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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
		<atom:link href="https://news.mongabay.com/feed/?byline=michael-esquer&#038;post_type=post" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/by/michael-esquer/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Sat, 14 Nov 2026 09:21:14 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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<image>
	<url>https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/05/16160320/cropped-mongabay_icon-32x32.png</url>
	<title>Stories by Michael Esquer -</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/by/michael-esquer/</link>
	<width>32</width>
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				<item>
					<title>Spicy ping-pong balls and flaming dung keep elephants at bay in Zimbabwe</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/spicy-ping-pong-balls-and-flaming-dung-keep-elephants-at-bay-in-zimbabwe/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/spicy-ping-pong-balls-and-flaming-dung-keep-elephants-at-bay-in-zimbabwe/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Nov 2026 09:18:50 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sandy Watt]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jonathan Vit]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/14091758/Mongabay_Thumbnail_Spyci_Featured-338x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335907</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Zimbabwe]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Elephants, Human-wildlife Conflict, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On the front line of the human-elephant conflict, coming up with non-lethal methods of protecting crops means getting creative. In one village in Zimbabwe, a multilayered approach is taken &#8211; first a fence covered in chili infused rags and chili powder traps, if that fails elephant dung covered in chili oil is set alight, finally [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On the front line of the human-elephant conflict, coming up with non-lethal methods of protecting crops means getting creative. In one village in Zimbabwe, a multilayered approach is taken &#8211; first a fence covered in chili infused rags and chili powder traps, if that fails elephant dung covered in chili oil is set alight, finally as a last resort a makeshift bazooka (powered by a deodorant) fires chili-oil filled ping-pong balls at persistent elephants. The last elephant who took a pingpong ball to the face did not return to the village for over a year.This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/spicy-ping-pong-balls-and-flaming-dung-keep-elephants-at-bay-in-zimbabwe/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335907</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>South African court dismisses appeal over planned coal-fired power plants</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/south-african-court-dismisses-appeal-over-planned-coal-fired-power-plants/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/south-african-court-dismisses-appeal-over-planned-coal-fired-power-plants/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 23:09:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Brown]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13212055/Kusilekragsentrale_Mpumalanga_2019_a-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335903</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[South Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Coal, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, and Global Environmental Crisis]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The South African Supreme Court of Appeal recently dismissed the government’s appeal against a ruling that struck down plans for 1,500 megawatts of new coal-fired power. The so-called #CancelCoal case was brought by a coalition of environmental NGOs that argued the new planned coal capacity violates children’s constitutional rights to a healthy environment. Already, air [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The South African Supreme Court of Appeal recently dismissed the government’s appeal against a ruling that struck down plans for 1,500 megawatts of new coal-fired power. The so-called #CancelCoal case was brought by a coalition of environmental NGOs that argued the new planned coal capacity violates children’s constitutional rights to a healthy environment. Already, air pollution from coal-fired power plants kills more than 2,200 South Africans each year and “causes thousands of cases of bronchitis and asthma,” according to a statement from the Centre for Environmental Rights. The Minister of Electricity and Energy argued that additional coal capacity is necessary for energy security. A previous High Court judgment ruled against the plan “on the basis that it violates the right to an environment not harmful to health and well-being,” per the statement. “The High Court further found that government&#8217;s arguments about grid stability offered by coal, was not sufficient justification for the violation of constitutional rights,” said Michelle Sithole in an email to Mongabay. Sithole is senior associate in the pollution and climate change program at the Centre for Environmental Rights, the group that represented the plaintiffs in the court case. The Minister appealed the High Court decision. The recent Court of Appeal’s decision dismissed the Minister’s appeal, meaning the previous High Court decision stands. “While this does not mean a definitive end to the development of new coal-fired power as part of the energy security policy, it does mean that government has a higher onus/standard to justify choosing coal&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/south-african-court-dismisses-appeal-over-planned-coal-fired-power-plants/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/south-african-court-dismisses-appeal-over-planned-coal-fired-power-plants/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335903</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Honduras declares &#8216;environmental emergency’ in Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/honduras-declares-environmental-emergency-in-rio-platano-biosphere-reserve/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/honduras-declares-environmental-emergency-in-rio-platano-biosphere-reserve/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 18:42:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Maxwell Radwin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13183647/AP17144742705747-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335901</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Honduras]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Animals, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Conservation, Crime, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Environment, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Illegal Logging, Illegal Mining, Mining, Protected Areas, Ranching, Tropical Deforestation, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Deforestation, organized crime and the expansion of cattle ranching have led the government in Honduras to announce an “environmental emergency” in the Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve, the largest protected area in the country. The 36-month emergency, issued as a presidential decree on Nov. 10, will devote 1.5 billion Honduran lempiras (more than $55 million) over [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Deforestation, organized crime and the expansion of cattle ranching have led the government in Honduras to announce an “environmental emergency” in the Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve, the largest protected area in the country. The 36-month emergency, issued as a presidential decree on Nov. 10, will devote 1.5 billion Honduran lempiras (more than $55 million) over the next three years to halt “environmental deterioration,” according to an official statement. “The initiative represents a commitment by the government to move from addressing threats to sustained intervention, with defined resources and institutional responsibilities,” presidential legal advisor Roberto Zacapa said in the statement. The more than 832,000-hectare (2 million-acre) reserve stretches across the departments of Gracias a Dios, Colón and Olancho, and includes numerous Indigenous Miskito, Pech and Garífuna communities. In 1982, a section of it was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The reserve’s remote location along the Nicaraguan border has made it vulnerable to deforestation, drug trafficking, cattle ranching, gold mining, wildlife trafficking, roadbuilding and other illegal activities. At least 6,691 hectares (16,533 acres) of forest were cut down between 2023 and 2025, according to the Forest Conservation Institute (ICF), the agency managing the country’s forests. Since 2011, the reserve has been on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger, a list of sites facing serious threats to their environmental or cultural heritage. “It’s like the wild west, where there’s no law and people come in and do whatever they want, and the rights of Indigenous communities are violated,” Wildlife Conservation&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/honduras-declares-environmental-emergency-in-rio-platano-biosphere-reserve/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335901</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Bigger and more-frequent wildfires threaten water supplies across the US</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/bigger-and-more-frequent-wildfires-threaten-water-supplies-across-the-us/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/bigger-and-more-frequent-wildfires-threaten-water-supplies-across-the-us/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 17:41:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13173705/AP26316719877607-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335898</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[United States]]>
						</locations>
					
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A record number of wildfires burned more than 14,062 square miles in the U.S. this year, leaving behind charred trees and scorched vegetation. But less-obvious are the impacts they had on the streams and rivers that provide drinking water to urban and rural communities across the country. After a wildfire burns a watershed, rain will [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A record number of wildfires burned more than 14,062 square miles in the U.S. this year, leaving behind charred trees and scorched vegetation. But less-obvious are the impacts they had on the streams and rivers that provide drinking water to urban and rural communities across the country. After a wildfire burns a watershed, rain will carry ash and organic matter into the streams that feed water treatment plants for towns and cities. Utilities must turn off the intake to keep the sediment-filled water from contaminating their systems and switch to another source, if it’s available. New studies found that wildfires can contaminate water for up to 15 years. These findings are especially concerning as climate change has led to an increase in the number and size of wildfires in the U.S. By Martha Bellisele, Associated Press Banner image: A helicopter drops water on the Grizzly Creek Fire on the east end of Glenwood Canyon, Aug. 17, 2020 near Glenwood Springs, Colo. Image courtesy of Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post via Associated PressThis article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/bigger-and-more-frequent-wildfires-threaten-water-supplies-across-the-us/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335898</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>There’s no substitute for getting out of the classroom and into nature (analysis)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/theres-no-substitute-for-getting-out-of-the-classroom-and-into-nature-analysis/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/theres-no-substitute-for-getting-out-of-the-classroom-and-into-nature-analysis/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 16:56:05 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Don Lyman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13161326/Harvard-University-Costa-Rica-herpetology-course-tripMarch-2008-011-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335880</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global, North America, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Analysis, Commentary, Education, Ethics, and Philosophy]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Leading a group of ecology students down a trail through the forest behind Merrimack College, in North Andover, Massachusetts, U.S., where I teach biology part-time as an adjunct