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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Angola: Hidden Danger, Sean Sutton
Angola: Hidden Danger, Sean Sutton
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Lucala-2 is a small village located in the northern part of Angola, with 750 residents situated by a bridge crossing the Lucala river. This area gained strategic importance during the Angolan Civil War (1975–2002), particularly due to the Lucala bridge, which served as a critical crossing point. Throughout the war, minefields were strategically laid at all four corners of the bridge, illustrating the extensive use of landmines that has continued to impact Angola. These mines remain a harrowing legacy, contributing to ongoing casualties and significantly hindering development efforts long after the war's conclusion. The community explained how they have been …
The Prioritization Of Survey Through Open-Source Research In Ukraine, Anda Riza, Andro Mathewson
The Prioritization Of Survey Through Open-Source Research In Ukraine, Anda Riza, Andro Mathewson
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
With the increasing quantity of available and relevant open-source information online, the mine action sector is well poised to take advantage of its accessibility for conducting research, analysis, and investigations. In current conflicts, such as in Ukraine and Yemen, online sources are a rich repository of information which can be leveraged for survey and clearance operations. Humanitarian mine clearance actors can harness this vast quantity of information to map conflicts and their effects, including the location of landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW). In turn, this can be used to help prioritize survey efforts, especially in contexts where …
Localization In Mine Action: Where The Possible Meets The Necessary, Markus Schindler
Localization In Mine Action: Where The Possible Meets The Necessary, Markus Schindler
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
While arguments for greater localization in humanitarian aid are strong, in humanitarian mine action (HMA) the case is not always as clear and requires detailed discussion. Despite these challenges, however, the development of national nongovernmental organizations (NNGOs) in mine action is advocated for, as they can offer local knowledge, reduce costs, improve efficiency, and contribute to national ownership. HMA stands out from other sectors due to its resource-intensive and highly regulated nature, often necessitating the use of expensive equipment and specialized expatriates. This article discusses the concept of localization in HMA, emphasizing its distinct challenges compared to other humanitarian sectors. …
The Bigger Picture: Considerations Toward The Sustainable Localization Of Mine Action, Mark Wilkinson Ph.D., Albert Schevey, Ahmed Al Zubaidi Phd
The Bigger Picture: Considerations Toward The Sustainable Localization Of Mine Action, Mark Wilkinson Ph.D., Albert Schevey, Ahmed Al Zubaidi Phd
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Accessible pdf attached.
DanChurchAid (DCA) is an international nongovernmental organization (INGO) at the forefront of mine action interventions globally. Currently working in nine countries around the world through projects that have a specific focus on the pillars of mine action, DCA supports a plethora of activities seeking to promote the delivery of an integrated programming approach across the triple nexus, bringing humanitarian interventions, development work, peacebuilding, and advocacy initiatives closer together. This approach is used to bridge the gap between policy and practice at all levels and ensure long-term impact and sustainability.[1] A key element of the DCA global …
The Road Ahead: Clearance Toward Sustainability In Bosnia And Herzegovina, Sean Sutton
The Road Ahead: Clearance Toward Sustainability In Bosnia And Herzegovina, Sean Sutton
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Accessible pdf attached.
The 1992-1995 Yugoslav wars resulted in landmines and explosive remnants of war that continue to contaminate the Balkans. In 2021—over 25 years after the end of the wars—the Landmine & Cluster Munition Monitor considered Bosnia and Herzegovina to be the most explosive ordnance-contaminated country in Europe, and characterized the landmine contamination alone as "massive." As of March 2022, The Landmine Monitor reported that Bosnia and Herzegovina had more than 945 km2 of suspected hazardous areas (SHA) and more than 20 km2 of confirmed hazardous areas.
Inspiring The Next Generation Of Humanitarian Mine Action Researchers, Madison Tuohy, Eva Greenspan, Sofia Fasullo, Jasper Baur, Gabriel Steinberg, Linda Zheng, Alex Nikulin Phd, Garrett M. Clayton Phd, Timothy De Smet Phd
Inspiring The Next Generation Of Humanitarian Mine Action Researchers, Madison Tuohy, Eva Greenspan, Sofia Fasullo, Jasper Baur, Gabriel Steinberg, Linda Zheng, Alex Nikulin Phd, Garrett M. Clayton Phd, Timothy De Smet Phd
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Accessible pdf attached.
