President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf—the first elected female head of state in Africa—spoke in Washington on Monday about the progress and challenges to development in her country. Efforts to expand development beyond the capital city of Monrovia (electricity and running water only recently returned after a 15-year hiatus) have been hampered by time spent pleading with international lenders to forgive the odious debt incurred during Charles Taylor’s regime.

Years of drought, irregular rainfall, and environmental degradation ravaged Africa’s Sahel region in the 1970s and ‘80s, exacerbating economic, social, and environmental conditions in one of the world’s poorest regions. Coupled with an exploding population, these events provoked a collective re-think on development and conservation policy—shifting toward regional schemes to boost local capacities, establish effective land use policies, and improve community resilience to unpredictable climate conditions. Farmers in southern Niger provide a success story, reports The New York Times:

Congressional Democrats agreed last week to spend $4.5 billion in 2007 to combat AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis , signaling support of the Bush Administration’s earlier efforts to strengthen international programs aimed thwarting the diseases. New York Representative Nita M. Lowey said the joint support is a sign of the times:

“We’re in a different world now…. This is the first time since Sept. 11 we’ve had a power split in Washington, and there’s a growing recognition among the public and policy makers that foreign assistance is critical to stability around the world.”

Under Bush’s leadership, aid has quietly risen to more than twice the level of any previous administration. The upward trend reflects Washington’s renewed commitment to stemming the spread of AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, which continue to claim the lives of millions of people around the world each year.

The effects of climate change could launch a new wave of conflict and terrorism, say climate and security experts. Increased drought and refugee migration resulting from rising sea levels could lead to conflict in the countries worst affected by global warming.

Sir Crispin Tickell, Britain’s former ambassador to the United Nations, said terrorists might exploit these tensions, reported Reuters:

Under an earmark in the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), free HIV/AIDS antiretroviral medication will be made available to military and civilians at a Vietnamese military hospital. The program, a collaboration of PEPFAR and the U.S. Department of Defense, will extend to other military hospitals in the future. Vietnam is one of 67 countries worldwide working to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS through involvement with militaries.

The German EU Council Presidency will host a conference on European and national approaches and challenges to integrating environment, development, and conflict prevention in Berlin from March 29-30, 2007. Representatives from EU member states and the European Commission, civil society, the private sector, and the scientific community will identify and discuss key issues, and recommend ways to address the interdependency of environment, development, and conflict prevention policies and programs. Adelphi Research is a collaborating organizer of this conference.

Registration deadline is March 1.

In the hills near Addis Ababa, the protected eucalyptus forest presents a lucrative but risky enterprise, reports the Christian Science Monitor. The forest wood, often collected by women and young girls, can sell at market and greatly subsidize meager Ethiopian incomes. But if caught, the women are beat or raped by forest guards. No one, it seems, looks out for them:

“When the guards find us with wood, they beat us hard,” says Maselech [Mercho], who is now 10. “If we give them money, they leave us alone. If they get drunk, they try to rape us. We will scream for help, but when we scream in these forests, there is nobody to lend us a hand.”

But the organization Former Women Fuel Wood Carriers Association is expanding its operations in Ethiopia to teach girls and women new skills and livelihoods that will keep them out of the forests, away from danger, and also protect the environment.

Need to know what the Department of Defense is doing on the environment? The official version is readily accessible at the Defense Environmental Network & Information eXchange (DENIX). Lots on the mess DOD makes, the rules and regs for making less of a mess, and their steps to lower their ecological footprint.

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