professor, I spot a garter snake. As it rapidly starts crawling away, I grab the snake by its tail. Excited students gather round to check out the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Leading a group of ecology students down a trail through the forest behind Merrimack College, in North Andover, Massachusetts, U.S., where I teach biology part-time as an adjunct professor, I spot a garter snake. As it rapidly starts crawling away, I grab the snake by its tail. Excited students gather round to check out the foot-long striped serpent, while taking photos with their cell phones. I tell them a bit about garter snakes and ask if anyone wants to hold it. “I do!” one of the students says. I gently hand her the snake. “That’s really cool. I’ve never held a snake before,” she says, before handing it to another eager student. Then we turn the snake loose and continue on our way. Merrimack College biology students with a garter snake found during an ecology lab on campus, North Andover, MA, September 2025. Image courtesy of Don Lyman. Since I began at Merrimack in 1997, I’ve taught mainly ecology labs. Most of the ecology lab sessions are outdoors, so they’re like weekly field trips. They give students the opportunity to step outside of laboratories and classrooms and interact with nature. Field courses provide the same opportunity for teachers. When I head off into the woods with students in tow, I’m in my element. Whether I’m diving into the bushes and scrambling on my hands and knees to catch a snake or a frog to show the class, pointing out a hawk circling overhead, or teaching students how to identify various&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/theres-no-substitute-for-getting-out-of-the-classroom-and-into-nature-analysis/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335880</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Mongabay shark meat investigation shortlisted for two journalism awards in Brazil</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/mongabay-shark-meat-investigation-shortlisted-for-two-journalism-awards-in-brazil/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/mongabay-shark-meat-investigation-shortlisted-for-two-journalism-awards-in-brazil/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 16:17:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karla Mendes]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/29085517/shark-meat-at-store-768x512-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335886</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Business, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Fisheries, Fishing, Food, Food Industry, Health, Marine Animals, Oceans, Public Health, shark finning, Sharks, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A Mongabay investigation that revealed large-scale government purchases of shark meat for schools, hospitals, prisons and other public institutions in Brazil has been named as a finalist for two Brazilian journalism awards               . Published in 2025 in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center, the investigation tracked 1,012 public procurements issued since 2004 to purchase more than [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A Mongabay investigation that revealed large-scale government purchases of shark meat for schools, hospitals, prisons and other public institutions in Brazil has been named as a finalist for two Brazilian journalism awards               . Published in 2025 in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center, the investigation tracked 1,012 public procurements issued since 2004 to purchase more than 5,400 metric tons of shark meat, worth at least 112 million reais ($20.1 million). The findings sparked environmental and public health concerns. Sharks, some of them endangered, accumulate heavy metals such as mercury and arsenic in their tissues. High levels of these contaminants can pose health risks, particularly for children. Mongabay’s reporting is one of three finalists for the Cláudio Weber Abramo Data Journalism Award in the investigation category, which recognizes “work of high social impact that applies data analysis to shed light on topics of public interest.” The series is also one of 25 finalists for the Mosca Award, which honors investigative reporting and projects focused on transparency, access to public information and open data. Senior editor Philip Jacobson and investigative reporters Karla Mendes and Fernanda Wenzel reported the series for Mongabay, working with Kuang Keng Kuek Ser, then data editor at the Pulitzer Center. The investigation has had widespread impact, prompting a request for a public hearing in Brazil’s lower house of Congress and stirring debate in the fishing industry over the risks of eating shark meat. Shark meat was banned in 1,200 schools run by the Rio de Janeiro State Department of&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/mongabay-shark-meat-investigation-shortlisted-for-two-journalism-awards-in-brazil/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335886</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Fruit bats emerge as unlikely allies in the Atlantic Forest restoration</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/fruit-bats-emerge-as-unlikely-allies-in-the-atlantic-forest-restoration/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/fruit-bats-emerge-as-unlikely-allies-in-the-atlantic-forest-restoration/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 15:22:50 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sibélia Zanon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Xavier Bartaburu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13100451/Artibeus_lituratus_Foto_Gledson-V.-Bianconi_PNG_REVISTA-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335847</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Atlantic Forest, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Bats, Biodiversity, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Degraded Lands, Environment, Forest Fragmentation, Habitat, Habitat Degradation, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Hope and optimism, Landscape Restoration, Mammals, Research, Restoration, Solutions, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Bats have long occupied a sinister place in Western pop culture. Ever since Bram Stoker published Dracula in 1897, these nocturnal mammals have been associated with vampires. Outside fiction, however, only three of the world&#8217;s roughly 1,500 known bat species feed on blood — and only one targets mammals such as cattle and other livestock. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Bats have long occupied a sinister place in Western pop culture. Ever since Bram Stoker published Dracula in 1897, these nocturnal mammals have been associated with vampires. Outside fiction, however, only three of the world&#8217;s roughly 1,500 known bat species feed on blood — and only one targets mammals such as cattle and other livestock. Even then, humans are rarely on the menu. Bats represent the second most diverse group of mammals, behind rodents. They also provide essential ecosystem services, including insect pest control, pollination and seed dispersal; around a third of all species feed on fruit or nectar. A fruit-eating bat won over Lays Cherobim Parolin early in her career. As she was about to graduate with a degree in biology, the scientist wanted to work with larger mammals but ended up joining a bat research project instead. The first time she held one, as she removed it from a mist net, she was hooked. &#8220;People have no idea that bats are seed dispersers and have the potential to restore [natural] areas. They never remember them, they only remember birds,&#8221; Parolin, now a professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná (PUC), said. Researcher Lays Cherobim Parolin sets up an experimental structure with essential oils to attract bats. Image courtesy of Gledson Vigiano Bianconi. The encounter left such an impression that Parolin got a tattoo on her arm of the great fruit-eating bat (Artibeus lituratus), a species identifiable by two pale stripes across its head. The tattoo serves as&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/fruit-bats-emerge-as-unlikely-allies-in-the-atlantic-forest-restoration/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335847</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>El Niño drove drought, but climate change intensified Indonesia’s fire crisis: Study</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/el-nino-drove-drought-but-climate-change-intensified-indonesias-fire-crisis-study/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/el-nino-drove-drought-but-climate-change-intensified-indonesias-fire-crisis-study/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 14:30:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13143010/Indonesia_Wildfires_2026-08-291_optimized_4000-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335878</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Climate, Climate Change, Climate Science, Disasters, Drought, Earth Science, El Nino, Environment, Extreme Weather, Fires, Global Warming, Heatwave, Impact Of Climate Change, Research, Science, Temperatures, and Weather]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Human-caused climate change significantly amplified extreme heat during Indonesia’s 2026 fire season, turning an El Niño-driven drought into a severe regional crisis, according to a recent rapid analysis. The report was released by World Weather Attribution (WWA), a global network of researchers who analyze the influence of climate change in extreme weather events. The researchers [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Human-caused climate change significantly amplified extreme heat during Indonesia’s 2026 fire season, turning an El Niño-driven drought into a severe regional crisis, according to a recent rapid analysis. The report was released by World Weather Attribution (WWA), a global network of researchers who analyze the influence of climate change in extreme weather events. The researchers analyzed weather conditions across western Indonesia during the dry season between August and October 2026, when fires burned approximately 1.9 million hectares (4.7 million acres) of peatland and rainforest. The resulting toxic haze exposed 12.5 million people across Southeast Asia to hazardous air pollution and caused more than 400,000 respiratory infections in Indonesia alone, according to findings from the WWA report. Researchers found that while a strong El Niño was the primary driver of an “extreme lack of rainfall,” cutting seasonal precipitation by roughly 50% during the three months, record-breaking temperatures were overwhelmingly driven by global warming. Human-induced climate change made the season 1.6° Celsius (2.9° Fahrenheit) hotter; such extreme heat would be virtually impossible without greenhouse gas emissions, the researchers found. Meanwhile, El Niño added 0.3°C (0.5°F) of warming. Climate change also tripled the likelihood of weeklong hot, dry atmospheric extremes. “The top line of the study is that this year’s El Niño set the conditions for very low rainfall, a major fire season drought, and that this drought was then exacerbated by record heat throughout the fire season, which was made possible due to human-caused climate change,” report co-author Theodore Keeping, extreme weather&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/el-nino-drove-drought-but-climate-change-intensified-indonesias-fire-crisis-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/el-nino-drove-drought-but-climate-change-intensified-indonesias-fire-crisis-study/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335878</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Animal cafes and exotic pet trade bring wildlife disease risks into public spaces</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/animal-cafes-and-exotic-pet-trade-bring-wildlife-disease-risks-into-public-spaces/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/animal-cafes-and-exotic-pet-trade-bring-wildlife-disease-risks-into-public-spaces/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 13:04:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi Menon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/12130041/Petaurus_breviceps_06_-_by_Wm_Jas-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335772</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Global, India, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Crime, Diseases, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Health, Illegal Trade, International Trade, Law, Law Enforcement, Pet Trade, Pets, Public Health, Regulations, Research, Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Mumbai-based veterinarian Rina Dev was hospitalized for four days recently with a lung infection. “I hope it’s not something from the parrots I was treating,” she told Mongabay India after being discharged from the hospital. Dev is an avian and exotic animal veterinarian who works closely with the forest department to treat animals that officials [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Mumbai-based veterinarian Rina Dev was hospitalized for four days recently with a lung infection. “I hope it’s not something from the parrots I was treating,” she told Mongabay India after being discharged from the hospital. Dev is an avian and exotic animal veterinarian who works closely with the forest department to treat animals that officials have seized from the illegal wildlife trade. Her concerns were valid. Psittacosis, caused by a bacterium, commonly infects people who handle birds, earning its nickname as “the bird handler’s disease.” A 2024 case describes a man who developed a high fever, chills, shortness of breath, cough, joint pain, and other symptoms — and broad-spectrum antibiotics didn’t help. He’d caught psittacosis from a parrot. With appropriate treatment, he recovered. There are many documented cases linking wildlife trade to human infections. In one instance, 15 customs officers in Belgium contracted psittacosis after being exposed to infected parakeets. A comprehensive review of the disease by the ICAR–Indian Veterinary Research Institute in 2021 noted it had “critical zoonotic potential.” But it’s just one of many pathogens that can cross the species barrier, sometimes adapting to new hosts in the process.  