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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
		<atom:link href="https://news.mongabay.com/feed/?byline=beth-mole&#038;post_type=post" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/by/beth-mole/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Wed, 01 Jul 2026 18:57:56 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<url>https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/05/16160320/cropped-mongabay_icon-32x32.png</url>
	<title>Beth Mole Archives</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/by/beth-mole/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Can coastal infrastructure be engineered to harbor marine life instead of harming it?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/can-coastal-infrastructure-be-engineered-to-harbor-marine-life-instead-of-harming-it/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/can-coastal-infrastructure-be-engineered-to-harbor-marine-life-instead-of-harming-it/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 18:57:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Elizabeth Claire Alberts]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rebecca Kessler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01122705/IMG_6570-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322179</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Coastal Ecosystems, Ecosystems, Environment, Impact Of Climate Change, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Nature-based climate solutions, Oceans, Sea Levels, and Solutions]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[COBH, Ireland — On a bright, warm day in April in Cobh, Ireland, I step down a centuries-old cobbled slipway that descends into a harbor packed with fishing boats. Halfway down, something interrupts the weathered wall: an installation of 60 hexagonal concrete panels bolted into the stone. Some panels are ridged or textured; others are [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[COBH, Ireland — On a bright, warm day in April in Cobh, Ireland, I step down a centuries-old cobbled slipway that descends into a harbor packed with fishing boats. Halfway down, something interrupts the weathered wall: an installation of 60 hexagonal concrete panels bolted into the stone. Some panels are ridged or textured; others are pitted with holes and crevices that either trap water or let it filter through with the changing tide. Bright green algae drapes across many of the panels. When I look closer, I notice a few marine snails, including periwinkles (Littorina littorea) and dog whelks (Nucella lapillus), stuck to the tiles. These panels were installed at Kennedy Pier in Cobh, a seaport town in Ireland’s County Cork, in September 2025, as part of the Living Seawalls project. Spearheaded by the Sydney Institute of Marine Science and the company Reef Design Lab, both in Australia, the Living Seawalls project aims to create biodiversity-friendly panels, boulders and pilings that can be installed on seawalls, marinas, piers and other hard coastal infrastructure to make them more hospitable to marine wildlife. Living Seawalls principal investigator Louise Firth, right, with postdoctoral researcher Soli Levi at the Living Seawalls installation in Cobh, Ireland, in April 2026. Image by Elizabeth Claire Alberts/Mongabay. Louise Firth, a senior lecturer in environmental sustainability at Ireland’s University College Cork and one of the principal investigators of the Living Seawalls project, is on site to show me the Cobh installation, Ireland’s first. (Since my visit, a second Living&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/can-coastal-infrastructure-be-engineered-to-harbor-marine-life-instead-of-harming-it/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/can-coastal-infrastructure-be-engineered-to-harbor-marine-life-instead-of-harming-it/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322179</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Youth biodiversity conservation efforts face serious funding challenges, report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/youth-biodiversity-conservation-efforts-face-serious-funding-challenges-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/youth-biodiversity-conservation-efforts-face-serious-funding-challenges-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 18:42:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Brown]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01184017/USAID_Measuring_Impact_Conservation_Enterprise_Retrospective_Nepal_National_Trust_for_Nature_Conservation_38492305850-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322273</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environment, Global Environmental Crisis, and NGOs]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[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 already doing the work, restoring wetlands, defending territories, leading species conservation efforts, training next-generation leaders, and influencing global policy,” lead author of the report Félix Feide, told Mongabay in an email. “A core recognition of the report is that a biodiversity sector without a well-supported regeneration layer, will never be sustainable, and as a result our work will risk failing in the long term.” The report was compiled by the Global Youth Biodiversity Network, The Iris Project, Synchronicity Earth and the Global Landscapes Forum. The report authors surveyed 161 youth-led biodiversity initiatives from 57 countries and found that 93% of the contributors involved in such initiatives are volunteers.  The findings also show that 85% of youth initiatives lack adequate funding. “If you are among the fortunate 15% of young people who are able to access funding for biodiversity conservation, that is wonderful,” report co-author Swetha Stotra Bhashyam told Mongabay. “But for the rest of us, the reality is that there is no quick-fix approach, and we can no longer approach this work in isolation.” Roughly 44% of surveyed organizations reported operating on less than $1,000 in 2024 and one-fifth of them had no funding.  Most of&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/youth-biodiversity-conservation-efforts-face-serious-funding-challenges-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322273</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Sea level rise is ruining coastal Bangladesh with salty water (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/sea-level-rise-is-ruining-coastal-bangladesh-with-salty-water-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/sea-level-rise-is-ruining-coastal-bangladesh-with-salty-water-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 17:10:15 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[AL Sharia]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01160010/Bangladesh-salt-water-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322217</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Bangladesh, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Climate, Climate Justice, Coastal Ecosystems, Commentary, Drinking Water, Erosion, Flooding, Health, Impact Of Climate Change, Natural Resources, Oceans, Pollution, Public Health, Sea Levels, Social Justice, Water, Water Pollution, and Water Scarcity]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Every morning, before the sun has fully risen over the tidal flats of Satkhira in southwest Bangladesh, women begin walking. They walk two kilometers, sometimes five (about 1.2 to 3.1 miles) and sometimes more, carrying empty vessels that they will fill with water fit for drinking. Then they walk back. Then, some days, they walk [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Every morning, before the sun has fully risen over the tidal flats of Satkhira in southwest Bangladesh, women begin walking. They walk two kilometers, sometimes five (about 1.2 to 3.1 miles) and sometimes more, carrying empty vessels that they will fill with water fit for drinking. Then they walk back. Then, some days, they walk again. A UNDP study found that women in coastal Bangladesh spend up to six hours a day on this task alone, six hours that cannot be spent earning, learning or caring for their children, and this is not even a drought zone. This is one of the largest deltas on Earth. The women walk past rivers, channels and flooded fields. The water is everywhere, and none of it is safe. Approximately 20 million people along Bangladesh’s coast cannot safely drink the water that surrounds them. Yet, a UNDP survey found that 73% of residents in five coastal sub-districts of Satkhira consume saline water every single day. The crisis does not make the front pages of international newspapers the way droughts in East Africa or floods in Pakistan tend to. It is slow, structural and unglamorous, which is precisely why it has been allowed to continue for this long. A woman collects water from a pond about 1 km from her home in Shyamnagara, Satkhira district, Bangladesh. Image courtesy of Abu Siddique. The intrusion of saltwater into Bangladesh’s coastal mainland is not simply a consequence of rising seas, though the seas are certainly rising. Studies project&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/sea-level-rise-is-ruining-coastal-bangladesh-with-salty-water-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/sea-level-rise-is-ruining-coastal-bangladesh-with-salty-water-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322217</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>A marine heat wave caused seabird deaths off California. El Nino could worsen the die-off</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/a-marine-heat-wave-caused-seabird-deaths-off-california-el-nino-could-worsen-the-die-off/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/a-marine-heat-wave-caused-seabird-deaths-off-california-el-nino-could-worsen-the-die-off/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 16:16:06 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01160825/AP26181624956689-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322218</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Climate Change, Conservation, Disasters, Ecosystems, Environment, Extreme Weather, Global Environmental Crisis, Heatwave, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Ocean Warming, Oceans, Seabirds, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SAN DIEGO (AP) — Many seabirds are starving to death as a marine heat wave lingers off California and fish seek deeper, cooler waters. That&#8217;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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SAN DIEGO (AP) — Many seabirds are starving to death as a marine heat wave lingers off California and fish seek deeper, cooler waters. That&#8217;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 the die off of birds could worsen with El Nino. The natural warming of parts of the central Pacific that alters weather worldwide and spikes global temperatures formed in June. Wildlife rehabilitation facilities in California before El Nino formed were seeing hundreds of emaciated birds brought in by people when the marine heat wave intensified this spring. A veterinarian holds an ailing pelican before surgery at SeaWorld on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) A common murre spreads its wings in a rehabilitation tank at the SeaWorld Animal Rescue Center on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Veterinarian Dr. Jennifer Russell holds the wing of a pelican during surgery at SeaWorld on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) &nbsp; By Julie Watson, Associated Press Banner image: A common murre lies on a beach near Scripps Pier during a survey for dying seabirds Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in San Diego. Image by Gregory Bull via Associated Press &nbsp;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/a-marine-heat-wave-caused-seabird-deaths-off-california-el-nino-could-worsen-the-die-off/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/a-marine-heat-wave-caused-seabird-deaths-off-california-el-nino-could-worsen-the-die-off/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322218</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Leaked document shows EU closer to dropping leather from anti-deforestation law</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/leaked-document-shows-eu-closer-to-dropping-leather-from-anti-deforestation-law/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/leaked-document-shows-eu-closer-to-dropping-leather-from-anti-deforestation-law/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 15:27:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Elisângela Mendonça]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Andy Lehren]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01143512/BannerPix_tomasz-anusiewicz-e7OSGgUD3iM-unsplash-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322199</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Europe and European Union]]>
