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The Thirsty Dragon and Parched Tiger: India and China in Deep Water over Himalayan Hydropower
December 15th, 2025
Via East Asia Forum, a report on how India’s US$77 billion Brahmaputra hydropower initiative and China’s mega-dam at the Yarlung–Tsangpo Great Bend are turning the Himalayas into a digital hydropower flashpoint. Both states are tying dams to AI-enabled grids and data centres, but share no mechanism to manage the Brahmaputra. As China preserves its ‘hydrological […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: COP30 and China’s Tibetan Plateau Paradox
November 7th, 2025
Via The Diplomat, a look at how China’s stewardship of the Third Pole will shape not only Asia’s water security but the credibility of global climate cooperation. Amid the crowded headlines on the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait, another transformation of considerable consequence is unfolding quietly on the roof of the world. The Tibetan […]
Read more »No Water, No Growth: Rising River Risks Threaten Half The Total GDP of 16 Asian Countries
October 28th, 2025
Via China Water Risk, a look at a new report that reveals that nearly 2bn people and US$10.3trn worth of GDP as well as 800GW+ of power assets across Asia’s 10 “mother” rivers are at risk from escalating climate risks and deepening water stress: A new report “No Water, No Growth 2 – Rising “mother” […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Will World’s Largest Dam Project be Big Enough for China’s Economy?
October 17th, 2025
Via Nikkei Asia, a detailed look at whether the planned Yarlung Tsangpo power plant can revive China’s growth momentum: Addressing ordered ranks of construction workers, government officials and cadres in traditional Tibetan dress standing at attention in a clearing ringed by misty Himalayan mountain peaks, Chinese Premier Li Qiang three months ago hailed the official […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon and Parched Tiger: China’s Tibetan Mega-Dam Is Veiled in Secrecy
October 11th, 2025
Via Foreign Policy, a look at the veil of secrecy surrounding China’s Tibetan mega-dam: When Wen visited the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon in the spring of 2025, the independent Chinese ecologist saw numerous heavy trucks loaded with construction materials along Medog county in the southeastern part of the Tibet Autonomous Region. Only a single, narrow […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: China’s Himalayan Mega-Dam Is A Global Threat
September 20th, 2025
Via Nikkei Asia, commentary on China’s planned Himalayan mega-dam – the largest dam ever conceived – symbolizes China’s bid, from oil to water, for 21st-century dominance: China is about to upend the world’s hydrological balance — with consequences as far-reaching as climate change itself. Its $168 billion Himalayan super-dam represents not merely the world’s costliest […]
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