For decades, scientists have tried to inform the public that wildlife trade brings different species into unnatural proximity, creating opportunities for diseases to spread to animals that have no immunity to them. A 2026 report by Humane World for Animals warns that, in India, the exotic pet trade creates conditions that are extremely conducive to disease transmission. Preventing future outbreaks&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/animal-cafes-and-exotic-pet-trade-bring-wildlife-disease-risks-into-public-spaces/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/animal-cafes-and-exotic-pet-trade-bring-wildlife-disease-risks-into-public-spaces/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335772</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In India, volunteers map riverside trees to make a case for urban conservation</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-india-volunteers-map-riverside-trees-to-make-a-case-for-urban-conservation/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-india-volunteers-map-riverside-trees-to-make-a-case-for-urban-conservation/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 08:22:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/10/30144629/WhatsApp-Image-2026-10-26-at-23.36.39-1-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335846</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, India, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Cities, Citizen Science, Conservation, Development, Ecosystems, Environment, Freshwater, Plants, Research, Rivers, Science, Trees, urban ecology, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Every weekend, several residents of Pune in India set out to map trees along the city’s riverbanks. It’s not just a weekend hobby; it’s meant to serve as evidence to protect the city’s greenery when developmental projects come up in the area, reports contributor Stephin Thomas for Mongabay. The volunteers are from Pune River Revival, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Every weekend, several residents of Pune in India set out to map trees along the city’s riverbanks. It’s not just a weekend hobby; it’s meant to serve as evidence to protect the city’s greenery when developmental projects come up in the area, reports contributor Stephin Thomas for Mongabay. The volunteers are from Pune River Revival, a grassroots movement that formed in response to the Pune Riverfront Development Project, which aims to create promenades, recreational spaces, and infrastructure along the Mula and Mutha rivers. The project is estimated to cost around 47 billion rupees (about $500 million). “Personally, I want to protect the environment, but without this data, we cannot even grasp how much damage has already occurred,” Raghunandan Patil, a volunteer with the group, told Mongabay. “So to any nature lover, this gives an idea on what’s left to be saved. Apart from this, tree mapping provides evidence to present to the government or authorities when advocating for sustainable alternatives.” Patil said the group had been manually mapping the trees for a while, but began doing so more systematically in 2024 using the citizen-science app iNaturalist. The app allows all the data to be easily accessible and documented in specific projects. Such detailed documentation has already helped the group highlight the importance of some areas, such as the Ram-Mula Devrai, a sacred grove located at the confluence of the Ram and Mula rivers. This small forest patch is said by local communities to be the home of a village deity.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-india-volunteers-map-riverside-trees-to-make-a-case-for-urban-conservation/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-india-volunteers-map-riverside-trees-to-make-a-case-for-urban-conservation/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335846</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>As incidents spike, Sri Lanka identifies 17 tuskers considered at high risk</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/as-incidents-spike-sri-lanka-identifies-17-tuskers-considered-at-high-risk/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/as-incidents-spike-sri-lanka-identifies-17-tuskers-considered-at-high-risk/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 07:11:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Malaka Rodrigo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Dilrukshi Handunnetti]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13042643/Sri-Lankan-tuskers-protection-5-tuskers-in-one-frame-CROPPED-c-Sunanda-Jayasekara-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335819</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, South Asia, and Sri Lanka]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Charismatic Animals, Conflict, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Elephants, Environment, Habitat, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Loss, Human-wildlife Conflict, Mammals, Solutions, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[COLOMBO – Following widespread public outrage over the recent death of Kavantissa, one of Sri Lanka’s most celebrated wild tuskers, the government has decided to involve the country’s armed forces to protect vulnerable elephants, including some of the island’s remaining tuskers. The initiative, a coordinated operation involving Sri Lanka’s army, navy, air force and the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[COLOMBO – Following widespread public outrage over the recent death of Kavantissa, one of Sri Lanka’s most celebrated wild tuskers, the government has decided to involve the country’s armed forces to protect vulnerable elephants, including some of the island’s remaining tuskers. The initiative, a coordinated operation involving Sri Lanka’s army, navy, air force and the Department of Wildlife Conservation, will have a dedicated operations center at the military headquarters to coordinate surveillance, information-sharing and responses to threats against elephants. Code named ‘Hasthi Sena’ in Sinhala, loosely translating to ‘an elephant army’ in English, the initiative aims to prevent elephant killings and curb wildlife crimes, strengthen intelligence gathering and support joint operations in areas affected by human-elephant conflict (HEC). The task force began its operations with raids last week across several areas, arresting several individuals involved in illegal activities including setting up trap guns or wire snares and possessing explosive-laden bait. The government took this measure amid renewed concern about the vulnerability of Sri Lanka’s remaining tuskers, particularly following the shooting and subsequent death of Kavantissa last month. While conservationists have welcomed greater institutional support for wildlife protection, they caution that the initiative must translate into a sustained conservation program rather than a temporary response to public pressure and not turn into yet another well-intentioned initiative that lost momentum after public attention faded. Wild Tuskers Srilanka (WTS) used a risk-assessment formula to assign scores relating to threat factors faced by individual tuskers. Image courtesy of WTS. “We have seen many such&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/as-incidents-spike-sri-lanka-identifies-17-tuskers-considered-at-high-risk/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/as-incidents-spike-sri-lanka-identifies-17-tuskers-considered-at-high-risk/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335819</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Can an ancient European forest be saved while securing Poland&#8217;s border?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/can-an-ancient-european-forest-be-saved-while-securing-polands-border/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/can-an-ancient-european-forest-be-saved-while-securing-polands-border/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Nov 2026 04:23:30 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/13042214/Collared_Flycatcher_Wysokie_Bagno_Bialowieza_Poland_4664677198-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335829</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Eastern Europe, Europe, and Poland]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Conflict, Conservation, Environment, Governance, Military, Politics, Technology, and War]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Straddling the border between Poland and Belarus, the ancient Białowieża Forest, one of Europe’s last remaining primeval woodlands, is already under stress from decades of drainage, drought and habitat fragmentation. As geopolitical tensions and security threats from Russia and Belarus rise, Poland plans to construct a massive network of military fortifications along its 700-kilometer (435-mile) [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Straddling the border between Poland and Belarus, the ancient Białowieża Forest, one of Europe’s last remaining primeval woodlands, is already under stress from decades of drainage, drought and habitat fragmentation. As geopolitical tensions and security threats from Russia and Belarus rise, Poland plans to construct a massive network of military fortifications along its 700-kilometer (435-mile) eastern frontier through the “East Shield” initiative launched in 2024.  However, conservationists say the initiative, which would involve constructing traditional concrete bunkers, minefields and anti-tank ditches through the UNESCO World Heritage site, would cause severe destruction to local wildlife, reports contributor Marta Kasztelan for a Mongabay video. To prevent widespread habitat destruction, scientists from the Polish Academy of Sciences proposed an alternative strategy known as “warwilding” — restoring dense forests, rivers and bogs to serve as natural physical barriers against heavy military vehicles. “Places like this are very important because a tank can’t get through. So, if we expect an attack from that side, then we should preserve this type of environment,” Michal Zmihorski, a conservation biologist with the Polish Academy of Sciences, says in the video. To the researchers’ surprise, Poland’s military leadership embraced the proposal and incorporated ecological recovery into its border defense plans. “Our position is that the construction of the ‘East Shield’ and environmental protection can go hand in hand,” says Marek Pietrzak, a spokesperson for the Polish Armed Forces. He notes that natural terrain can actively stall advancing forces, adding that “the landscape can put up a fight.” Although Polish&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/can-an-ancient-european-forest-be-saved-while-securing-polands-border/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335829</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Brazil’s prey-rich Pantanal, jaguars reveal a surprisingly social side</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-brazils-prey-rich-pantanal-jaguars-reveal-a-surprisingly-social-side/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-brazils-prey-rich-pantanal-jaguars-reveal-a-surprisingly-social-side/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 20:45:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Bobby Bascomb]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/12190521/Unrelated-males-grooming-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335824</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil, Latin