topic: Global Environmental Crisis

topic: Global Environmental Crisis

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Comparing green space for urban cooling, study
Cities can become dangerously hot during extreme heat events, making it increasingly important for urban planners to find ways to reduce temperatures and protect people from heat exposure. Woodlands, grasslands, lakes and rivers can create significantly cooler microclimates, offering one potential way to reduce urban heat, a new study finds. The study focused on Guildford, […]
Marine conservation collides with mining in Indonesia’s biodiversity-rich Moramo Bay
- Pressure on a protected marine area in Indonesia’s Southeast Sulawesi province is growing as conservation efforts intersect with mining activity.
- Moramo Bay is part of the Coral Triangle, one of the world’s richest marine biodiversity regions, and provides habitat for humphead wrasse and other protected species.
- Researchers and officials say the health of its coral reefs and marine life is increasingly under scrutiny as development expands around the conservation area.

As Indonesia’s wildfires rage, haze spreads farther across Southeast Asia
Haze from wildfires in Indonesia has spread even farther this week, reaching beyond Malaysia and Brunei to Singapore and the Philippines. On Sept. 4, Singaporean residents woke to a smoggy sky as air quality reached unhealthy levels. By late afternoon, the city had the third-worst air quality globally, according to IQAir. Earlier this week, Philippine […]
Key tree species boost Amazon forest restoration, new study shows
- A study in Global Change Biology shows that just 15 to 25 tree species make up nearly half of the trees and carbon stocks in regrowing Amazon forests.
- While pioneer species grow quickly, experts warn that forests need a robust succession of stronger trees to avoid ecological decline over time.
- Understanding these forest dynamics may help Brazil meet its international pledge to restore 12 million hectares (30 million acres) of forest by 2030.

Trading food for medicine and crossing the river by zip line are part of life in Nepal flood zone
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Some survivors sheltering in relief camps after deadly floods in Nepal struggled Thursday to obtain essential medicines and cash, even as authorities provided food and other basic supplies to thousands of displaced people. The shortages are adding to the hardships of those living in temporary shelters after having lost homes and belongings. Suresh […]
South Africa’s new gold rush: Big promises, closed books in new carbon frontier
- The drought-adapted succulent spekboom (Portulacaria afra) has long been trumpeted as the crown prince of South Africa’s nature-based carbon sink solutions.
- The World Bank ensured its coronation with a $120 million outcome-based bond, structured and named in its honor.
- According to Amazon, the tech giant’s commitment to buy carbon credits from the first developer to draw on the bond gave other financiers the confidence to back the industrial-scale project. Does this make the tech giant the power behind the throne of an emerging nature-based carbon credit sector?
- Mongabay’s investigation uncovers a sector dominated by international corporations whose investment promises are hard to scrutinize, in a cautionary tale of what happens when projects fail.

Planned Bolivia-Brazil highway threatens Chiquitania dry forest
- Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz signed an agreement to begin technical studies for a highway connecting the municipality of San Ignacio de Velasco in the Chiquitania region with the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso.
- Brazilian businesspeople looking to buy land in the Chiquitano forest for cattle ranching and soy farming are driving the project.
- Brazilian businessman Eraí Maggi, known as the “soy king,” is a central figure behind this agricultural expansion into Bolivia.
- Experts warn the road will accelerate deforestation in the Chiquitania, the largest tropical dry forest in the Americas, in a country that already ranks second globally in tropical forest loss.

Repeal of U.S. Roadless Rule could threaten drinking water for 25 million people
- On Aug. 18, the Trump administration proposed fully rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule, which bars new road construction and commercial logging on about 45 million acres of national forest, opening a public comment period that closes Sept. 21.
- A study published in July in PLOS Water found that about 25 million Americans draw drinking water from watersheds fed by roadless areas, where roads and logging raise erosion and turbidity and drive up treatment costs.
- USDA says the repeal will reduce wildfire risk, but research shows most U.S. wildfires are started by people and ignition density is roughly four times higher near roads than in roadless country.
- Roadless areas cover just 2% of the land in the lower 48 states yet provide habitat for 57% of the country’s vulnerable terrestrial species, and USDA’s own summary acknowledges that most Tribes it consulted oppose the repeal.

From seizure to sentence: Weak prosecution leaves tigers vulnerable to trafficking in Southeast Asia: Report
- Prosecution of tiger crime — trafficking and sales of tiger skins, bones, and other body parts — is poor in Southeast Asia, according to a recent report.
- Fewer than half of arrests were prosecuted: Of 259 cases examined, only 110 resulted in fines or jail sentences, with outcomes varying widely between countries.
- The authors propose concrete actions to strengthen enforcement to deter tiger poaching and trafficking: improving domestic and international coordination, better training for law enforcement, and intelligence-driven investigations.

Development banks are backing problematic mineral projects, report finds
“Development bank-backed transition minerals projects are frequently associated with significant environmental, social, and human rights risks.” This is the conclusion of the latest report by the International Accountability Project (IAP), an international advocacy organization. IAP analyzed 77 projects globally, approved between 2023 and 2025. The analysis resulted in the Transition Minerals Finance Tracker, an interactive […]
During Nepal floods, decentralized, community-based warning saved lives
- During Nepal’s Aug. 26, 2026 floods, which have killed 987 people and left 3,916 missing, informal, community-based warnings saved lives while Nepal’s official SMS alert system failed, arriving late, in Nepali only, and without actionable, location-specific guidance.
- While Nepal’s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology can forecast and issue warnings, it has no legal authority to order evacuations, and no law requires a forecast to automatically trigger one. This means decisions rest on individual heads.
- A 2022 study found the same failure after a 2021 rainfall disaster that killed 120 people and called for binding SOPs linking forecasts to action. The recommendation remains unimplemented.
- Fixes already exist: cell broadcast technology (studied by GSMA/ITU, about $1.75-$3 million, reaches a zone in about 10 seconds in multiple languages) and community-based East networks both offer potential models, but neither has been scaled up or funded.

Invaders storm Indigenous Amazon land, threatening isolated people
- About 200 people have invaded the Ituna/Itatá Indigenous Land in Brazil’s Pará state since August 13, breaking through Brazil’s Indigenous Affairs Agency (Funai) gates, removing signs and establishing camps.
- The invasion followed the creation of the Bacajaí Environmental Protection Area that completely overlaps with the federally protected Indigenous Land — creating legal confusion which authorities say has been exploited by individuals who wish to occupy the area.
- Federal authorities have warned of an imminent risk of confrontation and potentially genocide against Indigenous people living in voluntary isolation and have called for the urgent deployment of the National Force and Federal Police.
- On August 26, a federal court ordered the Union and Funai to send teams from the Public Security Force within 48 hours to contain the invasion but the deadline has passed and the teams have not yet arrived.

Nepal’s flood disaster puts its hydropower-first strategy, exports to the test
- ● The Aug. 26 flash floods on the Nepal-China border wiped out or badly damaged 281 megawatts of installed capacity and damaged 388 MW under construction in Nepal, with losses estimated to be hundreds of billions of Nepali rupees. With transmission lines on the Trishuli riverbank washed away, another 150 MW of power is cut off from the national grid.
- Surface-built powerhouses, dams and desanders near the riverbed suffered the worst damage, while underground powerhouses held up well, pointing to project locations, longer access tunnels, and early-warning systems as key resilience factors, though these upgrades could raise project costs by 10-12%.
- Some experts argue the flood should prompt Nepal to prioritize domestic consumption over its export-driven hydropower strategy, citing both physical disaster risk and falling electricity prices in neighboring India.
- The disaster threatens Nepal’s newly achieved net-exporter status (18.75 billion rupees, or $142 million in Financial Year 2025) heading into winter’s low-flow season, and is accelerating calls to scale up solar power.

Philippines fast-tracks critical minerals, raising Indigenous, environmental concerns
- The Philippines’ new critical-minerals policy targets at least 9 million hectares (22 million acres) of prospective mineral areas, more than 11 times the land currently covered by approved mining projects, according to an environmental legal group.
- Environmental and Indigenous rights advocates warn that expanded mineral development could increase pressure on forests and ancestral domains.
- Critics say that by rolling out the simultaneous processing of mining permits and clearances, the new policy could undermine meaningful free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) if Indigenous communities are pushed to make decisions without adequate time and information.
- The mining industry has welcomed faster and more predictable permitting, while advocates are calling for stronger community participation and safeguards for Indigenous rights and ecosystem health before large-scale critical-mineral development proceeds.

Global warming will exceed limit, UN says in a report that maps path to get back below danger zone
In a strategic retreat, the United Nations concedes that Earth has lost its chance to prevent some of the worst impacts of global warming. A report released Wednesday by the United Nations Environment Programme reveals that the planet will soon exceed the temperature threshold set by the 2015 Paris climate accord. Instead of giving up, […]
Drought is deepening a health crisis among Peru’s recently contacted Indigenous Matsés
- Since initiating contact with the outside world in 1969, the Matsés Indigenous people of the northeastern Peruvian Amazon have faced a barrage of epidemics.
- During a recent visit to the Matsés reserve, Mongabay found a population still suffering from outbreaks of deadly malaria and hepatitis B, exacerbated by state neglect and environmental threats like drought.
- Matsés leaders, anthropologists, and health experts warn that exposure could be fatal for isolated groups neighboring Matsés land, as well as those in nearby reserves across the wider Yavarí-Tapiche Territorial Corridor.
- Drought and an intensifying El Niño could further compound these health pressures by disrupting rainfall patterns, creating conditions that allow malaria-bearing mosquitoes to proliferate and affecting river transport for medical care.

Rapid wetland loss and ‘real estate boom’ increasing flood risk in Lagos
In July, following relentless bursts of rainfall, flash floods covered pockets of Lagos, disrupting commerce and traffic in Nigeria’s commercial capital. Experts have found that the city now faces increased flood risk due to human-induced climate change. Other recent studies have identified another common factor exacerbating flooding risk in Lagos: rapid urbanization. In a study […]
Displaced by a typhoon, Taiwan’s Bunun people fear for the future of their culture
- More than a hundred Bunun Indigenous people were forced to resettle in lowland areas after 2009’s Typhoon Morakot destroyed the only road leading to Tengjhih, their mountain settlement, in southern Taiwan.
- The Bunun, who believe the connection to their ancestors is a pillar of their identity, still wish to return to their ancestral land, saying it would allow them to preserve rituals and traditional knowledge.
- Each year, however, climate change is making rainfall more destructive, wreaking havoc on efforts to rebuild and reopen the road to Tengjhih.
- Indigenous communities have heavily criticized the government’s resettlement program, under which families receive ownership of the apartments they are given, but not of the land on which the buildings stand.

Logging operations uncovered at Cambodian senator’s dam in the Cardamoms
- Construction of the Stung Russei Chrum Kandal hydropower dam inside Phnom Kravanh National Park, one of Cambodia’s largest protected rainforests, began in 2023.
- Satellite imagery suggests forest clearance and large-scale logging are happening beyond the authorized construction sites.
- Experts say the images reflect a wider pattern in Cambodia of exploitation of licenses for dam development to further illegal logging operations.

Christiana Figueres & Garik Israelian on Jane Goodall’s legacy and the search for truth
A new award has been created in honor of late conservation icon Jane Goodall by the board of the Starmus Festival, an international gathering of scientists and artists to be held from Oct. 17-22 in Tenerife, Spain. Christiana Figueres has been selected as the recipient of this inaugural Jane Goodall Earth Medal. Figueres is the […]
Biomass cooking fuels raise toxic metal exposure risks in Bangladesh, study finds
Burning biomass fuels like dry wood and rice husk for cooking can produce air pollution and contribute to toxic heavy metals buildup inside rural kitchens in Bangladesh, a new study finds. Md. Badiuzzaman Khan, an environmental science professor at Bangladesh Agricultural University and the study’s lead author, said the research addresses a gap in understanding […]
Drones helped find people after Nepal floods but the search inside hydropower tunnels is a challenge
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Drone pilot Manish Maharjan has helped rescue teams in Nepal find people missing after last week’s catastrophic floods, sometimes using speakers mounted on the devices to call out to or play music for those stranded on hillsides. But the search for hundreds of workers believed to be trapped in power plant tunnels — now […]
Scientists use mining data to build malaria alert system in the Amazon
- Researchers have found a direct link between illegal mining, miners’ routes, and malaria cases in the Yanomami Indigenous Territory in Brazil.
- Now, they’re working on an alert system that will rely on mining data to warn local health agents about the risk of a malaria outbreak.
- The number of malaria cases dropped sharply after authorities expelled illegal miners from the Yanomami land, but Indigenous people worry the potential return of a right-wing government after October’s election could revive the humanitarian crisis.

Climate change parches Puerto Rico and Jamaica in rare early wet season drought
A severe drought that has parched the Caribbean since May 2026 was fueled by human-induced climate change, according to a recent study. The rapid analysis was released by World Weather Attribution (WWA), a global network of researchers who analyze the influence of climate change in extreme weather events. In the Caribbean, the wet season runs […]
Gulf of Mexico’s unique Orca Basin shouldn’t become a carbon dump (commentary)
- Deep in the Gulf of Mexico, an ecosystem exists in water so salty and lacking in oxygen that its marine life is unique and virtually unstudied.
- Called the Orca Basin, it’s now the focus of a corporate effort to profit from fighting climate change by dumping tons of organic waste into its depths, a deep-sea biologist explains in a new op-ed.
- “The Orca Basin is not a waste repository waiting for a use. It is a living system that has been developing for thousands of years, hosting organisms we have barely begun to characterize, preserving a chemical and biological record we have barely begun to read,” the author argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Coastal Texas and Louisiana warned of tropical storm as a potential hurricane moves toward Hawaii
MIAMI (AP) — The National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning on Monday for the Gulf of Mexico coast from the Galveston and Houston, Texas, area to the western parishes of Louisiana. As of late Monday morning, the potential tropical cyclone was centered about 120 miles (195 kilometers) south-southeast of Morgan City, Louisiana, and 230 miles […]
Singapore spending billions to adapt to climate change, but deforestation continues
- Singapore is preparing its first national climate adaptation plan as temperatures and extreme rainfall increase, but the city-state is also clearing forests for housing.
- The planned development of Maju Forest and Gillman Barracks has triggered rare public protests, with residents arguing that Singapore’s environmental impact assessments fail to account for forests’ role in climate adaptation.
- Scientists say forest loss could increase heat and flood risks, while Singapore is spending billions on engineered climate defenses such as drainage, seawalls and heat-resistant paint.
- The conflict puts Singapore’s “city in nature” vision under scrutiny, as conservationists question whether tree planting and managed greenery can compensate for the loss of forests.

Superb fairywrens disappearing in Australia’s capital: Conserving insects could help save them
- A three-decade study of Australia’s beloved superb fairywren revealed a substantial decline in what was previously considered a common species in the capital, Canberra. This population could disappear within decades.
- Researchers say this is part of a worrying trend of declining woodland birds and insects in Australia and across the globe, mainly driven by loss of habitat, pesticides and changing climate.
- The study highlighted the “catastrophic cumulative effect” that multiple small impacts from climate change can have on wildlife.
- Through collaborative efforts between ornithologists, entomologists and local communities, Australia could reshape its urban environments and better monitor the health of its birds: creating insect-friendly gardens and protecting and restoring bushy habitat could help slow its decline.

For 50 years, Philip Fearnside has calculated the costs of losing the Amazon
- Philip Fearnside has spent 50 years studying the practical limits of Amazon development, beginning with the agricultural settlements built along Brazil’s Trans-Amazonian Highway. His work repeatedly asked who benefits from projects and who bears their longer-term costs.
- He produced influential research on deforestation, forest carbon, tropical dams, and the wider effects of roads, often challenging official assumptions about emissions and economic viability. He later contributed to the IPCC’s work on climate change.
- Fearnside has paired research with public engagement, publishing in Portuguese, writing for Amazônia Real and Mongabay, speaking to journalists, and testifying on projects including the BR-319 highway. That role has also made him a target of hostility, including at a 2021 public hearing where his microphone was cut.
- Former students and colleagues credit him with generous, exacting mentorship and an unusual command of the scientific literature. At a recent tribute at Brazil’s National Institute for Amazonian Research, he rejected any suggestion of a farewell: he intends to keep working.

