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		<title>Conservation news</title>
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		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/by/andrew-johnson/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
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	<title>Andrew Johnson Archives</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/by/andrew-johnson/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>In search of the tiny toad that stopped a dam</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/03/in-search-of-the-tiny-toad-that-stopped-a-dam/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/03/in-search-of-the-tiny-toad-that-stopped-a-dam/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Mar 2026 07:58:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Felipe RosaJulia LimaThamys Trindade]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Lucia Torres]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13145116/Mongabay_Thumbnail_Toad_Featured-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=videos&#038;p=315546</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Arvoreznha, Brazil — Meet the admirable red-belly toad — a tiny amphibian found nowhere else on Earth but a small forest patch in southern Brazil. Don’t let its size fool you. In 2014, it made history by halting the construction of a hydroelectric dam that would have wiped out its only home. With just over [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Arvoreznha, Brazil — Meet the admirable red-belly toad — a tiny amphibian found nowhere else on Earth but a small forest patch in southern Brazil. Don’t let its size fool you. In 2014, it made history by halting the construction of a hydroelectric dam that would have wiped out its only home. With just over 1,000 individuals left in the wild, the species is listed as critically endangered. In addition to climate change, the little toad suffers from the advance of agriculture and the threat of wildlife trafficking. But this tiny hero doesn&#8217;t shy away from a challenge. In 2024, catastrophic floods swept through southern Brazil, submerging entire landscapes — including the fragile habitat this little survivor depends on. Did it make it through? Or was this finally too much? Michelle Abadie, a researcher who has been studying the species for more than 15 years, went to the field to find out. Mongabay joined her on this mission to discover why even the smallest creatures can have an outsized impact. Curious to see what happens next? Press play. Mongabay’s Video Team wants to cover questions and topics that matter to you. Are there any inspiring people, urgent issues, or local stories that you’d like us to cover? We want to hear from you. Be a part of our reporting process—get in touch with us here! Banner image: Collage of a red-bellied toad and a bridge broken by flood. Small hippo, big dreams: Can Moo Deng, the viral pygmy hippo, save her species? This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/video/2026/03/in-search-of-the-tiny-toad-that-stopped-a-dam/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Mass pilot whale stranding in Indonesia raises questions about ocean health</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/mass-pilot-whale-stranding-in-indonesia-raises-questions-about-ocean-health/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/mass-pilot-whale-stranding-in-indonesia-raises-questions-about-ocean-health/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Mar 2026 07:28:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/02/03201534/Alexandre-Rouxs-photo-licensed-as-CC-BY-NC-SA-2.0-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315755</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Indonesia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Environment, Marine Mammals, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Villagers in central Indonesia rescued 34 short-finned pilot whales following a mass stranding on March 9, but despite their overnight efforts were unable to save 21 others. Mongabay Indonesia’s Ebed De Rosary reports that residents first discovered the pod in the shallow waters off Deranitan village, in East Nusa Tenggara province, at approximately 3:30 p.m. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Villagers in central Indonesia rescued 34 short-finned pilot whales following a mass stranding on March 9, but despite their overnight efforts were unable to save 21 others. Mongabay Indonesia’s Ebed De Rosary reports that residents first discovered the pod in the shallow waters off Deranitan village, in East Nusa Tenggara province, at approximately 3:30 p.m. local time. Local police coordinated with the local naval garrison and representatives from the fisheries ministry to launch a joint rescue operation. Working past midnight, teams of officials, security personnel and residents using boats managed to guide 34 of the whales back out into deeper waters. Of the 21 whales that perished, authorities identified The largest was a male measuring 5.1 meters (16.7 feet). The species, Globicephala macrorhynchus, is not considered threatened on the IUCN Red List. Imam Fauzi, head of the marine conservation area agency in Kupang, the provincial capital, said necropsies were conducted immediately to determine the cause of death. While the fisheries ministry is investigating the incident, local environmental NGOs like Walhi NTT are urging the government to expand the scope into a &#8220;thorough scientific investigation&#8221; to identify the root ecological triggers. Christofel Oktavianus Nobel Pale, head of the aquatic resources management program at Nusa Nipa University, said the region’s unique topography, characterized by shallow waters, narrow bays and steep gradients, can disrupt the sensitive echolocation systems pilot whales use to navigate. &#8220;Pilot whales have high social cohesion; when one individual, perhaps sick or disoriented, enters shallow water, the rest follow even&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/mass-pilot-whale-stranding-in-indonesia-raises-questions-about-ocean-health/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Indigenous knowledge confirms what scientists observe: Large birds are disappearing</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/indigenous-knowledge-confirms-what-scientists-observe-large-birds-are-disappearing/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/indigenous-knowledge-confirms-what-scientists-observe-large-birds-are-disappearing/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 23:21:38 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Bobby Bascomb]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandrapopescu]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13212401/Toco_toucan_-_panoramio_-_Basa_Roland-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315748</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Birds, Endangered, Indigenous Peoples, Population, Research, and Science]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Many Indigenous peoples and local communities live in close contact with nature and learn to identify the wildlife around them from an early age. New research published in the International Journal of Conservation draws on that knowledge to better understand a scientifically documented trend: large bird populations are shrinking. