This post was prompted by emails from groups seemingly (at the time, and now confirmed) associated with Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) that made dubious claims about the environmental, social,…
With nearly a billion people people going hungry in the world today as 40 percent of the global food stock is wasted before it is consumed, many are seeking ways…
Juvenile Macaya Breast-spot Frog, Eleutherodactylus thorectes, a critically endangered species in the Massif de la Hotte, Haiti. About the size of a green grape when fully grown, this is one…
25 years on from Greenpeace’s joint stand with New Zealand’s government against potentially environmentally devastating practices, the country is at a Crossroads The Rainbow Warrior after the bombing by French…
As corals around the world disappear at alarming rates, scientists are racing to protect the ones they can. At a workshop led by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), the…
Erik Meijaard is forest director for People and Nature Consulting International in Bali. This editorial originally appeared December 26, 2010 in the Jakarta Globe. It has been posted here with…
Rainforest in Sumatra, Indonesia Opening a climate summit in Jakarta, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore thanked Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for his commitment to reduce projected greenhouse gas…
Greenpeace has ranked the canned tuna corporation Princes as the most environmentally damaging tuna brand in the U.K., citing that the Japanese company uses destructive fishing methods and that its…
The number of fires burning in and around forests in the northeastern part of Madagascar increased during the 2010 burning season relative the the year before, according to analysis of…
Scientists in the Netherlands have discovered that insects produce significantly less greenhouse gas per kilogram of meat than cattle or pigs. Their study, published in the online journal PLoS One,…
Sales of palm oil certified under the leading sustainability standard surged 225 percent in 2010, suggesting growing consumer interest in more responsibly-sourced palm oil. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil…
A 4.1-magnitude earthquake shook the San Francisco Bay Area Friday afternoon. According to the U.S Geological Survey (USGS), the quake was centered about 4.4 miles deep, 11 miles north of…
Leatherback sea turtles undertake one of the longest journeys of any animal as they traverse the oceans in search of food, navigating hazards such as plastic pollution and fishing operations.…
Researchers have discovered that the thick wing bones of an ancient flightless bird which once lived in Jamaica may have been used as clubs to beat predators and even members…
The sudden en-masse deaths of thousands of birds in the Southern U.S. on the night of New Year's Eve have created a frenzy of media attention, but in reality hardly…
Scientists have confirmed the presence of a harpy eagle nest in the Maya Mountains of Belize. The discovery represents the most northerly breeding pair in the Americas, and signals a…
A vicious cycle: as species becomes rarer, price will continue to rise On Tuesday, a 752-pound Pacific bluefin tuna was sold at Japanese auction for the highest price ever received…
Indigenous peoples and their allies have intensified their fight against two oil companies over contamination in the Peruvian Amazon. Last week, a group of indigenous protesters blockaded portions of the…
