• Equal Times

Although beset with challenges, cotton growing has returned to Idlib

Opposite an olive grove, in the middle of fallow land, is a vast rectangular expanse of green, dotted with white flakes clinging to shrubs. A dozen or so farmworkers have been picking cotton by hand since seven in the morning, packing it into large jute sacks and then loading it onto a pick-up truck. It is the first time in over a decade that the countryside of Idlib, in north-west Syria, has been covered in white in late autumn. Read more

• Geneva Solution 

War or peace? In Syria, water flows both ways by Pip Cock

“Material damage in Syria is important, but the social contract that the Syrians have entered into is a social contract of violence, and unfortunately it is difficult to find a subject that can bring Syrians together. The majority of the topics are problematic ones,” Haj Asaad says. “But [we can] identify the unifying role of water in Syria, because it is a universal and neutral good for everyone.” Read more

• TRT Kurdi

Water for Basic Needs and Social Cohesion 

Kaniya Celemê li Efrînê kaniyeke kevn e. Milet, bi vê avê him erdên xwe av didin hem jî ava vexwarinê jê peyda dikin. Ev kaniya li gundewarê Celemê, niha tê restorenkirin. Read more 

• Deutschlandfunk

Warten auf den Frieden

Im achten Jahr tobt der Bürgerkrieg in Syrien. Das Land ist zerstört. Abseits vom Schlachtfeld bereiten syrische Wissenschaftler den Tag vor, an dem der Friede beginnt. Dann hängt alles davon ab, wie gut der Wiederaufbau gelingt, und dafür braucht es durchdachte Pläne. Read more

• Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF)

Wasser als Grundlage des Friedens

Schweizer Forscher helfen in Syrien, Bewässerungsanlagen für die Landwirtschaft zu reparieren. Die Projekte sind eine Basis, auf der verfeindete Gruppen zueinander finden. Read more

• SWI swissinfo.ch

Water Diplomacy, Swiss focus on basic water and local groups, By Priti Patnaik, Geneva, Read more