Global sea surface temperatures reach a record high, again
Global sea surface temperatures have reached a record high, raising serious concerns for global Earth systems, according to new data released by the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). On Aug. 22, the daily global average sea surface temperature, outside polar regions, reached 21.1° Celsius (69.98° Fahrenheit), exceeding the previous record set in March […]
Why a newly formed lake is sparking fears of more flooding along the Nepal-China border
BENGALURU, India (AP) — Even as rescuers worked through mud and debris Friday in areas devastated by a catastrophic flash flood along the Himalayan border between Nepal and China, authorities warned that a newly formed, overflowing lake could trigger further flooding. Nepalese authorities said all security personnel, rescue workers and members of the public deployed in rescue and relief efforts have been told […]
Failed environmental safeguards leave coastal Bangladesh facing coal pollution
- A major thermal power plant, located in coastal Bangladesh, has been operating without regular air-quality testing, allegedly causing suffering among nearby residents.
- A recent study also found a significant decline in air and water quality around the coal-fired thermal power plant.
- Meanwhile, the government recently exempted the power plant authority from conducting air-quality tests, as officials say they believe such plants do not generate significant air pollution.
- In addition, the plant’s chimney is shorter than the height approved in the initial Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).

Under protection: The environmentalist’s widow in Brazil who had to disappear to survive
- In 2015, environmentalist Raimundo dos Santos Rodrigues was murdered in an ambush inside the Gurupi Biological Reserve in Brazil’s Maranhão state, where he served as a member of the advisory board.
- A local rancher, who was illegally logging inside the reserve, orchestrated the killing.
- Rodrigues’ wife Maria survived the attack but has spent more than 10 years living in another state in a government protection program.
- Maria experiences a contradiction in her new life: She had to be made invisible by the state to survive the state’s failure to investigate and prosecute socio-environmental crimes.

Singapore made a crow-friendly city. Now it wants to shoot them
The resumption of a crow-shooting campaign in Singapore has revived intense debate over lethal wildlife management in the highly urbanized city-state. Government officials revived the culling program in response to public complaints about crow attacks on pedestrians and cyclists, reports contributor Robin Hicks for Mongabay. In a public statement in March announcing the resumption of […]
Community programs linked to lower forest loss in Indonesia’s Borneo during COVID-19
- As climate and economic shocks put pressure on tropical forests, a new study suggests support for rural communities could help protect forests while strengthening their ability to withstand crises.
- Forest loss in protected areas of West Kalimantan on the Indonesian part of Borneo fell during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a larger decline in villages receiving health and livelihood support, the study finds.
- The findings point to health care, alternative livelihoods and other social support as potential tools for easing pressure on forests and helping forest-dependent communities adapt to future economic and environmental shocks — although the study does not establish a direct cause-and-effect relationship.

More than 380 coastal World Heritage Sites may face climate risks, new data shows
- Coral reefs, medieval coastal castles and mangrove forests on UNESCO’s World Heritage list now share something in common: Precise digital boundaries.
- A new dataset maps 386 coastal World Heritage Sites, offering the clearest picture yet of what stands to be lost as the world’s climate changes.
- Covering 235 million hectares (~581 million acres) of coastline, the new high-resolution, open-access dataset can be used by researchers and local managers to study flooding, erosion and other climate risks faced by heritage sites.
- The tool is a critical first step to understand climate risks, but not a substitute for the local knowledge needed to help these places survive, some experts say.

‘Devastating’ rush for critical minerals has little to do with green energy: Report
A new report published by U.S.-based think tank the Oakland Institute warns that the rush for critical minerals comes with massive implications for the world, especially African countries. The report, “RUSH: Global Scramble for Minerals Wages War on People and Planet,” challenges the popular narrative that an expansion of mining operations is necessary for the […]
US environmental groups plan to sue to relist gray whales under Endangered Species Act
A group of environmental organizations announced their intent to sue the United States National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS) for failing to consider protections for Eastern Pacific gray whales under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) are experiencing a potentially catastrophic population decline, a sharp reversal from what had been considered a conservation […]
Nepal floods highlight growing glacier risks in warming Himalayas
BENGALURU, India (AP) — Scientists say a deadly flash flood in Nepal on Wednesday was likely caused by a glacier chunk breaking off and temporarily damming a river. This may have led to a surge of water downstream, killing at least 353 people and leaving over 1,300 missing. The U.S. Geological Survey reported a magnitude […]
A ‘leading’ Chinese miner of Mozambique’s heavy sands linked to environmental destruction
- Rapid loss of mangroves in Mozambique’s Zambezia Province is linked to the activities of Mozambique Heavy Sand Company VIII, which is part-owned by an influential Chinese mining group, Mongabay has found.
- The mangrove loss occurred inside a site considered “one of the most diverse and productive river delta systems in the world.”
- Satellite imagery suggests it was caused by what appears to be a blocked waterway where sand mining activities took place between 2022 and 2026.
- Increasingly, environmentalists are raising the alarm about the environmental impacts of heavy minerals prospecting and mining in vast sections along Mozambique’s coast.

Brazil relaxes Belo Monte water rule amid El Niño-fueled Amazon drought risk
Brazilian authorities have temporarily relaxed an environmental rule for the Belo Monte hydropower plant on the Xingu River in the northeastern Amazon. The change comes in anticipation of another potentially severe, El-Niño-fueled dry season. Under the temporary measure, Belo Monte’s operator Norte Energia can cut the flow of the dam’s 119 square-kilometer (46 square-mile) intermediate […]
Pastoralists in a Changing World
Pastoralism is one of humanity’s oldest ways of life. Moving livestock across vast landscapes in rhythm with seasonal change and environmental conditions, pastoralist cultures rely on freedom of movement and shared arrangements over how to graze rangelands. Today, pastoralists are navigating profound environmental changes to the lands that have sustained their communities for generations. This […]
Kenya’s clothing waste raises concerns about potential public health risks
Kenya’s secondhand clothing trade, locally known as mitumba, clothes millions of people and supports an estimated 2 million livelihoods, making it one of Africa’s largest markets for used garments. That makes Kenya a useful lens for understanding the growing global public health problems associated with textile waste disguised as reusable clothing. More than 4.5 billion […]
Nigeria can build the new coastal highway and also protect natural areas (commentary)
- To improve living conditions in Nigeria, new roads like the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway are needed.
- But these can and must be built in such a way that protects mangroves, swamps, and remnant forests, using knowledge and tools like environmental and social impact assessments.
- “The question is not whether Nigeria should develop. It is whether development will be intelligent enough to avoid destroying the natural infrastructure that already protects coastal communities,” a new op-ed argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

At least 75 killed and hundreds missing after flash floods in Nepal and China
UDIN DHUNGA, Nepal (AP) — Flash floods in a border area of Nepal and China have killed at least 75 people and left hundreds missing. On Wednesday, officials in Nepal reported 403 people missing, including 341 foreign nationals. Many were said to be on a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in China’s autonomous region of Tibet. […]
‘They will do it legally or illegally’: Interview with James Giahyue on Liberia’s cocoa boom
- In July, Mongabay published a feature investigation and video report about deforestation in southeastern Liberia dude to cacao cultivation.
- The remote region contains some of West Africa’s last intact rainforests, many of which are under threat due to the emergence of the cacao industry there.
- Liberian journalist James Giahyue told Mongabay that poverty and the involvement of local politicians are helping to drive deforestation there.

In South Africa, renewable energy latest part of timber industry’s green efforts
- A 10-year agreement provides York Timber Holdings with access to renewable electricity “at scale,” an official with the timber company said.
- The agreement will reduce the sawmill’s greenhouse gas emissions, while reducing its exposure to electricity tariff hikes and potential future carbon-based costs, according to the company.
- “Renewable energy is just one element of sustainability. Responsible management of plantations, conservation of biodiversity and water stewardship are just as important,” a forestry specialist said.

Indigenous water systems gain ground as climate pressures intensify in Bolivia
- When a 2022 drought hit Bolivia’s Ascensión de Guarayos, restoring traditional paúros helped the community survive after the municipal reservoir ran dry.
- The youth-led effort to revive paúros has grown into a broader conservation project, including a legally protected urban ecological corridor.
- The initiative is part of a global trend to restore Indigenous water systems as low-cost, climate-resilient solutions to growing water scarcity.
- Experts say blending traditional and modern approaches can strengthen water security — but only if local communities lead and retain control.

Can REDD+ deliver for Philippines’ Iraya Mangyan?
- The Mindoro Forest and Biodiversity Conservation Programme combines Indigenous forest patrols, ancestral-domain support, carbon monitoring and livelihood projects to protect more than 40,000 hectares (nearly 99,000 acres) of Iraya Mangyan forest.
- Indigenous patrollers and local officials say the program has already strengthened monitoring and helped reduce timber poaching and small-scale mining, while surveys have documented hundreds of plant and animal species across the project area.
- Community nurseries and paid conservation roles are creating early livelihood opportunities, but many benefits remain limited and uneven while the project awaits verification, a finalized benefit-sharing agreement and carbon revenue expected no earlier than around 2029.
- Whether the program can deliver lasting benefits will depend on finalizing a transparent revenue-sharing agreement, sustaining patrols and livelihoods during the long wait for carbon income, and ensuring the Iraya retain a meaningful role in decisions over their forests.

In Bhutan, a philosophy of happiness guides a push for food self-sufficiency
Bhutan is a Himalayan kingdom sandwiched between China and India. Forty percent of its 800,000 citizens work in the agriculture sector. The mountainous country is famous for its breathtaking landscapes and its unique policy of “Gross National Happiness,” instituted in 1972 by Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the fourth king of Bhutan. My guests on the Newscast […]
US proposes rescinding Roadless Rule protections for national forests
Aug. 25 is a National Day of Action to support U.S. national parks and public lands. One focus of the event is the U.S. government’s intention to rescind a rule that bans road construction and industrial logging across more than 23 million hectares (57 million acres) of national forest land. The 2001 Roadless Rule, has […]
Indonesia charges 72 over fires as haze chokes Borneo and Sumatra
Indonesian authorities have charged 72 individuals with intentionally igniting forest fires across five provinces on the island of Borneo and four on Sumatra. Fires across both islands have burned nearly 286,000 hectares (about 707,000 acres) of land from January to Aug. 24 alone, according to FireWatch, a satellite-based monitoring tool developed by forest-mapping platform Nusantara […]
Palm oil firms kept zero-deforestation pledges, but forests saw little extra benefit
- In the past decade, palm oil-producing countries, such as Indonesia, have introduced policies and company-level commitments to curb deforestation.
- In both concessions linked to companies with zero-deforestation commitments (ZDCs) and those not linked to ZDCs, data suggests annualized deforestation has dropped dramatically from the 2000s.
- Despite this drop, a new study suggests ZDCs have not, in fact, led to additional reductions in deforestation.
- A decline in palm oil prices and historic deforestation in concessions may have contributed to this contrasting picture, say researchers.

Rescue networks built by fire: Saving animals from Australia’s bushfires
- While emergency responders prioritized human life and property during Australia’s 2019-2020 Black Summer bushfires, there were few systems in place to protect wildlife or evacuate and care for domestic animals during and after the fires, exposing a gap in disaster planning.
- Neighbors, wildlife carers, veterinarians, landholders and volunteers rapidly organized evacuations, rescue efforts, feeding stations and supply networks, demonstrating the power of local knowledge and grassroots coordination.
- Fire ecology research suggests animals may be more vulnerable to fire than previously understood, and more research is needed to understand wildlife mortality and survival during and post-bushfire.
- Experts say that community-led efforts could dramatically improve outcomes for both people and animals during disasters with better funding, coordination and institutional support. Community networks offer a blueprint for the future as bushfires become more frequent in a climate-changed world.

In Spain & South Africa, communities use restoration to ‘grow’ fire insurance (commentary)
- Managing fire as a part of restoring ecosystems is vital to protecting both communities and economies from disaster: While fire is a natural part of many ecosystems, when forests are poorly managed they become fuel reservoirs just waiting for a spark.
- Spain’s Muga Valley and South Africa’s Langkloof share such a management history but are now pivoting to ecosystem restoration to protect communities, economies and biodiversity.
- “It is the health of the landscape that will determine whether fire acts as a force of connection or destruction. The choice, in effect, is whether we leave that risk unmanaged, or begin to build insurance into the land itself,” a new op-ed argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Bangladesh’s green building drive grows beyond factories amid climate pressures
- Currently, Bangladesh has 35 certified green buildings and sustainable offices in various non-manufacturing sectors, and the concept is gaining more ground.
- The country is encouraging LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certification for industries, and holds 53 of the world’s top 100 highest-scoring green factories.
- Key drivers behind green construction include lowering carbon emissions and ensuring sustainable development, besides the wellbeing of industry employees and connected workers.
- Mongabay spoke with a few major corporate companies, builders and experts about the adoption of green building initiatives in Bangladesh to understand where industries in the country stand in support of this approach.

World must look to the past to prepare for likely unprecedented El Niño
- A potentially historic El Niño is gathering strength and likely to peak between Nov. 2026-Jan. 2027. Latest projections suggest the event could become the strongest ever measured. Countries around the world are bracing for impacts.
- Past very strong El Niño events, with record heat, drought, precipitation, floods, and wildfires, have taken a toll in human lives, human health, national and community economies, and ecosystems. Some effects can linger as much as a decade, after these events.
- While some nations, such as Peru and Sri Lanka, are preparing for a record El Niño, many are unable to, with the United Nations now making a $202 million El Niño Joint Anticipatory Action Appeal to aid 22 high-risk countries in Asia, Oceania, Africa and Latin America.
- In this story, experts outline some lessons that can be learned from history’s most powerful past El Niño events and the preparations that will be required to protect vulnerable populations during the potentially unprecedented 2026-27 event.

Art and science must come together for coral reef conservation, biologists argue
Art and science can work together to raise public awareness and propel conservation efforts needed to safeguard coral reef ecosystems, a group of coral scientists argues in a new research article published in Science Advances. Coral reefs are among Earth’s most threatened ecosystems amid climate change, coral bleaching and threats from mining. However, most people […]
Move over bears. Fat Marmot Week puts a spotlight on the alpine rodents
GOTHIC, Colo. (AP) — Fat Marmot Week is coming soon. Last winter was tough for the groundhog-like rodents living in the Colorado mountains. Researchers say there wasn’t enough snow to keep marmots’ burrows warm while they hibernated, causing many of the animals to freeze to death. The marmots that survived are doing well. They’ve fattened […]
Six things to know about Asia’s heatwave and the health impacts
- This year’s extreme weather has been linked to El Niño, which, according to weather experts, could be one of the strongest ever recorded.
- Record-breaking temperatures were recorded in South Korea and Hong Kong, and mercury exceeded 40°C in Japan and China.
- Apart from heatstroke risks, higher temperatures during El Niño can accelerate the life cycle of Aedes mosquitoes, which transmit dengue, and shorten the time for the virus to replicate, experts warn.

Drugs are becoming institutionalized: Interview with Ticuna leader in Peru’s Amazon
- Mongabay interviewed Francisco Hernández Cayetano, president of the Federation of Ticuna and Yagua Communities of the Lower Amazon, about substance abuse problems affecting Ticuna youth.
- He says many youth are addicted to drugs and alcohol, which they picked up while working as coca harvesters for drug traffickers due to a lack of alternative employment options.
- The arrival of narcotraffickers, as well as illegal miners, has also led to deforestation and water pollution in Peru.
- In this interview with Mongabay, Hernández describes efforts to bring Ticuna leaders from the Amazon’s tri-border area together to discuss solutions to their shared problems.

