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Iran’s Water Challenge
May 31st, 2017
Via the Washington Post, commentary on Iran’s water challenges: On May 19, Iran goes to the polls to select a new president. So far the campaign has been dominated by the economy. Unemployment is high, and oil prices are low. The lifting of sanctions following Tehran’s nuclear agreement with the West has yet to yield […]
Read more »How an Iranian Water Crisis Could Intensify Regional Geopolitics, the Country’s Brain Drain and the Deep State
May 31st, 2017
Via Future Directions International, commentary on how an Iranian water crisis could intensify regional geopolitics, the country’s brain drain and the deep state: Background A recent op-ed in the Washington Post has brought back into light the looming Iranian water crisis capable of displacing as many as 50 million people within 25 years or less. The elite Islamic […]
Read more »Water: One of Canada’s Biggest Potential Exports
May 29th, 2017
Via Business In Vancouver, commentary on how Canadian water could be one of the country’s biggest commodity export opportunities by 2030: It’s 2030, and you are headed to a public hearing on a proposed new pipeline project. Not an oil pipeline, but a freshwater pipeline that would move water from British Columbia to Southern California. […]
Read more »The Cuban Water Crisis
May 27th, 2017
Via the Miami Herald, a report on Cuba’s water crisis: Men sit on the steps and play a hand of cards, women chat outside barred windows, stray dogs missing tufts of fur trot by. Taxi drivers call it the last stop in Havana. The locals call the neighborhood El barrio de Jesus María. Up the […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Addressing Water Insecurity in Central Asia – A Steppe on the One Belt, One Road Initiative?
May 25th, 2017
Courtesy of Future Directions International, an interesting look at Key Points Central Asia is integral to Chinese efforts to increase its global connectivity. Natural resource constraints, including access to water, could undermine its influence in the region. Given the legacy of failed foreign water infrastructure in the region, any Chinese efforts to address water insecurity […]
Read more »Environmental Concerns Unlikely To Threaten Chinese Plans To Dredge Thai Mekong
May 25th, 2017
Via Future Directions International, an article on China’s plan to dredge the Mekong River: China’s plan to dredge the Mekong River to open the trade route to larger cargo ships has been met with protests in Thailand. As agreed by China, Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, the project aims to improve cargo access to 630 kilometres […]
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