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Benno Hansen

Do nations go to war over water? : Article : Nature - 1 views

www.nature.com/...458282a.html

war nature climate change water israel palestine nile egypt sudan ethiopia india pakistan conflict

shared by Benno Hansen on 25 Mar 09 - Cached
  • There are 263 cross-boundary waterways in the world. Between 1948 and 1999, cooperation over water, including the signing of treaties, far outweighed conflict over water and violent conflict in particular. Of 1,831 instances of interactions over international freshwater resources tallied over that time period (including everything from unofficial verbal exchanges to economic agreements or military action), 67% were cooperative, only 28% were conflictive, and the remaining 5% were neutral or insignificant. In those five decades, there were no formal declarations of war over water2.
  • it is foolish for Israel, a water-short country, to grow and then export products such as oranges and avocados, which require a lot of water to cultivate
  • water 'embedded' in traded products could be important in explaining the absence of conflict over water
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • as poor countries diversify their economies, they turn away from agriculture and create wealth from industries that use less water. As a country becomes richer, it may require more water overall to sustain its booming population, but it can afford to import food to make up the shortfall
  • Israel ran out of water in the 1950s: it has not since then produced enough water to meet all of its needs, including food production. Jordan has been in the same situation since the 1960s; Egypt since the 1970s. Although it is true that these countries have fought wars with each other, they have not fought over water. Instead they all import grain.
  • Palestinian and Israeli water professionals interact on a Joint Water Committee, established by the Oslo-II Accords in 1995. It is not an equal partnership: Israel has de facto veto power on the committee.
  • Inequitable access to water resources is a result of the broader conflict and power dynamics: it does not itself cause war.
    • Benno Hansen
      Benno Hansen on 25 Mar 09
       
      From causation to hen/egg
  • although India and Pakistan have fought three wars and frequently find themselves in eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation, the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, arbitrated by the World Bank, has more than once helped to defuse tensions over water
  • predictions of armed conflict come from the media and from popular, non-peer-reviewed work
  • I offered to revise its thesis, but my publishers pointed out that predicting an absence of war over water would not sell.
  • most importantly, improve the conditions of trade for developing countries to strengthen their economies
Benno Hansen

A Day to Prevent Exploitation of the Environment in War - 0 views

www.ens-newswire.com/...2008-11-06-02.asp

un congo ecowar environment war

shared by Benno Hansen on 10 Nov 08 - Cached
  • "The natural environment enjoys protection under Protocol 1 of the Geneva Conventions," Ban said. "But this protection is often violated during war and armed conflict. Water wells are polluted, crops torched, forests cut down, soils poisoned, and animals killed, all in order to gain military advantage."
  • Since the outbreak of fighting in August 1998, the conflicts have been rooted in struggles for control of natural resources such as water, timber, diamonds and other minerals as well as various political agendas.
  • "The United Nations attaches great importance to ensuring that action on the environment is part of our approach to peace," Ban stressed today. "Protecting the environment can help countries create employment opportunities, promote development and avoid a relapse into armed conflict.
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Ban said that the UN is studying the environmental impacts of conflicts around the world, from the Balkans to Afghanistan, from Lebanon to the Sudan.
  • Lasting peace in war-torn Darfur will depend in part on resolving the underlying competition for water and fertile land, Ban said, adding that there can be no durable peace in Afghanistan if the natural resources that sustain livelihoods and ecosystems are destroyed.
  • "We have seen how environmental damage and the collapse of institutions are threatening human health, livelihoods and security," he said. "These risks can also jeopardize fragile peace and development in post-conflict societies." "Let us renew our commitment to preventing the exploitation of the environment in times of conflict," said the secretary-general, "and to protecting the environment as a pillar of our work for peace."
Benno Hansen

Climate Change Could Be Impetus For Wars, Other Conflicts, Expert Says - 0 views

www.sciencedaily.com/...080821164304.htm

change climate conflict global war warming

shared by Benno Hansen on 26 Aug 08 - Cached
  • discussion has ensued among international-security experts who believe climate-change-related damage to global ecosystems and the resulting competition for natural resources may increasingly serve as triggers for wars and other conflicts in the future.
  • most possibly destabilizing populations and governments: degradation of freshwater resources, food insecurity, natural disasters and environmental migration.
  • the number of world regions vulnerable to drought was expected to rise
  • ...6 more annotations...
  • “The associated socio-economic and political stress can undermine the functioning of communities, the effectiveness of institutions, and the stability of societal structures. These degraded conditions could contribute to civil strife, and, worse, armed conflict.”
  • “Most critical for human survival are water and food, which are sensitive to changing climatic conditions,”
  • “Large areas of Africa are suffering from scarcity of food and fresh water resources, making them more vulnerable to conflict.
  • “Although climate change bears a significant conflict potential, it can also transform the international system toward more cooperation if it is seen as a common threat that requires joint action,”
  • the seeming conflict between environment and the economy will be best overcome with the recognition that protecting the climate in the best interest of the economy.”
  • “History has shown how dependent our culture is on a narrow window of climatic conditions for average temperature and precipitation,”
Alex Parker