Climate change drove extreme July heat in European seas, study finds
European coastal waters recorded unprecedented sea surface temperatures in July 2026. A new study has found that human-induced climate change primarily drove the temperature surge, pushing marine ecosystems past their limits. The rapid analysis was conducted by World Weather Attribution (WWA), a global network of researchers who analyze the influence of climate change in extreme […]
Why carbon markets alone won’t save Southeast Asia’s concessions forests
New research suggests a “massive and untapped” opportunity for conservation within commercial concessions in Southeast Asia, reports Mongabay’s Carolyn Cowan. Using satellite data, researchers identified roughly 42 million hectares (104 million acres) of intact forest still standing inside logging, timber, rubber and oil palm concessions across Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Myanmar. The study suggests that […]
On the Great Barrier Reef, management by Traditional Owners is growing
- Joint management of the Great Barrier Reef is changing, with Traditional Owners playing an increasing role in the conservation of one of the seven natural wonders of the world.
- Despite climate change continuing to threaten the health of the Reef, the World Heritage Committee has again decided not to put the Great Barrier Reef on its “in danger” list, and has cited increased levels of Traditional Owner management in its decision.
- Traditional use and management agreements currently cover 43% of the Great Barrier Reef’s coastline and the government has announced new funding and measures to further include Indigenous management.
- There are still gaps in the full inclusion of Indigenous communities in the stewardship of their traditional waters, say Indigenous governance organizations, though strides are being made.

A looming rock collapse threatens a Swiss village as thawing permafrost destabilizes the Alps
KANDERSTEG, Switzerland (AP) — An unstable mountain rock formation looming above the Swiss village of Kandersteg threatens a landslide that could rival the disaster that destroyed nearby Blatten last year, a collapse scientists linked to thawing permafrost and glacier dynamics. The 1,300 residents of Kandersteg, in Switzerland’s Bern canton, live amid a quintessential Alpine landscape of sharp […]
Land crisis and ‘green revolution’ practices trap millions of Malawi’s farmers
- Malawi’s maize harvest has barely grown in two decades even as its population has surged, leaving millions vulnerable to food shortages each year.
- Small farmers struggle to produce enough food on tiny plots because of high fertilizer costs, degraded soils, erratic rains, and unreliable access to government subsidies.
- Many farmers sell much of their maize to pay for basic necessities, then depend on risky vegetable crops or scarce seasonal jobs to buy food during the lean months.
- After two decades of maize-focused agricultural policy, experts and farmers say Malawi needs stronger support for diverse, resilient farming and rural livelihoods rather than simply producing more maize.

‘Cocoa fever’ in Liberia’s Grand Gedeh is wiping out native forests
Until 2020, 99% of Liberia’s Grand Gedeh county was covered by natural forests. Since then, cacao farms have rapidly encroached on those forests, reports Mongabay’s Ashoka Mukpo. Grand Gedeh in southeastern Liberia borders Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s largest exporter of cacao beans. Much of Côte d’Ivoire’s forests have been cleared for cacao and many of its cacao […]
Lake Powell hits record low, threatening key water and electricity supply for millions
The water level at Lake Powell, the United States’ second-largest reservoir, has fallen to a record low, heightening concerns about the ongoing crisis in the Colorado River system. The alarming milestone at Lake Powell, reached Saturday, comes about a week after the river’s other major reservoir, Lake Mead, also hit a historic low. Plummeting water levels […]
Fatal barge crashes fuel fear over Madeira River waterway expansion in Brazil
- Brazil is planning to dredge the Madeira River to boost grain exports despite recent fatal barge collisions and poor dialogue with local communities.
- In addition to accidents, expanded traffic and dredging pose risks of erosion, water pollution, harm to aquatic species and fishing.
- As national elections approach, communities worry that politicians will prioritize agribusiness over the safety of those who rely on the river to access doctors, schools, work, trade and daily routines.

Concerns grow over ‘green’ biomass power in Japan after spate of accidents
- In the past few years, there have been at least 14 fires, explosions and accidents at biomass power plants across Japan.
- Accidents, rising prices and pollution concerns have led local residents and campaigners to question the future of the country’s large biomass plants.
- Japan had expanded the use woody biomass as an alternative to coal, but operators are facing rising costs and no longer benefit from a government-backed fixed tariff to support the industry.

Aceh’s community fishers struggle to preserve tradition amid blooms of plastic pollution
- Coastal communities in Indonesia’s Aceh province have practiced community fish trawling since the time of the Aceh Sultanate, but the tradition today exists in only a handful of communities across the semiautonomous province.
- The customary panglima laot, a customary fishery lead, at one beach in the Aceh capital Banda Aceh, told Mongabay Indonesia that the customary rules included environmental protections such as requirements not to take threatened species.
- However, this traditional fishing practice is under threat due to the increasing burden of plastic and other household waste accumulating in nearshore waters and along beaches.
- For many, the time and cost required to patch holes in giant fishing nets can make the cost of doing business unviable, leading some fishers to abandon the tradition for jobs elsewhere.

South Africa’s top court blocks Shell oil exploration off country’s Wild Coast
In a landmark judgment on Aug. 14, South Africa’s Constitutional Court set aside exploration rights held by oil giant Shell and Impact Africa, a South African oil and gas company. The ruling prevents the companies from exploring for fossil fuels off South Africa’s Wild Coast. The case was brought by Wild Coast communities and environmental […]
Is this the world’s loneliest tree?
The last known wild individual of Dendroseris neriifolia hangs off the side of a steep cliff on a remote island. To try to prevent its total extinction in the wild, conservationists recently went to great lengths—and heights—to collect seeds from the tree. They have begun trials to cultivate them with the help of the Millennium […]
New studies portray Amazon as surprisingly resilient, but tipping point looms
- Three 2026 studies reveal that the Amazon can regrow quickly, but deforestation and warming could trigger a system-wide tipping point in the next 15 years.
- Research also shows that repeated wildfires are replacing fire-resistant specialist trees with generalist species, halving biodiversity at forest edges despite a closing canopy.
- According to research, extreme conditions have increased tree mortality due to hydraulic failure, which is key to understanding the forest’s shrinking carbon sinks.
- Ending deforestation is necessary and achievable, but must be combined with global actions to curb climate change, say experts.

Infrastructure and land use behind devastating India monsoon floods
Widespread flooding in northeastern India that affected more than 500,000 people and claimed at least 99 lives between June and August 2026 was primarily driven by human factors like rapid urbanization, deforestation, and destruction of wetlands, new research says. It also points to structural failures rather than climate change. The findings were published by World […]
More people, farms, and drought could mean more elephant conflict in Southern Africa
A growing human population, expanding croplands, and drier conditions driven by climate change within protected areas could significantly intensify human-elephant conflict in Southern Africa, a recent study finds. Southern Africa is home to almost 300,000 African savanna elephants (Loxodonta africana), with many populations rebounding after decades of poaching. The region is also seeing rapidly expanding […]
UK firefighters out in force to tackle fires on hottest day of the year
LONDON (AP) — Firefighters are tackling multiple fires in central England on a day that the U.K. recorded its hottest day of the year as an intense stretch of hot weather continued to grip Europe. Thursday’s fire outbreak across the West Midlands, which saw several houses burned to the ground, have been “one of the […]
Timor green pigeon nears extinction after decades of inaction, study warns
- A new study warns the Timor green pigeon is on the brink of extinction after decades of neglect, despite being listed as endangered since 2000.
- Researchers estimate just 100-500 birds remain, with Timor-Leste now the species’ last viable stronghold after it has all but disappeared from Indonesia.
- Scientists say hunting has been the biggest driver of the bird’s collapse, while the absence of a recovery program, regular monitoring and sustained funding have allowed its decline to continue.
- Conservationists argue the species can still be saved, but only through urgent action that combines stronger enforcement with community-led protection rooted in Timorese customary conservation.

A mine polluted a Zambian river in 2025: Residents continue to live with the impacts
- A recent study on the ecological impacts of a tailings dam failure in Zambia’s Copperbelt Province in 2025 finds that highly toxic substances such as arsenic, lead and zinc were released into the Kafue River system.
- As a result of the spill at Sino-Metals Leach Zambia’s mine, millions of liters of acidic mining waste were released into waterways connected to the river.
- The assessment links the incident to the death of wildlife and the contamination of soils and water sources in the region.
- Sino-Metals Leach Zambia says it has initiated cleanup measures, but communities still reside on contaminated land, according to civil society organizations.

Indonesia’s wildfire season surges as haze spreads into Malaysia
- Fires in Indonesia’s West Kalimantan province have sent haze across the border into Malaysia, where worsening air pollution has forced six schools in Sarawak state to switch to online classes.
- Indonesia is entering the peak of its fire season, with West Kalimantan accounting for more than half of the nearly 49,000 hectares (121,000 acres) burned across six priority provinces as of Aug. 9.
- The fires are also threatening biodiversity, including orangutan habitat and rehabilitation efforts in West Kalimantan, while a separate blaze has forced the closure of Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park on the island of Java.
- Authorities have deployed tens of thousands of personnel and dozens of aircraft to fight the fires, but environmental groups say funding cuts and the intensifying El Niño are raising concerns about Indonesia’s preparedness.

Urban heat islands have solutions; many tropical cities can’t afford them
- In tropical cities, urban heat islands (UHIs) exacerbate an already challenging hot-humid heat burden for residents. UHIs are formed by urban artificial surfaces like concrete and asphalt that retain heat by day and slowly release it at night, never giving cities a chance to cool.
- Natural and infrastructure solutions can be implemented to combat the UHI effect and cool cities. These include creating shade by planting trees or extending roofs; inducing wind to blow down urban streets; constructing green roofs and walls; painting roofs light colors; and changing social practices to avoid midday heat.
- But sufficient funding is needed to implement many of these changes. Wealthy cities, like Singapore, have an advantage over cities with less funding. Many tropical mega-cities, including Lagos, Mumbai, Manila, Jakarta and São Paulo, are working to reduce UHI effects, but struggle to afford full implementation.
- The 2026-2027 El Niño is now growing in strength and expected to bring record temperatures to the tropics. These extreme temperatures, combined with UHI effects and urban poverty, could prove deadly for vulnerable residents, which include the poor, young, old, those with disabilities, and those working outdoors.

Brazil Supreme Court upholds laws that led to downfall of Amazon soy moratorium
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil’s Supreme Court has upheld state laws denying tax incentives to farmers who adhered to the country’s soy moratorium. The court also affirmed the constitutionality of the voluntary agreement. For nearly 20 years, the pact barred the purchase of soy grown on deforested Amazon land. Major grain traders withdrew from […]
A plastic eater in Bangkok’s canals
This solar-powered barge collects plastic from Bangkok’s canals before it can wash into the ocean. It’s an innovative solution to a growing problem, but cleaning up plastic is only part of the answer. Reducing plastic use and improving waste management remain the biggest challenges
Nickel expansion puts Indonesia’s biodiversity goals under pressure, study finds
- Indonesia holds the world’s largest nickel reserves and has rapidly expanded production, which a new study says has grown roughly tenfold over the past decade.
- Nickel mining can fragment wildlife habitat as mines, roads and associated infrastructure expand, threatening biodiversity in areas of global conservation importance.
- Researchers say protecting the most important biodiversity and carbon areas could substantially reduce environmental risks, but doing so could also constrain nickel supply.
- Even with greater adoption of low- or no-nickel battery chemistries, total nickel demand could continue to grow because the metal is also used extensively in stainless steel, renewable-energy infrastructure and other applications, the study notes.

Forest fires likely to continue to burn twice as much without ‘serious action’ on climate change
Elizabeth Goldman is a co-director of Global Nature Watch, previously known as Global Forest Watch, a database measuring forest loss that’s frequently cited in Mongabay reporting. She joins this week’s podcast to detail GNW’s updated 25-year analysis of global forest fire trends. The picture is stark: Forest fires burn twice as much forest today as […]
Key Amazon cases reach Brazil’s Supreme Court following Lula’s defeats in Congress
SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s Supreme Court is set to decide cases that could reshape protections for the Amazon rainforest and Indigenous communities. These cases involve Indigenous land rights, environmental safeguards, and infrastructure projects. Congress approved measures that environmentalists say violate constitutional rights, but President Lula vetoed some. Lawmakers overrode these objections, sending disputes to […]
As Singapore culls ‘nuisance’ birds, rapid urbanization continues to fuel an avian boom
- A campaign to shoot crows has resumed in Singapore in response to a surge in public complaints about attacks, with authorities saying “pest” birds pose a public health risk and outcompete native species.
- Ecologists argue Singapore’s crow problem is human-made, with poor waste management and illegal feeding fueling a population boom.
- They criticize culling as ineffective over the long term and say it risks normalizing lethal wildlife control while undermining Singapore’s “City in Nature” vision.
- Nature groups say ongoing and planned forest clearance for public housing could lead to further increases in urban bird populations, as more favorable habitats are created, leading to “endless culling” to control bird populations.

Wildfire ravages Indonesia’s Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park
A massive wildfire within a national park in Indonesia has forced a total closure of one of the country’s best-known tourist destinations. Some 899 hectares (2,222 acres) of savanna and forest within Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS) in East Java province have been destroyed by fire as of the morning of Aug. 11, the […]
Uzbekistan’s houbara releases serve hunting, not conservation, expert says
There’s no conservation motive or benefit behind the Uzbekistan government’s recent releases of more than 2,000 captive-bred Asian houbara bustards across its desert regions, according to an expert on the threatened species. The government has touted the releases over the past three months as a wildlife restoration effort, but Nigel Collar, a conservation biologist at […]
Climate change doubled likelihood of Canada’s extreme fire weather, study finds
Human-induced climate change has more than doubled the likelihood of the extreme weather conditions that fueled Canada’s destructive 2026 wildfire season, finds a rapid analysis. As of early August, thousands of wildfires torched more than 3.8 million hectares (9.4 million acres) across the country — an area already significantly in excess of Canada’s 30-year annual […]
Mariano Cenamo, advocate for a sustainable Amazon bioeconomy, has died, aged 46
- Mariano Cenamo spent more than two decades trying to make standing forests economically competitive with cattle ranching and other activities driving Amazon deforestation, helping establish Idesam and later backing a new generation of sustainable businesses.
- His work evolved from early efforts on forest carbon and REDD+ to agroforestry, bioeconomy ventures, investment, and entrepreneurship, always centered on creating practical sources of income for people living in the Amazon.
- Drawing on Cenamo’s own writings and interviews, as well as Vanessa Adachi’s posthumous portrait in Reset, this obituary explores the ideas, motivations, and personal style behind one of the Amazon’s most influential environmental entrepreneurs.
- Cenamo died on July 10 after several years with cancer. He was 46.

Amazon deforestation alerts fall to lowest level since 2013, Brazilian data show
- INPE’s DETER system recorded 2,874 sq km of Amazon deforestation alerts from August 2025 through July 2026, down 36% from the previous year and 55.6% below the preceding 10-year average.
- The total is the lowest since 2013 when earlier DETER data are included. If the trend is confirmed by the higher-resolution PRODES system, Brazil could record its lowest official Amazon deforestation rate since monitoring began in 1988.
- The decline has coincided with stronger environmental enforcement under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Alerts also fell in the Cerrado, Caatinga, Atlantic Forest, and Pampa, with the Cerrado reaching a five-year low.
- Despite the decline in clear-cutting, the Amazon remains vulnerable to logging, drought, forest degradation, and fire, which can cause substantial ecological damage without immediately appearing in deforestation statistics.