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares, an ethnobotanist with the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Many Indigenous peoples and local communities live in close contact with nature and learn to identify the wildlife around them from an early age. New research published in the International Journal of Conservation draws on that knowledge to better understand a scientifically documented trend: large bird populations are shrinking. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares, an ethnobotanist with the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain, and lead author of the study, first noticed that trend as a graduate student doing field work in the Tsimane’ Indigenous community in the Bolivian Amazon. “Many elders told me that the large birds they had grown up seeing in the forest had become much rarer. Species that were once common in their childhood were now difficult to encounter,” Fernández-Llamazares told Mongabay in an email. He cited similar accounts from Indigenous peoples and local communities in other parts of the world and from very different ecosystems. Large birds from their youth were disappearing, while smaller species seemed to be on the rise — a pattern scientists were also finding. “What had not been explored before was whether these global patterns were also reflected in the long-term ecological memories of people who interact with birds on a daily basis,” he said. So, researchers surveyed 1,434 people across three continents and 10 sites as part of a broader Local Indicators of Climate Change Impacts (LICCI) project, an international research initiative to understand how Indigenous and local communities observe the changing climate in their territories. Respondents were asked to name three birds that&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/indigenous-knowledge-confirms-what-scientists-observe-large-birds-are-disappearing/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>A fish a day: More than 300 freshwater species described in 2025</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/a-fish-a-day-more-than-300-freshwater-species-described-in-2025/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/a-fish-a-day-more-than-300-freshwater-species-described-in-2025/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 21:07:33 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13175721/Nothobranchius-iridescens-Lutandula-CD-23-21-wild-caught-male-copyright-Bela-Nagy-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315739</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Fish, Freshwater, Freshwater Animals, Freshwater Ecosystems, Freshwater Fish, New Species, and Taxonomy]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Taxonomists described 309 new species of freshwater fish in 2025, according to a report released by SHOAL, the IUCN Freshwater Fish Specialist Group (FFSG) and the California Academy of Sciences (CAS). With nearly one new description each day of the year, the tally is the highest since 2017, and the third-highest since 1758, when scientists [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Taxonomists described 309 new species of freshwater fish in 2025, according to a report released by SHOAL, the IUCN Freshwater Fish Specialist Group (FFSG) and the California Academy of Sciences (CAS). With nearly one new description each day of the year, the tally is the highest since 2017, and the third-highest since 1758, when scientists began keeping records. The new fish species come from five continents and a diversity of habitats, including limestone caves, peat swamps, wetlands and rivers. Most are endemic and some are already at risk of extinction. Asia topped the list with 165 newly described fish species, followed by South America with 91, Africa with 30, North America with 20, and Europe with three. “If there’s one thing this report shows, it’s that our planet’s rivers and wetlands are still full of surprises,” Michael Edmondstone from SHOAL told Mongabay in an email. “We hope this report sparks curiosity about freshwater life.” Some of the intriguing new species include two cave-dwelling fish in China — Yang’s plateau loach (Triplophysa yangi) and the Sichuan mountain cave loach (Claea scet) — both of which are adapted to permanent darkness. Museum specimens stored in Germany revealed two new species from East Africa. From the Democratic Republic of Congo, scientists described four new killifish (Nothobranchius spp.) species. They live in wetlands where the fish hatch, grow and reproduce in rain puddles all within a few weeks. When the water dries up, drought-resistant embryos stay buried in mud, waiting for the next rains&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/a-fish-a-day-more-than-300-freshwater-species-described-in-2025/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Costa Rica’s head start may mask tougher EUDR road ahead</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/costa-ricas-head-start-may-mask-tougher-eudr-road-ahead/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/costa-ricas-head-start-may-mask-tougher-eudr-road-ahead/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 17:49:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Claudia Geib]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jeremy Hance]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13171951/Examining-coffee-plants-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315717</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Central America, Costa Rica, European Union, and Latin America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Coffee, Deforestation, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, International Trade, Sustainability, Trade, Tropical Deforestation, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Costa Rica’s famous coffee industry says it’s nearly ready for EUDR. The upcoming European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) requires that all coffee shipped into the EU not come from recently deforested land, prompting Costa Rica to develop a pilot program with its largest coffee cooperative. The initial program provided tools and training to help growers, [&#8230;]]]>