Behind the US EPA's 'war on coal' - Industry squares up for a fight - 1 views

www.power-technology.com/...squares-up-for-a-fight-4318532

environment sustainability energy climate change environmentalism green

shared by Alex Parker on 18 Jul 14 - No Cached
  • Alex Parker on 18 Jul 14
     
    The US Environmental Protection Agency has been accused of 'waging a war' on coal after announcing proposals to reduce CO2 emitted by coal-fired power plants. Industry has called the proposals "extreme" and "ill-advised" and it is poised for a fight. But should the EPA be the coal industry's only concern?
Benno Hansen

United Nations News Centre - On international day, Ban underscores bond between peace a... - 0 views

www.un.org/...story.asp

united nations peace environment

shared by Benno Hansen on 06 Nov 12 - No Cached
  • “War and armed conflict shred the fabric of sustainable development,” Mr. Ban said
  • “There can be no peace if the resource base that people depend on for sustenance and income is damaged or destroyed – or if illegal exploitation finances or causes conflict,”
  • “Let us reaffirm our commitment to sustainably managing and safeguarding vital natural resources in times of peace and war,” Mr. Ban said in his message. “Let us do more to prevent conflicts over natural resources and maximize their benefits for maintaining and building peace.”
Joelle Nebbe-Mornod

BEarthright - Spiritual Economics - 0 views

www.geocities.ws/3046

economics spiritual

shared by Joelle Nebbe-Mornod on 25 Jun 16 - Cached
  • Joelle Nebbe-Mornod on 25 Jun 16
     
    "If you own no land to support yourself, you must rent, hire or buy it from those that do, so that you may both live and make a living If you cannot use the planet to feed, clothe and provide for yourself then to stay alive, you must choose to either work for those who own your planet, to become a thief or a beggar, or to die. This servitude has taken on many forms throughout history: slavery, serfdom, day-labour, employment. The only variation being the share of the wealth produced left to the planet borrowers by the planet owners This simple reality underlies much of today's poverty, inequality, lack of freedom, unemployment and powerlessness, experienced as the sheer struggle to get by that looms so large in so many peoples' lives These latter day pharaohs, the planet owners, the richest 5% - allow the rest of us to pay day after day for the right to live on their planet. And as we make them richer, they buy yet more of the planet for themselves, and use their wealth and power to fight amongst themselves over what each posesses ~ though of course it's actually us who have to fight and die in their wars"
Benno Hansen

Naomi Klein: Economic Model Is at War With Life on Earth: Video - Bloomberg - 3 views

www.bloomberg.com/...th-xPrW95e6S8eBShzSV6i4qQ.html

climate change naomi klein capitalism

shared by Benno Hansen on 04 Oct 14 - No Cached
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  • Benno Hansen on 04 Oct 14
     
    7:23 video: Naomi Klein, author of "This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate," discusses climate change and the economics of the energy industry with Pimm Fox on "Taking Stock."
Benno Hansen

Range War In the West - FOXNews.com - 0 views

www.foxnews.com/...range-war-west

opinion fox news cattle herding endangered species meat environmentalism usa

shared by Benno Hansen on 20 Jul 09 - Cached
  • Benno Hansen on 20 Jul 09
     
    Fox "News" attacking environmentalists, defending cowboys. Price of steak of ultimate importance
Benno Hansen

Industrialized Farming Endangers World Food Supply - 0 views

www.ziopedia.org/...ng_endangers_world_food_supply

shared by Benno Hansen on 20 Jun 09 - Cached
  • Multi-national food corporations are increasingly using global food insecurity as a tool for political control.
  • rich countries are buying poor countries’ fertile soil, water and sun to ship food and fuel back home.
  • “USAID is actually an arm of the US-Department of Defense; it serves US foreign policy interest and has little to do with humanism.”
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  • South Africa repeats the pattern of Iraq and of Afghanistan, where new laws prohibit farmers to save or trade their own seeds.
  • The Oil-for-Food program in Iraq forced the large-scale importation of food after the first Gulf War. Devastated Iraqi farmers then became the victims of USAID.
  • Under US occupation, Iraqi farmers must pay a “technology fee” plus an annual license fee to agribusinesses supplying the seeds and equipment. Similar policies exist in Afghanistan
  • “The war provides these corporations with both a lucrative short-term market in the blossoming “reconstruction” industry and an opportunity to integrate Afghanistan into their global production networks and markets in the long term.”
Joelle Nebbe-Mornod