						</locations>
					
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The European Commission is taking further steps to formally exempt the global leather trade from its landmark EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), according to a leaked draft obtained by news outlet Euractiv. The revelation comes just one month after a review of internal documents, first reported by Mongabay, exposed a paradox at the heart of the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The European Commission is taking further steps to formally exempt the global leather trade from its landmark EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), according to a leaked draft obtained by news outlet Euractiv. The revelation comes just one month after a review of internal documents, first reported by Mongabay, exposed a paradox at the heart of the commission: its own consultants explicitly tied leather to widespread forest destruction, yet commissioners are choosing to ignore the data. In the leaked draft, later reviewed by Mongabay, the commission acknowledged the relatively low compliance cost of including leather, but said “the supply chain considerations and load on the EUDR Information System &#8230; justify the proposed removal.” The European Commission did not respond to Mongabay’s questions about the document and its authenticity. The proposal is not yet final. Following a feedback period, concluded on June 1, the formal adoption of the delegated act is expected in “the next weeks,” a European Commission spokesperson told Mongabay, after declining to offer any further comments. After adoption, the usual path includes the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union having two months to object. If they do not object or propose revisions, the changes will be automatically enacted. This means that unless EU lawmakers stage an unexpected, last-minute revolt, the leather industry’s multibillion-dollar pass on deforestation is poised to be finalized, policy analysts say. The decision would come via a delegated act, subject to scrutiny by the European Parliament and Council of the European Union, which have&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/leaked-document-shows-eu-closer-to-dropping-leather-from-anti-deforestation-law/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322199</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Nepal&#8217;s new government bets on tax revenue over clean energy push</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/nepals-new-government-bets-on-tax-revenue-over-clean-energy-push/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/nepals-new-government-bets-on-tax-revenue-over-clean-energy-push/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 11:37:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rudra Pangeni]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01093941/road-in-nepal-traffic-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322164</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Nepal, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Alternative Energy, Clean Energy, Development, Electric Cars, Energy, Environment, Governance, and Transportation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — When Balendra Shah took office as Nepal’s new prime minister in March following a landslide victory for his party, he inherited a fuel crisis triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. His government faced a choice between speeding up the clean energy transition or shoring up the public finances needed to sustain it. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — When Balendra Shah took office as Nepal’s new prime minister in March following a landslide victory for his party, he inherited a fuel crisis triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. His government faced a choice between speeding up the clean energy transition or shoring up the public finances needed to sustain it. In its May 29 fiscal policy, it chose the latter. Nepal imports fossil fuels at a cost of 300 billion rupees ($2 billion) a year, including cooking gas that it subsidizes about 9 billion rupees ($59.5 million) annually. On the “clean” side of that equation, nearly all its grid electricity comes from hydropower — so much so that it exports the surplus to India and Bangladesh during the wet season. And on sales of electric vehicles, Nepal ranks second globally, with EVs estimated to account for 73% of new car sales in 2025, thanks to lower import taxes compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. But the new government argues for a shift to raise revenue to fund grid upgrades that would make a clean energy transition possible in the first place. A former bureaucrat and a sitting official both told Mongabay that this logic is backward: that the tax revenue raised will be less than the savings in gas subsidies if it instead encouraged households to switch to electric stoves. In his maiden budget speech, Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle announced a 5% value-added tax on high-consuming electricity users, and fresh new taxes on EV&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/nepals-new-government-bets-on-tax-revenue-over-clean-energy-push/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322164</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Wildlife’s unpredictable movements make climate-change planning difficult</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/wildlifes-unpredictable-movements-make-climate-change-planning-difficult/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/wildlifes-unpredictable-movements-make-climate-change-planning-difficult/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 10:40:42 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Gloria Dickie]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30143313/6-Florida-panther-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322109</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation, Adaptation To Climate Change, Animal Behavior, Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Biology, Carnivores, Cats, Climate, Climate Change, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Ecology, Ecosystems, Environment, Extreme Weather, Fragmentation, Habitat, Impact Of Climate Change, Mammals, Megafauna, Ocean Warming, Oceans, Protected Areas, Research, Science, Temperatures, Threatened species, Top Predators, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[New England’s winters have long been a punishing force. Forests fade in and out of deep freezes. Animals pile on fat for warmth in anticipation of the harsh weather to come. Others flee south, seeking warmer refuges. However, over the past 50 years, winters there have become much milder. In the northeastern U.S., winters now [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[New England’s winters have long been a punishing force. Forests fade in and out of deep freezes. Animals pile on fat for warmth in anticipation of the harsh weather to come. Others flee south, seeking warmer refuges. However, over the past 50 years, winters there have become much milder. In the northeastern U.S., winters now average between 4 and 5 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 and 2.7 degrees Celsius) warmer than in the 1970s. Snowfall can be sparse, and there are usually fewer days of extreme cold. For decades, ecologists have expected that animals living within narrow climate niches would adapt to rising temperatures by moving northwards or upslope to higher elevations. For example, they thought the American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) in the northeastern U.S. would move up into the mountains in search of cold. But in a study published last year, scientists found that despite warmer winters, the squirrels haven’t sought out higher elevations. Rather, they’ve relocated downslope, seemingly drawn by the return of red spruce forest following a period of dieback. The tiny forest critters, it seems, are prioritizing habitat over temperature. The red squirrel isn’t alone. Thousands of plants and animals that scientists thought would be on the move in response to rising global temperatures don’t yet seem to have hit the road. In a 2023 study in the journal Environmental Evidence, scientists reviewed the observed range movements of more than 12,000 species, both terrestrial and marine, to see whether they aligned with what ecologists had expected would&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/wildlifes-unpredictable-movements-make-climate-change-planning-difficult/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/wildlifes-unpredictable-movements-make-climate-change-planning-difficult/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322109</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indonesia&#8217;s blackouts reignite debate over coal-dependent energy transition</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 09:45:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/09/09170445/chimneys-of-Suralaya-coal-power-plant-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322168</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, East Java, Global, Indonesia, Java, Southeast Asia, and Sumatra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Alternative Energy, Bioenergy, Carbon Emissions, Climate Change, Coal, Emission Reduction, Energy, Energy Security, Energy Transition, Environmental Policy, Fossil Fuels, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Health, Just Transition, Pollution, Public Health, Renewable Energy, and Research]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Calls are mounting for Indonesia to accelerate its energy transition after widespread blackouts struck Java and Sumatra in recent weeks, exposing what analysts say are deep vulnerabilities in a power system that remains highly centralized and heavily dependent on coal. In late May, large parts of Sumatra lost electricity after a transmission line [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Calls are mounting for Indonesia to accelerate its energy transition after widespread blackouts struck Java and Sumatra in recent weeks, exposing what analysts say are deep vulnerabilities in a power system that remains highly centralized and heavily dependent on coal. In late May, large parts of Sumatra lost electricity after a transmission line in Jambi failed. Just days later, a separate outage disrupted power across parts of Java, Indonesia&#8217;s most populous island and economic center. While officials initially pointed to technical problems, state utility PLN later said constrained coal supplies had contributed to the Java outage. For energy analysts, the outages underscore a broader structural problem. &#8220;The dependence on a centralized, coal-dominated electricity system is a threat to energy supply security,&#8221; said Fabby Tumiwa, executive director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR). To reduce the risk of more widespread outages, analysts at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), a U.S.