America, Pantanal, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Biology, Cats, Ecosystems, Environment, Jaguars, Mammals, Media, Photos, Research, Science, Wetlands, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Jaguars are widely believed to be solitary cats, only tolerating others when mating or raising cubs. However, a new study in the Brazilian Pantanal has found the jaguars there often pair up and are far more social than expected. The Pantanal, the world’s largest wetland, has the world’s highest population density of jaguars (Panthera onca), [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Jaguars are widely believed to be solitary cats, only tolerating others when mating or raising cubs. However, a new study in the Brazilian Pantanal has found the jaguars there often pair up and are far more social than expected. The Pantanal, the world’s largest wetland, has the world’s highest population density of jaguars (Panthera onca), where tourists are nearly guaranteed to spot them from a tour boat. This jaguar abundance has also attracted researchers. Since 2013, scientists with the Jaguar ID project have conducted daily surveys during the Pantanal’s dry season, June to October. They collect photos and videos, and have identified 459 individual cats from their distinctive rosette patterns. Combined with citizen scientist data, the images provide a “treasure” of information about jaguars and their social interactions, according to Valeria Boron, lead author of the study and senior program adviser for Latin America with WWF UK. Boron told Mongabay in a video call that most of what scientists previously knew about jaguars came from camera traps and genetic testing, which can’t accurately capture the full range of their interactions. Analyzing 13 years of data, the team found that the Pantanal jaguars were much more social than expected, with significant differences between males and females. The researchers recorded 167 instances of jaguar pairs interacting: nearly half involved two males, 31% involved a male and a female, and just 17% involved two females. Roughly a quarter of the interactions were aggressive, 36.5% were neutral — individuals resting or hunting independently in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-brazils-prey-rich-pantanal-jaguars-reveal-a-surprisingly-social-side/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/in-brazils-prey-rich-pantanal-jaguars-reveal-a-surprisingly-social-side/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335824</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>US renews push to open Pacific marine protected area to fishing</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/us-renews-push-to-open-pacific-marine-protected-area-to-fishing/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/us-renews-push-to-open-pacific-marine-protected-area-to-fishing/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 20:06:26 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Elizabeth Claire Alberts]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/12175037/Coral_at_Jarvis_Island_National_Wildlife_Refuge-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335821</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Pacific Ocean]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Coral Reefs, Ecosystems, Environment, Fisheries, Fishing, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Marine Mammals, Marine Protected Areas, Oceans, Protected Areas, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The U.S. government has published proposed rules to allow commercial fishing in an area more than double the size of California inside a Pacific marine reserve that encompasses a network of islands, atolls, seamounts and coral reef systems. The proposed rules, published Nov. 9 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The U.S. government has published proposed rules to allow commercial fishing in an area more than double the size of California inside a Pacific marine reserve that encompasses a network of islands, atolls, seamounts and coral reef systems. The proposed rules, published Nov. 9 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), or NOAA Fisheries, would lift fishing restrictions around Johnston Atoll, Wake Island, and Jarvis Island in the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument (PIH). Commercial fishing would be permitted between 50 and 200 nautical miles (93-185 kilometers) from these islands, while waters within 50 nmi would remain off-limits to protect species and habitats. The total affected area covers 1 million square kilometers (408,000 square miles). In its proposal, NOAA says the rules would support the “long-term sustainability of U.S. fisheries,” and align with previous directives from the Trump administration to increase fishing in the Pacific, including a presidential proclamation in April calling for the “unleashing” of commercial fishing in the PIH. At the same time, NOAA also says fishing in the PIH may only have a “minor” beneficial impact on fisheries operations and management. The proposed rules are open for public comment until Dec. 9. Activists have criticized the proposal and NOAA Fisheries’ characterization of the potential harm to cultural resources and protected species as &#8220;negligible.&#8221; “The ocean has always been a place of connection for Pacific peoples, and the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument has important historical and cultural ties,” William Aila,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/us-renews-push-to-open-pacific-marine-protected-area-to-fishing/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/us-renews-push-to-open-pacific-marine-protected-area-to-fishing/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335821</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>After years of speculation, Suriname evicts Mennonites farming in the Amazon</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/after-years-of-speculation-suriname-evicts-mennonites-farming-in-the-amazon/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/after-years-of-speculation-suriname-evicts-mennonites-farming-in-the-amazon/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 17:40:19 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Maxwell Radwin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/12165635/AP26307493588655-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335817</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Suriname]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[More than 50 Mennonites have been deported from Suriname following years of controversy over plans to establish agricultural settlements for large-scale farming in the Amazon Rainforest. Authorities removed the Mennonites, members of a conservative Christian group that rejects modern technology, from state land in Suriname’s Sipaliwini district. They had been staying in the area with [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[More than 50 Mennonites have been deported from Suriname following years of controversy over plans to establish agricultural settlements for large-scale farming in the Amazon Rainforest. Authorities removed the Mennonites, members of a conservative Christian group that rejects modern technology, from state land in Suriname’s Sipaliwini district. They had been staying in the area with expired residency permits, according to a statement from the president’s office. On Oct. 31, they were reportedly flown to Bolivia, from where they originally came. “The point is essentially that the primary Amazon Rainforest is not being cut down for large-scale agriculture. I am opposed to that,” Suriname President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons told local media in an Oct. 4 interview, per a statement published by her office. In 2023 and 2024, Mongabay exposed plans to transfer hundreds of thousands of hectares of rainforest to Suriname’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (LVV). The plan involved relocating Mennonites from other areas in Latin America, including Belize and Bolivia, to Suriname to help develop large-scale farming projects that could boost the country’s domestic food production. Mennonites have a track record of rapid, profitable agribusiness development across the Americas — but often at the expense of forests. In some cases, their expansion has resulted in illegal deforestation. Roughly 93% of Suriname is covered in forest. Some of the Mennonite agriculture projects were cancelled following backlash over protecting the country’s forest cover and net-negative carbon emissions status. But in 2024, one of the projects continued through a public-private partnership between&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/after-years-of-speculation-suriname-evicts-mennonites-farming-in-the-amazon/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/after-years-of-speculation-suriname-evicts-mennonites-farming-in-the-amazon/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335817</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Smallholder farmers struggle on El Niño frontline; will the world help?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/smallholder-farmers-struggle-on-el-nino-frontline-will-the-world-help/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/smallholder-farmers-struggle-on-el-nino-frontline-will-the-world-help/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 16:35:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sean Mowbray]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/12085614/Farmers3_tend_cropland_Mozambique_Leopoldino_Jeronimo_Kepa-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335745</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Central America, Colombia, Global, Guatemala, Latin America, Mozambique, North America, South America, Southern Africa, Sudan, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Agriculture, Climate, Climate Change, Climate Science, Coffee, Conservation, Development, Diseases, Drought, Earth Science, El Nino, Environment, Extreme Weather, Farming, Flooding, Food, food security, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Health, Heatwave, Human Rights, Hunger, Impact Of Climate Change, Law, Planetary Boundaries, Planetary Health, Poverty, Research, Rice, Science, and Weather]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Smallholder farmers across the globe are bracing for, or already feeling, the effects of a historically strong El Niño. This event — forecast to peak in December with lasting impacts deep into 2027 — has brought warnings of shocks to global food prices and food security. The record-breaking 2026-2027 El Niño could drive an additional [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Smallholder farmers across the globe are bracing for, or already feeling, the effects of a historically strong El Niño. This event — forecast to peak in December with lasting impacts deep into 2027 — has brought warnings of shocks to global food prices and food security. The record-breaking 2026-2027 El Niño could drive an additional 49 million people into acute hunger, according to the United Nations, with southern Africa and Central America likely hardest hit. Expectations are that supplies of key staples such as rice and corn and commodities like cocoa, coffee and palm oil will be deeply reduced. Millions of smallholder farmers who grow the food we consume are on the frontline of these impacts, experts say. Palm oil suppliers in Indonesia, for example, are already reporting losses due to a prolonged El Niño-linked drought, while in Sudan long delayed rains are raising risk of widespread famine. In Central America, Guatemalan farmers are seeing sharp reductions in crops meant for home food consumption. The governments of El Salvador, Honduras and Panama have all issued El Niño emergency declarations, as have Bolivia and Peru in South America. “Fairtrade producers that we&#8217;re talking to are already seeing impacts,” Amanda Archila, CEO of Fairtrade America, told Mongabay in a video interview. “You’re already seeing clear signs of a dramatic increase in the number of food insecure smallholders.” Key cash crops could be far more deeply impacted over the coming months. The current El Niño is exposing a fundamental weakness in global food&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/smallholder-farmers-struggle-on-el-nino-frontline-will-the-world-help/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/smallholder-farmers-struggle-on-el-nino-frontline-will-the-world-help/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335745</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Canadian extractive firms displaced 300,000 in Africa since 1996, report says</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/canadian-extractive-firms-displaced-300000-in-africa-since-1996-report-says/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/canadian-extractive-firms-displaced-300000-in-africa-since-1996-report-says/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 16:22:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ashoka Mukpo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/12/31042334/police-guarding-waste-dump.