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							<![CDATA[Costa Rica’s famous coffee industry says it’s nearly ready for EUDR. The upcoming European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) requires that all coffee shipped into the EU not come from recently deforested land, prompting Costa Rica to develop a pilot program with its largest coffee cooperative. The initial program provided tools and training to help growers, processors, roasters and exporters comply with the new rules. Over the past year, this pilot has expanded, giving these resources to all coffee producers nationally — and bringing Costa Rica closer to being one of the first nations to certify an entire sector as EUDR-ready. Costa Rica’s success serves as an important case study for the coffee industry, both in how others might prepare for the new rules, and why they may struggle in comparison. “I think we’ve seen a lot of discourse that says it&#8217;s basically impossible to comply with this law, and pilots like [Costa Rica’s] showcase that this is a wrong narrative,” said Janina Grabs, associate professor of sustainability research at the University of Basel in Switzerland, who studies agricultural commodities. “But they also showcase the alternative narrative, which is more truthful, which is that it&#8217;s going to be harder for some to comply than others.” Coffee is one of seven commodities covered by the EUDR; the others are cattle, cocoa, palm oil, rubber, soy and timber. While coffee’s impact is fractional compared to the massive deforestation undergone for cattle, palm oil and soy, the World Resources Institute estimates that between 2001&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/costa-ricas-head-start-may-mask-tougher-eudr-road-ahead/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Photos show the dramatic dawn flight of migrating snow geese</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/photos-show-the-dramatic-dawn-flight-of-migrating-snow-geese/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/photos-show-the-dramatic-dawn-flight-of-migrating-snow-geese/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 17:46:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13170100/AP26071638876152-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315721</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[United States]]>
						</locations>
					
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KLEINFELTERSVILLE, Pa. (AP) — Birdwatchers gather before dawn at Middle Creek in Pennsylvania to witness thousands of migrating snow geese lifting off from the reservoir in a swirling mass. The display lasts only minutes before the birds fan out to nearby farm fields to feed as they continue their annual spring migration north toward New [&#8230;]]]>
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							<![CDATA[KLEINFELTERSVILLE, Pa. (AP) — Birdwatchers gather before dawn at Middle Creek in Pennsylvania to witness thousands of migrating snow geese lifting off from the reservoir in a swirling mass. The display lasts only minutes before the birds fan out to nearby farm fields to feed as they continue their annual spring migration north toward New York and Quebec. For a few short weeks each year, the migration draws crowds of nature lovers to the refuge, which was created decades ago to attract waterfowl and now welcomes about 150,000 visitors annually. &nbsp; Tundra swans and other waterfowl gather on a manmade reservoir at the Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area for a stopover, Monday, March 9, 2026, in Kleinfeltersville, Pa. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) Snow geese take off from a reservoir at the Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Kleinfeltersville, Pa. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) Snow geese take to the sky at sunrise after a stopover at the Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area, Monday, March 9, 2026, in Kleinfeltersville, Pa. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) &nbsp; By Roberty F. Bukaty, Associated Press Banner image: Snow geese take off to resume their northern migration after a stopover at the Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Kleinfeltersville, Pa. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/photos-show-the-dramatic-dawn-flight-of-migrating-snow-geese/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Disastrous floods in Colombia reignite debate over hydroelectric dam</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/disastrous-floods-in-colombia-reignite-debate-over-hydroelectric-dam/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/disastrous-floods-in-colombia-reignite-debate-over-hydroelectric-dam/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 17:12:42 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Euan Wallace]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandrapopescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate Change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[climate change impacts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environmental Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme weather events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Governance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hydropower]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Impact Of Climate Change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Indigenous Communities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Renewable Energy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Research]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13164229/DSC08870-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315701</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Colombia, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Climate Change And Extreme Weather, Dams, Extreme Weather, Flooding, Hydropower, Impact Of Climate Change, Indigenous Communities, Nature And Health, Planetary Health, Public Health, and Research]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[MONTERÍA, Colombia — In the suburb of La Palma, in the city of Montería, Córdoba, two boys stand knee-deep in water. A shimmering film of dirt spreads across its opaque surface. The two are piling family possessions into an upturned refrigerator – a makeshift raft used to ferry their belongings toward dry land. Across the [&#8230;]]]>
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							<![CDATA[MONTERÍA, Colombia — In the suburb of La Palma, in the city of Montería, Córdoba, two boys stand knee-deep in water. A shimmering film of dirt spreads across its opaque surface. The two are piling family possessions into an upturned refrigerator – a makeshift raft used to ferry their belongings toward dry land. Across the street, Ana Castillo, 33, watches them from her doorway. Her home sits just a few inches above the water. By her side, a dark stain rising 1 meter (3.3 feet) up the wall marks where the water line was just a few days earlier. “This took us by surprise,” Castillo says. Broom in hand, she tries to sweep the last of the water from her front room. “It’s sad to see your things half-submerged in water.” La Palma is one of the 27 neighborhoods in Montería affected by severe flooding during the region’s dry season. What began as torrential rain in early February turned into a regional disaster: 24 municipalities in Cordoba were affected, and seven people died. The causes are still under debate; while scientists have