Suriname moves to evict Mennonites and illegal Amazon settlers
- The government in Suriname has created a task force to crack down on land developers who illegally clear the Amazon Rainforest for agriculture and cattle ranching.
- Many areas under development are connected to Mennonites who migrated to the country from other parts of the region to help meet a domestic demand for food production.
- Conservationists warn that the group’s history of industrial-scale clearing and unauthorized ranching in other nations puts the rainforest at risk.
- Some Mennonites have received a deurwaardersexploot, a written notice delivered by a bailiff to appear in court, according to Suriname President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons.

Flames reach edge of orangutan rehabilitation center, with fire season set to intensify
- A wildfire came within meters of an orangutan rehabilitation center in Indonesian Borneo, forcing emergency firefighting efforts to protect more than 60 rescued orangutans.
- The close call comes as a strengthening El Niño fuels fires across Indonesian Borneo, where prolonged drought and expanding land clearing are driving orangutans from their forest habitat.
- Conservationists warn that repeated fire seasons are undermining years of rehabilitation and habitat restoration work while increasing conflict between displaced orangutans and local communities.
- With fires spreading into Key Biodiversity Areas, experts say better fire prevention and stronger support for frontline conservation efforts are urgently needed.

Malaysia implements total e-waste import ban to curb toxic trade
In April 2026, Malaysia enacted an absolute ban on the import of electronic waste, moving to end its role as a primary destination for the world’s hazardous electrical and electronic scrap. The regulation aims to shutter a black market of illegal recycling yards that use falsified paperwork to smuggle toxic materials into the country, reports […]
In coastal Japan, one project is planting forests to stand against tsunamis
- The Chinju no Mori Project has planted more than 680,000 trees along Japan’s coastline to mitigate the impact of tsunamis.
- The project took its inspiration from the “guardian forests” that often surround Shinto shrines.
- These forest groves helped protect several shrines from destruction during the massive earthquake and tsunami of 2011.
- Despite the project’s popularity, most towns continue to turn to concrete seawalls to guard against the next disaster.

How Borneo’s giant trees defy gravity and old scientific theories
Giant tropical trees in Malaysian Borneo pump water to their highest branches just as easily as to their lower-most branches, a new study says. Researchers say this suggests tall trees are not more vulnerable to drought than shorter trees, as was previously believed. For decades, scientists have hypothesized that as trees become taller, the effects […]
New ‘conservation deed’ aims to protect tree kangaroos, forests, people in Papua New Guinea
- On June 30, 266 clan leaders across 41 villages in Papua New Guinea’s Torricelli Mountains signed a legally binding “conservation deed” that protects rainforest and its inhabitants and is the result of decades of work by the Tenkile Conservation Alliance.
- The deed shields the range’s exceptional biodiversity, including the critically endangered tenkile and weimang tree kangaroos, after a long-stalled effort to secure formal government protected-area status has left communities exposed to logging pressure.
- Conservation deeds have held up in court, with a 2025 National Court ruling citing one to restrict logging on clan lands in East New Britain.
- Built over two years through a free, prior and informed consent process, the Torricelli deed bans commercial logging and mining, as well as the hunting of threatened species, renews every five years and gives the alliance a model it now plans to extend to nearby areas under similar threat.

Carbon markets alone won’t keep Southeast Asia’s forests standing, study says
- A new study has identified “massive and untapped” conservation potential within forestry and plantation concessions in Southeast Asia.
- Roughly 42 million hectares of forests remain standing inside logging, oil palm, timber and rubber plantation concessions across the region, the study says.
- The researchers examined what it would take to financially incentivize forest conservation inside these concessions, finding that using carbon markets alone would require carbon prices many times higher than current values.
- They point to the need for diversified sources of conservation funding to complement carbon markets, such as blended finance, green bonds and payment for ecosystems services, as well as more supportive governance frameworks that elevate the viability of conservation over development.

Cheap coffee is killing Vietnam’s priceless tropical forests (commentary)
- Vietnam’s coffee industry has a problem it can no longer sweep under the rug: its global success is built on a foundation of deforestation, biodiversity collapse, and human suffering, a new op-ed argues.
- Robusta coffee used in instant and supermarket blends has replaced an area of Vietnamese forest the size of Luxembourg, a new report finds, and wildlife like tigers, elephants, civets, sun bears, and saola have been squeezed into ever‑smaller fragments of habitat.
- But once consumers know the truth, they can demand better, the author writes: “They can choose brands that commit to traceability, agroforestry, and deforestation‑free supply chains. They can pressure problem companies that abuse people and planet.”
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Nicaragua’s gold boom is now encroaching on protected areas and Indigenous land
- Mining concessions have begun to encroach on protected areas and Indigenous and Afro-descendant territory, the result of a mining boom that began in 2022, according to a new investigation from community-based Indigenous group Wangki.
- Since 1994, Nicaragua has granted 213 mining concessions covering more than 2.4 million hectares (5.9 million acres), representing approximately 20% of the country’s total land area. A significant portion of that — 113 of the concessions — has only been granted in the last three years.
- The Nicaraguan government has signed trade agreements, passed new laws, and revised environmental regulations to help accelerate the expansion of the mining sector, especially by Chinese companies.
- Pollution and deforestation from mining threaten ancestral traditions, and make it harder to practice subsistence farming and find clean drinking water, the investigation said.

Rare living stone plant, found in a tiny area in Namibia, is critically endangered
In a small area of Namibia’s Erongo Mountains, a tiny, pebble-like plant grows on a very thin layer of gravel. This succulent, Lithops werneri, is found in just one tiny 4 square-kilometer (1.5 square-mile) area, according to the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. With more than an 80% decline in its population since 1981 […]
Coral reef experts press on, with climate looming over international conference
- Coral reef scientists, conservationists, policymakers and community leaders from more than 90 countries met July 19-24 at the International Coral Reefs Symposium in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand.
- Participants discussed how to combat the drivers of climate change, how to characterize and communicate the current condition of coral reefs, and how to empower Indigenous communities and integrate their knowledge systems, among other topics.
- During the week of the conference, a new U.S.-based coral reef research center was launched and the first-ever high-resolution mapping of living corals for the Pacific Ocean was announced.
- The next International Coral Reef Symposium will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in July 2030.

Drifting tuna fishing gear enter half of marine protected areas: study
- A global study estimates that drifting fish aggregating devices, or dFADs, affect more than half of the world’s protected marine area.
- Researchers documented at least 6,324 dFAD strandings across 174 protected areas in 53 maritime jurisdictions over a period spanning 2007-2023.
- The analysis found no clear evidence that fishing fleets systematically concentrate dFAD fishing around large marine protected areas.
- Researchers and an independent fisheries expert are calling for stronger limits on dFAD deployments, better tracking and for companies to have greater responsibility for retrieving lost devices.

Sri Lanka prepares for impending El Niño with traditional and new approaches
- According to traditional Sri Lankan paddy farmers, long dry spells have occurred every four to seven years.
- Sri Lanka has experienced around 25-26 El Niño events from 1950 to date, out of which only three have been strong El Niño events, meteorology department officials say.
- The irrigation department has introduced new water-saving techniques such as alternative wetting and drying to preserve excess water during the forecasted dry season.
- Attempts are also being made to integrate science into decision making, but there are gaps in research due to a lack of access to information, academics say.

Climate change boosted Spain wildfire risk 20-fold, research shows
Human-induced climate change drastically fueled the weather behind recent devastating wildfires in France and Spain, according to a new rapid analysis by researchers studying the role of climate change on today’s extreme weather. In its report, the World Weather Attribution (WWA), a global network of researchers, noted that severe blazes scorched 140,000 hectares (346,000 acres) […]
Palm oil expansion reignites decade-old Indigenous land conflict in Indonesia
- Two palm oil companies have resumed clearing forest in a long-disputed Indigenous community in Indonesian Borneo, more than a decade after international pressure halted operations.
- The Dayak Benuaq community of Muara Tae says the companies are clearing its ancestral land without its consent, while the companies maintain they legally acquired the land from a neighboring village.
- Community members say the renewed clearing is destroying regenerating forest and farms central to their livelihoods, despite years of advocacy, international recognition, and an unresolved complaint to the RSPO, the top certifier of sustainable palm oil.
- Advocates say the dispute exposes persistent weaknesses in Indonesia’s recognition of Indigenous land rights, allowing companies to rely on administrative boundaries that communities say override customary ownership.

Listening offers a clearer picture of India’s hidden finless porpoises
The Indo-Pacific finless porpoise is one of India’s smallest cetaceans, inhabits turbid coastal waters, and lacks a dorsal fin — all of which make it a difficult species for researchers to spot. Recent research suggests these animals are far more prevalent in Indian waters than visual sightings suggest, yet they may be disappearing before they […]
Before giant meat producer JBS expands to Nigeria, people deserve answers (commentary)
- The world’s largest meat company is pursuing a $2.5 billion investment that could reshape Nigeria’s agricultural sector.
- Critics are calling for greater transparency about this plan and point to JBS’ legacy in the Amazon of deforestation, land grabbing, forced labor, invasions of Indigenous territories, intimidation and violence against small-scale farmers, among other concerns.
- “The central issue is not whether Nigeria should welcome investment, but whether a project of this scale will be subjected to the level of transparency, scrutiny, and due diligence needed to ensure that its benefits do not come with avoidable environmental and human rights costs,” argues an expert with Climate Rights International.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Costa Rica banana plantation destroyed protected wetland, complaint alleges
- A legal complaint in Costa Rica alleges that a banana plantation destroyed parts of a protected wetland in Bananito Sur, located in the Valle La Estrella district in the central province of Limón.
- Workers on the La Paz banana plantation, owned by Standard Fruit Company de Costa Rica, a subsidiary of Dole, cut down and burned vegetation, according to several complaints and court filings.
- The area is a state-recognized palustrine wetland, located inland and unconnected to the ocean or rivers. It provides breeding areas for migratory birds and helps resupply the region’s aquifers.

Prague zoo keeps polar bears cool with ice cubes as European summer heatwave hits
PRAGUE (AP) — Keepers at Prague Zoo used tons of ice on Thursday to give its animals some much-needed relief as yet another heat wave hit Europe. Polar bears Aleut and Gregor wasted no time and were rolling in the beds of ice cubes after entering their outside enclosure. The twins looked to have fun with the […]
Report: Indonesian authorities weaponize laws to silence environmental and Indigenous defenders
Indonesian authorities are wrongfully prosecuting environmental defenders and Indigenous leaders who protest deforestation, pollution and land grabs, says a new report by international nonprofit Human Rights Watch (HRW). In its 70-page report, HRW uses 15 publicly recorded cases from 2015 to 2025 as examples to suggest how police use complaints from companies and politicians to […]
New fire satellites offer hope for Amazon and other biomes, but local barriers remain
- Record forest fires raged out of control in South America in 2024, scorching areas that had never burned before. An El Niño episode is expected to intensify fires in 2026 and 2027.
- Earlier this month, nonprofit Earth Fire Alliance launched three FireSat satellites, the latest step in its plans to provide firefighters worldwide with more precise and rapidly updated data.
- For countries in the Amazon basin, the technology promises to provide data that could ensure faster and more accurate responses. Yet, in many countries, the lack of physical infrastructure and governmental support could dampen the positive impacts of having more data.

How can Indigenous knowledge reshape AI development?
As artificial intelligence increasingly becomes a part of ecological monitoring, a growing body of research suggests integrating Indigenous ecological knowledge (IEK) into ethical frameworks for AI governance to prioritize environmental reports contributor Shradha Triveni for Mongabay. Researchers in a recent study published in the journal AI and Ethics examined how the Navajo philosophy of Hózhó, […]
Study suggests the threat of mold-associated illnesses may be underappreciated
NEW YORK (AP) — A first-of-its-kind U.S. study suggests invasive mold infections may be an underappreciated — and potentially deadly — threat. The researchers detected about 450 cases in Atlanta-area hospitals over five years. About a third of the patients died in the hospital. The findings, published this week by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and […]
Indigenous Parakanã fear election U-turn may spark new invasions in Brazil
- The Parakanã Indigenous people are reoccupying their territory in Pará state after the eviction of around 3,000 invaders by federal forces.
- The intruders, however, are ready to come back if Brazil’s next administration carries a new anti-environmental agenda in 2027.
- Experts compare illegal activities such as gold mining to powerful bacteria that may return even stronger if you don’t use the proper antibiotic.
- Also in Pará, the state administration has the challenge of keeping deforestation under control after a successful operation in the Triunfo do Xingu Environmental Protection Area.

Indonesia shows elevated fire hotspot activity in 2026 as super El Niño threat looms
- A new satellite fire-monitoring platform, FireWatch, had detected more than 96,000 hotspots across Indonesia as of July 27, 2026.
- The total exceeds that recorded at the same point in any previous year monitored by FireWatch, even though Indonesia has not yet reached the months when wildfires typically intensify.
- FireWatch estimates that approximately 103,000 hectares (255,000 acres) of land burned nationwide during the first half of 2026, raising concerns as forecasters warn that a strong El Niño could further increase fire risk.

Fatal WWII bomb blast in Indonesia was a result of illegal fishing activity, police say
- At least seven people were killed on May 31 when a World War II bomb exploded in Fandoi village on Indonesia’s Biak Island.
- Interviews with officials indicate the explosion occurred while an unexploded wartime ordnance was being dismantled to recover explosives for illegal blast fishing.
- The HALO Trust estimates that unexploded bombs and ammunition have killed or injured around 25,000 people in neighboring Papua New Guinea since the end of the World War II, reflecting the region’s enduring wartime legacy.
- A casualty estimate for the Indonesian territory of the New Guinea archipelago is unclear.

Kenyan teen leads charge on tree planting and climate awareness
- Kenyan teenager Baraka Moruri has planted more than 7,600 trees over the last four years with the help of his family, friends and private organizations.
- He says he wants children to be better engaged in climate action and policy, arguing that they have ideas and energy to contribute.
- Climate finance experts say less than 1% of international climate finance gets to youth- and children-led projects, despite climate change affecting their health, education and food security.

International Tiger Day: A complex landscape of recovery, conflict, and empty forests
July 29 is International Tiger Day. Few species have benefitted from global conservation attention and funding like the tiger. Its numbers have seen a hopeful increase in recent years, yet the big cat continues to face localized pressures. Recent Mongabay coverage highlights three starkly different realities for tigers (Panthera tigris) across Asia. India’s corridors under […]
Forests in Liberia are falling to cocoa, in half a year the EU could ban imports
On this week’s episode of the Mongabay Newscast, we speak with features writer Ashoka Mukpo, who traveled to southeastern Liberia to investigate what satellite images indicated was a spike in deforestation over a relatively concentrated period. Along with video production coordinator Juan Maza, Mukpo documented illegal cacao plantations in the rainforests in the county of […]
End of Brazil’s Soy Moratorium risks millions of hectares of Amazon rainforest: Study
Millions of hectares of Amazon rainforest are newly at risk of being legally deforested, a new study estimates. The potential increase in deforestation comes as soy companies have terminated their voluntary participation in the Amazon Soy Moratorium, a private-sector agreement that barred signatories from buying soy grown on land deforested after 2008. Researchers found 9.1 […]
Mining, drilling, and fire are fragmenting the world’s largest forests
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. The world’s largest remaining stretches of undisturbed forest are shrinking. Fires now cause more of the loss than logging, while mining and oil and gas development have moved close to the top of the list. That’s the conclusion […]
How carbon markets can succeed & also serve Global South communities (commentary)
- The world’s forests provide essential ecosystem services, capture and store huge amounts of carbon dioxide, face enormous pressure, and need sustained economic incentives if they are to survive.
- So why has the voluntary carbon market consistently fallen short of its promise to support forest conservation and communities, a new op-ed asks.
- “The ecosystem services forests provide are worth something, and the people who live in and protect those forests must be the primary beneficiaries of that value. Anything short of that is not conservation but a new form of exploitation,” the author argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Heat stress is rising globally, raising health concerns for billions: Study
Climate change is causing frequent, well-studied, extreme heat events. Less well understood is the additional heat stress experienced by billions of people as a result of those extreme heat events. However, a new study published in Nature Climate Change aims to change that. The study analyzed more than 70 years of climate data stored in […]
Scaling up offshore wind requires overcoming global and local challenges
- Offshore wind has great potential as a renewable source of energy, experts say, but remains underutilized; its pace of development is slower than needed to meet set climate goals.
- As a sector, offshore wind is buffeted by global economic factors, such as inflation and supply chain constraints. That’s led to failed auctions and canceled projects in recent years.
- Other challenges at the national level, such as ensuring timely grid connections and ship and port capacity, have also emerged.
- These must be overcome if offshore wind is to scale, according to experts.