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335809</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Canada]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, Environment, Governance, Human Rights, Illegal Mining, Law, and Mining]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Canadian extractive industries have been linked to the displacement of at least 300,000 people in Africa over the past 30 years, the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project (JCAP) said in an October report. The York University-based group reviewed media reports, court documents and other sources to compile the 193-page report, which analyzed the Canadian government’s [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Canadian extractive industries have been linked to the displacement of at least 300,000 people in Africa over the past 30 years, the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project (JCAP) said in an October report. The York University-based group reviewed media reports, court documents and other sources to compile the 193-page report, which analyzed the Canadian government’s response to allegations of corruption and human rights abuses against 23 firms since 1996. The report said that Canadian officials repeatedly lent diplomatic support to companies accused of serious human rights abuses or lapses in worker safety. In 2017, for example, Canada’s High Commissioner to Tanzania met with the country’s Minister of Mines to advocate for Barrick Mining Corporation’s local subsidiary during a dispute over taxes and export policy, per the report. The meeting came just a year after a government inquiry heard reports that police guarding Barrick’s North Mara gold mine had killed dozens of people on its premises. “They always take the side of the company,” said report co-author Shin Imai, a professor at York University’s Osgoode Hall Law School, in an interview with Mongabay. “I have not seen an instance when they didn’t lobby [on their behalf].” In 2024, the advocacy group Human Rights Watch said that police guarding the North Mara mine were involved in a “growing number of unaccounted for killings.” The report’s annex included a 12-page response from Barrick that said it had been “targeted and criticized by irresponsible NGOs.” Canada’s enforcement of laws meant to prevent corporations from&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/canadian-extractive-firms-displaced-300000-in-africa-since-1996-report-says/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/canadian-extractive-firms-displaced-300000-in-africa-since-1996-report-says/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335809</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Taiwan’s tea growers adapt to climate change by letting nature take control</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/taiwans-tea-growers-adapt-to-climate-change-by-letting-nature-take-control/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/taiwans-tea-growers-adapt-to-climate-change-by-letting-nature-take-control/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 15:13:38 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/10/23160012/Lin-Kuang-li-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335805</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, East Asia, and Taiwan]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Commodity agriculture, Crops, Environment, Farming, and Impact Of Climate Change]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In the high-altitude Alishan mountain region of central Taiwan, tea growers cultivating prized oolong tea face mounting environmental crises: Between 2014 and 2023, local tea production dropped by 13.5% due to severe climate pressures and soil degradation. In response, a group of farmers is abandoning chemical inputs for nature-based solutions and wild cultivation, reports contributor [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In the high-altitude Alishan mountain region of central Taiwan, tea growers cultivating prized oolong tea face mounting environmental crises: Between 2014 and 2023, local tea production dropped by 13.5% due to severe climate pressures and soil degradation. In response, a group of farmers is abandoning chemical inputs for nature-based solutions and wild cultivation, reports contributor Aylin Ho for Mongabay. Alishan has warmed by 0.7° Celsius (1.26° Fahrenheit) over the past decade, nearly triple Taiwan’s average rate. The hotter weather has caused mist to dissipate, which otherwise blocks sunlight and helps tea leaves stay moist. Warming has also intensified spring droughts. “Over the past five years, tea growers have experienced two or three spring droughts, at a time when they need water the most,” said Huang Cho-ying, chair of the Department of Geography at National Taiwan University in Taipei. Huang added that heavy winter rainfall and landslides further exacerbate crop damage. The use of chemical fertilizers over the years “has made the soil more acidic and has reduced the availability of certain nutrients to plants,” said Jiang Hong, an associate professor in the Department of Geography and Environment at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Lin Kuang-li, 60-year-old sixth-generation grower, transitioned away from pesticides to natural farming 30 years ago in Longyanlin village. Lin grows alfalfa to make “green manure,” and uses cut branches as ground cover to retain topsoil moisture. “My soil has a better capacity to absorb and drain water than soil treated with chemical fertilizers,” Lin said, adding&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/taiwans-tea-growers-adapt-to-climate-change-by-letting-nature-take-control/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/taiwans-tea-growers-adapt-to-climate-change-by-letting-nature-take-control/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335805</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Communities around DRC’s Upemba National Park say conservation comes at a cost</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/communities-around-drcs-upemba-national-park-say-conservation-comes-at-a-cost/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/communities-around-drcs-upemba-national-park-say-conservation-comes-at-a-cost/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 14:49:02 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Dan Yessa]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Calvin Rock]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/02/06124058/PHOTO-2025-05-21-15-28-27-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335621</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Central Africa, and Democratic Republic Of Congo]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conflict, Conservation, Culture, Environment, Environmental Law, Fellows, Governance, Law, National Parks, Natural Resources, Parks, Protected Areas, Resource Conflict, and Social Conflict]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A forest can be many things to the communities that live in and around it. It can serve as farmland, a pharmacy, a food source or a cultural center. The forest can be a lifeline to residents who depend on it for survival. Yet access to that land can be restricted if it lies within [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A forest can be many things to the communities that live in and around it. It can serve as farmland, a pharmacy, a food source or a cultural center. The forest can be a lifeline to residents who depend on it for survival. Yet access to that land can be restricted if it lies within a protected area. This is a common scenario in many parts of the world, where areas of high ecological value are also home to ecosystems that local communities depend on for survival. A growing body of research underscores the tensions that can arise when protected areas under conservation  overlap with community lands. One case in point is Kisandji, an ethnically diverse village in the southeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo about 13 kilometers (8 miles) from Upemba National Park in Haut-Katanga province. The residents of Kisandji use the natural resources found in the park for food, medicine and farming. But since 2015, access to the parkland has become difficult for residents amid national efforts to combat poaching and wildlife crimes. The park’s territory has been a source of livelihood for surrounding communities, including in Kisandji, where around 85% of households depend primarily on farming. Without electricity, piped water or healthcare, Kisandji residents also depend heavily on nature for food, medicine and income. Additionally, in a landscape shaped by war, displacement, poverty, mining and other extractive activities that interfere with people’s subsistence activities and lives, the forests within the park remain their go-to source&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/communities-around-drcs-upemba-national-park-say-conservation-comes-at-a-cost/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/communities-around-drcs-upemba-national-park-say-conservation-comes-at-a-cost/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335621</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Vietnam’s freshwater obsession leaves decades-long scars for Mekong Delta farmers</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/vietnams-freshwater-obsession-leaves-decades-long-scars-for-mekong-delta-farmers/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/vietnams-freshwater-obsession-leaves-decades-long-scars-for-mekong-delta-farmers/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 09:45:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nguyen Tra My]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Yenni Kwok]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/12105012/17196457289_ef08c0aa7a_coconuts-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335735</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Mekong Basin, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Law, Farming, Freshwater, Law, Natural Resources, Pollution, Rice, Rivers, Water, Water Pollution, and Water Scarcity]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BÌNH ĐẠI, Vietnam — For centuries, the Mekong River emptied into the South China Sea through nine vast estuaries, earning it the name Cửu Long, Vietnamese for “Nine Dragons.” In the 1960s, natural deposition of sand swallowed the first dragon, the Bassac River. Now, human-made infrastructure is choking the second, the Ba Lai River. More than [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BÌNH ĐẠI, Vietnam — For centuries, the Mekong River emptied into the South China Sea through nine vast estuaries, earning it the name Cửu Long, Vietnamese for “Nine Dragons.” In the 1960s, natural deposition of sand swallowed the first dragon, the Bassac River. Now, human-made infrastructure is choking the second, the Ba Lai River. More than two decades after a sluice gate began operating near the mouth of the Ba Lai River in southern Vietnam, the river has turned into a stagnant lake, trapping pollutants and accelerating coastal erosion. Intended to protect the region from salinity, the megastructure has created problems and triggered conflicts between local farmers and authorities, sparking semi-open resistance that further destabilizes this already climate-vulnerable area. On a cloudy day in September, Nguyên, a shrimp farmer in Bình Đại commune in Vĩnh Long province, calculates when he should harvest his shrimp as he prepares to feed his two ponds. During the rainy season, water pollution is his primary concern, and a miscalculation can wipe out his entire stock. “This month, the sluice discharges water on the eighth, ninth, 21st, and 22nd, so I will harvest my shrimp on the fifth or sixth,” says Nguyên, which is not his real name. He asks to use a pseudonym due to the sensitive nature of the issue. “Fruit farmers in the freshwater zone use tons of pesticides and herbicides,” Nguyên tells Mongabay. “The chemicals linger on the ground. When it rains, the runoff flows into canals and the river, heavily contaminating&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/vietnams-freshwater-obsession-leaves-decades-long-scars-for-mekong-delta-farmers/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/vietnams-freshwater-obsession-leaves-decades-long-scars-for-mekong-delta-farmers/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335735</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Wildlife trade regulator CITES lifts sanctions against Laos, prompting conservation