Survival, the IISS's bimonthly journal, challenges conventional wisdom and brings fresh, often controversial, perspectives on strategic issues of the moment.In this issue:Anatol Lieven argues that the Taliban will remain the most powerful military and political force among the Pashtuns of AfghanistanLanxin Xiang contends that, following what he describes as Donald Trump's racist China policy, the Biden administration must avoid casting China as an alien threatDani Filc and Sharon Pardo assess that right-wing populists in Israel and Europe have become ideological allies, harnessing ethnic nationalism against global IslamAlex J. Bellamy and Charles T. Hunt analyse the intricacies of the use of force to protect civilians in UN peacekeeping missions And seven more thought-provoking pieces, as well as our regular Book Reviews and Noteworthy column.Editor: Dr Dana AllinManaging Editor: Jonathan StevensonAssociate Editor: Carolyn WestAssistant Editor: Jessica Watson.

In 2020, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC) celebrates 30 years since its adoption. To date, 50 African States have ratified the ACRWC, and 28 have submitted the initial report, 12 have submitted both initial and periodic reports to the African Committee of Experts on the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) on the implementation of the ACRWC and have received recommendations from the ACERWC. To ascertain the extent of children’s rights protection in Africa, the Centre for Human Rights was commissioned to undertake a study on the implementation of the ACRWC in 10 countries, namely: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mozambique, Namibia, Sudan and Tanzania. In-country researchers were engaged to collect data using desk-based research to obtain information consisting of literature, documents and online sources that was then thematically analysed.

An “authoritative, comprehensive, well written, and entertaining” guide to staying alive in the desert from a Texas Parks and Wildlife veteran (Library Journal). Remote desert locations, including the Chihuahuan Desert of northern Mexico, southern Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, draw adventurers of all kinds, from the highly skilled and well prepared to urban cowboys who couldn’t lead themselves, much less a horse, to water. David Alloway’s goal in this book is to help all of them survive when circumstances beyond their control strand them in the desert environment. In simple, friendly language, enlivened with humor and stories from his own extensive experience, Alloway—a naturalist and search-and-rescue veteran who’s worked with the US Air Force on survival skills—here offers a practical, comprehensive handbook for both short-term and long-term survival in the Chihuahuan and other North American deserts.

Deserts are stark and beautiful, attracting hikers and other people seeking adventure. But spending time in a desert has potentially deadly risks. Desert Survival Stories examines the experiences of people who have faced death in deserts and survived. Readers will learn about the unique features and dangers of deserts and discover how to prepare for and stay safe on an adventure in these regions. Features include a glossary, references, websites, source notes, and an index. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.

A powerful new theory of human nature suggests that our secret to success as a species is our unique friendliness “Brilliant, eye-opening, and absolutely inspiring—and a riveting read. Hare and Woods have written the perfect book for our time.”—Cass R. Sunstein, author of How Change Happens and co-author of Nudge For most of the approximately 300,000 years that Homo sapiens have existed, we have shared the planet with at least four other types of humans. All of these were smart, strong, and inventive. But around 50,000 years ago, Homo sapiens made a cognitive leap that gave us an edge over other species. What happened? Since Charles Darwin wrote about “evolutionary fitness,” the idea of fitness has been confused with physical strength, tactical brilliance, and aggression. In fact, what made us evolutionarily fit was a remarkable kind of friendliness, a virtuosic ability to coordinate and communicate with others that allowed us to achieve all the cultural and technical marvels in human history. Advancing what they call the “self-domestication theory,” Brian Hare, professor in the department of evolutionary anthropology and the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Duke University and his wife, Vanessa Woods, a research scientist and award-winning journalist, shed light on the mysterious leap in human cognition that allowed Homo sapiens to thrive. But this gift for friendliness came at a cost. Just as a mother bear is most dangerous around her cubs, we are at our most dangerous when someone we love is threatened by an “outsider.” The threatening outsider is demoted to sub-human, fair game for our worst instincts. Hare’s groundbreaking research, developed in close coordination with Richard Wrangham and Michael Tomasello, giants in the field of cognitive evolution, reveals that the same traits that make us the most tolerant species on the planet also make us the cruelest. Survival of the Friendliest offers us a new way to look at our cultural as well as cognitive evolution and sends a clear message: In order to survive and even to flourish, we need to expand our definition of who belongs.