French wildfire created a monster cloud, unleashing lightning that ignited more fires
PARIS (AP) — A wildfire in southwest France grew so powerful that its towering smoke column became a thunderstorm, generating lightning that struck the ground and ignited new fires beyond the original blaze, French officials said. The so-called pyrocumulonimbus — which France’s national firefighters federation said had never before been seen in the country — […]
Extreme weather dampens breeding success for marine predators in Tasmania: study
- A recent study found that extreme weather events like storms, heat waves and floods can interfere with the breeding success of marine predators like seals, shearwaters and albatross that raise their young along the coasts of the Australian state of Tasmania.
- While some colonies appeared unaffected by extreme weather, others saw offspring swept away by powerful waves and storm surges, hypothermia during unusually wet episodes, and deadly overheating during periods of high temperatures.
- The researchers noted that these extremes are among many challenges seals, seabirds and other marine predators face, including pollution, disease and declining food supplies, which can also be influenced by extreme weather events.

Cheetahs reintroduced to Zambia’s Greater Luangwa Ecosystem
Cheetahs are back in Zambia’s Greater Luangwa Ecosystem, nearly 30 years after the big cats’ last recorded presence in the massive landscape. Six cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus), three males and three females, were earlier in July moved by Zambia’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) and several conservation groups, including the South Africa-based Endangered Wildlife […]
Bangladesh shipbreakers push back against stricter environmental standards
- Bangladesh’s shipbreaking industry faces a pivotal treaty dispute. The country’s interim government last year decided that both Basel Convention and the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) will apply simultaneously to the local shipbreaking operations.
- However, shipbreakers say that applying Basel rules would make ship imports more expensive and legally complex, potentially forcing many shipbreaking yards to close due to their inability to meet Basel standards.
- Basel strictly controls transboundary movement of toxic waste, and requires dismantling ships on impermeable surfaces that contain hazardous waste, effectively ruling out the conventional method used in Bangladesh, of grounding a ship onto a beach.
- The Hong Kong Convention permits the beaching method, but environmental activists say it doesn’t provide sufficient environmental protection and reflects shipping industry interests.

Major orangutan study finds Sumatran population fell nearly 20% despite slower forest loss
- A new study estimates the Sumatran orangutan population declined by nearly 20% between 2011 and 2023.
- The researchers found that habitat loss alone cannot explain the declines, pointing to additional threats such as killing, conflict and habitat fragmentation.
- The study is the first comprehensive reassessment of Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutans since a landmark 2016 survey.
- The Forestry Ministry co-authored the study and says it will use the findings to guide conservation policy, marking a contrast with the previous administration’s public claims that orangutan populations were increasing.

Conservationists got delayed access to court-ordered inspection of Nairobi National Park
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) has been accused of harassing co-petitioners in a case challenging the relocation of the Nairobi Animal Orphanage to make it part of the larger Bomas International Conference Complex. The proposal would carve out between 76 and 89 acres inside Nairobi National Park for upgrades to wildlife rescue and rehabilitation facilities. […]
At least 50 people killed and 700,000 displaced by India floods after monsoon rains
GUWAHATI, India (AP) — Flooding in India’s northeastern Assam state has killed at least 50 people and displaced 700,000 after days of heavy monsoon rain that overflowed the Brahmaputra River, officials said Friday. The river, one of Asia’s largest that originates in China’s Tibet region and flows about 900 kilometers (560 miles) through Assam, flooded […]
Winners of the annual Mangrove Photography Awards: See the photos
In celebration of World Mangrove Day on July 26, the U.S.-based Mangrove Action Project (MAP) has announced the winners of its 12th annual photography awards. “Mangroves are the underdog. They will never be as glamorous as the Amazon rainforest or coral reefs. But through photography we can change that narrative, and intrigue people by showing […]
In Michoacán, Mexico, drying soil threatens water supplies and avocados, says study
- Avocados are grown year-round in the southwestern Mexican state of Michoacán, which exports more than 1 million metric tons of avocados annually.
- A recent study in Michoacán found that between 2001 and 2018, soils with high avocado productivity lost 38 liters per cubic meter of water annually.
- Illegal logging of high-altitude forests to accommodate new avocado plantations simultaneously depletes the aquifer, as avocado trees consume 4-5 times more water than native pines.
- If the trend continues, Michoacán’s avocado-growing areas are expected to suffer increased water stress in the short term, negatively affecting both agricultural production and drinking water access in the region.

Sea salt in Lombok Island, Indonesia is contaminated with microplastics: study
Sea salt sold in markets across Lombok Island, Indonesia, is contaminated with microplastics, according to a recent study. Microplastics are small plastic particles less than 5 millimeters in length that form when larger plastic waste breaks down. Microplastics have been found everywhere scientists have looked for them, including seafood and table salt, raising concerns for public […]
Wildfire spreads near popular French tourist town as thousands are evacuated
PARIS (AP) — About 20,000 people were evacuated from towns and vacation resorts along the French Atlantic coast Thursday as the latest in a series of wildfires raged and hundreds of firefighters were dispatched to tackle it. Local authorities said the fire in a forest near the town of Lège-Cap Ferret, southwest of Bordeaux, spread […]
Indigenous leaders push for stronger voice at UN as climate threats grow
- Indigenous peoples are experiencing the impacts of climate change, including threats to traditional livelihoods and cultural practices.
- Delegates at the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP) argued that Indigenous Peoples need direct participation in international decision-making, independent accreditation, and greater resources to influence policies that affect their communities.
- Alongside climate change, delegates highlighted emerging issues such as artificial intelligence, land degradation, and resource extraction, emphasizing that Indigenous knowledge and self-determination are essential for protecting rights, cultures, and the environment.

How saline drinking water raises preeclampsia risks in coastal Bangladesh (commentary)
- Climate change and rising sea levels are driving salt water intrusion into drinking water sources in coastal Bangladesh, which research links to an increased risk of preeclampsia, a leading cause of maternal mortality.
- Rural communities lack adequate freshwater infrastructure, which means pregnant women are often forced to consume saline water, making them particularly vulnerable to the life-threatening effects of excessive sodium intake.
- To address this hidden health crisis and prevent further maternal deaths, Bangladesh’s government and partner organizations must take urgent action by subsidizing household rainwater harvesting tanks for the most vulnerable coastal families.
- Since this article is a commentary, the views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Mongabay.

Third year of wildfires threaten isolated Indigenous group in Bolivia
Wildfires have burned thousands of hectares of forest and savanna in the Chacobo-Pacahuara Indigenous territory in the Beni department of northern Bolivia, according to satellite imagery and on-the-ground sources. The fires likely resulted from illegal burns in pastures surrounding the Indigenous territory. The fires hit Chacobo-Pacahuara in September and October 2025, the third consecutive year […]
How to stitch a massive wildlife corridor through the Rocky Mountains
- Across the world, roads, railways, towns and farms sever habitat, preventing wildlife from moving across the landscape. Cutting off animals’ ability to connect can limit genetic exchange and cause entire populations to decline — and ultimately, collapse.
- The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative, or Y2Y, is trying to create a giant connected area stretching across the Rocky Mountains from the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem in the U.S. to Canada’s Yukon Territory. It will allow animals to move, meet and mate.
- Across Canada, the U.S. and the world, countries are building wildlife crossings that reconnect habitat and keep motorists safe from costly, potentially deadly collisions with animals.

Vietnam’s coffee boom fueled by decades of deforestation, report finds
Decades of unchecked deforestation for coffee production has devastated Vietnam’s Central Highland forests, according to a new investigation by the Berlin-headquartered watchdog group Coffee Watch. Vietnam is currently the world’s second largest coffee producer, supplying nearly 40% of the world’s exports of Robusta coffee (Coffea canephora). The investigation, which analyzed satellite data and government records, […]
Oil has harmed the nature and people of the Niger Delta; human rights may save it
On this week’s episode of the Mongabay Newscast, I speak with travel writer Noo Saro-Wiwa. She has documented the violence and natural destruction that the presence of oil companies have brought to the people of the Niger Delta in her latest book, The Burning Ground: Oil and Militancy in Nigeria. Saro-Wiwa is also the daughter […]
Amazon tree rings reveal more intense drought and rainfall in the rainforest
Tree rings from the Amazon show that the world’s largest rainforest has developed wetter wet seasons and drier dry seasons over the past four decades. The findings point to intense seasonal swings that can cause significant harm to biodiversity and suggest that widespread drying out across the entire Amazon basin is unlikely. Researchers collected tree […]
Extreme heat is eroding health, productivity and incomes of Dhaka’s informal workers
- Nearly 75% of migrants in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, reported being negatively affected by rising temperatures, while 100% reported being affected by extreme weather events.
- Bangladesh’s maximum temperature has increased by 1.1°C since 1980, while the country’s “feels-like” temperature has risen by 4.5°C.
- In 2024 alone, heat-related illnesses and productivity losses contributed to the loss of 250 million workdays, costing Bangladesh an estimated $1.78 billion, equivalent to 0.4% of GDP.
- Bangladesh’s informal economy employs approximately 85% of the national workforce, nearly 60 million people making heat stress not only a public health issue but also a major economic concern.

As Sri Lanka braces for El Niño, national parks are a concern amidst encroachment
- Encroachments of national parks in Sri Lanka had occurred as early as the 1950s and 1960s, shrinking park terrain.
- Studies indicate that the resettlement of those displaced as a result of the nearly three-decade long armed conflict had contributed significantly to the deforestation in national parks such as Wilpattu.
- Grasslands in many national parks need to be managed through methods such as prescribed burning to ensure availability of fodder for the herbivores, researchers say.
- The national wildlife conservation agency, meanwhile, says the need to allow natural selection processes to strike a balance in ecosystems inside national parks should not be ignored.

Malaysia clamps down on toxic trade with total e-waste import ban
- In April 2026, Malaysia began enforcing an absolute ban on e-waste imports, having previously been one of the main recipients of imported electrical and electronic waste.
- Enforcing the ban requires customs authorities to discover and turn back cargoes of e-waste falsely declared as industrial metals or other commodities — a daunting task given the volume of containers passing through Malaysia’s ports every day.
- While enforcement efforts are underway, including a joint task force that has already sent thousands of tons of e-waste back to origin countries this year, loopholes remain, such as top exporter the U.S. not being a signatory to the Basel Convention on hazardous waste.
- Meanwhile, local recyclers say the e-waste ban levels the playing field for companies trying to legally recycle domestic e-waste, while residents of areas near ports complain that illegal incineration remains a persistent problem.

Clean cooking expands at record pace in Africa, but lags behind population growth
- Around 15 million people gained access to clean cooking in sub-Saharan Africa in 2025, and the region is set for its fastest-ever expansion in access to clean cooking in 2026.
- One billion people, however, continue to cook with highly polluting fuels like firewood, charcoal and kerosene, as population growth outpaces progress.
- Of the $2.2 billion pledged to furthering clean cooking access in Africa at the 2024 Summit on Clean Cooking Africa, $740 million has been disbursed across 30 countries, according to an International Energy Agency report.
- The report estimates that Africa could reach universal access by 2040 if it matches the fastest historical rates of progress, backed by sustained investment and stronger policies, but the ongoing Middle East crisis has seen a surge in prices of cooking gas.

From rivers to mangroves, microplastics are contaminating the Amazon
- Recent studies show that microplastics are already present in a variety of Amazonian environments: Major rivers such as the Amazon, urban streams, floodplain areas and mangroves in the Amazon’s Mouth.
- In a single lake in eastern Manaus, researchers found microplastics in the intestines of half the jaraquis — the most consumed fish in Amazonas state
- The contamination is related to irregular waste disposal and lack of sewage collection and treatment, which allow household residues to flow directly into water bodies.
- This is the first story in a three-part special series on microplastics in the Amazon region; upcoming pieces will look into the effects of these particles on aquatic and terrestrial organisms.

Peru’s only penguin species at risk from upcoming El Niño and bird flu, experts warn
- The Humboldt penguin is the only penguin species to breed in Peru, inhabiting the country’s coastal deserts. But since 2022, the species’ has been under pressure from the spread of avian influenza, followed by El Niño.
- Between 2022 and 2025, the population of Humboldt penguins has dropped by two-thirds across 34 islands and peninsulas on the Peruvian coast.
- Experts monitoring the species say penguins are abandoning their nests as they already feel the impacts of the upcoming El Niño episode, which changes temperatures in coastal waters and diminishes the amount of prey fish available.
- Scientists are asking both the national government and the IUCN to revise the species’ status to reflect the increasing threats and boost conservation efforts.

Why are forests vanishing in southeastern Liberia?
GRAND GEDEH, Liberia – In the past century, most of West Africa’s Upper Guinean rainforest has been lost to commercial agriculture, infrastructure development and logging. More than half of what’s left is in Liberia, and the remaining rainforest now faces a threat that’s already driven much of the region’s deforestation: cacao production. In the past […]
How Costa Rica’s extreme climate changes the social behaviors of white-faced capuchin
- For 33 years, a research team has studied white-faced capuchin monkeys in the tropical dry forests of Costa Rica, gathering data on their complex social lives.
- A new study from the team shows that during extreme climate events, large groups of capuchins may go hungry, while smaller groups may fare better.
- Climate extremes alter the physical landscape, causing animals to change their societal behaviors. For capuchins, this means greater competition for food, heightened territorial sensitivity and fluctuating group sizes.
- While capuchins can adapt to environmental changes over time, there are limits to their resilience, as seen during the severe droughts caused by the El Niño in 2014-2016, when dwindling food sources caused capuchins to abandon societal norms in search of food.

Can harpy eagles attack humans? Amazon case rekindles scientific debate
- An attack by a harpy against a tourist in French Guiana has sparked a debate about interactions between humans and the world’s largest eagle.
- Field reports indicate that these episodes are uncommon and usually associated with defending prey, but they can result in serious injuries.
- Although rare, these cases expose a conservation dilemma: They may reinforce stigma against the species but also reveal real conflicts about which there is little public debate.

Ancient rock structures help restore biodiversity on the US-Mexico border
- On the border between the United States and Mexico, ranchers are struggling under shifting climatic conditions, including extreme drought and intense flooding.
- Small rock structures known as trincheras are an ancient method of slowing water flow, reducing erosion and improving subsoil quality, allowing life to rebound in degraded rangelands.
- A growing body of research indicates that rock detention structures like trincheras help improve drought resilience, increase biodiversity and water yields.
- In Sonora, a state dominated by private rangelands, momentum is growing to build these structures and adopt a wider range of “regenerative ranching” practices, as conservationists and ranchers work together.

‘Chasing Deforestation’ in Liberia: Behind the scenes with Mongabay
- In a new episode of “Chasing Deforestation,” Mongabay investigates the emergence of a cocoa industry in southeastern Liberia that is destroying its forests.
- Mongabay reporters traveled deep into the Liberian rainforest to find illegal cacao farms with the help of forest rangers and eco-guards.
- The investigation was led by Mongabay Africa bureau features writer Ashoka Mukpo.

