Russia’s devastating invasion of Ukraine just over two years ago upset the larger foreign policy conversations surrounding global stability—and Russia’s role in it. Yet the conflict has brought the concept of water weaponization into the spotlight as well, especially after Russia’s destruction of the Nova Kakhovka Dam and other civilian infrastructure wreaked havoc in the region.

The world’s water is in trouble. Freshwater pollution, coupled with climate change, population growth, and increasing demand, threatens water quality and availability. Over the last 40 years, global water usage has increased every year by around 1% to support agriculture, industrial growth, and growing populations. The strain is clear already, as 26% of the world’s population lacks access to safe drinking water, and a whopping 46% lack access to basic sanitation.

The International Day of the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on March 21 offers a significant opportunity to reflect on a key issue in maternal health: despite global progress over the past 20 years, maternal deaths are rising across the Americas. Why?

Este ensayo se actualizó con una traducción al español, disponible después de la versión en inglés, a continuación.

Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries have committed to transitioning to a net zero economy by 2050. Will they be able to do so without leaving anyone behind? It is unlikely, if business models don’t change.

An annual investment of $700 billion will be needed to curb emissions from the energy sector and its end uses, as well as from agriculture, forestry and other land use. In the clean energy sector alone, investment must increase nearly fivefold from its 2022 level.

A window into what we are reading at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program

China is Leading the World on Renewable Energy (Yale 360)

In November, Chinese and U.S. climate envoys pledged to triple global renewable energy by 2030, signaling renewed cooperation between the top two greenhouse gas emitters. However, the two countries are not quite on equal footing when it comes to renewable energy.

Maternal mortality continues to be one of the scourges in global health. The fact that women die as part of bringing life is an indictment against the overall status of women around the world, and underscores the failure to prioritize women, mothers, and children. Efforts to draw attention to the causes of maternal death and the solutions to maternal mortality abound, but they fail to get enough attention from the decisionmakers who establish health priorities and allocate resources that could actually make a difference.

Iran’s southeastern province of Khuzestan—which borders Iraq—was already a dry and dangerous place. It was the site of the fiercest battles in the Iraq-Iran war which followed the Iranian Revolution in 1979, and to this day, the region still has many unexploded landmines.

Yet this legacy of violence is not the only issue facing its residents. As climate impacts mount in Khuzestan, the future looks bleak for both the region’s ecosystems and the people already living on this borderline.