pointed to unstable weather patterns and the influence of climate change, locals, some experts and high-ranking politicians say high water levels in the Urra Dam, a hydroelectric project long contested by Indigenous communities, have aggravated the floods. In the neighbourhood of La Palma, Montería, two young men attempt to use a fridge as a makeshift canoe. Image by Euan Wallace. Amid the debate, authorities continue to grapple with&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/disastrous-floods-in-colombia-reignite-debate-over-hydroelectric-dam/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>South Africa endorses treaty to triple global nuclear energy capacity by 2050</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/south-africa-endorses-treaty-to-triple-global-nuclear-energy-capacity-by-2050/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/south-africa-endorses-treaty-to-triple-global-nuclear-energy-capacity-by-2050/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 16:47:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13164313/Koeberg_Nuclear_Powerplant_-_Entry_Prohibited_beach_sign-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315710</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[South Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Energy, Nuclear Power, Renewable Energy, Solar Power, and Wind Power]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[South Africa has endorsed the Declaration to Triple Nuclear Energy Capacity by 2050, joining 33 other countries that signed the nonbinding pledge during the United Nations climate summit in Dubai in 2023. Tsakane Khambane, spokesperson for South Africa’s Ministry of Electricity and Energy, told Mongabay via email that the move marks a “significant moment” beyond [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[South Africa has endorsed the Declaration to Triple Nuclear Energy Capacity by 2050, joining 33 other countries that signed the nonbinding pledge during the United Nations climate summit in Dubai in 2023. Tsakane Khambane, spokesperson for South Africa’s Ministry of Electricity and Energy, told Mongabay via email that the move marks a “significant moment” beyond South Africa’s borders. It reflects a commitment to “energy security, expanding energy access, and achieving climate goals,” Khambane said. The decision was announced during the Africa Energy Indaba held March 5 in Cape Town. There, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, minister of electricity and energy, said nuclear power is of “structural necessity” for South Africa’s future energy mix. But Ramokgopa said the biggest challenge for African countries to expand nuclear power is fairer financing from international lenders, multilateral institutions and supplier countries. “If the world is serious about tripling nuclear capacity by 2050, Africa must be central to that ambition. That requires financing structures aligned with developmental realities,” he said. Currently, more than 80% of South Africa’s electricity supply is derived from coal, a primary driver of climate change. Renewables such as wind, solar and hydro contribute around 10%, while nuclear power, primarily from the Koeberg plant, accounts for about 4% of the country’s electricity generation. South Africa is pursuing a diversified energy mix that includes coal, nuclear, renewables and hydropower. However, the government says it expects the composition to change significantly in the coming decades as renewable and nuclear energy expand. Growing demand coupled with an unreliable&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/south-africa-endorses-treaty-to-triple-global-nuclear-energy-capacity-by-2050/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Forest advocates accuse EU energy firm of Dutch biomass certification fraud</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 16:21:42 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Justin Catanoso]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/05/25141443/wood-pellets-burning-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315699</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, European Union, Global, Malaysia, and Netherlands]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Bioenergy, Biomass Burning, carbon, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change, Climate Change Policy, Controversial, Deforestation, Energy, Energy Politics, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Politics, Forests, Government, Green Energy, Industry, Sustainability, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For years, a battle has raged between EU nations that claim their forest biomass certification policies safeguard against deforestation, promote sustainability and enable carbon-emissions reductions, even as forest advocates have argued that those policies fail to combat climate change, are badly flawed or outright fraudulent. EU policymakers remain entrenched today, defending their certification schemes as [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For years, a battle has raged between EU nations that claim their forest biomass certification policies safeguard against deforestation, promote sustainability and enable carbon-emissions reductions, even as forest advocates have argued that those policies fail to combat climate change, are badly flawed or outright fraudulent. EU policymakers remain entrenched today, defending their certification schemes as a means of complying with laws to stop burning coal and for achieving national net-zero goals, despite evidence that burning wood pellets to make energy is dirtier than coal. But now forest advocates are turning up the pressure in the Netherlands in an unprecedented way. In a possible first-of-its-kind action, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service is considering a criminal investigation against RWE, one of the Netherlands’ largest energy providers. RWE faces allegations made by two forest advocacy groups that the company, which has collected billions of euros in Dutch biomass subsidies, misrepresented itself by claiming that hundreds of thousands of tons of wood pellets imported from Malaysia came entirely from sawmill waste. The two advocacy groups, Comite Schone Lucht and Biofuelwatch, say their research establishes that those pellets come mostly from whole trees, contributing to Malaysian deforestation. The Public Prosecution Service, the sole authority responsible for investigating and prosecuting Dutch criminal offenses, is expected to decide how to proceed by the end of March. Research shows that “biomass burning power plants emit 150% the CO2 of coal, and 300-400% the CO2 of natural gas, per unit energy produced.” Image by GIZ Bush Control and Biomass&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Oil patch appears after IRIS Dena sinking in Sri Lanka; origins still unverified</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/oil-patch-appears-after-iris-dena-sinking-in-sri-lanka-origins-still-unverified/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/oil-patch-appears-after-iris-dena-sinking-in-sri-lanka-origins-still-unverified/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 