Humanitarian mine action (HMA) is a critically under-researched field when compared to other hazards fields of similar societal impact. A potential solution to this problem is early exposure to and engagement in the HMA field in undergraduate education. Early undergraduate education emphasizing technical and social aspects of HMA can help protect lives by building a robust pipeline of passionate researchers who will find new solutions to the global explosive ordnance (EO) crisis. Early engagement of the next generation of HMA researchers and policy makers can occur through various classroom experiences, undergraduate research projects, and public outreach events. …
Mine Action In Support Of Yemen's Peace Process, Josh Ridley
Mine Action In Support Of Yemen's Peace Process, Josh Ridley
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Between April and October 2022, the two major parties of Yemen’s ongoing conflict, the internationally recognized government (IRG) and the de facto authorities (DFA), agreed to a truce brokered by the UN’s Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen (OSESGY). A central component of the UN-brokered truce included the re-opening of roads around Yemen’s third largest city, Ta’iz, which all parties agreed to in principle. While an expected extension of the truce did not extend beyond October 2, there has not been a significant escalation in violence since the truce expired. The re-opening of roads in Ta’iz …
Gender And Diversity Mainstreaming In Mine Action: Where Are We In Colombia?, Salomé Valencia Aguirre Md, Angela Desantis Phd, Sandra Salas-Quijano, Sebastián Tovar Jaramillo, Liliana Dulca-Amaya Phd
Gender And Diversity Mainstreaming In Mine Action: Where Are We In Colombia?, Salomé Valencia Aguirre Md, Angela Desantis Phd, Sandra Salas-Quijano, Sebastián Tovar Jaramillo, Liliana Dulca-Amaya Phd
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Accessible pdf attached.
Women, girls, boys, and men are affected differently by landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) and hold different views on the challenges presented by them. Gender and other diversity factors, such as ethnicity and disability, condition individual views on vulnerability, needs, and coping capacities. This paper aims to identify the progress made by the humanitarian mine action (HMA) sector in Colombia toward gender equity and diversity through various methodological approaches and indicates that gender and diversity gaps persist. The greatest progress has been made in terms of policies and data disaggregation. We understand that public and …
When A Safety Measure Becomes A Risk Accelerant: Removing The Option To Blast-In-Place When Clearing Explosive Remnants Of War, Lieutenant Colonel Geir P. Novik
When A Safety Measure Becomes A Risk Accelerant: Removing The Option To Blast-In-Place When Clearing Explosive Remnants Of War, Lieutenant Colonel Geir P. Novik
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Accessible pdf attached.
The legacy of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and abandoned ammunition following armed conflict will, in many cases, have a severe impact on society and daily life, even for years or decades after hostilities end. These explosive remnants of war (ERW) represent a grave threat in many aspects, and the human, societal, and environmental impact can be severe. These explosive objects must therefore be located and disposed of—a job in itself that involves serious risks. Therefore, various safety measures are implemented to mitigate these risks. Some safety measures, however, could prove to have less than the desired effect, and …
Director's Letter, Suzanne Fiederlein
Director's Letter, Suzanne Fiederlein
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
No abstract provided.
The Deadly Legacy Of World War Ii In Alaska, Kenneth Rutherford
The Deadly Legacy Of World War Ii In Alaska, Kenneth Rutherford
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
In the middle of the Bering Sea—closer to Japan than the continental United States and more than 1,000 miles from Alaska’s largest city, Anchorage—sit the Alaskan islands of Attu and Kiska. It was the summer of 1942, nearly six months after Japan’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, that Japanese forces invaded these islands in what was some of World War II’s most brutal fighting and use of explosives.
Mapping Unexploded Ordnance In Syria: Harnessing The Power Of Open-Source, Hampton Stall, Jennifer Hudson, Evan Leendertse, Hari Prasad, Chris Mcnaboe, Rana Shabb, Jonathan Robinson
Mapping Unexploded Ordnance In Syria: Harnessing The Power Of Open-Source, Hampton Stall, Jennifer Hudson, Evan Leendertse, Hari Prasad, Chris Mcnaboe, Rana Shabb, Jonathan Robinson
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
For over a decade, the widespread use of explosive weapons by all sides in the Syrian conflict has been well documented by a litany of public sources. Many of these explosive munitions fail to detonate as intended, thereby becoming unexploded ordnance (UXO) that threaten post-conflict recovery. To begin the process of clearing these explosive remnants of war (ERW), desk studies/non-technical studies can be utilized to initially assess the concentration and distribution of explosive weapons across a conflict zone, which in turn suggest the risk of UXO in an area. Traditional methods in non-technical surveys (NTS) focus on unweighted conflict intensity …
Open-Source Research And Mapping Of Explosive Ordnance Contamination In Ukraine, Andro Mathewson
Open-Source Research And Mapping Of Explosive Ordnance Contamination In Ukraine, Andro Mathewson
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Due to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the scale of explosive ordnance (EO) contamination in Ukraine has reached unprecedented levels, necessitating new methods to assess and track the different types of ordnance and the level of contamination across the country. As the most documented, active war on social media to date, The HALO Trust (HALO) has successfully harnessed open-source research to better plan and conduct survey, clearance operations, and explosive ordnance risk education (EORE) across the country.
