Welcome to the Fall 2009 edition of The Culture and Conflict Review. The Program for Culture & Conflict Studies has been fully engaged over the past few months delivering cutting-edge research on pressing issues in Afghanistan as attention to the war continues to rise, and as the Obama Administration continues its deliberations on our strategic policies.

In this edition of the Review, we are proud to present a diverse set of new articles, as well as some recent news coverage of our ongoing efforts to shed light on the nexus of culture and conflict in South Asia. This edition's articles focus on factors of tactical, operational and strategic importance in the South Asia arena. As always, we welcome your comments, suggestions and articles for future editions. This quarter’s articles include the following:

• Developing an IO Environmental Assessment in Khost Province, Afghanistan by Robert J. Bebber, PhD, ENS, USN
• Engaging Afghans: KLE Keys to Success by Capt Don Moss
• The Federally Administered Tribal Areas: A Case Study in Health Capital and Democracy by Jarad Van Wagoner
• Employing Data Fusion in Cultural Analysis and Counterinsurgency in Tribal Social Systems by Steffen Merten
• The Status of US/ISAF Strategic Communications Efforts in Afghanistan by Michael Cohn
• Operation Nusrat (Victory): Understanding the Taliban Threat to Kunduz Province by Matthew C. DuPée
• Tribe, State, and War: Balancing the Subcomponents of World Order by Barry Zellen

We also present a news report on the recent Afghan Theatre Conference, held recently at NPS:

• Afghan Theatre Conference Aims to Impact Strategies in the Field by Dale Kuska

As our work continues, we are gratified to see interest in our efforts is also on the rise, with some recent media coverage to a very wide audience, including our participation on CNN's Amanpour, NPR's All Things Considered, PBS' NewsHour, and KQED Radio's Forum with Michael Krasny.

• Forum with Michael Krasny: Next Steps in Afghanistan, KQED Radio (November 10, 2009. Click here to download the MP3 audio podcast)
• Defining ‘The Enemy’ In Afghanistan, by Tom Gjelten, All Things Considered, NPR (November 5, 2009)
• CNN's Amanpour: A Roundtable on NATO Tactics in Afghanistan (Transcript), CNN (October 5, 2009. Click here to download the MPEG-4 video podcast)
• NewsHour Extra: Afghanistan at Dangerous New Crossroads by Lizzy Berryman, PBS NewsHour (September 2, 2009)

We have also had the opportunity to share our latest thoughts on the strategic challenges faced in Afghanistan, including these recent commentaries and analyses:

• Saigon 2009 by Thomas H. Johnson and M. Chris Mason, Foreign Policy.com (August 20, 2009)
• Democracy in Afghanistan is Wishful Thinking by Thomas H. Johnson and M. Chris Mason, Christian Science Monitor (August 20, 2009)

We have been profiled and cited in numerous additional publications, which may be viewed on the home page of the CCS website.

We hope you enjoy our latest edition of the Review. Our next edition will be published in early 2010. As always, we welcome submissions of your latest analysis, commentary, and strategic assessment.