08:55:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kamanthi Wickramasinghe]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Dilrukshi Handunnetti]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/13081115/IMG_4196-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315691</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, South Asia, and Sri Lanka]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Environment, Environmental Activism, Environmental Law, Law, Marine, Marine Ecosystems, Oceans, Oil, Oil Spills, and Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[HIKKADUWA, Sri Lanka — On Saturday, March 7, three days after the Iranian warship IRIS Dena was torpedoed by a U.S Navy submarine close to the southern coast off Galle in Sri Lanka, fishers and coastal communities noticed a thick oil patch along the coast of Hikkaduwa. Hikkaduwa is one of the most pristine coastal [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[HIKKADUWA, Sri Lanka — On Saturday, March 7, three days after the Iranian warship IRIS Dena was torpedoed by a U.S Navy submarine close to the southern coast off Galle in Sri Lanka, fishers and coastal communities noticed a thick oil patch along the coast of Hikkaduwa. Hikkaduwa is one of the most pristine coastal belts in the south of Sri Lanka, frequented by tourists throughout the year with a peak tourism season from December to March. Even as authorities say the oil spill has been brought under control to some extent, environmentalists express concerns about the possible environmental implications of the oil spill on marine ecosystems in Hikkaduwa and its environs. The frigate was torpedoed by USS Charlotte, a U. S. Navy submarine. The Iranian-flagged IRIS Dena was returning from the International Fleet Review 2026, a multinational naval exercise held in Visakapatnam, India. The incident occurred in international waters, around 40 nautical miles (74 kilometers or 46 miles) off the island’s southern coast. “As soon as we were informed by the Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Management Department (CCD) about the appearance of several oil patches along Hikkaduwa coast on March 7 morning, we deployed teams to check on the situation,” Samantha Gunasekara, chair of Sri Lanka’s Marine Environmental Protection Authority (MEPA), told Mongabay. He said that ever since March 4, the day the warship was attacked, local teams have been alerted via a WhatsApp group to watch for evidence of any environmental impacts. “We obtained photographs from coastal&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/oil-patch-appears-after-iris-dena-sinking-in-sri-lanka-origins-still-unverified/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/oil-patch-appears-after-iris-dena-sinking-in-sri-lanka-origins-still-unverified/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Study finds livestock pushing lions away from shared rangeland in Kenya</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/study-finds-livestock-pushing-lions-away-from-shared-rangeland-in-kenya/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/study-finds-livestock-pushing-lions-away-from-shared-rangeland-in-kenya/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 20:05:24 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Mpaka]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12195736/Lions_Kenya_MaraPredatorConservationProgram-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315684</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Kenya]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Cats, Cattle, Cattle Pasture, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Endangered Species, Human-wildlife Conflict, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Land Conflict, Land Rights, Land Use Change, Lions, Mammals, National Parks, Pasture, Predators, Top Predators, Tourism, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Lions, Africa’s largest predators, are a near-universal source of fear for the continent’s wildlife. But in Kenya, it’s the king of the jungle that’s now becoming fearful — of domestic livestock. In Kenya, most wildlife is found outside formally protected areas. The lions, zebras and elephants that attract tourists mostly live in pastoralist rangeland. For [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Lions, Africa’s largest predators, are a near-universal source of fear for the continent’s wildlife. But in Kenya, it’s the king of the jungle that’s now becoming fearful — of domestic livestock. In Kenya, most wildlife is found outside formally protected areas. The lions, zebras and elephants that attract tourists mostly live in pastoralist rangeland. For farmers and herders, this can be both a curse — coexistence is hard work where predators sometimes attack livestock and cattle compete with wild herbivores for grass — and a blessing — many community-owned conservancies profitably lease portions of their land to tourism operators for safaris and lodges, generating revenue for their members. In most conservancies’ grazing plans, herders can make use of the entire landscape. This allows grazing pressure to be more evenly distributed, but it also assumes that when herders and their livestock aren’t present in an area, other herbivores and the predators that hunt them make free use of the space. Niels Mogensen, a biologist with the Mara Predator Conservation Program, a Kenya Wildlife Trust initiative aimed at preserving large carnivores, says no one had actually checked to see if this was true before now. A lioness with cubs, Mara Conservancy, Kenya. Image by Ross Pollack via Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).  Between 2015 and 2023, he and his colleagues carried out surveys at seven community-owned wildlife conservancies in the Mara ecosystem. They covered nearly 69,000 kilometers (43,000 miles) in total, collecting data about the presence of lions, and wild and domestic herbivores.