October 12, 2015 – Our Weekly Selection
Our weekly selection of articles on Syria’s economy and society.
The End of Food Security in Syria and the Regime’s Plan to Create “Miracle Wheat”: “The Ministry of Agriculture has never laid out a plan that reflects the true dimension of cultivated areas in Syria.”
What 5 Entrepreneurs Are Doing to Aid the Syrian Refugee Crisis: “While governments struggle with an influx of refugees, businesses are also jumping in with aid.”
SYRIAN REFUGEES INCREASINGLY RETURN TO WAR ZONES IN HOMELAND: “Growing numbers of Syrian refugees are returning to their war-ravaged homeland from Jordan because they can’t survive in exile after drastic aid cuts, can’t afford to pay smugglers to sneak them into Europe or are simply homesick.”
Syria’s war helped create an epic dust storm, scientists say: “Haaretz’s report suggests this is tied to a dramatic change in the Syrian environment, where large-scale agricultural work has ceased and war has literally wracked the land.”
Syria crisis: Typhoid and hepatitis spreads around region as refugees flee: “The risk is so severe it could pose a threat to the wider region and Europe.”
Over-grazing and desertification in the Syrian steppe are the root causes of war: “Civil war in Syria is the result of the desertification of the ecologically fragile Syrian steppe, writes Gianluca Serra – a process that began in 1958 when the former Bedouin commons were opened up to unrestricted grazing.”
Hassakeh’s Cotton Production Witnesses Severe Decline as War Drags On: “Plant Production Department chief predicts drop in cotton production by over a half in 2015, according to pro-regime news sources.”
A New Way of Life in Ghouta Built on Plastic: “To the people abroad, I would say that this process damages the environment and hurts animals, too – maybe this fact could propel animal rights and environmental activists to help us because no one has done so until now.”
Villages abandoned as Syrians flee northern Aleppo: “The northern countryside of Aleppo has been emptied as thousands fled to surrounding areas following the intensification of the Islamic State attacks in August.”
No, cellphones are not a luxury for Syrian refugees: “As a member of a team of researchers interviewing dozens of Syrian refugees in camps and cities in Jordan, I found that refugees do not view the cellphone as a luxury but rather a necessity, equivalent to food and water.”
Exploring the Syrian Refugee Crisis
Addressing Mental Health Needs among Syrian Refugees: “The impact on the mental health and well-being of displaced persons is significant and will require both short-term and longer-term solutions. It is thus critical to focus on mental health and psychosocial support, and to implement community-based mental health care.”