-based think tank, said Indonesia should accelerate the      deployment of decentralized renewable energy, particularly rooftop solar combined with battery energy storage systems (BESS). &#8220;For Indonesia, an archipelago of thousands of islands, rooftop solar combined with battery energy storage systems offers a viable alternative to diesel power, which can be costly and challenging to supply,&#8221; IEEFA researchers Mutya Yustika and Randi Bachtiar wrote in a recent analysis. Unlike fossil fuels, they noted, solar power is not vulnerable to fuel supply disruptions or price volatility. Because rooftop systems can be installed on homes, businesses and industrial&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322168</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Recent discoveries of ‘lost’ Mekong giant salmon carp renews hope for the fish</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/recent-discoveries-of-lost-mekong-giant-salmon-carp-renews-hope-for-the-fish/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/recent-discoveries-of-lost-mekong-giant-salmon-carp-renews-hope-for-the-fish/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 04:31:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/01042826/Aaptosyax_grypus.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322157</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Cambodia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Environment, Fish, Fishing, Freshwater Fish, Research, Species, Species Discovery, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A large fish once feared extinct in Cambodia has been recorded in the country’s waters for the fourth time since 2020, renewing hope for the species. The Mekong giant salmon carp (Aaptosyax grypus), a critically endangered large-sized freshwater fish, was formally described from the Mekong River in 1991. Over the next 14 years, there had [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A large fish once feared extinct in Cambodia has been recorded in the country’s waters for the fourth time since 2020, renewing hope for the species. The Mekong giant salmon carp (Aaptosyax grypus), a critically endangered large-sized freshwater fish, was formally described from the Mekong River in 1991. Over the next 14 years, there had been only 20 formal records of the species; none since 2005. However, Bunyeth Chan, a researcher at Svay Rieng University in Cambodia, and his colleagues confirmed three observations in a 2024 study. The three carps had been caught by fishers from different parts of the lower Mekong River Basin between 2020 and 2023. “Those recent observations indicate that the species persists, and that one or more populations of A. grypus inhabit the Cambodian Mekong and its tributaries,” the researchers wrote. The same team confirmed a fourth record of the species, captured by a fisher on Nov. 27, 2025, according to a note recently published in the journal Oryx. “The rediscovery of the giant salmon carp is a reason for hope, not just for this species but for the entire Mekong ecosystem,” Chan said in a statement to Nevada Today in 2024. “The Mekong ecosystem is the most productive river on Earth, producing over two million tons of fish per year worth over $10 billion.” The Mekong giant salmon carp, endemic to the middle and lower reaches of the Mekong River basin, can grow up to 130 centimeters (more than 4 feet) in length and weigh&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/recent-discoveries-of-lost-mekong-giant-salmon-carp-renews-hope-for-the-fish/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/recent-discoveries-of-lost-mekong-giant-salmon-carp-renews-hope-for-the-fish/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322157</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>The blueprint for building a fairer world without breaking the planet</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/06/the-blueprint-for-building-a-fairer-world-without-breaking-the-planet/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/06/the-blueprint-for-building-a-fairer-world-without-breaking-the-planet/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 21:05:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mike DiGirolamo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mikedigirolamo]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/26062539/raja-ampat_230669-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=podcasts&#038;p=321876</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Justice, Environment, Global Environmental Crisis, Health, Interviews, Planetary Boundaries, Planetary Health, and Social Justice]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[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 by 2100 is laid out in the recent “Global Justice Report.” If it sounds utopian, Lucas Chancel, the co-director of the World Inequality Lab and editor of the report, is the first person to acknowledge this, but explains why it’s not only possible — there’s even historical precedent for many of the measures the report outlines. For example, humans used to work almost twice as many hours as they do today for far less pay, and productivity was lower. The reduction in hours worked, plus the increase in productivity, Chancel points out, is the evidence that this could work in the future, namely because the report outlines that productivity must fall. “ If low-income countries increase their productivity and continue to work the same amount of work hours per year, this is going to be a serious problem … from all material constraints that we might have in mind,” Chancel says. Achieving this plan rests on three pillars: decarbonization and the energy transition; a shift towards “sufficiency,” defined here as the reduction of labor and production of superfluous products not needed for human survival; and a “drastic reduction in inequality of income, wealth and power.” Chancel&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/06/the-blueprint-for-building-a-fairer-world-without-breaking-the-planet/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321876</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Fossils reveal a prehistoric crocodile relative that walked on two legs</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/fossils-reveal-a-prehistoric-crocodile-relative-that-walked-on-two-legs/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/fossils-reveal-a-prehistoric-crocodile-relative-that-walked-on-two-legs/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 19:50:38 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Brown]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30194938/Screenshot-2026-05-26-at-17.08.07-1536x905-1-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322153</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Biology, Dinosaurs, Earth Science, Herps, Paleontology, Reptiles, Research, Science, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Dinosaurs like tyrannosaurs and velociraptors famously walked on two legs. But they weren’t the only bipedal prehistoric creatures to exist. In a study published in June, paleontologists shared the discovery of a new bipedal shuvosaurid, an ancient, distant relative of crocodiles, that lived 212 million years ago in what is now the U.S. state of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Dinosaurs like tyrannosaurs and velociraptors famously walked on two legs. But they weren’t the only bipedal prehistoric creatures to exist. In a study published in June, paleontologists shared the discovery of a new bipedal shuvosaurid, an ancient, distant relative of crocodiles, that lived 212 million years ago in what is now the U.S. state of New Mexico. Unlike modern-day crocs, the newly described Labrujasuchus expectatus was beaked, toothless, had two tiny arms, and walked on two legs. Researchers found fossilized bones of L. expectatus alongside those of bipedal dinosaurs at the Hayden Quarry at the Ghost Ranch site, famous for its well-preserved fossils. They were found in sediments dated to the Late Triassic period. The generic name of the species Labrujasuchus comes from “Ranchos de los Brujos,” or Ranch of the Witches, an old Spanish name for the Ghost Ranch area. The Greek word Σοῦχος (suchus) means crocodile. The species name expectatus references the idea that researchers expected to find a shuvosaurid fossil at the Hayden Quarry. In an email interview with Mongabay, Nathan Smith, study co-author, paleontologist and director of the Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, U.S., said the first shuvosaurid described, which was originally misclassified as a dinosaur, was named Shuvosaurus inexpectatus, as a way to point out that such a bizarre-looking creature was not “expected” in Late Triassic rocks. “So, the &#8216;expectatus&#8217; name is a cheeky nod to the original Shuvosaurus discovery, and the fact that we definitely expected to come across some&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/fossils-reveal-a-prehistoric-crocodile-relative-that-walked-on-two-legs/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322153</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Gelada monkeys huddle in the cold: Photo of the week</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/gelada-monkeys-huddle-in-the-cold-photo-of-the-week/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/gelada-monkeys-huddle-in-the-cold-photo-of-the-week/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 18:05:44 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Shanna Hanbury]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30180112/Julie-Larsen-2668-Gelada_169-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322151</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Ethiopia, Europe, and Germany]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animals, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Biology, Ecosystems, Environment, Grasslands, Mammals, Media, Monkeys, Photos, Primates, Science, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A group of geladas monkeys (Theropithecus gelada), pictured above, huddle to keep warm on a cold day in the Wilhelma Zoo in Stuttgart, Germany. Endemic to Ethiopia’s cold Afroalpine and sub-Afroalpine grasslands, the species is the only primate, apart from humans, that primarily lives on land rather than trees. They spend most of their time [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A group of geladas monkeys (Theropithecus gelada), pictured above, huddle to keep warm on a cold day in the Wilhelma Zoo in Stuttgart, Germany. Endemic to Ethiopia’s cold Afroalpine and sub-Afroalpine grasslands, the species is the only primate, apart from humans, that primarily lives on land rather than trees. They spend most of their time grazing grass and have complex social systems focused around vocal communication, hugging, and grooming, especially between females. “On this day … the chill in the air made ideal conditions for a gelada group hug that included some mutual grooming,” Julie Larsen, Mongabay’s photo editor, said of the moment she captured in 2014. “As I looked down on their gathering, the monkey in the middle peered up at me, clearly benefitting from her fortunate position,” she added. “Then, the group closed over her, a single blanket of chocolate-colored shaggy fur against the elements.” According to Dario Fraschetti, a scientific assistant at Wilhelma Zoo, animals with short hair, as