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/study-finds-livestock-pushing-lions-away-from-shared-rangeland-in-kenya/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/study-finds-livestock-pushing-lions-away-from-shared-rangeland-in-kenya/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Conservationists are burning out — and some are breaking</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/conservationists-are-burning-out-and-some-are-breaking/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/conservationists-are-burning-out-and-some-are-breaking/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 18:24:21 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12182249/Greater_sage-grouse_surveys_in_southwestern_Idaho_52848937361-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315680</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Environment, Environmental Activism, Science, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Conservation has long been framed as a moral calling. For many who enter the field, it is precisely that sense of purpose that sustains difficult work in remote places, under uncertain funding, and against problems that rarely yield quick victories. Yet the same intensity of commitment now appears to be exacting a psychological toll, Mongabay’s [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Conservation has long been framed as a moral calling. For many who enter the field, it is precisely that sense of purpose that sustains difficult work in remote places, under uncertain funding, and against problems that rarely yield quick victories. Yet the same intensity of commitment now appears to be exacting a psychological toll, Mongabay’s Jeremy Hance reports. Reports of burnout, depression and suicide among conservation professionals have prompted some leaders to describe a crisis within the sector itself. Part of the strain reflects the condition of the natural world. Wildlife populations have fallen sharply in recent decades, ecosystems are being degraded, and climate risks continue to mount. Those tasked with slowing these losses confront them daily, often with limited tools and little assurance that their efforts will succeed. The result is a form of grief that is both chronic and socially unrecognized. Unlike bereavement for a person, sorrow for species or landscapes rarely elicits public sympathy, yet it can be just as consuming. Structural features of the profession compound the problem. Conservation relies heavily on short-term grants, modest salaries, and a workforce motivated by passion rather than financial reward. Early-career scientists and field staff may endure unstable employment, long separations from family, and exposure to danger, particularly in regions affected by conflict or illegal resource extraction. Women face additional pressures related to pay, caregiving and career progression. Men, meanwhile, may be less likely to acknowledge distress in cultures where stoicism is expected. The paradox is that a field devoted&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/conservationists-are-burning-out-and-some-are-breaking/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>At least 50 people killed and 125 others reported missing after landslides sweep Ethiopia</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/at-least-50-people-killed-and-125-others-reported-missing-after-landslides-sweep-ethiopia/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/at-least-50-people-killed-and-125-others-reported-missing-after-landslides-sweep-ethiopia/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 18:11:45 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12180754/AP26071399976176-e1773338909762-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315677</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Ethiopia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Extreme Weather, Flooding, and Mudslides]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — At least 50 people have died and 125 others are missing after landslides hit three districts in southern Ethiopia following a week of heavy rains, a local official said Thursday. The landslides happened in Gamo Zone and affected the Gacho Baba District, Kamba District and Bonke District, according to Gamo [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — At least 50 people have died and 125 others are missing after landslides hit three districts in southern Ethiopia following a week of heavy rains, a local official said Thursday. The landslides happened in Gamo Zone and affected the Gacho Baba District, Kamba District and Bonke District, according to Gamo Zone director of disaster response Mesfin Manuqa. Manuqa said that one person was pulled out of the mud alive during the rescue operation. The Gacho Baba District communication chief, Abebe Agena, said most of those who died were found buried in the mud. It is not yet clear how many households were affected. Tilahun Kebede, president of the South Ethiopia Regional State, expressed his sorrow over the disaster and urged residents to move to higher ground as rains continue. “Given that it is the rainy season and these types of disasters could happen again, I am calling on communities living in the highlands and flood-prone areas to take the necessary precautions,” he said. Mudslides and floods caused by heavy rainfall are common in Ethiopia, especially during the rainy season. In July 2024, a deadly mudslide caused by heavy rain claimed the lives of 229 people in southern Ethiopia. By Associated Press Banner image: Locals search for the bodies of mudslide victims in the Gacho Baba district of the Gamo Zone in southern Ethiopia on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (Gacho Baba District Government Communication Affairs Department via AP)This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/at-least-50-people-killed-and-125-others-reported-missing-after-landslides-sweep-ethiopia/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Why saving seagrass meadows could help save the world’s coastlines</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/why-saving-seagrass-meadows-could-help-save-the-worlds-coastlines/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/why-saving-seagrass-meadows-could-help-save-the-worlds-coastlines/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 16:48:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sean Mowbray]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jeremy Hance]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12125427/green-turtle-and-green-grass-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315651</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Blue Carbon, Climate Change, Climate Change And Biodiversity, Climate Change And Coral Reefs, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Environment, Marine, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Conservation, Marine Crisis, Marine Ecosystems, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Seagrass meadows might not catch the eye like coral reefs, but they play an important and often unsung role in coastal protection, particularly as climate change increasingly eats away at shorelines. Protecting and restoring seagrass meadows, experts say, is a key “nature-based solution” that can also soak up and store carbon. Seagrasses reduce erosion and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Seagrass meadows might not catch the eye like coral reefs, but they play an important and often unsung role in coastal protection, particularly as climate change increasingly eats away at shorelines. Protecting and restoring seagrass meadows, experts say, is a key “nature-based solution” that can also soak up and store carbon. Seagrasses reduce erosion and bind sediments with their roots, similar to how a forest stabilizes soil, says Oscar Serrano Gras, a research fellow at the Blanes Center for Advanced Studies (CEAB) in Spain and Edith Cowan University in Australia. “They naturally have this capacity to protect