Blogs on Natural Resources

  • World Rainforest Movement Bulletin - The World Rainforest Movement (WRM) is an international initiative that aims to contribute to struggles, reflections and political actions of forest-dependent peoples, indigenous, peasants and other communities in the global South. The WRM Bulletin has been published since 1997 to support the struggles of the peoples who defend their territories and forests against the direct and underlying causes of deforestation. One of its objectives is to help transmit the voices of the numerous resistance struggles, as well as to provide information on international plans and initiatives that deal with forests, warning about the risks and impacts on the lives of people who depend on them. The bulletin is distributed by e-mail, available on WRM’s website and printed in cases it is necessary to reach communities or organizations with little or no access to the internet.

  • BIOSEC - Running until August 2020, BIOSEC will look into what constitutes an environmental crime, the responses by the European Union to the illegal wildlife trade, and how new technology is being used to tackle poaching and trafficking. The project aims to generate new data on the illegal wildlife trade to demonstrate the ways that biodiversity protection and security are linked, as well as providing new approaches to understanding the links between the two.

  • Resources and Conflict Blog (R&C) - The R&C Blog offers a platform to present and discuss new ideas and empirical as well as conceptual findings within the conflict and natural resource field. In addition to this, R&C also publish reviews of recent journal articles and edited books.

  • The Conflict and Environment Observatory Blog - The CEOBS aggregates information on multiple conflicts and topics, to be a resource for policy-makers, researchers, activists and journalists interested in the environmental dimensions of armed conflicts. The CEOBS collects data on environmental harm and the human suffering it causes, and the means through which data could be used to inform greater protection for the environment, and for those who depend on it, before during and after armed conflicts. CEOBS’ work also considers the role of environmental factors in triggering or driving insecurity. The blog features regular posts on the relationship between conflict and the environment and posts can be searched by country/conflict and topic.

  • Environmental Change and Security Program - Since 1994, the Environmental Change and Security Program (ECSP) has actively pursued the connections between the environment, health, population, development, conflict, and security. ECSP brings together scholars, policymakers, media, and practitioners through events, research, publications, multimedia content, and its blog, New Security Beat.

  • Resource and Conflict Project - The Resources and Conflict Project analyzes combatants’ strategic and military choices during civil war. It develops new research designed to improve understanding of the dynamics of conflict and contribute to the development of policies that resolve conflicts. The project also creates new data sources at the organizational, micro-, and geographic levels that can be used by researchers and the policy community to address a wide range of issues about conflict dynamics.

  • Global Witness Blog - The Global Witness Blog features regular updates and analysis on Global Witness’s investigations into corruption, particularly in the extractive industries.

  • Environmental Investigation Agency - EIA uses undercover investigations to expose transnational wildlife crime, forest crimes, including illegal logging and deforestation for cash crops . It also investigates potential threats to global marine ecosystems by from plastic pollution and investigates corruption in the fossil fuel industry. EIA’s blog features updates on their work and the results of their investigations and campaigns.

  • The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) at the University of Massachusetts - The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) promotes human and ecological well-being through original research. PERI’s approach is to translate research into policy proposals that are capable of improving life on the plant. Since its founding, PERI has become a leading source of research and policy initiatives the economics of peace, development, and the environment.

Regional and Country-Specific Blogs

  • Papua New Guinea Mine Watch - The Papua New Guinea Mine Watch is a blog that tracks updates to ongoing controversies regarding extractive industries in Papua New Guinea and surrounding areas. It frequently features posts on the Ramu Mine, the Gold Ridge Mine in the Solomon Islands, the Basamuk chemical spill, and the ongoing attempt to repair damage from the OK Tedi Spill.

  • MiningWatch Canada Blog - MiningWatch Canada is a pan-Canadian initiative supported by environmental, social justice, Indigenous and labor organisations from across the country. It addresses the urgent need for a co-ordinated public interest response to the threats to public health, water and air quality, fish and wildlife habitat, and community interests posed by irresponsible mineral policies and practices in Canada and around the world.