in the photograph, are likely females. Males have distinctive long manes and a bright red mark on their chests. Of the 30-40 gelada monkeys that live at the zoo, the vast majority are females, which is similar to their social structure in the wild. The zoo participates in a Europe-wide effort to keep a healthy captive-bred population of the species in partnership with EAZA Ex situ Programme (EEP). Hugging between females in the wild has been observed to increase between unrelated mothers during the first months of their&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/gelada-monkeys-huddle-in-the-cold-photo-of-the-week/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322151</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Cypriot natural gas could start flowing from ExxonMobil&#8217;s discoveries by 2033</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/cypriot-natural-gas-could-start-flowing-from-exxonmobils-discoveries-by-2033/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/cypriot-natural-gas-could-start-flowing-from-exxonmobils-discoveries-by-2033/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 17:59:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30175552/AP26181467628490-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322149</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Cyprus]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Global Environmental Crisis, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Natural Gas, and Oil]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[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 getting the gas to market would be conveying it through a pipeline to existing processing facilities in Egypt where it can be liquefied for export, ExxonMobil&#8217;s Vice President of Global Exploration John Ardill said. Other options including building onshore facilities in Cyprus or a floating one in waters over the deposits are considered too costly at this point. “Everything you’ve seen between the government of Cyprus and the government of Egypt gives us a lot of confidence that there’s good government to government coordination, the agreements in place to leverage that eastern Mediterranean energy hub concept,” Ardill said. He was speaking after ExxonMobil and QatarEnergy signed a deal with Cyprus declaring the two deposits commercially viable. The deposits — dubbed Glaucus and Pegasus — are located in Block 10 of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and are estimated to hold together roughly 7 trillion cubic feet of gas. Ardill said the consortium is looking to expand its presence off Cyprus, expressing interest in exploring an area, or block, on the southwestern corner of the EEZ that is adjacent to an area where it already holds drilling licenses. The consortium will carry out additional drilling at&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/cypriot-natural-gas-could-start-flowing-from-exxonmobils-discoveries-by-2033/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322149</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Secret Amazon species may be new source of ibogaine for addiction treatment</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/secret-amazon-species-may-be-new-source-of-ibogaine-for-addiction-treatment/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/secret-amazon-species-may-be-new-source-of-ibogaine-for-addiction-treatment/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 17:49:45 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Jenny Gonzales]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandre de Santi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30133255/5-Researcher-Ricardo-Marques-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322102</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, South America, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Bioeconomy, Conservation, Environment, Health, Medicinal Plants, Medicine, Natural Resources, Plants, Research, Science, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A dismissed pasture weed may be key to easing drug addictions, but a researcher is keeping it a closely guarded secret for now.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For generations, the Bwiti religion in Gabon has revered ibogaine, a powerful psychedelic alkaloid extracted from the iboga shrub (Tabernanthe iboga). While ancient African cultures have long held the plant as sacred and understood its spiritual depth, modern science has only recently been exploring its potential as a clinical tool to treat drug addiction. Recent trials and historical accounts suggest ibogaine can reduce withdrawal symptoms and the craving for drugs like heroin and methadone, offering a neurobiological &#8220;reset.&#8221; Although ibogaine’s medicinal use is still largely unregulated, the global demand for this anti-addiction agent has pushed the African iboga plant into danger. The shrub takes up to 30 years to mature and yields just a single gram of ibogaine; traditional extraction usually requires uprooting the plant, leading to its destruction. This scarcity has fueled poaching and smuggling, prompting the Gabonese government to prohibit its export. Now, a breakthrough has emerged from the Amazon Rainforest, centered on an undisclosed species. The identity of this plant remains a closely guarded secret by Brazilian researcher Ricardo Marques, who spent nearly two years locating it and studying its ecology. This species contains a chemical precursor that can be transformed into ibogaine using a new, potentially sustainable harvesting method that allows the plant to regenerate after extraction. By keeping the plant&#8217;s name a secret while training local families in its collection, Marques says he hopes to create a permanent, ethical supply of ibogaine without repeating the ecological harm seen in Africa. Up until now, the only&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/secret-amazon-species-may-be-new-source-of-ibogaine-for-addiction-treatment/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/secret-amazon-species-may-be-new-source-of-ibogaine-for-addiction-treatment/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322102</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Foreign nationals attempt to fly to Europe with rare cacti from southern Brazil</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/foreign-nationals-attempt-to-fly-to-europe-with-rare-cacti-from-southern-brazil/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/foreign-nationals-attempt-to-fly-to-europe-with-rare-cacti-from-southern-brazil/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 15:49:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Fernanda Wenzel]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Xavier Bartaburu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29155203/image-e1782749030144-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322013</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil, Global, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Crime, Governance, Plants, and trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Agents from the Brazilian Federal Police found an unusual cargo with four Czech nationals stopped in February at São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport: 214 cactus specimens and envelopes containing cactus seeds. The material was hidden in beer cans, paper bags and even inside one man’s shoes, according to the pending court case. The plants belonged [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Agents from the Brazilian Federal Police found an unusual cargo with four Czech nationals stopped in February at São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport: 214 cactus specimens and envelopes containing cactus seeds. The material was hidden in beer cans, paper bags and even inside one man’s shoes, according to the pending court case. The plants belonged to seven species, all native to the state of Rio Grande do Sul in southern Brazil. In a report signed by cactus expert Rosana Singer, a biologist at Porto Alegre’s Botanical Garden, two of those species are listed as critically endangered: Parodia nothorauschii and Parodia neohorstii. Four others are endangered, including Gymnocalycium horstii and Frailea curvispina. The Czechs — identified in court documents as Jaroslav Vich, Karel Slajs, Vladimir Bradna and Vladimir Sorma — arrived from Montevideo and were about to board a flight to Vienna. They carried a map of Rio Grande do Sul and a printed itinerary with phrases translated from Czech into Portuguese and Spanish, such as “Do you know where small cacti grow?,” “Are cacti growing here?” and “Sorry. I don’t know if this is private!” The group was detained for one day but is prohibited from leaving Brazil by a court order, which also requested a forensic analysis of their phones. The travelers are now under investigation. Cacti from endangered species endemic to Rio Grande do Sul were seized at Guarulhos International Airport in São Paulo. Image: IBAMA Inspection. Within a short period, three other foreigners have been caught trying to leave the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/foreign-nationals-attempt-to-fly-to-europe-with-rare-cacti-from-southern-brazil/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/foreign-nationals-attempt-to-fly-to-europe-with-rare-cacti-from-southern-brazil/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322013</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>What’s jimbu? The herb that bolsters an iconic Nepali dish could also help save snow leopards</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-jimbu-the-herb-that-bolsters-an-iconic-nepali-dish-could-also-help-save-snow-leopards/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-jimbu-the-herb-that-bolsters-an-iconic-nepali-dish-could-also-help-save-snow-leopards/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 10:48:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Bibek Bhandari]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30091143/jimbu-Allium-przewalskianum-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322085</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Himalayas, Nepal, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Cats, Conservation, Culture, Environment, Food, Habitat, Human-wildlife Conflict, Indigenous Peoples, Medicinal Plants, Natural Resources, Plants, Snow Leopards, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — In Nepal, there&#8217;s a popular saying: “dal bhat power, 24 hour.” It refers to a humble plateful of rice and soupy lentils that Nepalis swear by, both at home and across the diaspora. It&#8217;s fuel for the body and a taste of home where it’s a staple meal for lunch and dinner. Now, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — In Nepal, there&#8217;s a popular saying: “dal bhat power, 24 hour.” It refers to a humble plateful of rice and soupy lentils that Nepalis swear by, both at home and across the diaspora. It&#8217;s fuel for the body and a taste of home where it’s a staple meal for lunch and dinner. Now, an aromatic herb from the Himalayas that gives the Nepali staple its distinctive flavor offers Indigenous communities a potential promise: An alternative source of income and fewer conflicts with the iconic snow leopards that live in these mountain peaks. How so? The residents of Phu Valley who cultivate jimbu (Allium przewalskianum) in this high-altitude settlement, located in the trans-Himalayan region of Manang that borders China’s Tibet region will tell you. They grow this herb, also known as Himalayan chive, as a cash crop — and as a way to help save “the big cat of the mountains.” Dried jimbu is usually fried in ghee, or clarified butter, and poured over simmering dal for an earthy flavor. “Whenever we talk about dal bhat, the most famous of them all is the Thakali version prepared by the Thakali communities of the mountains,” said Shailendra Thakali, an expert in environmental conservation, tourism and livelihoods, referring to a version of the dish made by Indigenous people known for their traditional cuisines. “And the Thakali dal bhat owes its unique taste and aroma to jimbu,” Thakali added. Until recently, residents foraged this herb from steep, risky slopes. They used some&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-jimbu-the-herb-that-bolsters-an-iconic-nepali-dish-could-also-help-save-snow-leopards/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-jimbu-the-herb-that-bolsters-an-iconic-nepali-dish-could-also-help-save-snow-leopards/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322085</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Tiny new marsupial species, not seen in two decades, confirmed from museum specimens</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/tiny-new-marsupial-species-not-seen-in-two-decades-confirmed-from-museum-specimens/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/tiny-new-marsupial-species-not-seen-in-two-decades-confirmed-from-museum-specimens/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 07:43:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30073315/Planigale-petrophila.