The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Letter from the Editor: The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction Celebrates 25 Years!

For this 25th edition of The Journal, I invite you to join me in celebrating all the present and past authors who have shared their ideas, inventions, and perspectives to improve the lives of countless communities...

Past, Present, Future: Mine Action in Motion

The story of mine action is one of an adaptive and solution-oriented sector. Time and again, mine action has developed new approaches, tools, and standards to meet evolving challenges and circumstances...

Mine Action: The Early Years

This article looks at the challenges and successes of the early days of humanitarian mine action (HMA), particularly in the areas of coordination, standardization, and information sharing...

Applying “All Reasonable Effort” in the Falkland Islands Mine Clearance Programme: Encouraging Efficient, Confident, and Timely Evidence-Based Land Release Decision Making

This article describes the approach that was adopted to determine whether all reasonable effort (ARE) had been applied to each task clearance in the Falkland Islands...

The Exploitation of Landmines in the Falkland Islands

The rigorous demining program was highly successful, and the Falkland Islands have now been declared clear...

Linking Mine Action and Development: The Case of Komyshuvakha

The protracted crisis in Ukraine raises many developmental, humanitarian, and mine action challenges, and while these are interconnected, the response to them continues to be dichotomous...

Developing National Landmine Clearance Capacity in Ukraine

The mine action sector in Ukraine has seen significant growth and progression since the outbreak of hostilities along the eastern border in 2014. Continued development of government capacity is required to respond...

Saving Lives in Eastern Ukraine: Alternative EORE Approaches

Unexploded ordnance (UXO) and landmines present a threat to the civilian population in Ukraine. Therefore, humanitarian mine action (HMA) remains one of the most important parts of the humanitarian response...

Explosive Ordnance Risk Education in Ukraine During the COVID-19 Pandemic

ERW contamination is a major problem in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukraine. recent risk education (RE) efforts have been hampered by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has heavily affected Ukraine...

Landmine Clearance and Socioeconomic Development: A Study in Colombia

The HALO Trust (HALO) arrived in Colombia in 2009 and, once accredited, began operations in 2013. HALO is currently the largest civilian humanitarian demining organization in the country...

*CISR EXCHANGE* Impact Caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic on Humanitarian Demining in Colombia

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the mine action sector globally. In this article, the authors look at how the pandemic has affected Colombia, specifically, humanitarian demining...

Moving the Story Forward: Utilizing Deminer Narratives to Increase Women’s Empowerment in Mine Action and Beyond

The humanitarian mine action (HMA) sector, as a part of the wider security and peacebuilding field, has made significant gains related to gender equity in field operations...

Digital Rehabilitation Technologies Deliver Hope for Survivors

Humanity & Inclusion (HI) has been making prostheses and orthoses since its launch in refugee camps along the Thailand/Cambodia border in 1982, when it was known as Handicap International...

Mental Health: Taking a Proactive Approach to Support Staff in Mine Action

This article aims to contribute to existing conversations on how the mine action sector can work together to promote mental health in the workplace...

An Innovative Approach to the Mental Health Needs of Humanitarian Mine Action Personnel

Because of the multiple and unique stressors associated with HMA, personnel likely experience trauma-related mental health conditions at a rate equal to, if not greater than, other high-risk professions...

*CISR EXCHANGE* Data-Driven Decision-Making in Southeast Asia

Automated management information systems are becoming more important today. Funding and resources are scarce, but technological developments are making it possible to conduct analyses...

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Land Release and Stockpile Destruction Operations – Notes on a New Technical Note for Mine Action

In March 2021 the IMAS Review Board adopted by consensus a new Technical Note for Mine Action (TNMA): Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Land Release and Stockpile Destruction...

A Virtual Reality Application for the Training of Deminers

As virtual reality (VR) tools continue to improve, more fields are finding ways of implementing the technology to take advantage of training opportunities that reduce costs, alleviate logistical challenges, and more...

Recognizing and Reducing Risks From Ammunition and Explosives

The GICHD first engaged in the stockpile management of conventional ammunition in 2013 and has since developed in-house technical, operational, and strategic capabilities for ammunition through-life management...

*CISR EXCHANGE* Alternatives to Open Burning and Open Detonation: The Disparity Between HMA and Commercial Best Practices

Munition and explosive residues have the potential to cause long-term harm when released into the environment. Common explosives, such as TNT and RDX are toxic, with both classed as possible carcinogens...

First Steps to Limiting Conflict Pollution in Central Vietnam

Awareness and concern are growing worldwide regarding pollution resulting from conflicts. In Vietnam, decades of wars have left a legacy of contaminated land and increasingly polluted water...

*CISR EXCHANGE* Measuring Explosive Munitions Use with Open-Source Data: A New Tool for Enhancing Humanitarian Mine Action

Since 2011, there has been widespread use of explosive weapons—including conventional weapons, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and landmines—by all sides in the Syrian conflict...

The Elusive “Just Enough”: Re-inventing Explosive Hazard Clearance Management in Iraq

The Government of Iraq viewed rehabilitation of infrastructure contaminated with explosives during the conflict with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) as a prerequisite to socioeconomic recovery...

Managing Risk Through Transparency and Cooperation: Improving Lebanon’s PSSM Capacity

Weapons and ammunition management is a global issue in which nations are responsible for the physical security and stockpile management of weapons and ammunition...

Assisting Landmine Survivors in Yemen

Over the past ten years, with funding from the U.S. Department of State, the Marshall Legacy Institute’s (MLI) Mine Victim’s Assistance Program (MVA) has helped over 800 male, female, and child landmine survivors...

Remote Sensing and Artificial Intelligence in the Mine Action Sector

Remote sensing and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are included in discussions of how technology and innovation can improve humanitarian action and international peacekeeping...

How to Implement Drones and Machine Learning to Reduce Time, Costs, and Dangers Associated with Landmine Detection

Two rapidly emerging technologies revolutionizing scientific problem solving are unpiloted aerial systems (UAS), commonly referred to as drones, and deep learning algorithms. Our study combines these two technologies...