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The Last Straw For Failed States?
July 28th, 2009
Via Foreign Policy, yet another sobering look at how climate change & water scarcity may affect failing states around the world: “…Hopelessly overcrowded, crippled by poverty, teeming with Islamist militancy, careless with its nukes—it sometimes seems as if Pakistan can’t get any more terrifying. But forget about the Taliban: The country’s troubles today pale compared […]
Read more »Trickle Down From The Last Straw
July 13th, 2009
Courtesy of Climate Progress, some additional thoughts on the regional chaos that may emerge in South Asia if the Kashmir glaciers in the Himalaya continue to melt. Since we blogged earlier about Stephen Faris’ original report in Foreign Policy that focuses focusing on Pakistan’s unsustainable dependence on Kashmiri waters – a dependence that only exacerbates […]
Read more »Water Woes For Failing States: The Last Straw In South Asia?
July 4th, 2009
Via Foreign Policy, a sobering look at the likely impact that water shortages will have upon already tense relations between India and Pakistan. As the report notes, the Kashmiri water crisis has the potential to plunge South Asia into chaos: “…When it comes to the stability of one of the world’s most volatile regions, it’s […]
Read more »China Builds A Dam on The Indus Without Informing Downstream Users
March 26th, 2009
Via The International News, a report that – without informing the other users of Indus River – China has built a dam at catchment area of the river in Tibet at Senge-Ali. As the article notes: “…Alice Albinia, a British journalist and writer who recently visited Indus up to its roots, wrote in her book […]
Read more »South Asia: 25% of The World’s Population Accesses <5% of The World's Freshwater
February 16th, 2009
Via Celsias, details of a startling new UN report indicating that hundreds of millions of South Asians face growing water stress due to over exploitation, climate change and inadequate cooperation among countries. As the article notes: “…South Asia is home to one-fourth of the global population, including some of the world’s poorest people, who have […]
Read more »The Tibetan Plateau: A Freshwater Bank In Crisis
January 5th, 2009
The Asia Society has produced a documentary about the impact of global warming on the Tibetan plateau, the rivers which originate there, and the people who depend on them to live. From the introduction: As the source of most of the major river systems in Asia from China to Pakistan, including the Yellow, the Yangtze, […]
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