Gray whales are suffering catastrophic population decline in the Pacific Ocean
Gray whales are experiencing a potentially catastrophic population decline, a sharp reversal from what had been considered a conservation success. As of July 6, 2026, there were 145 gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus) stranding deaths in the Pacific, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) data. The environmental non-profit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) […]
Amazon deforestation falls to 10-year low in first half of 2026
Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen to its lowest level in the past 10 years, according to satellite data published by Brazil’s National Space Agency (INPE). Between January and June 2025, a total of 2,090 square kilometers (807 square miles) of deforestation was recorded in the Brazilian Amazon. In the same months of 2026, […]
What living in one of the world’s hottest towns feels like
BANDA, India (AP) — The northern Indian town of Banda has endured weeks of extreme heat, with daytime temperatures repeatedly reaching 115 Fahrenheit and nighttime lows staying above 93 F. Banda has repeatedly ranked among India’s hottest cities, with temperatures peaking at 118 F. Climatologist and weather historian Maximiliano Herrera also said Banda was the […]
Meat giant JBS silently ditches bolder environmental targets in latest review
The world’s largest meatpacking company, JBS, has scrapped two of its key environmental goals in its latest annual sustainability report. JBS’s “Net Zero by 2040,” which aimed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions throughout its supply chain, and zero deforestation targets were substantially rolled back compared to previous years, according to its 2025 Sustainability report, published July […]
European Commission excludes leather from landmark deforestation law
The European Union has dropped leather from its final list of products targeted under the bloc’s landmark antideforestation law. Experts say the July 13 decision is the result of industry lobbying rather than a true reflection of leather’s deforestation footprint. The EU deforestation regulation, or EUDR, mandates that companies selling commodities such as cattle, soy, […]
War heightens isolation of Iran’s scientists
The ongoing war in Iran, which began following a joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Feb. 28, has intensified the long-standing isolation of the country’s wildlife conservation community, Mongabay’s John Cannon reports. While the current war has directly hindered research and damaged educational facilities, conservationists and researchers said that decades of international sanctions and political disconnect had […]
Community conservation under fire: Interview with Myanmar’s Clean Mountains founder
- Since the 2021 coup in Myanmar, environmental degradation has worsened, but one small women-led team works on grassroots conservation in conflict areas.
- Clean Mountains helps local communities in Karenni and Karen states with waste management, water conservation, sustainable agriculture and forest conservation.
- Founder Ou Ou discusses how the ongoing conflict has fueled natural resource destruction and also silenced the voices of conservationists.
- She also speaks about the role of gender in conservation work, why women participate more often in waste management efforts and how long-standing traditional beliefs continue to leave women out of decision-making roles.

Warming world could push Southeast Asia forests toward thermal limits, new study
- Countless forest-dwelling species depend on the cooler, moister and more stable conditions found in the understory, beneath leafy tree canopies.
- A new study from Southeast Asia finds the combined pressures of global warming and habitat degradation could send forest understory heat levels soaring within the next three decades, potentially exposing species to unprecedented levels of thermal stress.
- The findings can help prioritize conservation action on vulnerable landscapes, intact forests and heat-resilient areas that could become important refuges for forest species, the research team says.
- Experts say gaining a fuller picture of how forest-dwelling species will be affected by climate change will ultimately require further studies that consider additional factors, such as humidity, wind and ecosystem feedbacks.

Wildfires expose millions in the Midwest and Northeast US to dangerous smoke
Heavy smoke from several large wildfires blazing in Canada and Minnesota is expected to engulf large swaths of the Midwest and Northeast U.S. this week, exposing millions of people to dangerous air pollution. Minnesota officials issued an air quality alert from Tuesday through Friday for areas including the Twin Cities metro area, Alexandria and Two Harbors, with very […]
‘Bear-dar’ aims to give Arctic communities a heads-up on nearby polar bears
- An early-warning system, aided by radar and AI, aims to help mitigate human-polar bear encounters in the Arctic.
- Bear-dar scans the landscape for polar bears and alerts people if a bear is spotted approaching human settlements.
- In May, the system detected a polar bear family and helped people at a weather station guide them back onto sea ice.
- As sea ice rapidly melts due to global warming, polar bears are losing their habitats; as a result, they’re increasingly foraging for food on land, putting them in growing contact with humans.

The unsung biodiversity of the Mediterranean Sea needs urgent protection
The Mediterranean Sea accounts for less than 1% of the world’s ocean surface water, but it contains roughly 18% of global marine biodiversity. It is home to 150 million people along its coastline (roughly equivalent to Russia’s population). And it sequesters 17.2 million metric tons of CO2 each year. Joining the Newscast this week to […]
Waste, women & environmental justice: Interview with Nubian activist Malasen Hamida
- Malasen Hamida, a Nubian Muslim woman from Nairobi’s Kibera, hopes to gain a seat in the Kenyan Parliament as she continues her work in environmental activism.
- Hamida founded the Mazingira Women Initiative, focusing on waste management, smart farming, land rights and women’s leadership.
- She spoke with Mongabay about the history of her people, who were brought to East Africa as soldiers in the King’s African Rifles and given 1,698 hectares, an area that has since diminished to 116 hectares.
- She says the fact that Mazingira is women-led is strategic: “If an environmental issue becomes a priority for a woman, she will ensure it works because she knows it is not for her alone. It is for the long-term well-being of the whole family.”

Ecuador’s Amazon coffee farmers get ahead of Europe’s deforestation rules
- Since 2019, nearly 400 coffee producers in the Ecuadorian Amazon have adopted a deforestation-free production model that combines traceability, geospatial monitoring, and certification.
- In 2025 alone, the initiative exported as much deforestation-free coffee as it had during the previous three years combined, totaling 172.5 metric tons of coffee between 2022 and 2025.
- The project currently involves 373 producers across nearly 5,000 hectares (12,300 acres), of which more than 1,200 hectares (3,000 acres) of natural forest remain conserved.
- The model is designed to anticipate the requirements of the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which will require geographic proof that commodities such as coffee aren’t linked to deforestation after 2020.

Small-scale farming, logging eclipse megaprojects as top threats to Tapanuli orangutan habitat
- A new study finds that while large-scale development projects have accelerated forest loss in a key orangutan habitat in Indonesia, small-scale agriculture and logging now account for roughly 70% of direct habitat loss.
- Researchers link the increase in clearing of the Batang Toru ecosystem to changing rural livelihoods, commercial banana farming, and widespread abuse of a legal community logging mechanism.
- The findings raise particular concern for Batang Toru’s eastern forest block, where continued habitat loss threatens one of the smallest and most vulnerable subpopulations of the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan.
- The authors say protecting the species will require tackling both large development projects and the cumulative pressures from small-scale forest clearing, while expanding conservation beyond Indonesia’s formal protected areas.

Pangolin habitat at risk in Pakistan
The endangered Indian pangolin, already devastated by the illegal wildlife trade, is facing another crisis in Pakistan, one of the four countries where it’s found: rapid habitat loss. Key habitats of the Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) have particularly disappeared in Pakistan’s rural, mountainous northern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to new research, reports contributor Emma […]
Southeast Asian mangroves shift from historic decline to net growth
For decades, Southeast Asia was the global epicenter of mangrove deforestation, but a recent study reveals a dramatic reversal: Since 2010, the region has transitioned from a net loss to a net gain in mangroves, making it a primary contributor to a global mangrove rebound. The study, which analyzed 40 years of satellite data, found […]
Scientists use AI to produce first high-resolution map of global seagrass extent
- Scientists have produced the first high-resolution map of seagrass ecosystems around the world.
- Data from the map reveal that 70% of global seagrass cover is concentrated off the coasts of just five countries.
- The map also found that nearly 80% of seagrass loss happened outside marine protected areas, emphasizing the importance of targeted conservation action.
- Seagrass ecosystems play an important role in protecting coastlines and carbon sequestration; however, they face threats from hurricanes, coastal development, and marine heat waves.

In Honduras, solar power has done more harm than good, communities say
- A new report from the Institute for Policy Studies reveals how solar projects throughout southern Honduras have negatively impacted the local economy and health of surrounding communities.
- It says the state awarded contracts that avoided rigorous environmental oversight, leading to tree cover loss and pollution.
- At the same time, solar power development has done little to transition Honduras away from fossil fuels, which continue to be the largest contributor to the country’s electricity generation.

Bangladesh relocates refugees after landslide kills at least 5 children
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Authorities in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh used loudspeakers and a network of volunteers and community leaders to relocate people from risky areas to safety Thursday after landslides killed at least 13 refugees in the past few days. At least five children died Wednesday when a landslide caused by monsoon rains […]
Lawmakers seek rights probe into Indigenous conflict at Indonesian timber firm
- Indonesian lawmakers have called for a government fact-finding investigation into alleged human rights abuses linked to a long-running land conflict between the Dayak Kualan Indigenous community and timber company PT Mayawana Persada.
- The community says the company cleared customary forests and sacred sites without its consent, while community leaders have faced criminal charges they describe as retaliation for opposing the project.
- The conflict coincides with one of Indonesia’s largest recent deforestation cases, with more than 42,500 hectares (105,000 acres) of forest, including peatlands and orangutan habitat, cleared inside the company’s concession since 2016.
- Indonesia’s human rights ministry says it will investigate the allegations, while lawmakers have urged police to halt criminal proceedings against community members and review the company’s operating permit.

Could a blighted urban inlet become a global beacon of waterway renewal?
- A group of advocates is seeking to transform False Creek, a tidal inlet in Vancouver, Canada, from a polluted city inlet into a place where nature thrives and people can safely swim in the water.
- Facing jurisdictional challenges over who gets to decide the future of this once vital marine ecosystem, advocates have explored various governance models for the inlet, such as getting it designated as an urban marine park or granted environmental personhood.
- Not everyone agrees, and now, they are pushing for the surrounding community to voice their desires and negotiate for False Creek’s future.

Microplastic pollution can fuel rise in antibiotic resistance, studies find
- Plastic pollution and drug-resistant infections are usually regarded as separate global crises. But emerging research suggests links between them: Microplastic particles in the environment are colonized by bacteria, and those bacteria develop antibiotic resistance at an unprecedented rate.
- Studies have found that bacteria exposed to microplastics develop enhanced resistance to antibiotics. Microplastics actively promote the formation of biofilms, communities of bacteria that stick to each other on a surface. These protect the bacteria and aid the development of drug-resistance genes. They also encourage resistance genes to spread from one bacterium to another.
- In high-income countries, drug-resistant infections are often overcome with medical care. Yet in low- and middle-income nations, where sanitation facilities and wastewater treatment plants are less available, infections resistant to antibiotics are prevalent and often fatal. Plastic waste is also rampant in many such nations.
- Research into the link between microplastics and drug resistance is ongoing, but action is needed now, say experts. Limiting opportunities for bacteria, antibiotics and microplastics to mix with each other, via better wastewater management and surveillance of drug-resistant strains, may be the best hope.

Tornadoes and storms in central China kill at least 11 people
BEIJING (AP) — Tornadoes and storms hit central China, killing at least 11 people and injuring hundreds, state media reported on Tuesday, while areas in the south suffered record-breaking rain. Thunderstorms battered parts of Hubei province’s eastern region on Monday night, affecting 14,600 people, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. More than 330 people were injured, and […]
As East Africa’s oceans change, coastal women build new livelihoods
MALINDI, Kenya (AP) — Across East Africa’s coastline, climate change and industrial fishing are threatening the livelihoods of millions who depend on the ocean. In Kenya, women are turning to community tourism, mangrove restoration and other nature-based enterprises as declining fish stocks force them to adapt. Their experiences mirror a regional push to strengthen coastal […]
Brazil boosts budget and number of firefighters amid strong El Niño forecast
Brazil has increased wildfire spending and has hired a record number of federal firefighters in anticipation of extreme drought in the Amazon due to what could be one of the strongest El Niño events in more than a century. The El Niño climate pattern, which emerges from unusually warm waters in the tropical Pacific, typically […]
Dusky langurs start using new canopy bridge in Malaysia’s Penang Island
Endangered dusky langurs have successfully begun using a new artificial canopy bridge in a major tourism hub on Malaysia’s Penang Island. Camera traps set up by the Langur Project Penang (LPP) confirmed that the first dusky langur (Trachypithecus obscurus) crossed the bridge made out of old fire hoses on June 1, about two months after […]
Tropical mountain wildlife are at high risk from climate change impacts, study finds
As the planet warms, animals living in tropical mountains may find it increasingly difficult to shift to new areas, according to a new study. Tropical mountains are particularly at risk when the impacts of climate change combine with changes in land use and human pressures, Chiara Dragonetti, co-author of the study published in June, told […]
Australia’s seagrass meadows under pressure as climate change turns up the heat
- Australia is a global stronghold for seagrasses, the flowering plants that grow in coastal waters and bays.
- Seagrasses are unsung but vital ecosystem engineers: They stabilize sediments, provide habitat and food for marine species, help cleanse the water column of pollutants and sequester vast amounts of carbon dioxide.
- Across Australia’s waters, these undersea meadows are suffering as coasts are developed, seas are polluted and climate change continues to raise water temperatures.
- Conservationists are working to restore seagrasses and build resilience to preserve these vital marine ecosystems.

Zambia’s bumper harvest masks likely food insecurity amid geopolitics and climate threats
- Zambia may seem food-secure now, with recent adequate rains and bumper harvests, but experts say it could be short-lived as global geopolitical tensions drive up fertilizer and fuel costs.
- Experts say the urban populations are the most likely to bear the brunt of the Gulf tensions, as they heavily depend on imported foodstuffs such as wheat.
- There are calls for the country to build long-term resilience through investment in irrigation, climate-smart agriculture, locally produced fertilizer, and diversified food systems.
- Zambia and the rest of Southern Africa is staring at another round of El Niño, which might disrupt rainfall patterns and affect food production.

Can selective logging help the Congo Basin store more carbon?
- A recent study created a machine-learning program that estimated the amount of carbon dioxide already stored, and sequestered annually, by rainforests in Central Africa’s Congo Basin, the planet’s largest forested carbon sink.
- They found that managed logging concessions, which remove a small number of large trees annually and strictly control other human activities, made up more than half of the net carbon removed by Congo Basin rainforests.
- The authors say these results suggest that expanding logging concessions could help the Congo Basin sequester more carbon while also providing locals with a source of income.
- Other experts, however, argue that addressing local conflicts that lead to illegal forest clearing would be a better way to benefit these forests.

UK deforestation rules take step forward after a long delay
The U.K government has announced that it will advance long-delayed regulations on commodities linked to deforestation. On June 23, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) issued a press release promising to “take forward new rules” that will force companies in Great Britain to carry out due diligence on the products they sell. […]
Santa Marta report by 57 nations defines rapid fossil fuel transition path
- The First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, which took place in April 2026, in Colombia, released its final report on June 23 at the London Climate Action Week.
- The so-called Santa Marta Process, arising from a meeting between 57 nations, is not meant to replace the U.N. climate framework consensus process, but rather to complement it. The SMP explores the means for moving beyond decades of diplomatic deadlock.
- The new report offers five practical pathways to a just, orderly, and equitable fossil fuels transition, a process requiring stronger international cooperation and more effective and robust governance frameworks from what currently exist.
- The report’s key findings, including a shift of financing and subsides away from fossil fuels to green energy, was agreed to by 57 countries forming the so-called “Coalition of the Willing.” But Colombia and the Netherlands, which sponsored the April summit, already appear to be realigning their nations with fossil fuels.

Heat and pests are making it hard to grow a gourd that’s critical for Indian music
The tanpura is synonymous with Indian classical music. The sitar-like musical instrument has a long, wooden neck with four strings attached to a bulbous base that acts as the sound chamber. This base is traditionally made from the fruit of a vining gourd, but excessive heat, unseasonal rains, pests and diseases are an increasing threat […]
Illegal timber imports from Cambodia, Laos skirt Vietnam safeguards, report reveals
- A new report from the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) reveals persistent trafficking of illegal timber from Cambodia and Laos into Vietnam.
- The illegal cross-border trade fuels deforestation and undermines what the report describes as “significant progress” by Vietnam in recent years to clean up its timber supply chains.
- Multiple mechanisms perpetuate the illicit trade, including the falsification of paperwork, manipulation of harvesting quotas and economic land concessions, and the use of intermediary criminal networks to facilitate the trade, the report says.
- The report calls on Vietnam’s timber authorities to close regulatory gaps in its timber verification system and urges regional governments to improve levels of independent oversight.