-Image-courtesy-of-Pat-WoolleyQueensland-University-of-Technology-768x451.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322082</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Australia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Mammals, Marsupials, New Discovery, Research, Science, Species, Species Discovery, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Researchers have confirmed a new-to-science species of marsupial in Australia’s Northern Territory. The tiny mouse-like carnivore has been named the Arnhem Plateau planigale (Planigale petrophila) after the area where it’s thought to live in; its scientific name translates to rock lover. Planigales are the world’s smallest marsupials, some weighing just a couple of grams. Only [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Researchers have confirmed a new-to-science species of marsupial in Australia’s Northern Territory. The tiny mouse-like carnivore has been named the Arnhem Plateau planigale (Planigale petrophila) after the area where it’s thought to live in; its scientific name translates to rock lover. Planigales are the world’s smallest marsupials, some weighing just a couple of grams. Only seven species were recognized until recently: six from Australia, and one from the island of New Guinea. Previous research has suggested that Planigale ingrami, one of the known Australian species, may actually consist of several different species. One such species, the cracking-clay Pilbara planigale (P. tealei) from Western Australia had earlier been misidentified as P. ingrami, but was formally described as a distinct species in 2023. In the latest study, researchers examined specimens historically labelled as P. ingrami held across museums in Australia and collected DNA from more than 220 such specimens. They showed that planigales long classified as P. ingrami represent four distinct species, including the previously recognized P. tealei. One of them is the Arnhem Plateau planigale, the largest of the four, with dark-gray fur and the longest tail. It’s currently known from just three specimens: two males and one female. All three were collected within 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) of each other on the plateau. “P. petrophila is apparently rare among Australian planigales because, so far, only three specimens have ever been found, and it is known only from a small area of the sandstone plateau and rocky slopes in Kakadu National&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/tiny-new-marsupial-species-not-seen-in-two-decades-confirmed-from-museum-specimens/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322082</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Bangladesh unveils sweeping EV incentives to cut emissions and pollution</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 06:28:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kamran Reza Chowdhury]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abu Siddique]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30061227/pollution-in-bangladesh-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322071</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Bangladesh, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Aerosol Pollution, Air Pollution, Cities, Development, Electric Cars, Environment, Environmental Policy, Governance, Law, Pollution, Regulations, and Transportation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In an unprecedented move, Bangladesh has upended its previous policy of heavily taxing electric vehicles (EVs) and promoting fossil-fuel-run transport. While placing the tax and tariff proposals for the next fiscal year starting on July 1, finance minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, in his budget speech in the parliament on June 11, unveiled a set [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In an unprecedented move, Bangladesh has upended its previous policy of heavily taxing electric vehicles (EVs) and promoting fossil-fuel-run transport. While placing the tax and tariff proposals for the next fiscal year starting on July 1, finance minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, in his budget speech in the parliament on June 11, unveiled a set of coordinated tariff structures to promote EVs and solar energy to reduce carbon emissions and combat air pollution. The minister offered zero tariffs for the import of electric buses and trucks, the setting up of vehicle charging stations, and the production of solar energy; hiked tariffs for fossil-fuel-powered transport; reduced registration fees for EVs; and introduced a set of incentives with the target of reducing pollution from the transport sector, which contributes 9% of greenhouse gas emissions. This is the first coordinated government initiative for transitioning Bangladesh’s long-overdue modernization of the transport system, as pollutants from thousands of diesel-run buses and trucks aggravate the air pollution in mega-cities like Dhaka and Chattogram. According to UN estimates, more than 235,000 people die from complications due to air pollution every year in Bangladesh, with hundreds of thousands of people suffering from asthma and other respiratory diseases. Traffic in Dhaka. According to UN estimates, more than 235,000 people die from complications due to air pollution every year in Bangladesh. Image by joiseyshowaa/b k via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0). The tax waiver and concession The government has decided to offer a “full exemption (except value-added tax)” on the import&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322071</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>A coastal Philippine farm offers a blueprint for farming with wetlands</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-coastal-philippine-farm-offers-a-blueprint-for-farming-with-wetlands/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-coastal-philippine-farm-offers-a-blueprint-for-farming-with-wetlands/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 23:46:34 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mavic Conde]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/26091213/Nenieveh-Glinoga-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321890</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Philippines, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroecology, Agroforestry, Coastal Ecosystems, Community Development, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Environment, Farming, Mangroves, Marine, and Sustainable Forest Management]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[PITOGO, Philippines — The Glinoga Integrated Farm in Quezon province sits among brackish fishponds, some active, others long abandoned and slowly reclaimed by the landscape. About a four-hour drive from Manila, the farm in Pitogo municipality can be reached by land or sea. Both routes pass through mangroves. “We raised the embankment and kept the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[PITOGO, Philippines — The Glinoga Integrated Farm in Quezon province sits among brackish fishponds, some active, others long abandoned and slowly reclaimed by the landscape. About a four-hour drive from Manila, the farm in Pitogo municipality can be reached by land or sea. Both routes pass through mangroves. “We raised the embankment and kept the mangroves, because the lowest part often floods,” Ninieveh Glinoga, who manages the farm, told Mongabay during a visit in May. The farm’s coconut-covered slopes lead to tidal rice paddies below and wetlands beyond, reflecting the mosaic landscape found across many Philippine coastal communities. As coastal developments across the Philippines erase wetlands that once buffered communities and sustained marine biodiversity, the farm offers a different model: food production intertwined with the coastal ecosystem rather than apart from it. Nipa is seen growing alongside mangroves, during low tide. Image by Mavic Conde for Mongabay. Working with water and natural topography Glinoga’s husband’s family has owned the land for generations. The coconut, cacao and sugarcane that once grew here abundantly sustained the family. But in 2008, the family visited the farm and found it nearly unrecognizable. Years of slash-and-burn farming by a tenant had stripped the land bare. Smoke rose from the ground. “The first thing the tenant fed us was native chicken. There were no greens, just salt,” Glinoga recalled. Her grandmother-in-law, who once managed the farm, could no longer visit due to old age. The relative who next took charge fell ill, leaving the tenant in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-coastal-philippine-farm-offers-a-blueprint-for-farming-with-wetlands/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321890</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Aquatic animal and terrestrial meat trades now almost on par, FAO report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/aquatic-animal-and-terrestrial-meat-trades-now-almost-on-par-fao-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/aquatic-animal-and-terrestrial-meat-trades-now-almost-on-par-fao-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 18:55:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Elizabeth Fitt]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Autumn Spanne]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29161142/BANNER-8102094366_c8305d983d_o1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322025</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Aquaculture, Climate Change, Conservation, Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Food, food security, Freshwater Fish, Impact Of Climate Change, Marine Animals, Overfishing, and Saltwater Fish]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Rapid aquaculture growth has pushed farmed aquatic animal production to more than 100 million metric tons per year for the first time ever, boosting the trade value of all aquatic animal products almost to parity with the trade value of land-produced meat. That’s according to the latest “The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture” (SOFIA) report [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Rapid aquaculture growth has pushed farmed aquatic animal production to more than 100 million metric tons per year for the first time ever, boosting the trade value of all aquatic animal products almost to parity with the trade value of land-produced meat. That’s according to the latest “The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture” (SOFIA) report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The 