concerns</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/wildlife-trade-regulator-cites-lifts-sanctions-against-laos-prompting-conservation-concerns/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/wildlife-trade-regulator-cites-lifts-sanctions-against-laos-prompting-conservation-concerns/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 03:33:47 +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/20/2025/04/23023516/Sookvannaseng-4-supplied-by-source-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335731</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Global, Laos, Southeast Asia, and Switzerland]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Bears, Biodiversity, Business, Conservation, Consumption, Corruption, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environmental Law, Governance, Ivory, Monkeys, NGOs, Organized Crime, Pangolins, Supply Chain, Tigers, Trade, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wildlife, Wildlife consumption, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[CHIANG MAI, Thailand — Global wildlife trade regulator CITES has lifted trade sanctions against Laos, opening the door for the Southeast Asian nation to resume trade of long-tailed macaques and other species. Some conservationists called the move “premature,” arguing that Laos must do more to curb the illegal wildlife trade, which is estimated to be worth [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[CHIANG MAI, Thailand — Global wildlife trade regulator CITES has lifted trade sanctions against Laos, opening the door for the Southeast Asian nation to resume trade of long-tailed macaques and other species. Some conservationists called the move “premature,” arguing that Laos must do more to curb the illegal wildlife trade, which is estimated to be worth billions of dollars a year globally. Laos was sanctioned in 2023 for its failure to rein in criminal networks trading illegal wildlife products with near-impunity and to regulate bear bile and tiger farms. But the country has made “significant progress” in addressing these issues, CITES’ Standing Committee said in Geneva on Nov. 4. While Laos will now be able to trade in CITES-listed animals without special restriction, it does not end the review process for Laos. Ongoing monitoring of Laos’ adherence to CITES rules will determine its ability to continue exporting species listed under the convention. A mousedeer, most likely Tragulus williamsoni, and silver pheasants for sale in the morning market at Luang Namtha in northern Laos. Image courtesy of William Bleisch. “We recognize that sustained progress requires continued investigations, prosecutions, demand reduction and effective oversight of wildlife facilities,” Somvang Phimmavong, director-general of Laos’ Department of Forestry, wrote in an email to Mongabay. In 2025, a joint Mongabay investigation with NGO GI-TOC identified 35 illegal wildlife shopping sites in Vientiane and Luang Prabang selling ivory, rhino horn, pangolin scales and other illegal wildlife products to Chinese tourists. By July 2026 the number of shops had&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/wildlife-trade-regulator-cites-lifts-sanctions-against-laos-prompting-conservation-concerns/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/wildlife-trade-regulator-cites-lifts-sanctions-against-laos-prompting-conservation-concerns/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335731</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>To boost conservation of kelp forests, start by naming them (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/to-boost-conservation-of-kelp-forests-start-by-naming-them-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/to-boost-conservation-of-kelp-forests-start-by-naming-them-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2026 01:01:25 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Helen WalneSwati Thiyagarajan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/10204648/Cape-fur-seal-by-Helen-Walne-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335451</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Global, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Coastal Ecosystems, Commentary, Conservation, Ecosystems, Environment, Governance, Mangroves, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Seagrass, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Beneath the coppery fronds of the only floating bamboo kelp forest in the world, a creature shapeshifts across the reef. A tuberculate cuttlefish (Sepia tuberculata) has just escaped a predator using “pseudomorph-ink” — a ‘false body’ strategy of emitting ink clouds that resemble its shape — while the actual animal jets away in the opposite [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Beneath the coppery fronds of the only floating bamboo kelp forest in the world, a creature shapeshifts across the reef. A tuberculate cuttlefish (Sepia tuberculata) has just escaped a predator using “pseudomorph-ink” — a ‘false body’ strategy of emitting ink clouds that resemble its shape — while the actual animal jets away in the opposite direction. Once hidden under a rock or in a crevice, its superb camouflage and mimicry will protect it from detection. This animal lives in the Great African Seaforest, which stretches for more than 1,300 kilometers (just over 800 miles) from South Africa to Namibia. This ecosystem is just one of many such kelp forests across the world that together house thousands of kinds of creatures all hiding, breeding, sheltering and feeding. However, their homes are in trouble. Proponents say kelp forests like the Great African Seaforest deserve the same attention that other marine ecosystems like coral reefs and mangrove forests receive. Image courtesy of Jannes Landschoff / Sea Change Project. Fringing a third of the world’s coastlines in temperate and polar waters, kelp forests are one of the most biodiverse nearshore ecosystems on our planet and are probably as biologically important as rainforests. Despite this, less than 2% of them are meaningfully protected and warming water could wipe out up to 25 million hectares (almost 62 million acres) of kelp forests by 2050. Then, this August, the global ocean surface hit its highest temperature on record. Kelp forests are biodiversity powerhouses that provide valuable ecosystem&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/to-boost-conservation-of-kelp-forests-start-by-naming-them-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/to-boost-conservation-of-kelp-forests-start-by-naming-them-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335451</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>This ocean liner was the world&#8217;s fastest. It&#8217;s being sunk to make the largest artificial reef</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/this-ocean-liner-was-the-worlds-fastest-its-being-sunk-to-make-the-largest-artificial-reef/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/this-ocean-liner-was-the-worlds-fastest-its-being-sunk-to-make-the-largest-artificial-reef/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 22:10:05 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11220520/AP26299375080227-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335719</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Coral Reefs, Ecosystems, Environment, Fish, Habitat, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Saltwater Fish, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[DESTIN, Fla. (AP) — An ocean liner that once was the fastest on the seas is headed to its final home on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico as the world’s largest artificial reef. Officials on Florida’s panhandle coast were scuttling the SS United States on Wednesday about 25 miles southwest of Destin, between [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[DESTIN, Fla. (AP) — An ocean liner that once was the fastest on the seas is headed to its final home on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico as the world’s largest artificial reef. Officials on Florida’s panhandle coast were scuttling the SS United States on Wednesday about 25 miles southwest of Destin, between Panama City and Pensacola. The $13.5 million project is designed to attract more divers and fishing enthusiasts to the area while creating a home for tuna, marlin and swordfish. The project will keep what had been a technological marvel from becoming scrap metal. The 990-foot ship set a speed record on its first voyage in 1952. By John Hanna and Stephen Smith, Associated Press Banner image: The SS United States is towed down the Delaware River between Pennsylvania and New Jersey, from Philadelphia, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Image courtesy of Matt Rourke, Associated Press This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/this-ocean-liner-was-the-worlds-fastest-its-being-sunk-to-make-the-largest-artificial-reef/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/this-ocean-liner-was-the-worlds-fastest-its-being-sunk-to-make-the-largest-artificial-reef/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335719</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>‘Developed nations are not honoring their commitments’: DRC negotiator on biodiversity finance</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/developed-nations-are-not-honoring-their-commitments-drc-negotiator-on-biodiversity-finance/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/developed-nations-are-not-honoring-their-commitments-drc-negotiator-on-biodiversity-finance/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 19:27:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Latoya Abulu]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Latoya Abulu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/11/15143842/51873438083_6748c806ef_k-e1794432760721-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335690</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Conservation Finance]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Central Africa, Congo Basin, Democratic Republic Of Congo, and Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[30x30 conservation target, Biodiversity, Business, Conflict, Conservation, Conservation Finance, Economics, Environmental Policy, Finance, Funding, Governance, Interviews, philanthropy, and Politics]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[YEREVAN, Armenia — Discussions were running much longer — and tenser — than they were supposed to during one of the last sessions of the 2026 U.N. biodiversity summit (COP17) in Armenia. The recurring culprit: Money, or more specifically, biodiversity finance. It recalled earlier discussions four years ago during the COP15 summit in Montreal, which [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[YEREVAN, Armenia — Discussions were running much longer — and tenser — than they were supposed to during one of the last sessions of the 2026 U.N. biodiversity summit (COP17) in Armenia. The recurring culprit: Money, or more specifically, biodiversity finance. It recalled earlier discussions four years ago during the COP15 summit in Montreal, which ended in momentary panic when one party threatened to pull out at the last minute over finance issues. One of the parties at the center of disagreements during both summits was the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC): Holder of the biggest share of the second-largest rainforest in the world — the Congo Basin — and fierce critic on the world stage for increased, and “more effective,” finance to help industrially developing countries meet global biodiversity goals. Among the recurring figures representing the country at environmental conferences is Daniel Mukubi, often on the microphone, intervening and vocal about better and more equitable access to finance. “All this weight &#8230; the objectives, targets of the global biodiversity framework &#8230; It requires additional efforts for developing countries, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to be able to find alternatives,” says Mukubi in an exclusive interview with Mongabay. “Additional means to enable Indigenous peoples and local communities that depend on forests and ecosystems, but also on forest products for their livelihoods, to be able to find means of subsistence that will allow them not to continue destroying the forest.” A local person carrying firewood, Yangambi, Tshopo, DRC.