Ukraine: Coordinating The Reponse, Greg Crowther
Ukraine: Coordinating The Reponse, Greg Crowther
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
The war in Ukraine has seen the use of ground and aerial weapons on a scale not seen in Europe for decades, causing immense devastation and human suffering. And the legacy of explosive hazards since the onset of the war, in the form of unexploded ordnance, landmines, and cluster munitions, will take decades to address. It’s a legacy that will kill and injure civilians long after the conflict has ended. This is not just a problem for the future, however but a challenge for the present: explosive ordnance risks civilian lives, hampers efforts to deliver emergency humanitarian aid, and prevents …
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 23.3 (2020), Cisr Journal
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 23.3 (2020), Cisr Journal
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Southeast Asia | Risk Management | Cluster Munitions Remnants Survey | IMAS Training in Vietnam | Mine Risk Education | Victim Assistance | Underwater Clearance | Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality in HMA | HMA in the Gray Zone | IED Clearance Capacity in Afghanistan
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 23.1 (2019), Cisr Journal
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 23.1 (2019), Cisr Journal
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Ukraine | Interviews with HMA Directors | Southeast Europe | Lessons From the Past: Holland | Field Notes | Research and Development
Epidemiological Study Of Landmines/ Erw Accidents And Victims In Kachin, Kayah, And Shan States, Burma, Julien Zwang, Pascal Simon
Epidemiological Study Of Landmines/ Erw Accidents And Victims In Kachin, Kayah, And Shan States, Burma, Julien Zwang, Pascal Simon
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
In Burma, there is no systematic and organized victim information system (VIS) of landmine and explosive remnants of war (ERW) victims, and few studies have been conducted on the topic, in particular in Kachin, Kayah, and Northern Shan States (NSS), where most of the accidents have recently occurred. Between 2015 and 2016, casualty reports compiled by the Mine Risk Working Group (MRWG) chaired by the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) showed that the number of mine/ERW victims increased by 58% in the country, particularly in Kachin and Shan States, while the number of victims decreased in Kayin State. Documenting victims’ …
Adapting The Erw Community To Combat Ied Threats, Brad Alford, Michael Kennedy
Adapting The Erw Community To Combat Ied Threats, Brad Alford, Michael Kennedy
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
In Iraq and other regions soon to be liberated from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), recovery and stability efforts are hindered by improvised explosive devices (IED), which threaten civilians returning home and/or assisting with reconstruction. According to Relief Web, the Anbar Provincial Council “discourage[d] the premature return of internally displaced persons (IDP) to Fallujah due to the remaining IEDs left behind by the Islamic state of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) militants.”This threat, coupled with the consequences of an asymmetrical conflict, has changed the operating environments encountered by organizations that respond to explosive remnants of war (ERW). …
Emerging Patterns Of Erw Injuries In Laos, Stacey Pizzino, Colette Mcinerney, Jo Durham
Emerging Patterns Of Erw Injuries In Laos, Stacey Pizzino, Colette Mcinerney, Jo Durham
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
The year 2016 marks the beginning of a new era for international development, with the adoption of seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) that will drive global development efforts until 2030. In post-conflict countries, humanitarian mine action will be an important enabler in achieving a number of SDGs, including goal 3: “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.” Of particular relevance is target 3.9 of the SDGs, which specifies the need to reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from soil pollution and contamination. At present this relates primarily to indoor and outdoor air pollution. However, since …
From The Director, Ken Rutherford
From The Director, Ken Rutherford
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Here at CISR, our team is busy planning the 13th Senior Managers’ Course (SMC), which will take place in Biograd na Moru, Croatia, from 20 March to 7 April 2017. With the help of our local partner, the Croatian Mine Action Centre, CISR will implement a course designed specifically to address the needs of senior managers working in greater Southeast Europe as the region’s mine action programs undergo planned transitions. The course in Croatia will be our third regional SMC (Tajikistan in 2014 and Vietnam in 2015) since we began implementing the regional format in 2014; we hope to facilitate …
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 20.3 (2016), Cisr Jmu
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 20.3 (2016), Cisr Jmu
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Feature: SA/LW and CWD | Spotlight: Libya | Special Report: Solomon Islands’ Explosive Legacy | Plus: Editorial, Field Notes, Research and Development
Working From A Distance In War-Affected Libya, Nikolaj Søndergaard
Working From A Distance In War-Affected Libya, Nikolaj Søndergaard
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
A unique partnership between DanChurchAid (DCA) and Lebanese authorities facilitates explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) training for Libyan authorities, who can now start their own national EOD teams and begin the clearance process.