Targeted conservation in Brazil could help protect the Amazon’s flying rivers
- The Amazon’s atmospheric moisture flows known as “flying rivers” provide over 70% of rainfall in parts of southern Peru and northern Bolivia, but they are threatened by deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.
- According to a new report by the NGO Amazon Conservation, the lack of protections for areas known as undesignated public forests and road development projects pose a deforestation risk that would disrupt the flying rivers during dry and transition seasons.
- Research shows that the Amazon is already experiencing longer dry seasons, which in turn affects the forest’s capacity to recycle moisture for the flying rivers.
- Conservation targeting the forests that are most important for recycling atmospheric moisture could help maintain the flying rivers, the report proposes.

A possible strong El Niño fuels fears for fires across Indonesian tropical peatlands
- Meteorologists say emergence of a strong El Niño climate phenomenon is increasingly likely this year, as ocean temperatures in June reached a record high.
- Indonesian environmental groups fear the drier El Niño conditions could trigger renewed peatland fires in Borneo and Sumatra, particularly on land converted for rice cultivation under the government food estate projects announced in 2020.
- In the 1990s, President Suharto launched an ambitious scheme to convert vast areas of Borneo’s peatlands into rice fields. The project failed, and much of the drained landscape burned during the strong 1997–98 El Niño.

Sri Lanka intensifies fight against dengue and the mosquitos that cause the infection
- Sri Lanka has recorded more than 56,422 dengue cases from January to July 1, adding pressure to the country’s healthcare system as the caseload continues to increase.
- DENV-2 is the dominant dengue serotype causing a higher number of infections at present, health officials say.
- According to academics, unplanned urbanization and climate change are factors contributing to the spike in dengue cases in South Asia and many other regions.
- Meanwhile, the Aedes vector is evolving and adapting, increasing the mosquito’s ability to survive in constantly changing environmental conditions, researchers say.

Can coastal infrastructure be engineered to harbor marine life instead of harming it?
- Living Seawalls is a global initiative that aims to make seawalls, marinas and other hard coastal structures more hospitable to marine wildlife by installing biodiversity-friendly panels, boulders and pilings.
- In 2025, Ireland’s first Living Seawalls installation was established at Kennedy Pier in the port town of Cobh, and marine life is already starting to colonize the panels.
- While researchers say the panels can help marine life colonize hardened coastlines, and stayed cooler than standard flat seawall surfaces, questions remain about their effect on seawalls’ main function of keeping waves at bay, leading scientists to suggest that design modifications may be needed.

Youth biodiversity conservation efforts face serious funding challenges, report finds
A new report finds that a chronic lack of funding is undermining youth-led environmental work worldwide. The report, titled “Ecologies of Empowerment: Why and how to fund youth-led biodiversity action,” argues that a current lack of adequate funding for youth biodiversity conservation initiatives threatens development of future generations of conservation leadership and action. “Youth are […]
Sea level rise is ruining coastal Bangladesh with salty water (commentary)
- Projections indicate that Bangladesh faces an amount of sea level rise that will bring major saltwater intrusion into precious freshwater supplies, plus human health impacts, flooding and rampant erosion across coastal areas.
- Though Bangladesh did very little to cause climate change, the nation is not without answers, including the government’s Delta Plan 2100, but it is not moving quickly enough to act on them in time to avoid the worst impacts, the author writes.
- “What has been missing is not knowledge or technology, but the institutional will to treat this like the emergency that it is,” the writer argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

A marine heat wave caused seabird deaths off California. El Nino could worsen the die-off
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Many seabirds are starving to death as a marine heat wave lingers off California and fish seek deeper, cooler waters. That’s according to scientists who say a persistent marine heat wave has shrunk the band of cold, nutrient-rich surface water where krill, anchovies and sardines thrive near the shore. Scientists fear […]
Wildlife’s unpredictable movements make climate-change planning difficult
- Ecologists expected many species to shift northward or upslope in response to warming temperatures, but only about half of observed range shifts so far align with their projections.
- Species responses are likely shaped by multiple factors — changing habitat, rainfall and food availability — not just temperature. Some species may be unable to move, trapped within a fragmented habitat.
- Research shows animals that move toward higher latitudes don’t necessarily fare better.
- These mismatches between predictions and reality create more uncertainty for conservation planning and how best to support species adaptation through corridors.

Indonesia’s blackouts reignite debate over coal-dependent energy transition
- Recent blackouts in Sumatra and Java exposed vulnerabilities in Indonesia’s electricity system, with PLN saying constrained coal supplies contributed to the Java outage.
- Energy analysts say the outages exposed the risks of Indonesia’s centralized, coal-dependent electricity system and strengthened the case for distributed renewable energy such as rooftop solar.
- A recent study identified six coal plants on Java as priority candidates for early retirement, estimating their closure would eliminate 93.5 million metric tons of annual CO₂ emissions.
- Environmental groups say biomass co-firing allows aging coal plants to keep operating while creating new pressures on forests and rural communities supplying wood fuel.

The blueprint for building a fairer world without breaking the planet
A group of more than 40 researchers spent 20 months devising a plan for the world to achieve ecological sustainability within planetary boundaries, all while seeing incomes rise for 98% of the global population and reducing working hours for everybody by half to two and a half days a week. The plan to achieve this […]
Cypriot natural gas could start flowing from ExxonMobil’s discoveries by 2033
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Natural gas could start flowing by 2033 out of two undersea deposits discovered by ExxonMobil off Cyprus, a senior executive with the company said Tuesday, helping to turn the east Mediterranean island nation into a new European energy hub. The largest U.S. oil company and its consortium partner, QatarEnergy, consider the most likely option for […]
Aquatic animal and terrestrial meat trades now almost on par, FAO report finds
- The FAO recently released its State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA) report, a biennial collection of data that policymakers, scientists and civil society groups rely on.
- Global fisheries and aquaculture production, including algae as well as animal products, reached a record 235 million metric tons in 2024, with farmed aquatic animal production surpassing 100 million metric tons annually for the first time. This brings the total aquatic animal product trade close to that of terrestrial meat.
- The report, which covers around 70% of global fisheries, found that sustainably fished stocks fell by 2.1% to a new low of 62.4%.
- The report projects continued growth in aquatic animal production from both fisheries and aquaculture, but warns that achieving it sustainably and equitably will require greater investment, effective governance and continued innovation.

São Tomé declares first two of eight planned marine protected areas
The West African island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe has formally designated its first two protected sites off its coast. This comes less than a year after presenting its plans to establish a national network of eight marine protected areas (MPAs) covering 93 square kilometers (36 square miles) in the Gulf of Guinea. The two […]
The Ideas Shaping Environmental Action
What ideas are shaping responses to the environmental crisis? The Mongabay Newscast picks the brains of authors, researchers, activists and storytellers exploring the systems behind biodiversity loss and climate change. From economic inequality and governance to Indigenous knowledge and climate fiction, this podcast series examines how ideas about change take shape, gain influence and tackle […]
Thai farmers fear water woes from planned LNG plant
- Farmers in Thailand’s Chachoengsao province worry a planned 600-megawatt LNG power plant could increase water shortages and air pollution in an area already facing recurring drought.
- The project is the latest chapter in an 18-year struggle by local communities, who previously helped stop the same development when it was planned as a coal-fired power station and continue to challenge it on environmental and health grounds.
- Opponents also question why the plant is needed at all, arguing Thailand already has excess generating capacity and that expanding LNG infrastructure could deepen fossil-fuel dependence while delaying a shift to renewable energy.

Honduras taps armed forces to eliminate deforestation by 2029. Is it working?
RÍO PLÁTANO BIOSPHERE RESERVE, Honduras — Deep inside Honduras’ protected forests, a battle is taking place between environmental defenders and deforestation. Deforestation rates in the country are among the highest in the Americas, threatening one of the world’s most biodiverse ecosystems. In 2024, its government launched a plan to eliminate deforestation by 2029, with a […]
Extreme heat wave in France kills hundreds of thousands of poultry
Record temperatures have been causing mass poultry deaths in western France since June 22, Reuters reported. The heat wave, with temperatures exceeding 40° Celsius (104° Fahrenheit), is also behind the drowning of 40 people. Météo-France, the French national weather service, wrote in a statement that June 24 and 25 were the hottest days recorded in […]
French court orders TotalEnergies to disclose climate impacts in vigilance plan
A French court has delivered a landmark judgment against oil and gas giant TotalEnergies SE, holding it accountable for the carbon footprint associated with its global operations. On June 25, the Paris Judicial Court ordered the multinational business to revise its vigilance plan in relation to its climate risk assessment. The order requires the company […]
How snow leopards, wolves and leopards share the same Himalayan valley, study
- Three apex predators (snow leopards, common leopards, and Himalayan wolves) coexist in a remote valley in Nepal’s central Himalayas by relying on different food sources.
- Researchers analyzed six years of camera-trap footage and fecal DNA from the Lapchi Valley to discover that snow leopards eat mainly wild ungulates, leopards feed on livestock and animals near human settlements, and wolves eat a mix of both.
- All three predators are mostly nocturnal and use overlapping terrain, but their specialized diets prevent direct conflict among these similarly sized apex predators.
- Protecting abundant wild prey is the most effective way to keep all three predators away from livestock and reduce retaliatory killings that threaten their survival.

India’s fishers confront homegrown ‘ghost gear’ problem
- Across India’s west coast, fishers often abandon or discard their damaged gear at sea after seabed snags, mounting economic pressures, and increasingly crowded near-shore waters make recovery difficult, creating a constant stream of “ghost gear” into the Arabian Sea.
- Once lost, fishing gear continues to function, whether it drifts through the water column or settles on the seabed, trapping marine life or entangling marine habitat.
- Incentive schemes, retrieval efforts, recycling initiatives and other efforts to reduce harm show promise in some places in India. But experts say they tend to remain piecemeal and face common challenges such as a lack of recycling infrastructure and dependence on short-term funding.
- Many experts say the key to addressing India’s ghost gear problem lies in moving from ad hoc initiatives to institutionalized systems that intervene across the gear’s lifecycle, from design and use to end-of-life disposal.

Laser scanning forests may boost carbon estimates, but credibility questions linger
- Ground-based laser scanning, called LiDAR, can be used to make detailed maps of forest structure.
- Such detail can allow for more accurate estimates of the amount of carbon stored in aboveground vegetation, which is helpful for assessing the outcomes of reforestation projects and assigning an accurate number of carbon credits.
- Carbon credits, bought and sold on the carbon market, are used by companies and other entities to offset their own greenhouse gas emissions.
- But experts caution that transparency, not estimation accuracy, remains the carbon market’s biggest challenge.

Vietnamese environmental lawyer Dang Dinh Bach released after 5 years in prison
Vietnamese environmental lawyer Dang Dinh Bach was released from prison on June 24 after serving a full five-year sentence for tax evasion, charges advocates say were a pretext to silence his activism against coal mining. Bach, the founder and former director of the Law and Policy of Sustainable Development Research Center, was arrested in 2021 […]
Three years after Cyclone Freddy, farms remain under water in Malawi’s Elephant Marsh
- Hundreds of thousands of people depend on Malawi’s Elephant Marsh for their livelihoods.
- Despite the name, there are no longer elephants in these wetlands, whose boundaries expand and contract with seasonal rains, but they provide habitat for hippos, crocodiles, fish and more than 100 waterbird species as well as thousands of farming and fishing households.
- The water from floods caused by 2023’s Cyclone Freddy never receded from large parts of the marsh, and this has displaced more than 1,000 farming households.
- Ongoing changes to the landscape upstream and in the marsh itself have destabilized the wetlands’ ability to absorb seasonal flooding. Increasingly frequent storms like Freddy are a further challenge to the ecosystem’s functioning.

Bangladesh tests a return to the wild for extinct peafowl populations
- In 2025, Bangladesh released 20 peafowls from captivity into a forest-based enclosure as part of plans to fully reintroduce the species into the country’s wild.
- The sole chick to hatch from this group is now 6 months old and being considered for full release.
- The Bangladesh Forest Department says it expects more chicks from this year’s breeding and plans to gradually release these into the wild too, specifically into Madhupur National Park, north of Dhaka.
- Conservationists warn that releasing captive peafowl stock into the wild has a high chance of failure and could spread diseases to other wild species.

Asia’s shark and ray hotspots remain poorly protected, study finds
- A new regional assessment has identified 122 important shark and ray areas (ISRAs) across Asia, spanning more than 1 million square kilometers (386,102 square miles) and supporting 121 species, many of them threatened with extinction.
- Despite their ecological importance, only 5.4% of these habitats overlap with existing marine protected areas with only 2.8% falling within fully protected no-take zones, highlighting major conservation gaps.
- Sri Lanka has five identified ISRAs, home to nine species with eight of them threatened with extinction, but only Pigeon Island in the island’s east is formally protected, with most areas still functioning as active fishing grounds.
- The new study underscores an urgent need to move from mapping to management, using ISRAs to guide marine spatial planning, fisheries regulation and habitat protection ahead of global 30×30 ocean targets.

Amazon floodplains cocoa offers a climate-resilient and sustainable chocolate
- Traditional communities in Pará, Brazil’s top cocoa-producing state, are managing native species that naturally resist pests and extreme weather.
- The dense forest canopy of the floodplains provides natural irrigation and protection for cocoa trees against extreme droughts, heavy rain and pests.
- Global demand for organic and ethically sourced chocolate is expected to rise, positioning Amazonian states to fill international supply gaps, despite hurdles.
- Experts compare Pará’s emerging artisanal chocolate sector to Burgundy wine or Ethiopian coffee due to the unique “terroir” flavors of its native beans.

Trump admin persists in quixotic quest against wind power despite legal defeat
U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is continuing its campaign to end wind energy development through a series of executive orders, lawsuits, and lease buybacks. This is despite a recent court defeat and its own Department of Energy estimating the country could be powered by wind alone. Trump has made no secret of his disdain for […]
Not all coral reefs are doomed as a result of climate change, study suggests
One third of the world’s coral reefs may be able to withstand the impacts of climate change by 2050, according to a study conducted by the conservation NGO Wildlife Conservation Society and researchers from Macquarie University in Australia. The findings of the study, yet to be peer-reviewed, were presented on June 16 during the Our […]
How leopards and wolves share the same Himalayan valley: Study
Three of Asia’s most formidable predators share territory in a remote Nepal valley by eating different prey, according to a new study. Researchers found that diet, not time or space, is what keeps snow leopards (Panthera uncia), common leopards (Panthera pardus), and Himalayan wolves (Canis lupus chanco) from coming into direct conflict. The study, published […]
As temperatures soar, Paris court set to rule on landmark climate change case
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A day after France hit record high temperatures, a court in Paris is set to rule Thursday on a landmark climate change case that could see energy giant TotalEnergies forced to reduce its oil and gas production. The lawsuit, brought by a group of NGOs and the city of Paris, argues […]
On the brink of extinction, the Javan green magpie gets a conservation lifeline
- The critically endangered Javan green magpie, an Indonesian songbird with perhaps as few as 50 individuals left in the wild, has become the focus of a new 10-year conservation action plan developed by nearly 50 experts and conservation organizations.
- Once widespread in West Java’s upland forests, the species has been driven to the brink by habitat loss and trapping for the songbird trade, with surveys between 2018 and 2021 failing to find any birds at many former strongholds.
- The plan aims to protect remaining habitat, work with local communities to reduce trapping, strengthen enforcement against illegal trade, and support future conservation translocations using birds bred in captivity.
- Conservationists say the effort could also benefit other threatened species and mountain forest ecosystems, but warn that increased attention on the bird could inadvertently stimulate demand from wildlife traffickers and collectors.