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/developed-nations-are-not-honoring-their-commitments-drc-negotiator-on-biodiversity-finance/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335690</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Genetic study describes two new species of Amazonian howler monkeys</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/genetic-study-describes-two-new-species-of-amazonian-howler-monkeys/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/genetic-study-describes-two-new-species-of-amazonian-howler-monkeys/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 17:26:42 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Matthew Burkhart]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Xavier Bartaburu]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11172447/bugio-ruivo4-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335679</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Forest Fragmentation, Forest Loss, Habitat Loss, Mammals, Monkeys, Primates, Rainforests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A sweeping genetic study of howler monkeys has revealed two previously unrecognized species in the Amazon, identified a potentially distinct species in the Caribbean and prompted researchers to reconsider how several populations are classified. The new study examined genetic relationships across the genus Alouatta, using genomic data, physical characteristics and museum specimens. Researchers formally described [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A sweeping genetic study of howler monkeys has revealed two previously unrecognized species in the Amazon, identified a potentially distinct species in the Caribbean and prompted researchers to reconsider how several populations are classified. The new study examined genetic relationships across the genus Alouatta, using genomic data, physical characteristics and museum specimens. Researchers formally described two Amazonian red howler monkeys: the Pantepui red howler monkey (Alouatta iroi) in northwestern Amazonia and the Mato Grosso red howler monkey (Alouatta matogrossensis) in the southern Brazilian Amazon. The research builds on more than a decade of fieldwork and sample collection. Lead author Romina Batista, a biologist at the University of Salford (UK) and Brazil’s National Institute of Amazonian Research, analyzed more than 2 terabytes of raw genomic data. The scale of the dataset helped reveal evolutionary differences that earlier studies had missed. While examining the results, Batista noticed that monkeys on opposite sides of the Branco River in northern Brazil formed distinct genetic lineages. Physical differences, including the more yellowish fur of A. iroi, supported the findings. “When I saw that, I literally called Jean and I said, ‘Jean, there is something different here,’” Batista said, referring to co-author Jean Boubli. Historical museum specimens also helped researchers identify characteristics distinguishing the populations. Batista said the findings demonstrate the importance of preserving natural history collections, which allowed the scientists to revisit older specimens with newer research tools. “If it was not for the natural history museums holding all this information, I think we also&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/genetic-study-describes-two-new-species-of-amazonian-howler-monkeys/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/genetic-study-describes-two-new-species-of-amazonian-howler-monkeys/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335679</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>How would the Amazon react if it dried up? A 25-year-old field study has the answer</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/how-would-the-amazon-react-if-it-dried-up-a-25-year-old-field-study-has-the-answer/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/how-would-the-amazon-react-if-it-dried-up-a-25-year-old-field-study-has-the-answer/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 16:56:47 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Luís Patriani]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Xavier Bartaburu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11141858/Floresta_Nacional_de_Caxiuana_Cesar_Favacho_10-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335633</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Climate, Climate Change, Climate Science, Drought, Earth Science, Ecosystems, Environment, Extreme Weather, Forests, Global Environmental Crisis, Impact Of Climate Change, Rainforests, Research, Science, and Threats To Rainforests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A question hangs in the air while the soil of the planet&#8217;s largest tropical rainforest grows increasingly dry: What is the Amazon&#8217;s future facing extreme droughts in a warming world? To try to predict the fate of the biome, an ambitious experiment subjected an area of Amazon vegetation in Pará in northern Brazil to severe [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A question hangs in the air while the soil of the planet&#8217;s largest tropical rainforest grows increasingly dry: What is the Amazon&#8217;s future facing extreme droughts in a warming world? To try to predict the fate of the biome, an ambitious experiment subjected an area of Amazon vegetation in Pará in northern Brazil to severe water stress for two decades. The findings reveal a surprising reshuffle of how the forest survives. The Esecaflor Project (Forest Drought Study Project) is the longest-running and most extensive scientific investigation of its kind ever conducted in a tropical forest. It has been underway for 25 years, during which its creators have sought to understand how the Amazon might respond to a prolonged lack of water in the soil. The experimental drought began in 2001. Covering a one-hectare (2.5-acre) area within the roughly 318,000 hectares (786,000 acres) of Caxiuanã National Forest in Pará, the project installed 6,000 transparent, rectangular plastic panels beneath the tree canopy, between 1 and 4 meters (3.3 and 13 feet) above the ground, to divert about 50% of rainwater away through gutters and channels. An undisturbed plot of equal size serves as a comparison area. In both forest plots, researchers monitor soil moisture, air temperature, tree growth, sap flow and root development, while two 40-m-(131-ft-)tall towers equipped with NASA radar transmit data to the agency&#8217;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the U.S. state of California for processing. Plastic panels installed beneath the canopy in the Esecaflor Project study area divert rainwater to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/how-would-the-amazon-react-if-it-dried-up-a-25-year-old-field-study-has-the-answer/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/how-would-the-amazon-react-if-it-dried-up-a-25-year-old-field-study-has-the-answer/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335633</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Epidemiologist Neil Vora joins Mongabay&#8217;s board as it expands global reach and planetary health coverage</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/epidemiologist-neil-vora-joins-mongabays-board-as-it-expands-global-reach-and-planetary-health-coverage/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/epidemiologist-neil-vora-joins-mongabays-board-as-it-expands-global-reach-and-planetary-health-coverage/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 16:47:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/10220039/neil-vora-header-2560x1440-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335432</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environment, Health, One Health, Planetary Health, Public Health, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Neil Vora has worked on Ebola outbreaks in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and ran New York City’s COVID-19 contact-tracing operation that traced more than 700,000 people. Now the physician and epidemiologist is joining Mongabay’s board of directors. The Ebola deployments came during nearly a decade at the U.S. Centers for Disease [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Neil Vora has worked on Ebola outbreaks in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and ran New York City’s COVID-19 contact-tracing operation that traced more than 700,000 people. Now the physician and epidemiologist is joining Mongabay’s board of directors. The Ebola deployments came during nearly a decade at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Over time, Vora turned his attention to the conditions that let diseases jump from animals to people in the first place: forest clearing, the wildlife trade, factory farming. “Some researchers believe the West African Ebola epidemic began with an axe,” he said in a 2023 TED Talk, describing how farmers in rural Guinea cleared forest to survive. He argues that protecting forests and wildlife, along with better public health and animal husbandry, can lower the risk of the next pandemic. He now leads the Preventing Pandemics at the Source Coalition, which pushes governments and funders to tackle the ecological causes of emerging diseases. Before that, he was a senior adviser on One Health at Conservation International. &#8220;We&#8217;re honored to have Neil join Mongabay&#8217;s board of directors,&#8221; said Rhett Butler, Mongabay founder and CEO. &#8220;His knowledge and experience at the intersection of public health and conservation will be particularly valuable as Mongabay builds out its planetary health reporting.&#8221; &#8220;I deeply appreciate how his work has connected deforestation and environmental degradation to human wellbeing,&#8221; Butler added. &#8220;And on a personal level, I feel a kinship with Neil as a fellow reptile and amphibian&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/epidemiologist-neil-vora-joins-mongabays-board-as-it-expands-global-reach-and-planetary-health-coverage/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/epidemiologist-neil-vora-joins-mongabays-board-as-it-expands-global-reach-and-planetary-health-coverage/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335432</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Audit says Europe’s marine protected areas failing as 2030 deadline looms</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/audit-says-europes-marine-protected-areas-failing-as-2030-deadline-looms/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/audit-says-europes-marine-protected-areas-failing-as-2030-deadline-looms/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 16:14:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Edward Carver]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Autumn Spanne]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11125104/1-feature-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335575</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Europe and European Union]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[30x30 conservation target, Conservation, Deep Sea, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Policy, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Marine, Marine Protected Areas, Oceans, Overfishing, and Protected Areas]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The European Union has for many years been a key player in international biodiversity negotiations, pushing hard for the world’s nations to protect 30% of their land and sea by 2030 — known as the 30&#215;30 initiative. Yet a new audit highlights that the EU is itself off track to fulfill this commitment, at least [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The European Union has for many years been a key player in international biodiversity negotiations, pushing hard for the world’s nations to protect 30% of their land and sea by 2030 — known as the 30&#215;30 initiative. Yet a new audit highlights that the EU is itself off track to fulfill this commitment, at least when it comes to its marine environment. The European Court of Auditors (ECA), the EU’s independent auditing body, published a report on Oct. 26 that says the EU “has not established a marine protected area network that effectively protects the marine environment” and that it’s “highly unlikely” the bloc will meet its 30% target by 2030. The auditors reported that in the type of EU marine protected area (MPA) that covers the most area, Natura 2000 sites, apparent fishing activity is 72% higher than in other European waters. The vast majority of that fishing effort, about 85%, involved the “most destructive bottom-contact gear,” such as bottom trawls that drag weighted nets, damaging seafloor habitats. The audit points to a long-standing problem with MPAs in Europe and beyond: Designation doesn’t necessarily lead to meaningful protection. Many are “paper parks” that lack strong rules, management or enforcement. “The report bolsters the growing criticism of the EU&#8217;s &#8216;paper parks&#8217; — campaigners have been calling out the prevalence of destructive fishing practices, in particular bottom-trawling, within MPAs,” John Condon, lead for marine ecosystems at ClientEarth, a U.K.