Mobile Technologies: Uxo Lao's Easy Sketch Map, Hayashi Ontoku Akihito
Mobile Technologies: Uxo Lao's Easy Sketch Map, Hayashi Ontoku Akihito
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Established in 1996, the Lao National Unexploded Ordnance Programme (UXO Lao) promotes risk education and clears land for agriculture, community purposes (e.g., schools, hospitals, temples and water supplies) and other development activities. UXO Lao is working in the nine most impacted Lao provinces nationwide. Although recent changes occurred to UXO Lao’s survey procedure, the program continues mapping out contaminated areas throughout the country.
Mobile Data Collection: Interoperability Through New Architecture, Elizabeth Vinek, Sulaiman Mukahhal, Olivier Cottray
Mobile Data Collection: Interoperability Through New Architecture, Elizabeth Vinek, Sulaiman Mukahhal, Olivier Cottray
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Information management (IM) requires close collaboration between all parties in a mine action program and cannot be carried out in isolation. Effective IM involves tools as well as organizational processes that clearly define how different parties interact and function with IM. Without adequately defining processes through National Mine Action Standards (NMAS) and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), even the most advanced and fit-for-purpose IM tools will lack the foundation to be effective.
Explosive Remnants Of War: A Deadly Threat To Refugees, Ken Rutherford, Andrew Cooney
Explosive Remnants Of War: A Deadly Threat To Refugees, Ken Rutherford, Andrew Cooney
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
The deadly legacy of explosive remnants of war (ERW), including landmines, improvised explosive devices (IED) and unexploded ordnance (UXO) is increasingly a threat to refugee populations, economic migrants and internally displaced persons (IDP) in countries throughout Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
Maximizing The Effectiveness Of Mobile Technology, Howard Rudat
Maximizing The Effectiveness Of Mobile Technology, Howard Rudat
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Mobile technology has transformed the way we live our lives and has the potential to dramatically assist in demining. However, commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) systems coupled with explosive remnants of war (ERW) related applications leave capability gaps and create potential risks that must be closed. A more tailored and deliberate ecosystem approach when employing mobile technology will yield greater benefits and avoid the problems encountered when Alexa, Cortana, Google Now or Siri do not provide the necessary information. It seems that at the times when you need information the most, the smart personal assistants provided by Google, Apple and Microsoft either …
An Overview Of Mozambique’S Mine-Free District Process, Antonio Belchior Vaz Martíns, Hans Risser
An Overview Of Mozambique’S Mine-Free District Process, Antonio Belchior Vaz Martíns, Hans Risser
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
In the 1990s, Mozambique ranked among countries such as Afghanistan, Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, and Iraq as one of the most mine-contaminated countries in the world. At the time, experts estimated that clearing all landmines in Mozambique would take 50 to 100 years. Landmines were widely used by all sides during the conflicts that ravaged Mozambique from the mid-1960s until 1992. These nuisance minefields usually consisted of small numbers of mines in seemingly random or undefined areas mostly around paths, wells and rural infrastructure. Large-pattern minefields tended to be the exception rather than the norm in Mozambique. Given the …
Arms Management And Destruction Programming: Taking Stock, Chris Loughran, Djadranka Gillesen
Arms Management And Destruction Programming: Taking Stock, Chris Loughran, Djadranka Gillesen
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
The Arms Management and Destruction (AMD) sector— an element of conventional weapons destruction (CWD) that includes several elements of physical security and stockpile management (PSSM)—has experienced dynamic growth over the last 18 months. An increasing number of programs address illicit and poorly stored weapons, enhance the safety and security of arms storage, and support the development of national capacity, including MAG’s regional initiative in the Sahel and West Africa. As a distinct AMD sector emerges, now is the time to analyze what makes programming strategies effective as well as ineffective. The industry must resist the temptation to talk about best …
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 20.1 (2016), Cisr Journal
The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 20.1 (2016), Cisr Journal
The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction
Best Practices in CWD | Spotlight on Eastern Europe and the Caucasus | Notes from the Field | Research & Development