Betting on agroforestry in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest
GUAPIRUVU, Brazil – To reach Guapiruvu one has to drive 20 kilometers (12 miles) on a gravel road. The first houses are big, solid, holiday homes for the wealthy people…
Articles by Erik Hoffner
As an editor for Mongabay, I work to keep readers informed about the latest developments in conservation news and science. I'm also a freelancer for publications like The Washington Post, and my work has also appeared in The Guardian, National Geographic News Watch, OnEarth, Yale Environment 360, The Sun, Grist, World Ark, and Earth Island Journal (see a list of recent articles at http://www.erikhoffner.com/writing).
Agroforestry: An increasingly popular solution for a hot, hungry world
At first glance Cameroon's western regions seem lush, but a closer look shows a land degraded by overgrazing, unsustainable cropping practices, deforestation of vegetation for firewood, and uncontrolled bush fires.…
Author Steven Kotler on tackling the biodiversity crisis with technology
Steven Kotler is a leading thinker on how technology can be employed to halt the global loss of biodiversity. Recently the prolific author and journalist convened a weekend forum for…
From tarsiers to cloud rats, scientist strives to save Philippine species
In 2012, Dr. Milada Rehakova’s research brought her back to Dinagat Island, Philippines. It was her second expedition to the island in pursuit of insights on the tarsier, but she…
On World Elephant Day, troubling times for African elephants
Every year on August 12, the world celebrates elephants, but recent years have not been great for these iconic animals. According to research published last year, the African elephant population…
Madagascar’s radiated tortoises have personalities, too
A 350-kilometer drive away from the frenzy of the nearest city, the thatched desert village of Lavavolo, Madagascar seems to lie in infinite stillness. But homeostasis is never a given.…
Welcome to Mongabay’s New Website
As you may have noticed, we've redesigned Mongabay.com. The site has gone through many changes since its founding in 1999, and this one is perhaps the biggest one yet. For…
Two things you can do for World Ranger Day
“When you next read a story to a young child that involves a wild animal, like I do with my son, think about who is protecting those animals and ecosystems;…
Business owners in top Belize destination want increased mangrove protections
SAN PEDRO, Belize - Walking the shore of San Pedro provides a solid picture of the tension between natural resources and the economy in this, the top tourist town in…
Lawyer opposing U.S. resort developer in Baja Mexico jailed 62 days
PUNTA LOBOS, Mexico - Every morning at dawn, the fishermen of Punta Lobos take their boats out to the high seas to find shrimp boats and give bread, cookies, and…
On poaching in South Africa, education “has saved more wildlife than any guard with a gun”
HOEDSPRUIT, South Africa – Vince Barkas, a grizzled high-school dropout with a sharp tongue and piercing blue eyes, is at war in the grasslands and savannas here in northeast South…
Singapore statement on International Day of the Tropics: infrastructure deficit must be met sustainably (commentary)
By the middle of the century most of the world’s projected population of 9.5 billion people will be living in the Tropics, including almost two-thirds of its children. The region…
Conservation comics to the rescue
Comics have a way of rendering the seemingly mundane aspects of important events and pursuits, like conservation, as something verging on heroic. Or perhaps it just makes them more relatable…
Ten good news stories for Endangered Species Day
Each year on Endangered Species Day we’re reminded of how dire the prospects for many species in this world really are. So we wanted to share 10 good news stories…
Should we be optimistic about the future of the earth? (commentary)
My wife and I attended the presidential inauguration in January. Of course, I thought I knew who was going to be elected. But, my wife reminds me often that my…
Mexican ecologist José Sarukhán wins 2017 Tyler Prize
The 2017 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement will be awarded to Mexican ecologist José Sarukhán on May 4 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., for his scientific contributions to the…
Giraffes are endangered, groups argue, file petition with U.S.
Five conservation organizations filed a petition today with the United States Government to list the giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) as an endangered species. In December 2016, the International Union for the…
Fantastic Beasts star Alison Sudol talks conservation and inspiration
Musician and actress Alison Sudol has been connected to nature since she was a very young child growing up in Seattle. Playing under the name A Fine Frenzy in recent years,…
Iconic musician Paul Simon announces tour supporting biodiversity
DURHAM, North Carolina - Listening to Paul Simon talk is a little like listening to him sing. His voice is melodic and soothing; his words are thoughtful and evocative, capable…
E.O. Wilson on Half-Earth, Donald Trump, and hope
At 87, E.O. Wilson has lost none of his intellectual rigor. His sentences are long, rolling, full of enough parentheticals to make Proust smile, and delivered in a wonderfully soothing,…
Can fig trees regrow lost rainforests?
“By themselves the figs could build a forest,” ecologist EJH Corner wrote almost a century ago. Now a fascinating book, Gods, Wasps, and Stranglers: the secret history and redemptive future…
Jane Goodall on zoos and tech as conservation tools
Famed conservationist Jane Goodall, DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI), UN Messenger of Peace, and Mongabay.com advisory board member visited Hawai’i last month for the World Conservation Congress, the International Union…
“Carbon farming” good for the climate, farmers, and biodiversity
Conversations that involve lowering the amount of carbon in the atmosphere by agricultural means rarely include the sort of techniques championed by award-winning author, Yale University lecturer, and Project Drawdown…
Special series
Forest trackers
- Threatened species caught in crossfire of ongoing land conflict in Myanmar
- Under cover of COVID-19, loggers plunder Cambodian wildlife sanctuary
- Brazilian Amazon protected areas ‘in flames’ as land-grabbers invade
- Fires in the Pantanal: ‘We are facing a scenario now that is catastrophic’
Oceans
- ‘Tamper with nature, and everyone suffers’: Q&A with ecologist Enric Sala
- New paper highlights spread of organized crime from global fisheries
- Study: Chinese ‘dark fleets’ illegally defying sanctions by fishing in North Korean waters
- Game changer? Antarctic ice melt related to tropical weather shifts: Study
Amazon conservation
- Game changer: NASA data tool could revolutionize Amazon fire analysis
- The view from above: How do we know what’s really burning in the Amazon?
- Rise in Amazon deforestation slows in August, but fires surge
- Survival of Indigenous communities at risk as Amazon fire season advances
Endangered environmentalists
- Indonesian fishers opposed to dredging project hit by ‘criminalization’ bid
- Life as an Amazon activist: ‘I don’t want to be the next Dorothy Stang’
- In Philippines’ Palawan, top cop linked to assault on environmental officer
- Deaths, arrests and protests as Philippines re-emerges from lockdown
Indonesias forest guardians
- Why I stand for my tribe’s forest: It gives us food, culture, and life (commentary)
- Reforesting a village in Indonesia, one batch of gourmet beans at a time
- Restoring Sumatra’s Leuser Ecosystem, one small farm at a time
- Indigenous Iban community defends rainforests, but awaits lands rights recognition
Conservation effectiveness
- Failure in conservation projects: Everyone experiences it, few record it
- On a wing and a prayer? Evidence for ways to conserve bats (commentary)
- Audio: The sounds of a rare New Zealand bird reintroduced to its native habitat
- Eavesdrop on forest sounds to effectively monitor biodiversity, researchers say
Southeast asian infrastructure
- Study revealing New Guinea’s plant life ‘first step’ toward protection
- Indonesian case highlights potential for long-term harms of corruption
- Indonesia approves coal road project through forest that hosts tigers, elephants
- Experts see environmental, social fallout in Indonesia’s infrastructure push