The Super Chickpea, and the silent heroes in the war against hunger. | CCAFS - 0 views

www.ccafs.cgiar.org/...lent-heroes-war-against-hunger

chickpea

shared by Joelle Nebbe-Mornod on 19 Feb 11 - No Cached
  • Joelle Nebbe-Mornod on 19 Feb 11
     
    Sufficient food, but also a balanced food intake are key to battle malnutrition. Often the world's attention goes to staple foods like rice, maize or wheat. We often forget it takes other crops too, to make a balanced diet, in a global fight against hunger. Chickpeas is one of those crops, and an important one, as they make up for more than 20 percent of the world pulse production. Chickpeas contain 22-25% proteins, and 2-3 times more iron and zinc than wheat. Chickpea protein quality is better than other pulses. … So understandably, agricultural researchers, like Dr. Pooran M.Gaur, a principal scientist and chickpea breeder at ICRISAT, make continuous efforts to develop new chickpea varieties, adapted to fast changing environmental conditions. "Super Chickpeas", as it were. Bred by -what I would not hesitate to call - "super scientists", in the quiet isolation of agricultural research centers.
Benno Hansen

Aiko Stevenson: Rio+20: "We Are Made Wise by the Responsibility of Our Future" - 0 views

www.huffingtonpost.com/...rio20-summit_b_1526687.html

future climate change sustainability environmentalism

shared by Benno Hansen on 22 May 12 - No Cached
  • "Ecocide is in essence the very antithesis of life. It leads to resource depletion, and where there is an escalation of resource depletion, war comes chasing behind."
Alex Parker

60 years of Eurovision in 8 tech-aways - 1 views

www.cbronline.com/...ision-in-10-tech-aways-4582922

environment energy

shared by Alex Parker on 28 May 15 - No Cached
  • Alex Parker on 28 May 15
     
    The contest introduced colour TV, intercontinental voting systems and uses the world's largest LED displays. The Eurovision Song Contest is a special occasion where countries like Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and many more come together under the same roof. The contest, originally created to unite Europe after the war, also started as a technological experiment.
Benno Hansen

RealClimate: The global cooling mole - 1 views

www.realclimate.org/...the-global-cooling-mole

global cooling warming climate change science

shared by Benno Hansen on 04 Mar 09 - Cached
  • To veterans of the Climate Wars, the old 1970s global cooling canard - "How can we believe climate scientists about global warming today when back in the 1970s they told us an ice age was imminent?" - must seem like a never-ending game of Whack-a-mole.
  • during the 1970s, when some would have you believe scientists were predicting a coming ice age, they were doing no such thing. The dominant view, even then, was that increasing levels of greenhouse gases were likely to dominate any changes we might see in climate on human time scales.
  • Benno Hansen on 04 Mar 09
     
    Contrary to claims of "skeptics" 70ies scientists didn't predict global cooling.
Mark Kabbbash

a sick graph!!! - A must see. People should know. - 1 views

www.equitygroups.com/...127294.html

investing environment war waste

shared by Mark Kabbbash on 27 Feb 09 - Cached
  • Mark Kabbbash on 27 Feb 09
     
    These figures are in millions. The source for energy R&D expenditures is from the National Council for Science and the Environment. Take a look here:
Benno Hansen

IRIN Middle East | Middle East | Lebanon | LEBANON: Climate change and politics threate... - 0 views

www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx

water palestine drought israel

shared by Benno Hansen on 02 Feb 09 - Cached
  • rising temperatures, spiralling population growth and inefficient irrigation are severely straining resources and threatening renewed economic and social breakdown.
  • Lebanon has the highest annual rainfall in the region, averaging 827mm compared to 630mm in Israel, 252mm in Syria and just 154mm in Iraq
  • Yet experts estimate that demand for water in Lebanon will have increased by more than 80 percent by 2025 as Lebanon’s population is expected to grow from four to 7.6 million. In the same period, as a result of climate change, average summer temperatures in the country are predicted to increase by 1.2 degrees centigrade.
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • Across areas of the northern Bekaa with better irrigation, many farmers have turned land over to growing water-thirsty but economically lucrative hashish plants – totalling some 16,000 acres of land
  • The valley is an economically underdeveloped area where more than 40 percent of residents are dependent on agriculture as their main source of living
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