2026 installment of the report, a biennial collection of data that outlines FAO’s vision for the fishing and aquaculture sectors, was released June 16 at the 11th Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa, Kenya. “The [aquaculture] sector is evolving very rapidly,” Manuel Barange, director of the FAO’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, told Mongabay. “It&#8217;s now achieving levels that fisheries never did. And that is positive because there&#8217;s no doubt about it that we&#8217;re going to be 10 billion in just a couple or three decades. And everyone has a right to food.” An FAO spokesperson discusses the SOFIA 2026 report during a session held at the 11th Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa, Kenya, on June 16, 2026. Image by Malavika Vyawahare/Mongabay. Connecting science and policy SOFIA is “one of the most authoritative reports we have,” Paul Orina, director general of the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, said at a Mombasa press conference to launch the report. Its value lies in how it “connects science with policy,” he said. The FAO has been giving policymakers, scientists and civil society a deep dive into the global fisheries and aquaculture sectors&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/aquatic-animal-and-terrestrial-meat-trades-now-almost-on-par-fao-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322025</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Human rights abuse allegations continue to rise in the mining sector, report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/human-rights-abuse-allegations-continue-to-rise-in-the-mining-sector-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/human-rights-abuse-allegations-continue-to-rise-in-the-mining-sector-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 18:41:08 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Maxwell Radwin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandra Popescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29182329/AP26121665473043-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322054</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, Europe, Global, Latin America, and Middle East]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Business, Clean Energy, Critical Minerals, Environment, Health, Human Rights, Mining, Natural Resources, Pollution, Protests, Renewable Energy, Trade, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Over the last several years, the United States and European Union have intensified efforts to secure the minerals needed for a clean energy transition. Officials have fast-tracked new projects and signed deals with countries across the globe to ensure access to copper, cobalt, lithium and other minerals that are essential for building solar panels, wind [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Over the last several years, the United States and European Union have intensified efforts to secure the minerals needed for a clean energy transition. Officials have fast-tracked new projects and signed deals with countries across the globe to ensure access to copper, cobalt, lithium and other minerals that are essential for building solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and other technologies. But as investment grows, so does conflict throughout the sector. Protests and lawsuits are common at mine sites, which can lead to attacks against human rights and environmental defenders. It’s led critics to call for stricter regulations and better communication with local communities. “Resilient mineral supply chains can only be built with respect for people, ecosystems, and local benefits,” Erica Westenberg, director of governance programs at the NGO Natural Resource Governance Institute, said in a report from the Business and Human Rights Centre. Each year, the organization releases the findings of its Transition Mineral Tracker, which monitors allegations of abuse by large-scale mining of bauxite, cobalt, copper, lithium, manganese, nickel, iron ore and zinc. For 2025, the NGO reviewed 299 mining operations and their owners, counting 329 allegations of abuse — up from 156 the year before — tied to air and water pollution, public health problems, and labor abuse like poor working conditions and union suppression. There were also 61 cases of protests, 10 strikes and 44 lawsuits, the report said. A breach at a tailing dam at a Sino-Metals Leach Zambia mine near Kitwe. (AP Photo/Richard Kille, File) The&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/human-rights-abuse-allegations-continue-to-rise-in-the-mining-sector-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/human-rights-abuse-allegations-continue-to-rise-in-the-mining-sector-report-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322054</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Hong Kong’s urban cockatoos could be a genetic lifeline for Indonesian ancestors</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/hong-kongs-urban-cockatoos-could-be-a-genetic-lifeline-for-indonesian-ancestors/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/hong-kongs-urban-cockatoos-could-be-a-genetic-lifeline-for-indonesian-ancestors/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 17:44:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29174333/11751605834_c6763f5f56_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=322052</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Hong Kong and Indonesia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Birds, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Solutions, Wildlife, and Wildlife Rescues]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A noisy population of feral yellow-crested cockatoos living in the dense, urban landscape of Hong Kong may hold the genetic key to saving the species from extinction in Indonesia, according to a new study. The yellow-crested cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea) is critically endangered in its native range in Indonesia and Timor-Leste, with fewer than 2,000 individuals [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A noisy population of feral yellow-crested cockatoos living in the dense, urban landscape of Hong Kong may hold the genetic key to saving the species from extinction in Indonesia, according to a new study. The yellow-crested cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea) is critically endangered in its native range in Indonesia and Timor-Leste, with fewer than 2,000 individuals remaining in the wild due to habitat loss and the pet trade. However, Hong Kong is home to roughly 200 of these parrots, or about 10% of the global population, which are thought to be descendants of released or escaped pets. For the study, researchers conducted a genomic analysis of the city&#8217;s yellow-crested cockatoo population. They found that despite their small number and isolated urban environment, the feral cockatoos have unexpectedly high genetic diversity, comparable to other wild parrot populations. “Instead of dismissing urban, introduced populations as ecologically redundant, we should view them as potential &#8216;Biodiversity Ark&#8217; that can actively help prevent extinction,” study lead author Astrid Andersson of Hong Kong University said in a press release. The researchers also compared the DNA of Hong Kong’s yellow-crested cockatoo population with museum specimens representing the species’ four recognized subspecies. They found the feral population is a genetic melting pot, carrying signatures from all subspecies. In particular, more than half of the sampled birds belong to a lineage linked to Lombok, an island in eastern Indonesia, where the species is now thought to be locally extinct. This makes the urban population a vital reservoir for genetic lineages&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/hong-kongs-urban-cockatoos-could-be-a-genetic-lifeline-for-indonesian-ancestors/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/hong-kongs-urban-cockatoos-could-be-a-genetic-lifeline-for-indonesian-ancestors/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322052</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>One mountain lion changed the food web in a California suburb, study finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/one-mountain-lion-changed-the-food-web-in-a-california-suburb-study-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/one-mountain-lion-changed-the-food-web-in-a-california-suburb-study-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 17:13:43 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Liz Kimbrough]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29165737/Screenshot-2026-06-29-at-11.53.31-AM-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322039</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[North America and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Big Cats, Biodiversity, Cats, Mammals, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When a mountain lion moved into a small suburban preserve near California’s Stanford University in the U.S. around 2012, its presence transformed the local food web, suggesting that apex predators can reshape ecosystems even in heavily developed landscapes. A recent study published in the journal Ecology and Evolution drew on nine years of camera trap [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When a mountain lion moved into a small suburban preserve near California’s Stanford University in the U.S. around 2012, its presence transformed the local food web, suggesting that apex predators can reshape ecosystems even in heavily developed landscapes. A recent study published in the journal Ecology and Evolution drew on nine years of camera trap data from Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve, a 4.9-square-kilometer (nearly 2-square-mile) patch of oak woodland and grassland in the San Francisco Bay Area, surrounded by roads and residential neighborhoods. After mountain lion (Puma concolor, also known as puma or cougar) activity began increasing around 2012, researchers documented ripple effects through multiple species. Coyotes and deer shifted away from nighttime activity. Gray foxes expanded into niches left vacant by retreating competitors. Brush rabbits became more active in the mornings, and woody plant density jumped 64-fold over 17 years. These types of multi-level effects are called trophic cascades. The most well-known example comes from the U.S., as dramatic changes occurred in Yellowstone National Park when wolves were reintroduced to their former range in 1996. “Much like the well-documented cascade triggered by wolves in Yellowstone, we found that increasing mountain lion activity coincided with changes cascading through the food web, from deer and coyotes down to foxes, rabbits, and woody plants,” lead author Chinmay Sonawane, a Stanford Ph.D. candidate, said in an email to Mongabay. “These findings provide clear, empirical evidence of the profound structural role mountain lions play,” Zara McDonald, biologist and president of the Felidae Conservation Fund&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/one-mountain-lion-changed-the-food-web-in-a-california-suburb-study-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/one-mountain-lion-changed-the-food-web-in-a-california-suburb-study-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322039</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>As Amazon oil drilling begins, scientists warn of risks to a little-known reef</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/as-amazon-oil-drilling-begins-scientists-warn-of-risks-to-a-little-known-reef/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/as-amazon-oil-drilling-begins-scientists-warn-of-risks-to-a-little-known-reef/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 15:47:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Suzana Camargo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Xavier Bartaburu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29154305/ouricos-rodolitos-%C2%A9-Greenpeace-768x451.