, California, at the Bear 5 cow feedlot, this work is starting to happen. High-resolution satellites are being used for the first time at the feedlot to track methane emissions from cow burps. Measuring cow belches from space is bringing critical attention to the brewing climate issues from cows. After all, the methane produced by these gassy animals in one year at Bear 5 cow feedlot alone could power more than 15,000 homes in California.
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Tackling Challenges in the MENA Region: Climate, Food Security, and Migration
›At a recent Brookings Institution event titled Climate Change, Food Insecurity, and Migration in the Middle East, Ferid Belhaj, Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) at the World Bank, observed that the MENA region relies heavily on grain exported from both Ukraine and Russia. When the 2022 invasion reduced grain exports to a trickle, the entire region suffered heavily.
Showing posts from category food security.