New analysis breaks down 2025 Amazon deforestation, with good news and bad news
- Amazon Conservation’s Mapping of the Andes Amazon Project (MAAP) published its annual analysis of 2025 forest loss in the Amazon Rainforest, using the data developed by the University of Maryland’s GLAD Lab.
- Last year, there were 736,484 hectares (1,819,891 acres) of deforestation, largely from agriculture, mining, and roads and infrastructure. Nearly 132,000 hectares (326,179 acres) of it was illegal, occurring inside protected areas and Indigenous territories, the analysis found.
- Researchers said this year could be far worse than 2025 as the current El Niño continues to warm up the Pacific Ocean, creating heat waves and dry conditions that lead to more forest fires.

Wildlife helps regulate the climate & this belongs in policy discussions (commentary)
- Wildlife shapes how ecosystems store carbon, move nutrients, recover from disturbance, and remain resilient as conditions change, yet this is seldom considered during negotiations over climate change policy.
- A new initiative seeks to bring animals into the climate conversation.
- “If governments are designing climate strategies, conservation plans, ecosystem models, or nature-based solutions, they should account for wildlife and the ecological roles animals play,” argues a biologist who helped draft the new Scientific Consensus on Wildlife and Climate.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Fire surge in 2025 threatened isolated peoples in Brazil
- In 2025, fires caused a significant spike in forest loss in Indigenous territories in Brazil that are home to peoples living in voluntary isolation: Alto Turiaçu, Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau, and Apiaká do Pontal e Isolados.
- According to data from Global Forest Watch, fires were responsible for nearly all of the forest loss in each of the territories, destroying mostly primary forest.
- Indigenous leaders told Mongabay that fires are a threat to their way of life, including those living in voluntary isolation, negatively impacting health, vegetation, biodiversity, and food security.
- A climate expert warns the upcoming El Niño, predicted to be stronger than the 2023-2024 event, will likely lead to warmer temperatures and drier conditions across the Amazon Basin, making it more prone to fires.

Deforestation is just a symptom. The disease is de-governance (commentary)
- Forests in places like Indonesian Papua do not disappear because trees fall, but because governance fails, a new op-ed argues.
- What’s needed is a rethink of how Indigenous territories have been systematically stripped of effective governance, and what a shift back to local jurisdiction over forests would allow.
- “It’s a shift from protecting forests as external objects to governing territories as living systems, from delivering projects to building institutions, and from treating communities as beneficiaries to recognizing them as decision-makers,” the author writes.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Can globally essential mangroves bounce back from deforestation? New study gives hope
- Human and natural disturbances have driven global declines of mangrove forests, which serve as critical protection for coastlines and fisheries.
- Scientists used satellite imagery of mangroves from 1984 to 2023, and found that after decades of decline, mangroves worldwide began to recover around 2010, mostly by expanding into new habitats, according to a new study.
- Recovery is not evenly distributed, the study found. Southeast Asia slowed mangrove loss while West and Central Africa have seen accelerated deforestation in recent years.

‘Rare animals, photography and Instagram’ could help an Ivorian rainforest
- In late May, Mongabay accompanied a group of conservationists and scientists to Taï National Park — a large rainforest in Côte d’Ivoire famous for its habituated western chimpanzees.
- Despite the presence of these charismatic apes, the park gets relatively few visitors, whose presence could help to support conservation efforts and deter poachers.
- Conservationists are now planning to promote niche tourism in the park and support work by the Ivorian Office of Parks and Reserves (OIPR) to protect Taï’s stunning biodiversity.
- Chimpanzee sightings are a major attraction for any visitor to the park, but other animals, including one of the world’s largest scorpions and Africa’s largest and rarest owl, could also prove to be a draw for those looking for an adventure-filled experience.

Indigenous people in Cambodia claim they’re blocked from sacred sites
- Indigenous Forest rangers told Mongabay they cannot access places where people have prayed, made offerings, fished and camped for generations.
- The community protected area designation lets the Kuy people engage in sustainable farming and manage the forest, which is tucked inside the Beng Per Wildlife Sanctuary about 70 miles south of the Thai border.
- A representative from Santana Agro, a cashew processing company that operates in the area, denied allegations the firm is encroaching into the protected area.

Bangladesh’s lightning death toll persists as years of gov’t safeguards fail
- Lightning strikes continue to claim lives, mostly farmers’, in Bangladesh, especially across its northeastern region.
- Despite several measures by the Bangladeshi government, including palm tree plantation and installation of lightning arresters, all efforts so far have largely failed to protect lives.
- Experts suggest building public awareness about thunderstorms and thunder clouds to reduce deaths from lightning strikes.

Old fire hoses become lifelines for Malaysia’s endangered langurs
On Malaysia’s Penang Island, conservationist Yap Jo Leen is turning old fire hoses into lifesaving bridges that help endangered monkeys cross busy roads in residential areas. The idea took root after she witnessed a female dusky langur and her infant get struck by a vehicle in 2016, Yap told Mongabay’s Phil Jacobson and AFP’s Isabelle […]
Pulp and paper giant APRIL’s supplier choices put FSC remedy process to the test
- APRIL’s decision to lower its deforestation cutoff date and source wood from two companies associated with extensive recent forest loss in Indonesia is drawing fresh scrutiny of its efforts to re-enter the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
- FSC told Mongabay it is reviewing APRIL’s updated sourcing policies and said it was “concerned” that such an analysis had become necessary.
- Environmental groups say accepting suppliers linked to extensive recent deforestation undermines the spirit of FSC’s remedy process, which is intended to encourage companies to repair past harms before regaining acceptance.
- APRIL says the changes align with evolving global standards and could help improve sustainability practices across Indonesia’s forestry sector, but critics warn the move risks eroding trust in both APRIL and FSC.

EU votes to end illegal logging agreement with Liberia
The European Union’s parliament voted decisively to end its logging oversight partnership with Liberia on June 17, marking the end of a long-running attempt to reform the country’s timber sector through foreign aid. The vote, which passed with 92% in favor, is expected to lead to a formal decision by the EU to terminate the […]
World Rainforest Day: Deforestation must be nearly halved to meet 2030 target
Every year, June 22 marks World Rainforest Day, an awareness day launched by Rainforest Partnership in 2017 to advocate for the immediate protection and restoration of the world’s tropical forests. These ecosystems support at least half of all known plant and animal species. They also regulate rainfall and stabilize the global climate. In 2025, less […]
Study offers first map of Amazon’s climate-resilient upslope corridors
- Worsening climate change creates enormous challenges for ecosystems and individual species. As the world warms, plants and animals must quickly migrate to cooler places to stay resilient and survive. But today such migrations are often blocked by deforestation, human infrastructure and lack of conserved lands.
- In the tropics, vast lowlands can require species to move large distances north or south to escape warming. The most rapid path to climate-resilience is upslope migration, with plants and animals relocating shorter distances uphill to cooler places.
- A new study has mapped major elevational gradients in the Amazon that offer the best possibility for connectivity and upslope relocation in the biome — overlaying elevational gradients, amount of forest cover, fragmentation and protected areas.
- This broad-brush research could aid policymakers in identifying the most viable upslope corridors, helping nations and NGOs target best opportunities for land protection to enhance connectivity and aid species survival.

France sizzles in a week of punishing heat as red alerts spread
PARIS (AP) — France gritted its teeth Monday for a week of record-busting temperatures, sweltering under a grueling heat wave that combines daytime highs above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) and sleep-robbing sweaty nights. The national weather service, Méteo France, said that most of the country — the largest in the European Union and second most populated — […]
South America’s farms depend, in part, on a healthy Amazon
- The Amazon is not only a carbon store; it is also a major source of atmospheric moisture that helps sustain rainfall across much of South America.
- A new Nature study finds that deforestation lowers the warming threshold at which large parts of the Amazon could lose stability.
- Recent droughts, El Niño conditions, and fire risk show why degraded forests are less able to withstand climate stress and recover afterward.
- Protecting intact forests, restoring degraded areas, and reducing fire are increasingly important for climate resilience, biodiversity, and South America’s food system.

Death and exile: A war plagues Indigenous Jiw and Nukak in the Colombian Amazon
- By late May, at least 48 people were killed in rural areas of Colombia following clashes between the FARC guerrilla dissident groups controlled by the aliases “Calarcá” and “Iván Mordisco.”
- Conflicts have displaced 10 Indigenous Jiw families from the municipality of Mapiripán, Meta department. They had to reach the urban area of San José del Guaviare for protection.
- The clashes occurred near the Tomachipán-Cumare road, an illegal trail used by dissident armed cells as a strategic corridor to mobilize and transport drug trafficking supplies in the Guaviare department.
- Experts warn that controlling this disputed area is important for armed groups, as it means dominating strategic zones in the department and also being closer to the Venezuelan border.

What’s at stake for the environment in Colombia’s upcoming election?
- Colombia will hold its runoff presidential elections on June 21, with left-wing Iván Cepeda from the current governing Historical Pact party facing Abelardo de la Espriella from the far-right Defenders of the Homeland party.
- The future of the Colombian Amazon, fossil fuel phaseout and the rights of traditional communities are all at stake, with both candidates proposing dramatically different approaches to tackle environmental issues.
- Cepeda’s program, analyzed by Mongabay, promises to halt oil and gas and protect territories and communities; de la Espriella has promised to expand fossil fuel production and mining.
- Both have very different approaches to ending violence, which is linked to deforestation and environmental degradation, with Cepeda focusing on total peace and large-scale land redistribution and de la Espriella on greater force and militarization.

Conservation efforts by families displaced for national park sees success in DRC
Descendants of families forcibly displaced during the creation of Maiko National Park in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo back in the 1970s are now leading a new wave of community-led conservation. Gangala Yafali Mangusa Jr., from one such displaced family, is the head of the Bamasobha Local Community Forest Concession (CFCL), […]
Suriname will not be saved by soybeans (commentary)
- Suriname should be wary of promises that foreign agribusiness will modernize agriculture, create jobs, and bring broad prosperity, argues Mark Plotkin, ethnobotanist and President of The Amazon Conservation Team.
- Across tropical America, this model has too often proved a costly folly: forests are cleared, rivers are polluted, and local communities are left with fewer resources while wealth flows elsewhere.
- Rather than expanding export-oriented soy and cattle production, Suriname should strengthen food security, support local producers, protect rivers and forests, and seek the input of the communities most affected.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

With plastic treaty in limbo, Mongabay speaks to top negotiator Julio Cordano
- At the start of 2026, the world’s efforts to negotiate a global plastics pollution treaty remained deadlocked. Then in February, Julio Cordano was appointed the new chair of the Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee (INC) with the hope he can help move the treaty process forward decisively.
- Cordano rarely gives media interviews, but he responded to some of Mongabay’s written questions on how he plans to forge ahead toward an international plastics pollution agreement.
- Cordano continues to fully back the UN treaty negotiations process, which requires any final accord be achieved by consensus between all the national parties. He declined to comment on other possible routes to an agreement that break from the traditional negotiating protocol.
- Observers of the treaty process also weighed in for this story, offering a range of views from hope to skepticism that consensus can get producing nations to mutually agree to major plastic production limits.

Pulp and paper giant APRIL adds major deforesters as suppliers after revising sustainability policy
- The changes include lowering its deforestation cutoff date to the end of 2020, which allows APRIL to source wood from two companies responsible for some of Indonesia’s largest recent forest losses.
- APRIL says the move aligns with global standards and helps address fibre shortages caused by permit revocations affecting 15% of its wood supply.
- But critics say the changes weaken a longstanding no-deforestation safeguard and have questioned why APRIL selected these two suppliers among Indonesia’s many fibre producers.
- APRIL says its new suppliers will undergo satellite monitoring, compartment-level traceability and annual independent audits, but critics say transparency concerns remain.

Eastern Washington wildfire forces evacuations and destroys homes
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — High winds drove a wildfire into an eastern Washington neighborhood, forcing the evacuation of about 1,500 people and destroying some homes, fire officials said Wednesday. It’s unclear how many homes were lost in Spokane. Fire officials were working Wednesday to determine the number and the full extent of the damage, said […]
Africa’s community-led marine organizations on which 30×30 depends
- More than 5,000 delegates are gathering in the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa for a major global conference on the future of the oceans.
- At the heart of the discussions is ocean governance and the global push to meet the 30×30 target — protecting 30% of the world’s land, freshwater and oceans by 2030.
- But meeting that goal will depend not only on governments and international pledges, but also on community-led organizations doing the difficult work of conserving fragile marine ecosystems.
- Across Africa and around the world, thousands of grassroots groups are carrying out this work, often far from the spotlight, helping shape ocean conservation and blue economies that support local livelihoods. Mongabay spoke with representatives of four such organizations working across the continent from the Western Indian Ocean to Africa’s Atlantic coast.

How one woman’s farm is a model for small-scale farmers in Malawi
In Malawi’s Chiradzulu district, located in the southern region of the country, Diana Sitima’s farm shows how a combination of agroecology and secure land ownership can create a thriving commercial enterprise. Many neighboring farmers rely primarily on growing and selling maize. But, on her 3.5-hectare (8.6-acre) farm, Sitima combines diverse crops of fruits and vegetables […]
Rain along the Gulf Coast could become the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season
MIAMI (AP) — A cluster of storms along the Gulf Coast could become the first named tropical storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, the National Hurricane Center said. The storms threatened to bring heavy downpours that could lead to dangerous floods across southern states including Texas and Louisiana. The system was centered Tuesday afternoon about […]
Teeming with turtles: Cabo Verde island sees 80-fold increase in nesting loggerheads
- A new study finds an 80-fold increase in the population of loggerhead turtles nesting at three beaches in Boa Vista, Cabo Verde’s third-largest island, over 27 years.
- Globally, the loggerhead population has decreased by 47% over the past three generations, a decline largely attributed to anthropogenic pressures such as habitat loss, marine pollution, fishing bycatch, poaching and multiple climate change-driven impacts.
- The authors of this first-of-its-kind study of Cabo Verde’s nesting loggerheads attribute the remarkable local recovery to decades-long conservation efforts.

Can a new methodology save the carbon market?
- A new variation of carbon credits, which puts more focus on biodiversity protection and income generation, is attempting to get the carbon market back on track.
- The methodology for the new initiative called Balance focuses on climate mitigation by making sure that the biodiversity and social aspects of carbon projects succeed first.
- The voluntary carbon market has faced widespread criticism in recent years for a lack of transparency as well as allegations of greenwashing and human rights abuses.

Climate-fueled landslides killed an estimated 58 Tapanuli orangutans, study finds
- The study found that landslides triggered by extreme rainfall in November 2025 likely killed about 7% of the estimated global population of Tapanuli orangutans.
- Researchers warned that without swift intervention, the species could face increasingly frequent climate-driven disasters in the future.
- The study only quantified direct mortality from landslides and did not account for deaths caused by canopy collapse outside mapped landslide areas, starvation, injuries or longer-term ecological consequences.
- In a statement to Mongabay, the forest ministry said it “appreciates and is taking into consideration” scientific studies on the Tapanuli orangutan, including research estimating the impacts of floods and landslides on the species.

Himalayan rivers shifting course as climate warming thaws the ‘Water Tower of Asia’
Rivers are known to naturally meander, change courses, braid and branch. But as rising temperatures melt glaciers and thaw frozen ground, the courses of Himalayan rivers are shifting and changing shape much more rapidly than before, according to a new study published in the journal Science. The rising instability of the rivers could pose a […]
Global map of Earth’s mycorrhizal fungal networks could help protect them
Fungi are living below your feet. Roughly 110 quadrillion kilometers of living fungal threads are woven through the world’s soils. Stretched end-to-end they would cover a distance nearly a billion times that from Earth to the sun. Now, scientists have mapped where those networks are, how dense they are, and what threatens them. Last year, […]

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