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Vositha's Blog

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Vositha's Blog

Tag Archives: environment

Environmental Peacebuilding: An Introduction

03 Sunday Jun 2018

Posted by vositha in Environment

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Tags

environment, law, peacebuilding, Post Conflict Development

Throughout history, natural resources have been the cause of many conflicts. While scarcity of resources such as water has been the cause of conflict among communities for the remaining water supply, the abundance of expensive resources such as diamonds has also been a cause of conflict in countries such as Sierra Leone, Congo, Liberia, and Angola which have experienced decades of civil war over diamonds. [1] Other countries where natural resources are the cause of conflict are Guatemala, Nepal, and Yemen. [2]

While control over natural resources become a source of conflict, the conflicts that take place have been the cause of severe damage to countries’ environment as well. Research data indicates that 90 percent of the major armed conflicts from 1950 to 2000 occurred in countries which contain biodiversity hot-spots, heightening their impact on the environment. [3] While some damages to eco-systems and natural resources due to conflicts are intentional, others are indirect impacts. Irrespective of the manner in which the damages occur, their impacts remain over many years and increase the vulnerabilities of those affected by conflict. One of the many examples of conflicts creating grave impacts to the environment and natural resources could be the Persian Gulf War, in which over 500 oil wells were torched and destroyed.

Focusing on the important role that natural resources play in creation of conflicts and the impacts the environment endures due to them, many efforts at peace building in post war contexts turn to concepts that interlink resilience building in the post war/conflict areas with environmental protection. With impacts of phenomena such as climate change that affects the available resources, scientists project many conflicts to erupt in countries where natural resources are more vulnerable to such impacts, many of them in Asia and the Pacific. [4] And it is highly important that environmental management ensures that resource depletion does not lead to communal impacts which in turn lead to conflicts.

Initiatives which combine environmental protection with peace building include negotiations for resource sharing, as well as collective communal actions for resource utilization and protection. Good governance is key to avoiding conflicts due to unbalanced access to resources. And an increased awareness on ecosystems contributes to better protection of existing resources and a decrease in the scarcity of resources.

Many stakeholders in countries that have experienced civil wars and conflicts have engaged in practicing environmental peace building. This includes the United Nations as well as national governments and civil society organisations which have engaged in creating awareness, as well as taking active initiatives focusing on both environmental protection and peace building as a combined effort. Examples of such actions could be the development of the Forest Law and Policy in Liberia (2006) which aimed to prevent corruption and illegal logging.

Such efforts embrace the concept of environmental peacebuilding which focuses on integrating natural resource management in conflict prevention, mitigation, resolution, and recovery to build resilience in communities affected by conflict. [5] These efforts focus on how natural resources such as land use or control over water and ecosystems could be better structured in order to avoid conflicts, as well as how the supply of resources could be better governed in post conflict areas.

This article is an introduction on how environment and conflicts interlink, and aims for a better understanding of ways to address conflicts through environmental and ecosystem-based systems as well as through good governance. It is published as a first step to articles on different issues of focus for a better understanding of how natural resources can be the cause of conflicts, as well as how impacts and vulnerabilities increased through climate change and resource depletion can be addressed through strategic and well managed ways to ensure that conflicts based on resource distribution are avoided.

Footnotes:

[1] Conflict and Natural Resources, The Environment and Literacy Council, Retrieved from: https://enviroliteracy.org/land-use/conflict-natural-resources/

[2] Curwin, Daniel, “How Resource Wealth Fuels War,” The National Interest, Retrieved from: http://nationalinterest.org/feature/the-role-natural-resource-wealth-armed-conflicts-12195

[3] Ibid

[4] Blondel, Alice, “Climate Change Fuelling Research Based Conflict in Asia and the Pacific,” UNDP (2012) Restrived from: https://www.uncclearn.org/sites/default/files/inventory/undp304.pdf

[5] Environmental Peacebuilding, Retrieved from: https://environmentalpeacebuilding.org/

Switch off!

20 Sunday Mar 2011

Posted by vositha in Random Moments of Life, Relationships

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Tags

bright, consumption, energy, environment, feelings, insomnia, lights

Emotions for me have become like the lights I switch on. They are bright while they are on, and then quite useless when switched off. But the good thing with these lights, well they have switches, to be switched on when needed, and of course switched off when not needed. Bad thing with me? I just switch off and of course never switch on.

What am I ranting tonight? Simply that I have switched off. Wasting energy is never a good thing, does not help the environmental cause. So since the lights in my room always shine, thanks to my insomnia, I myself have decided that it is time I switched off. Sometimes “leaving the light on” for too long, does no one good, definitely no me! It becomes an over consumption of energy and pollutes the ambiance.

Hence, Vositha has switched off!

Good night to y’all!

Bitches come in ALL forms! Insomnia too!

02 Wednesday Mar 2011

Posted by vositha in Random Moments of Life

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

bitches, environment, insomnia, sleep

Insomnia has struck again and I am awake at 4 am. The birds have already started chirping away and I am still staring at a screen and typing words that would make not much sense to any but me.

Life has changed. For the best or for the worse not sure. But it surely has. And I have realised that “bitches” come in all forms and sizes. Well sometimes in all genders. Which kind of bitches am I speaking of here, well sometimes there are those who are evident to be the kind, and then there are those who are not so evident. I am sure most of us come across the latter who be more lethal than the prior. Yeah well what can you do, the world is full of bitches, dogs , people and other animals. Or and also trees and whatever else. (Yes I know my environment loving spirit is being very bitchy today and manifesting weird symptoms which I have no capacity of diagnosing) sigh!

Sleep.. where be thee? Far away and not anywhere close by to join one for a joint.

I remember Tahmina saying that the best conversations that she has had are those which she had while having a smoke. Well I can agree with her that smoking does initiate conversation, but then again for me both of those can initiate allergies. Not just smoking, conversations too. Both combined, well the deadliest and grievous allergy ever! Oh yeah, add to it those who lie. They make me sneeze too. Liars, smoke, conversations, sleep yes, I decided to add sleep to the list too though it seems that it is Sleep who seems to be allergic to me! Yes I pity Me!

Not sure if all these fit in, but it might make some sense in this nonsense!

(Shut up birds! Aaaaaaargh!)

I know I hate this woman! Not Tahmina, the woman with no sense or sentiment, the one who sucks all emotions, and whatever else from all surroundings. Yes, I guess I am ready to admit that I DO HATE HER!

Yes they say in psychology or something else which I forget in my sleeplessness that expressing anger or emotion helps, well to feel better or something. So yes that is what I am trying now. (Should tell Rathindra about the emotions part, and see his response, but then that can wait till tomorrow. Or is it today? Yes today! Aikes!)

Sigh! Dad awaketh, time to pretend to be sleeping!

Good morning to all those who are not suffering as I do and good night (hopefully) to those who do suffer as I do!

PS. Someone had called me a sweet and confused girl yesterday, and that made me very confused! Yes very!

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