Can militant groups be environmentalists?
The case for engaging with militant groups to protect the environment Competition over scarce natural resources is often a key driver of the tensions that fuel armed conflict in different corners of the world. Yet in the heat of battle, environmental considerations are often relegated to afterthoughts, as smoke from burning buildings clouds the skies [...]
Dam building projects could fuel water stress in Middle East
While scientists warn of their negative impact on biodiversity, the autonomous Kurdistan Region is building multiple dams to respond to water insecurity. Local groups fear shortages and raised tensions could follow. Over the last 30 years, Jassim Al-Asadi has witnessed the Mesopotamian Marshes of southern Iraq where he was born undergo dramatic changes. Once the [...]
Iraqi Kurdistan’s archaeological hotspots revived, but vulnerable
Political uncertainty, a protracted economic crisis and rapid development pose challenges to heritage conservation in the archaeologically rich Kurdistan Region of Iraq. In late October, University of Tübingen archaeologists working in the Kurdish region of Iraq discovered a cuneiform archive of 93 clay tablets belonging to the Middle Assyrian Empire and dating from 1250 BCE. [...]
Businessman Pioneers Emu Farming in Kurdistan
The tall flightless birds who call the warm, red earth of Australia home were brought here by Hassan Ali Rahman three years ago, when he set out to establish the region's first emu farm. GIRDASUR, Kurdistan Region – Hidden among the hills at the end of a dusty dirt road, from afar the farm appears [...]