Author: Stephen Lezak

In Mongolia, infrastructure conflict takes on myriad forms. Displacement, allegations of water or air pollution, changes to pastureland—these are the most visible issues that are regularly attributed to the development of mines, highways, etc. In the worst of instances, tensions can boil over and turn violent. Neighbors quarrel, shout each other down at meetings, or…

Earlier today, the Oxford and Mongolian teams led a knowledge exchange with representatives from mining companies, government ministries, and NGOs. Our goal was to learn about the day-to-day experiences of industry and regulators when trying to manage conflict and benefit sharing in the Mongolian mining sector. The conversation featured candid reflections about the challenges and…

When temperature dip below -30° C in Ulaanbaatar, the city’s residents will inform you that winter is beginning. This last week in the capital city, according to locals, autumn finally ended. While the Gobi Framework is only midway through Stage One of six, our Mongolian team is making extraordinary headway. Closely-spaced rounds of fieldwork are…

The first contribution to any collection—a traveler’s log, a stone house, a roadside cairn—inevitably marks the beginning of something. So too with the Gobi Framework, but beginning might be a misleading word for the work that lies ahead. We are beginning this research project in the same way that a ship leaving harbor begins an…