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321998</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Coral Reefs, Ecosystems, Energy, Environment, Fish, Fossil Fuels, Marine, Marine Animals, Oil, Oil Drilling, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The Amazon region always invites superlatives: the world’s largest tropical forest, the planet’s largest continuous mangrove belt, the river with the largest water volume and length on Earth. That makes any kind of exploratory activity in the region — and its potential impacts on this unique ecosystem — cause for great concern. That’s the case [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The Amazon region always invites superlatives: the world’s largest tropical forest, the planet’s largest continuous mangrove belt, the river with the largest water volume and length on Earth. That makes any kind of exploratory activity in the region — and its potential impacts on this unique ecosystem — cause for great concern. That’s the case with exploration activities currently being carried out by Brazilian state‑owned oil and gas company Petrobras in the area known as the Equatorial Margin. This area includes the coastal and offshore strip starting at the mouth of the Amazon river and fanning out into the Atlantic, off the Brazilian states of Amapá and Rio Grande do Norte. The environmental license for Petrobras to start prospecting for oil and gas was granted by Brazil’s federal environmental agency, IBAMA, in October 2025, after several denied requests, strong political pressure — including from President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva himself — and strong criticism from environmentalists and civil society organizations. One of the key concerns raised by experts about Petrobras’s operation centers on the Amazon Reef system, located less than 40 kilometers (25 miles) from block FZA‑M‑59, where Petrobras is drilling its Morpho well. Known since the 1970s, the Amazon Reef system was only officially described by a group of Brazilian researchers in 2016. The following year, a Greenpeace research vessel equipped with a small submarine released the rare images of that environment, which covers an estimated 9,500 square kilometers (about 3,700 square miles) and serves as a biodiversity corridor&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/as-amazon-oil-drilling-begins-scientists-warn-of-risks-to-a-little-known-reef/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/as-amazon-oil-drilling-begins-scientists-warn-of-risks-to-a-little-known-reef/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321998</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>São Tomé declares first two of eight planned marine protected areas</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/sao-tome-declares-first-two-of-eight-planned-marine-protected-areas/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/sao-tome-declares-first-two-of-eight-planned-marine-protected-areas/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 15:25:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29145518/Website-Use-STP-0101-VCO-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=321992</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Atlantic Ocean]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Conservation, Ecosystems, Fish, Global Environmental Crisis, Marine, Marine Protected Areas, Protected Areas, Saltwater Fish, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[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 MPAs include Ilhéu das Rolas–Malanza–Jalé, on the southern coast of São Tomé Island, and Santana, on the island&#8217;s eastern coast. Nilton de Sousa Pontes, minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, announced the official designation during the Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa, Kenya. “These [newly protected] areas include critical coastal and marine habitats, such as mangroves, nesting beaches, rocky reefs and important fishing grounds, and support emblematic and threatened species including marine turtles, seabirds and other marine biodiversity,” João Pessoa, the country&#8217;s Director of Fisheries, told Mongabay via email. Santana covers 7.4 km2 (2.86 mi2) of coastal waters, of which 1 km2 (0.4 mi2) is a fully protected no-take zone where industrial fishing and the collection of other marine resources are prohibited. The rest is reserved for authorized use by artisanal fishers using legal gear, scientific research and other low-impact activities. Ilhéu das Rolas-Malanza-Jalé covers 55.8 km2 (21.54 mi2), with 8 km2 (3 mi2) under full protection from any extractive or destructive activities. The remaining six MPAs will be located around Príncipe Island. They have been approved by the Council of Ministers and are awaiting promulgation by the president before publication in the Official Gazette,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/sao-tome-declares-first-two-of-eight-planned-marine-protected-areas/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/sao-tome-declares-first-two-of-eight-planned-marine-protected-areas/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321992</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>The Ideas Shaping Environmental Action</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/specials/2026/06/the-ideas-shaping-environmental-action/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/specials/2026/06/the-ideas-shaping-environmental-action/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 12:43:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Alejandro Prescott-Cornejo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Lemae Mortimer]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/02/07134137/peru_221277-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=specials&#038;p=321989</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Climate Change, and Environment]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[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 resistance. Through these conversations, the podcast looks at how narratives, institutions and power dynamics shape environmental decision-making and competing visions for the future.This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/specials/2026/06/the-ideas-shaping-environmental-action/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/specials/2026/06/the-ideas-shaping-environmental-action/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321989</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Telling one guiña from another: It’s all about the angle</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/telling-one-guina-from-another-its-all-about-the-angle/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/telling-one-guina-from-another-its-all-about-the-angle/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 11:30:52 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sean Mowbray]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandra Popescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/29111809/Image_1-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321977</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Argentina, Chile, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Camera Trapping, Cats, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Monitoring, Research, Small Cats, Species, Surveying, Threatened species, Tracking, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Guiña are small-forest-dwelling felids found in Chile and Argentina that are distinguished only by small, subtle black dots, making it difficult to tell one cat from another. A change in camera trap angle could open the door to a better understanding of their populations, with important conservation implications, a recent study says. Normally, researchers place camera [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Guiña are small-forest-dwelling felids found in Chile and Argentina that are distinguished only by small, subtle black dots, making it difficult to tell one cat from another. A change in camera trap angle could open the door to a better understanding of their populations, with important conservation implications, a recent study says. Normally, researchers place camera traps at ground level to snap pictures of cats as they walk by. But telling one guiña (Leopardus guigna) from another from that angle proved incredibly challenging. “One of the fundamental questions in ecology is always how many individuals are there or what are the densities,” Nicholas Galvez, an associate professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, told Mongabay in an interview. “Sometimes that sounds like a very easy question, but it&#8217;s actually really difficult to answer in the field, especially with a species so small and cryptic.” To solve that problem, Galvez and his team switched their cameras to point downward, in a “zenith” position, attaching them to tree branches and poles in a temperate forest in Chile&#8217;s Reñihué Valley, in northern Patagonia. That switch enabled the scientists to identify 12 individuals based on their unique markings on their backs. The findings were published in the journal Oryx. Ilaria Agostini, a researcher with Argentina’s National Scientific and Technical Research Council, said it’s exciting research. “For the first time, it seems feasible to identify individuals in this very subtly marked cat,” she said in a video interview. When using camera traps for her own&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/telling-one-guina-from-another-its-all-about-the-angle/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/telling-one-guina-from-another-its-all-about-the-angle/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321977</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Thai farmers fear water woes from planned LNG plant</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/thai-farmers-fear-water-woes-from-planned-lng-plant/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/thai-farmers-fear-water-woes-from-planned-lng-plant/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jun 2026 02:30:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Gerald Flynn]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/24093029/fisher-offloads-gear-in-front-of-a-liquefied-natural-gas-LNG-terminal-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321660</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Southeast Asia, and Thailand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Business, Drought, Energy, Environment, Farming, Fossil Fuels, Health, Industry, Natural Resources, Resource Conflict, Water, and Water Scarcity]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[PHANOM SARAKHAM, Thailand — On a December afternoon, Suphut Hom Chunthit and his wife were tending to their 12 durian trees. Suphut showed reporters his homemade irrigation system, a series of pipes carrying water from the nearby Yang Deng canal. The durian trees were in their fourth year, Suphut said, so they should fruit and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[PHANOM SARAKHAM, Thailand — On a December afternoon, Suphut Hom Chunthit and his wife were tending to their 12 durian trees. Suphut showed reporters his homemade irrigation system, a series of pipes carrying water from the nearby Yang Deng canal. The durian trees were in their fourth year, Suphut said, so they should fruit and be ready for harvest later in 2026 — if they survive. “Last year, we could only water the durian trees for 15 minutes a day,” said Suphut, who also grows cassava, rice, plums, rubber