-headquartered NGO, told Mongabay in an email. ClientEarth is part of an umbrella&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/audit-says-europes-marine-protected-areas-failing-as-2030-deadline-looms/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/audit-says-europes-marine-protected-areas-failing-as-2030-deadline-looms/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335575</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>US companies apply to explore deep-sea mining in area bordering Pacific island states</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/us-companies-apply-to-explore-deep-sea-mining-in-area-bordering-pacific-island-states/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/us-companies-apply-to-explore-deep-sea-mining-in-area-bordering-pacific-island-states/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 15:29:42 +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/20/2026/11/11121233/oceanic-whitetip-shark-Carcharhinus-longimanus-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335570</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Oceania, Pacific Islands, and Pacific Ocean]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, Conservation, Deep Sea, Deep Sea Mining, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Governance, Industry, Islands, Law, Marine, Marine Conservation, Marine Protected Areas, Mining, Natural Resources, Oceans, Politics, and Protected Areas]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Two U.S. companies have applied to the U.S. government for seabed mining exploration licenses in two large patches of international waters near the Cook Islands, Kiribati and French Polynesia in the South Pacific Ocean. Local government officials and environmental organizations are pushing back. The applications are part of a broader move by U.S. companies to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Two U.S. companies have applied to the U.S. government for seabed mining exploration licenses in two large patches of international waters near the Cook Islands, Kiribati and French Polynesia in the South Pacific Ocean. Local government officials and environmental organizations are pushing back. The applications are part of a broader move by U.S. companies to stake claims to the international seabed through a controversial U.S. permitting process. The process bypasses the U.N.-linked multilateral body tasked with regulating deep-sea mining activities on the high seas and protecting the marine environment. Beyond the two South Pacific sites, U.S. companies are also seeking rights through this process to large seabed blocks in international waters near Guam in the western Pacific and in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ), a vast area between Hawai‘i and Mexico, a recent Mongabay investigation showed. Most of these areas harbor polymetallic nodules, avocado-sized rocks that contain nickel, manganese, copper, cobalt and other minerals. In the South Pacific, Delaware-incorporated American Deep Sea Minerals, Inc. (ADSM) and Florida-based American Ocean Minerals Corporation (AOM) have both applied to the U.S. government to explore areas of the seabed for their mining potential, with a view to eventually extract and sell seabed minerals. Their plans focus on two areas: a 101,064-square-kilometer (39,021-square-mile) pocket of international waters bounded by the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of the Cook Islands, Kiribati and French Polynesia; and a 89,645-km2 (34,612-mi2) area south of the Cook Islands’ EEZ. Louisa Castledine, a spokesperson for the Cook Islands-based ocean advocacy collective Ocean Ancestors,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/us-companies-apply-to-explore-deep-sea-mining-in-area-bordering-pacific-island-states/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335570</doi>				</item>
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					<title>What do a bean and a flamingo have in common? Finding the unexpected in nature photos</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/what-do-a-bean-and-a-flamingo-have-in-common-finding-the-unexpected-in-nature-photos/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/what-do-a-bean-and-a-flamingo-have-in-common-finding-the-unexpected-in-nature-photos/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 14:41:21 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Shanna Hanbury]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11141421/flamingobean_zuckerman-1-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=335635</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Photos and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Photographer Andrew Zuckerman took a moment longer than usual to look closely at a bean that was sprouting in his studio. “There was this one bean that sort of had this incredibly elegant curve, and I thought, ‘God, that’s exactly like the flamingo from like 15 years ago,’” Zuckerman tells Mongabay in a video call. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Photographer Andrew Zuckerman took a moment longer than usual to look closely at a bean that was sprouting in his studio. “There was this one bean that sort of had this incredibly elegant curve, and I thought, ‘God, that’s exactly like the flamingo from like 15 years ago,’” Zuckerman tells Mongabay in a video call. He took out an old photo he’d taken of a flamingo, set both side by side, and kept looking at the pair. The connection set off a journey through his own archive of some 2,500 images, taken over the last 25 years, and culminated in his latest book, United Nature. Zuckerman’s method for documenting the natural world involves taking several photos, shifting the focus slightly with every shot. A camera, like the human eye, can keep only a thin slice of a close-up subject in focus at once. He then combines the sharpest details into a single image, a technique known as focus stacking. “I can use this optical tool, this technique, to give you something that your eyes can’t see,” Zuckerman says. Unlikely connections emerged between seeds and birds, jellyfish and crystals; pairings that cut through shapes, colors, sizes, and textures. He says he tries to turn his brain off to do this work. “No intellect, all feeling, all intuition, trying to get to a more primordial part of my response system where I could feel my way through something rather than think my way through something,” Zuckerman says. “I began noticing these kinds&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/11/what-do-a-bean-and-a-flamingo-have-in-common-finding-the-unexpected-in-nature-photos/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335635</doi>				</item>
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					<title>Angolan hunters protect Southern Africa’s internationally important wetland</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/angolan-hunters-protect-southern-africas-internationally-important-wetland/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/angolan-hunters-protect-southern-africas-internationally-important-wetland/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 13:30:33 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ryan Truscott]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11131517/Tunyiungi_2-CONTRAST-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335463</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Angola, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Climate Change, Degraded Lands, Environment, Environmental Policy, Forest Destruction, Governance, Hunting, Indigenous Peoples, Peatlands, Poaching, Rivers, Tropics, Water, Wetlands, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Four years ago, elders from several different communities in Angola’s southeastern highlands approached environmental anthropologist Kerllen Costa, saying they’d noticed an influx of people from outside the highlands coming there to hunt for bushmeat without obtaining permission from local chiefs. Sometimes the outsiders recruited locals to hunt on their behalf. These hunting parties were disregarding [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Four years ago, elders from several different communities in Angola’s southeastern highlands approached environmental anthropologist Kerllen Costa, saying they’d noticed an influx of people from outside the highlands coming there to hunt for bushmeat without obtaining permission from local chiefs. Sometimes the outsiders recruited locals to hunt on their behalf. These hunting parties were disregarding local hunting rules, the elders told Costa. They weren’t following traditional leaders’ prescriptions on where and when to hunt, how many animals to kill, or how much of their haul to share with villagers. “They asked for help to reinforce the traditional ways,” said Costa, who is Angola director of the National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project (NGOWP) and co-founder of Fundação Lisima, a conservation group. Months of discussions ensued, at the end of which each village across the landscape nominated one Watcher. Their job is to keep watch over their woodlands, monitor popular hunting trails, and ensure that the animals are hunted in line with traditional rules. “They have a concept that every single person in the landscape is a watcher,” Costa said. “The farmer, the fisherman, the beekeeper — they&#8217;re always watching what&#8217;s happening, whether it be what a person is doing or a change in the ecosystem.” The source lake of the Cuito river, in Moxico province. The Cuito is one of two major rivers feeding the Okavango river and Botswana’s giant Okavango delta. Image courtesy of Kostadin Luchansky/AIB/NGOWP. The landscape they’re watching over is the Lisima Lya Mwono, or “the source of&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/angolan-hunters-protect-southern-africas-internationally-important-wetland/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335463</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Brazil’s post-election challenge: What President Lula needs to change to keep the Amazon forest standing (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/brazils-post-election-challenge-what-president-lula-needs-to-change-to-keep-the-amazon-forest-standing/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/brazils-post-election-challenge-what-president-lula-needs-to-change-to-keep-the-amazon-forest-standing/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2026 13:29:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Philip M. Fearnside]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/11/11132637/amazon_241209121645x26-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=335489</guid>

					
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Commentary, Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, extractives, Fossil Fuels, Infrastructure, Natural Resources, Oil, Oil Drilling, and Roads]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[With Brazil´s 25 October election, Amazonia narrowly escaped a catastrophic threat. Now that Flávio Bolsonaro has been defeated and President Lula reelected, those concerned with the future of Amazonia must face what needs to be done to avoid the various still-pending threats to the region. These include the very real possibility of the forest collapsing [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[With Brazil´s 25 October election, Amazonia narrowly escaped a catastrophic threat. Now that Flávio Bolsonaro has been defeated and President Lula reelected, those concerned with the future of Amazonia must face what needs to be done to avoid the various still-pending threats to the region. These include the very real possibility of the forest collapsing from the combined effect of ongoing global climate change from greenhouse gas emissions (see here and here), regional climate change from deforestation (see here and here) and forest degradation as from logging, fire and edge effects (see here and here). Climate change Like the Amazon forest, global climate is also fast approaching a tipping point (see here and here). Global warming is close to escaping from human control, leading to a “runaway greenhouse” with temperatures shooting upward even if humans reduce their “direct” emissions from fossil fuels and deforestation to zero, while forest fires, soil and ocean warming and other “indirect” anthropogenic sources fuel ever more warming to create a “hothouse Earth.” If the climate tipping point is crossed before the Amazon forest collapses, the changed climate would quickly destroy the remaining forest, and, conversely, if the forest were to collapse first, the resulting greenhouse gas emissions would quickly push the climate system past its tipping point. The two threats are therefore intimately interconnected. Brazil would be devastated, along with most of the world. Mass mortality of the human population would eclipse virtually all other concerns. For a limited time, we can withstand temperatures a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/11/brazils-post-election-challenge-what-president-lula-needs-to-change-to-keep-the-amazon-forest-standing/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-335489</doi>				</item>
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