Add financial markets to the long list of threats to wildlife Scale-crested pygmy tyrant. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. The emergence of a Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD)…
Bureaucratic confusion has led Indonesia to delay implementation of its two-year moratorium on new logging and plantation concessions in forest areas and peatlands, reports the Jakarta Globe. The moratorium, which…
The U.S. Senate has passed the Shark Conservation Act, legislation that bans shark finning in U.S. waters. The move was welcomed by marine conservationists. "The Senate has acted decisively today…
In November of 2010, the Antarctic toothfish fishery was deemed sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council. This certification goes against the advice of many marine scientists who claim that insufficient…
The 2010 scientific expedition undertaken by the European program called Mediterranean En-Dangered (MED) reveals that 250 billion microplastics could be found in the Mediterranean Sea. The main goal of the…
A new study investigating the ability of coral to record sea temperatures indicates that the Northwestern Atlantic has experienced unprecedented warming during the past 150 years. The study, published in…
A recent study has suggested that sloppy seed handling may be partially responsible for the presence of genetically modified plants in conventional fields. For years, farmers have been reporting that…
Many U.S. bumble bee populations have declined significantly over the past few decades, with certain species dropping off by as much as 96 percent. While the decline is linked to…
Erosion caused by hurricanes and large-scale deforestation may have contributed to last year's devastating earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people in Haiti, according to a geologist at the University…
Malaysia contains an amazing array of plants and animals, including this water monitor. Photo taken in Sabah by Rhett A. Butler Malaysia ended 2010 with the confiscation of 4.3 metric…
Crowned lemur in Ankarana, Madagascar. Photo by Rhett A. Butler 2009. A lemur poacher was intercepted with 32 dead lemurs on New Year's Eve in Madagascar's northeastern town of Vohemar,…
芬兰的纸业公司——Stroa Enso，因国际权利与资源（RRI）以及农村发展机构（RDI）最近的一篇报道将有可能导致它失去所谓的绿色和社会负责的名誉。报道称该公司触犯了中国的法律，甚至同中间商一起武力威胁当地的农民，所有这些都是为了在中国的南方租赁12万公顷的土地用于人工种植桉树。而且就在去年，一个为这些农民辩护的律师因卷入了该案件而被打伤入院。 Andy White，是RRI的一名协调员，他在一份声明中说：“不幸的是，我们现在知道在当地居住，并以林地为生的农民——无论是中国还是其他易受攻击的民族——不能够单独指望于这些公司所谓的对社会共同责任的声誉”。 在Stora Enso的公司网站上声称他们制造的纸业符合‘可持续资源’并‘忠于联合国对人权的联合声明’。该公司甚至还视频报道了他们的总裁率直的同绿色和平主义者坐下来交谈关于毁林的事情。 对在中国大规模获得林地的案例调查：Stora Enso公司在广西省河埠县的种植林项目 “[Stora Enso]同大多数[其它的纸业公司]相比在努力维护良好的社会及环境标准。但是他们在这个案例中所采用的方法是令人失望的，尤其是这些问题早在2006年就被确定了，” Marcus Colchester说，他是森林和人类项目的管理者。 虽然当地政府推进了Stora Enso的单一种植林计划，但是许多当地以土地为生的农民都站出来反对该计划。在同中国的农民、社区官员以及Stora Enso的代表交谈的基础上，该报告指出大多数的农民表明他们没有同意将土地集体出租给该公司，即使按照中国2002年的法律，农民也必须对这些转让签字。 此外，“许多同意这些土地转让的农民表示都受到了来自当地政府官员的压力——其中有些事被迫的，有些是受到了暴力威胁，”这篇报道的共同作者李萍补充说。 该报告还发现，大部分的土地转让（90%）是由雇佣的中间人或者当地的政府公司单独为这家芬兰的公司购买的。当时，中国的法律规定，农村土地转让必须是在转让者和购买者之间直接进行。 李萍解释说：“依法获得土地，并以对社会负责的态度，Stora Enso公司应该同农民集体谈判，并在双方愿意的情况下按照行情支付租金”。 RRI和RDI说他们早在2006年就对Stora Enso公司提出了警告，当时他们公司却没有什么行动。在这篇报道播出以后，Stora Enso公司表示在上月已聘用了律师调查这个问题。 Ujjwal Pradhan 是世界农林中心（ICRAF）在东南亚的区域项目协调员，他说，“这是一个警醒，公司和它的投资者需要主动调查土地的权利，并解决与土地相关的正在发生的冲突。他们不能因为有当地政府的参与就假设认为当地人民的权利和利益就得到了保护，或者就是说他们的行为就是遵守法律的。” 该报道强调，自从对农业和森林土地的需求增长以来，在大公司和当地以土地为生的人民之间的冲突就越来越频繁。 “中国不是唯一要面对不适当土地夺取的国家，”Andy White总结说，他是RRI的协调员。“从世行最近的报告可以看出，这是一种全球趋势。但是世行建议的解决途径是——我们要依靠社会责任心的合作来确保有更好的行为，而事实上这是远远不够的。” 注释：Stora Enso公司在此对这篇报道作出了回应。
