Deterrence in the Persian Gulf: Why American Efforts to Contain Iran Are Failing
The doublespeak that so often characterizes political life takes on a unique potency in the context of shadow wars. States engaged in such conflicts have a multitude of incentives to deny, distract from, and downplay their level of engagement to appease domestic and...
Corruption, Collaboration and Controversy: A Tale of a Czech Populist PM.
By: Jonathan Ocadiz* In the summer of 2019, Prague was the center of mass protests of historical proportions. In protests that mirrored demonstrations from nearly three decades ago in Prague’s picturesque boulevards, more than 100,000 citizens gathered at one...
Why Would Bolsonaro Reject Aid in Combatting the Amazon Wildfires?
“The world needs the forest. We need it and our children need it,” Handech Wakana Mura, of the indigenous Mura people, explained somberly. [1] “We are sad because the forest is dying constantly.” [2] To those outside of the local and indigenous communities, the...
The Case for US Involvement In Yemen
By: Ronnan Rodas* Despite earning the unfortunate title of the world’s “forgotten war”, the ongoing conflict in Yemen is by no means one we should ignore. In a civil war in which the death toll will likely exceed 233,000 by the end of the year [1], the status quo in...
Women at the Forefront of Sudan’s Uprising
By: Fatime-Zara Beri* This past April has ushered in a new change in Sudan. The spirit of revolution has taken over the citizens of Sudan. At the center of the revolution are women.[1] Massive scores of women protesters take to the streets in Khartoum, the capital of...
The United States’ Withdraw from Syria
By: Molly Cook* “We have defeated ISIS.”[1] These are words that every American has been waiting to hear since the deadly attack on the United States on September 11, 2001. This attack was carried out by al-Qaida leader, Osama bin Laden; however, ISIS was built and...
The Cuban Thaw
By: Ronnan Rodas* The United States and Cuba have maintained a relationship marked by a missile crisis, embargoes, and a general, mutual distrust for one another. The apparent detente established by Barack Obama has been targeted by President Trump in an effort to...
Under Pressure: Analyzing the Future of NATO
By: Connor A. McNairn* Throughout its 70-year history, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has proved relatively efficient at providing collective security for both North America and Western Europe. It achieved its principal goal of the twentieth century,...
Democracy in Africa: Progression or Regression?
By: Harold Niebel* In the past several months, many African countries have conducted presidential elections. The elections in Senegal, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Nigeria vary in legitimacy and reputability reflecting the contemporary challenges...
The Threat of President Bolsonaro towards Brazil’s Indigenous Peoples
In the summer of 2018, FUNAI, Brazil’s National Indian Foundation, posted two videos, both of which received millions of views, of uncontacted indigenous peoples living within the state’s Amazon rainforest on protected territories. [1] The two videos, recorded...
Chaos in Venezuela: The Perils of Failed Petrostrates and Bloated Executives
By: Connor A. McNairn* Venezuela, a once rich and powerful Latin American state sitting on the world’s largest oil reserves, presently serves as a compelling case study in the vulnerabilities of petrostates and the consequences of poor governance. Venezuela’s oil...
The Territorial Dispute Over the South China Sea
By: Molly Cook* As early as the 1970s, countries began to claim islands and various zones in the South China Sea.[1] However, recently China has intensified their territorial ambitions in the South China Sea, showing no remorse for their aggressive and destructive...
A New Economy For Africa: The effects Of Chinese Infiltration
Bézawit Tenna * As the proverb says, “Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you have fed him for a lifetime.” That implies if you give a man the answer, he will only have a temporary solution. But if you teach him the principles...
Checking In: Reviewing Progress in UNDP’s Development Goals
By: Theron Abell* In 2015, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) created a list of aspirations for the global community. Referred to as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) these seventeen targets are designed to be met by 2030. By examining a handful...
Challenging Africa’s Upcoming Elections: Female Heads of States
By: Fatime Beri* On October 25, 2018, Ethiopia’s parliament approved senior diplomat Sahle-Worke Zewde as the country’s first female president. In a unanimous vote during the second Special Joint Session of Ethiopia's two houses of parliament - the House of Peoples'...
No Rest for the Rohingya: A Call to Action
By: Ezihe Chikwere* Ethnic, religious, and cultural differences can be catalysts for perpetuated violence. However, the recurrence of violence around the world should not lead the international community to normalize crimes against humanity. Due to every state...
The Regional Legacy of Rwanda’s Genocide
By: Harold Niebel* April 7, 1994 marks a day of solemnity and mourning for Rwandans, as it is a day to reflect on the Rwandan Genocide that occurred in the early 1990s. In 100 days, 800,000 Tutsis were massacred on the streets of Rwanda, and millions of Rwandans...
Can Global Leaders Compromise by December in Order to Establish Guidelines for the Paris Accord?
By: Alyssa Lennon* On the morning of September 14th, Hurricane Florence landed in North Carolina, wreaking havoc on the eastern coast of the United States despite having downgraded to a Category 1 storm by landfall[1].The storm decimated the southeastern United...