and rambutan in Phanom Sarakham, a district in Thailand’s Chachoengsao province. “It’s barely enough to keep them alive.” Three kilometers, less than 2 miles, down the road from Suphut’s 8-hectare (20-acre) farm sits the 304 Industrial Park (Chachoengsao), home to electronics, automotive and food-processing plants, and a biomass power station. The park is also the site of the planned 600-megawatt Burapa power plant. But locals like Suphut say they fear the liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility could exacerbate water shortages and air pollution linked to the expansion of industry in Chachoengsao. The Burapa plant will need up to 12,000 cubic meters (424,000 cubic feet) of water daily, per its 2021 environmental impact assessment (EIA) — equivalent to the daily consumption of some 49,000 Chachoengsao residents, as measured by a 2024 study. Meanwhile, Phanom Sarakham district already faces a “medium-high” risk of drought, according to the World Resources Institute’s Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas. Suphut Hom Chunthit stands among durian trees on his&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/thai-farmers-fear-water-woes-from-planned-lng-plant/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/thai-farmers-fear-water-woes-from-planned-lng-plant/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321660</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Mel Sunquist, field biologist and mentor to generations of conservationists</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/mel-sunquist-field-biologist-and-mentor-to-generations-of-conservationists/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/mel-sunquist-field-biologist-and-mentor-to-generations-of-conservationists/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Jun 2026 23:37:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/28082636/MelSunquist_2000px-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321928</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Carnivores, Cats, Mammals, Obituary, Sloths, Tigers, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In the 1970s, studying wild tigers still involved more nerve than equipment. A biologist could not rely on camera traps, GPS collars, or satellite-linked data. To understand where a tiger went, what it killed, how far it ranged, and how its territory overlapped with others, someone had to follow it through forests and grasslands with [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[In the 1970s, studying wild tigers still involved more nerve than equipment. A biologist could not rely on camera traps, GPS collars, or satellite-linked data. To understand where a tiger went, what it killed, how far it ranged, and how its territory overlapped with others, someone had to follow it through forests and grasslands with a receiver, a notebook, and enough judgment to stay useful without getting in the way. Radio collars began to change what was possible. They made the movements of secretive carnivores traceable in a new way. For tigers, jaguars, pumas, ocelots, and other animals that were rarely seen directly, they allowed field biologists to replace guesses with records. The work still depended on patience, careful handling, and a capacity to keep thinking when weather, roads, animals, or people refused to cooperate. Mel Sunquist in India. Courtesy of Ullas Karanth Melvin Eugene Sunquist, who died on May 9th at the age of 85, belonged to that generation of field scientists. Born in Morris, Minnesota, in 1941, he became one of the leading biologists of wild cats and large carnivores. He worked in Asia, Latin America, Panama, and Florida, and spent much of his academic life at the University of Florida, where he taught wildlife ecology and conservation from 1987 until his retirement in 2014. To students and colleagues he was “Mel,” a name that suited his manner: steady, spare with words, dry in humor, and difficult to unsettle. Following tigers His best-known early work was on tigers&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/mel-sunquist-field-biologist-and-mentor-to-generations-of-conservationists/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321928</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Kenya&#8217;s overcrowded safaris: Wildlife for who?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/kenyas-overcrowded-safaris-wildlife-for-who/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/kenyas-overcrowded-safaris-wildlife-for-who/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Jun 2026 18:23:11 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Izzy Sasada]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sam Lee]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/01194836/g.-4440466146_5b0d6bddcc_o-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=321969</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Kenya]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Colonialism, History, Tourism, Travel, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Thinking of going on safari? You’re not alone.  The popularity of African safaris has led to a boom in safari companies, and scenes of overcrowded wildlife sightings and new tourism developments are becoming increasingly common in places like Kenya&#8217;s Maasai Mara. Recently, a Kenyan court dismissed a legal challenge against The Ritz-Carlton, Masai Mara Safari [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Thinking of going on safari? You’re not alone.  The popularity of African safaris has led to a boom in safari companies, and scenes of overcrowded wildlife sightings and new tourism developments are becoming increasingly common in places like Kenya&#8217;s Maasai Mara. Recently, a Kenyan court dismissed a legal challenge against The Ritz-Carlton, Masai Mara Safari Camp, allowing the controversial luxury development to continue operating, despite concerns from conservationists and Maasai leaders that it could disrupt an important wildebeest migration route. From the colonial origins of national parks to modern luxury tourism, conservation in Africa has often been shaped by outsiders’ visions of nature. In this episode of Conservation Entangled, host @izzysasada explores how these tensions are still playing out today.This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/kenyas-overcrowded-safaris-wildlife-for-who/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321969</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Women patrol Tanzania’s Pemba waters in a community-led push to protect the sea</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jun 2026 11:38:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Akana]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/27103927/20260622_1048430-1bis-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321946</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Indian Ocean, and Tanzania]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[blue economy, Conservation, Environmental Policy, Fish, Fishing, Freshwater Fish, Governance, Illegal Fishing, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Trade, Water, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[PEMBA, Tanzania — Patrolling the sea is not the kind of work many women on Tanzania’s Pemba Island are traditionally expected to do. Yet, for Amina Gharib Issa, it has become part of her life recently. At 55 years old, Issa has spent years around the sea, including as a fisher. But when fish stocks [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[PEMBA, Tanzania — Patrolling the sea is not the kind of work many women on Tanzania’s Pemba Island are traditionally expected to do. Yet, for Amina Gharib Issa, it has become part of her life recently. At 55 years old, Issa has spent years around the sea, including as a fisher. But when fish stocks began dwindling and communities in Pemba introduced temporary closures, periods during which fishing is suspended to allow marine life to recover, she took on the task of helping patrol the waters to ensure the rules were respected. She is part of a seven-member community patrol team that goes out about eight times a month, checking boats, fishing gear and licenses. The work can mean hours on the water, sometimes in rough conditions, for pay of about $8 a day. In much of Pemba, women participate widely in fisheries, but being out on patrol with men is another matter. The community is predominantly Muslim, and gender roles can be closely examined. &#8220;Some of the women are not permitted by their husbands,&#8221; Ali Said Hamad, a member of the Mwambao team, said, explaining one of the reasons more women do not join. Said has spent decades on these waters — not as an enforcement officer — but helping implement community-led conservation programs. For those women who do patrol the waters, family support can make the difference. Issa said her husband supported her decision to take part. Her work is part of a broader community-led conservation effort supported&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321946</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Honduras taps armed forces to eliminate deforestation by 2029. Is it working?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/06/honduras-taps-armed-forces-to-eliminate-deforestation-by-2029-is-it-working/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/06/honduras-taps-armed-forces-to-eliminate-deforestation-by-2029-is-it-working/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jun 2026 06:34:02 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Fritz Pinnow]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sam Lee]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/27063710/Mongabay_Thumbnail_Honduras_Featured_2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=videos&#038;p=321942</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Central America, Honduras, and Latin America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conflict, Conservation, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Environment, and Military]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[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 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[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 special focus on recovering land used by criminal groups for timber trafficking. The “Zero Deforestation by 2029” plan, launched by the National Defense and Security Council in May 2024, declared a state of emergency for the country’s forests and set aside funds to retake control of protected areas where agriculture, livestock, mining and other illegal activities have been thriving, often with the involvement of powerful criminal groups. And part of this plan involves building up an “environmental protection battalion” of 8,000 troops. However, the militarization of conservation has always been a controversial issue. &#8220;Militarization [&#8230;] is not a long-term solution,&#8221; says Professor Kendra McSweeney, Professor of Geography, at The Ohio State University, who has been studying conservation in Central America. &#8220;Absent a larger investment in public policies, in leadership and in legal regimes that will enforce the law in those areas, it cannot work.&#8221; With young civilian scientists now leading armed patrols into jungles with cartel activity, the question remains: can militarized conservation stop forest loss, or is it creating new risks for conservation, environmental protectors and forests alike? Mongabay’s Video Team wants to cover questions and topics that matter to you. Are there any&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/06/honduras-taps-armed-forces-to-eliminate-deforestation-by-2029-is-it-working/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321942</doi>				</item>
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