Dossier articles from the past 3 months
The Black Sea, besides being a transit zone for oil, is rich in energy deposits which caused it to be defined as ‘The New North Sea’. The exploration of these resources has accelerated in the past decade due to advances in technology that enabled the limits imposed by the presence of underlying geological risks and…
Read moreA further crucial element in the balance of power in the Black Sea is that of the control of the straits of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. In past centuries, these passages represented the largest prize in the geopolitical confrontation between Russia and Turkey. On the basis of the Montreux Convention of 1936, passage through…
Read moreThe Black Sea is situated in the centre of the vast geographical area that runs from the Adriatic to the Caspian Sea. Together with the Maghreb, the Mashreq and the Balkans, it constitutes one of the sub-regions of the Mediterranean Sea. The different strategic priorities of the countries facing the basin with their heterogeneous historical…
Read moreIt was the conflict that broke out between Russia and Georgia in 2008 that challenged the balance of power imposed by the United States in the area of the Black Sea. Georgia, after winning independence in 1991, adopted a pro-western stance with the aim of joining the North Atlantic Treaty. This induced Tbilisi to promote…
Read moreCrisis in the economy, public health and the environment. Six countries will go to the polls to elect their presidents. Will the Bolivia effect lead to new scenarios in the continent? Many unknowns. Latin America, together with the rest of the world, is fighting the Covid-19 pandemic that has badly affected the region already sorely…
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How to confront the consequences of Covid-19 as they affect the countries of Asia. China will continue its domination on the various international chessboards. India joins the Security Council. Meanwhile, the Olympics are to be held in Japan. The management of the first phases of the epidemic and the ambiguity that followed it concerning the…
Read moreClouds appear on the horizon in Sahel and forthcoming elections in several parts of the continent may contribute alongside with the economic crisis aggravated by the Covid 19 pandemic to raise tensions. The deteriorating security situation in the Sahel region and more particularly in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger is the main concern in West…
Read moreSocio-economic tensions rise but the COVID Pandemic buys time for governments under pressure. Tension between Ankara and Cairo. There are two lenses through which to frame prospects for the Middle East in 2021: the results of the U.S. election and the Abraham Accords that established the framework for diplomatic relations between Israel and the Persian…
Read moreIt is not easy to juggle the various interests that revolve around the GGW, and it is just as difficult to trace the nature of the funds that have flowed to back the Project, which started out as African, but ended up becoming international. “Economic resources are a problem”, said Abakar Zougoulou, Agency’s scientific director…
Read moreThe Great Green Wall’s goal is clear: to regenerate 100 million hectares of degraded land by 2030; to sequester 250 million tons of carbon dioxide; and to create 10 million jobs in rural areas, contributing directly to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Still, understanding what the results have been so far is more complex. If…
Read moreFrom a green wall of trees to a mosaic of ecosystems. From the moment it was conceived to now, The Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel (GGW) – has been radically transformed. The objective, however, has stayed the same: to curb soil degradation and to combat poverty. In June 2005, the Heads…
Read moreAny ecological rehabilitation of a territory must consider several factors, not the least of which is access to land. Farmers and shepherds, totaling some 232 million people living in the area surrounding the Sahara, are an integral part of the Green Wall, which aims to enhance community gardens, grazing areas, fruit groves, income trees, and…
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When asked how a farmer’s daughter who became a Catholic nun ended up as one of Brazil’s most influential refugee advocates, Sister Rosita Milesi, 79,…
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Vusi was an honest man and a hard worker. He had cleared a large piece of moorland and turned it into a beautiful fertile field. He…
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On 24 November, the Solemnity of Christ the King, on the occasion of World Youth Day in the Particular Churches, in St. Peter's Basilica the traditional…
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