the shoreline from erosion,” he adds. That also means they are incredibly efficient at storing carbon dioxide. Across the globe, the increasing strength and duration of storms, as well as their frequency, is chipping away at coastlines due to climate change. That’s linked to flooding, damage to infrastructure, and potentially hazardous cliff falls. “The fact that we are losing this protection belt of seagrass along the shorelines also contributes to coastal erosion,” Gras says. Cymodocea nodosa seagrass in Spain, also known as Little Neptune grass. Restoring and protecting seagrass can have climate and coastal protection benefits. Image courtesy of Liam McGuire/Ocean Image Bank. Reducing waves, binding sediment When seagrass meadows are healthy and abundant, they can form a belt along the coastline that helps slow down waves and reduce their height. “Seagrass creates additional resistance to fluid motion, which reduces wave energy,” says Heidi Nepf, professor of civil and environmental engineering at the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/why-saving-seagrass-meadows-could-help-save-the-worlds-coastlines/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Outlook for migratory species worsens amid habitat loss &#038; avian flu, report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/outlook-for-migratory-species-worsens-amid-habitat-loss-avian-flu-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/outlook-for-migratory-species-worsens-amid-habitat-loss-avian-flu-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 16:03:11 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Gloria Dickie]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12132145/Sea-Turtle-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315646</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Arctic, Asia, Central Asia, Chad, East Africa, Europe, Global, Kenya, Serengeti, and Tanzania]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Birds, Climate, Climate Change, Conservation, Corridors, Diseases, Environment, Fish, Fishing, Freshwater Fish, Habitat Loss, Hunting, Jaguars, Mammals, Mapping, Migration, Mining, Poaching, Sea Turtles, Sharks, Sharks And Rays, Species, Turtles, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[From shorebirds flying between their Arctic breeding grounds and southerly foraging ranges to freshwater fish returning to native spawning streams, migratory animals are struggling. About half of all migratory species populations protected under a global treaty are now in decline, with the situation worsening in just the last two years, according to a new United [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[From shorebirds flying between their Arctic breeding grounds and southerly foraging ranges to freshwater fish returning to native spawning streams, migratory animals are struggling. About half of all migratory species populations protected under a global treaty are now in decline, with the situation worsening in just the last two years, according to a new United Nations-backed report. When the first State of the World’s Migratory Species report was published in 2024, 44% of migratory species populations listed under the U.N. Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) were declining, according to data from the IUCN Red List, the world’s most comprehensive guide to global extinction risk. Since then, the proportion of imperiled CMS-listed species rose to 49%, according to updated Red List data and new research. Though the next status report isn’t due until around 2030, conservation advocates said the deteriorating situation required an interim report, as many countries are moving in the wrong direction when it comes to conserving wildlife that depend on various habitats to complete their life cycles. “This [interim report] is saying there are some alarming trends in the meantime; that we don’t want to wait six years to talk about this,” said CMS executive secretary Amy Fraenkel. Jaguars have no subspecies. Their range extends from Mexico to Argentina, but some populations are cut off, at risk of inbreeding and the demise that comes with it. Image by Gregoire Dubois. The convention, established in 1979, aims to conserve migratory species by protecting&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/outlook-for-migratory-species-worsens-amid-habitat-loss-avian-flu-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/outlook-for-migratory-species-worsens-amid-habitat-loss-avian-flu-report-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
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					<title>If Florida reefs aren’t protected, storms will increase flooding &#038; costs: Study</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/if-florida-reefs-arent-protected-storms-will-increase-flooding-costs-study/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/if-florida-reefs-arent-protected-storms-will-increase-flooding-costs-study/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 15:54:26 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ruth Kamnitzer]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Morgan Erickson-Davis]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12050147/b-FKNMS_-_Reef_34136062951-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315628</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Florida, North America, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Coral Bleaching, Coral Reefs, Economy, Environment, Extreme Weather, Flooding, Hurricanes, Marine, Marine Conservation, Marine Ecosystems, Microplastics, Oceans, Pollution, Storms, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Healthy reefs aren’t just about colorful fish — they also shield shorelines from intense tropical storms. If Florida’s reefs keep degrading, flooding during tropical storms could get much worse, increasing risks to people and costing nearly a billion dollars a year in damage to buildings and economic disruption annually, a new Earth’s Future study finds. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Healthy reefs aren’t just about colorful fish — they also shield shorelines from intense tropical storms. If Florida’s reefs keep degrading, flooding during tropical storms could get much worse, increasing risks to people and costing nearly a billion dollars a year in damage to buildings and economic disruption annually, a new Earth’s Future study finds. Coral reefs act as natural breakwaters, absorbing up to 97% percent of an incoming wave’s energy, with the top of the reef taking the bulk of the impact. Globally, around 200 million people benefit from this kind of natural flood protection, according to a 2014 Nature Communications study. But around the world, coral reefs are in trouble. The most recent bleaching event, driven by record temperatures, hit more than 80% of reefs. Reefs are also battling coral diseases, pollution, microplastics, physical damage and other threats. In the Florida Keys, live coral cover has declined by about 90%, over the last 40 years, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Degraded reefs aren’t as strong, and crumbling coral means they aren’t as able to cushion the impact of waves. As waves become more forceful, they erode sediment, deepening the seafloor closer to shore. “Waves break relative to their water depth. &#8230; Now, all of a sudden, you make that water deeper, that means a bigger wave can come in closer to shore,&#8221; says Curt Storlazzi, a researcher at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the study’s first author. In a previous study,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/if-florida-reefs-arent-protected-storms-will-increase-flooding-costs-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/if-florida-reefs-arent-protected-storms-will-increase-flooding-costs-study/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>Marine biologist Edie Widder chases bioluminescence in new ‘Life Illuminated’ film</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/marine-biologist-edie-widder-chases-bioluminescence-in-new-life-illuminated-film/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/marine-biologist-edie-widder-chases-bioluminescence-in-new-life-illuminated-film/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 14:40:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Edward Carver]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rebecca Kessler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12015655/4-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315615</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Atlantic Ocean]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Bioluminescence, Conservation, Environment, Film, Fish, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Conservation, Marine Ecosystems, Oceans, Research, Saltwater Fish, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The documentary A Life Illuminated will make its Washington, D.C., premiere on March 19, the first night of the D.C. Environmental Film Festival, where Mongabay is a media partner. The film traces the career arc of U.S. marine biologist Edie Widder, an expert on bioluminescence who’s made headlines for decades, and documents her team’s attempt [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The documentary A Life Illuminated will make its Washington, D.C., premiere on March 19, the first night of the D.C. Environmental Film Festival, where Mongabay is a media partner. The film traces the career arc of U.S. marine biologist Edie Widder, an expert on bioluminescence who’s made headlines for decades, and documents her team’s attempt to capture a remarkable deep-water phenomenon called “flashback” on camera. The film, directed by U.S. documentary filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt, has been on the film festival circuit since September, when it made its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. In the film, Widder meditates on the importance of the deep sea, which usually refers to waters below 200 meters (660 feet) in depth, a zone many experts call the world’s largest habitat. In the deep sea, most creatures can emit light, a trait few land-dwelling animals possess. (Fireflies are a notable exception.) The film’s plot toggles between previous Widder expeditions and a recent one to the waters off the Azores, a Portuguese-administered archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, to document flashback. The term refers to the way a wide variety of organisms, from the macro to the micro, will simultaneously light up in response to a flash of light from, say, a submersible. Those who’ve witnessed the phenomenon speak about it with awe: Before the flashback, the sea is pitch-black to the human eye, a seeming void. The flashback then envelops the submersible in an ephemeral snowstorm. Edie Widder, a marine biologist and bioluminescence&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/marine-biologist-edie-widder-chases-bioluminescence-in-new-life-illuminated-film/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Modest controls put on freewheeling squid fleet at South Pacific fisheries meeting</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/modest-controls-put-on-freewheeling-squid-fleet-at-south-pacific-fisheries-meeting/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/modest-controls-put-on-freewheeling-squid-fleet-at-south-pacific-fisheries-meeting/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 14:22:43 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Francesco De Augustinis]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rebecca Kessler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12141145/a.-BANNER-Humboldt-squid-%C2%A9Joescience1-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315645</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Pacific and Pacific Ocean]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Cruelty, Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Crime, Environment, Environmental Crime, Environmental Law, Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Forced labor, Illegal Fishing, Law, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Overfishing, Saltwater Fish, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, and Wildlife Crime]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A lower limit on the size of the fleet targeting jumbo flying squid in the South Pacific Ocean, improved controls at ports and the introduction of electronic monitoring systems on board vessels to rein in illegal practices and labor abuses: These were the main outcomes of the 14th meeting of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A lower limit on the size of the fleet targeting jumbo flying squid in the South Pacific Ocean, improved controls at ports and the introduction of electronic monitoring systems on board vessels to rein in illegal practices and labor abuses: These were the main outcomes of the 14th meeting of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO), which concluded in Panama on March 6, marking steps toward tighter regulation of fisheries, especially for squid, in the vast swath of ocean the body manages. “It&#8217;s a part of the world&#8217;s largest squid fishery … so it was very positive that attention was being paid to it,” Dave Gershman, a senior officer on international fisheries at the U.S.-based think tank The Pew Charitable Trusts, who attended the meeting as an observer, told Mongabay just minutes after the closure. “But this is only the start of what&#8217;s needed to put in place science-based management.” The SPRFMO annual meeting took place in Panama City March 2-6. The intergovernmental organization includes 17 members (16 countries and the European Union) and was established in 2012 with the aim of ensuring the long-term conservation and better regulation of fishing activities (except for tuna fishing) in the high seas of the South Pacific, an area encompassing about 59 million square kilometers (23 million square miles). The most anticipated decisions at this year’s meeting concerned tightening regulation of the jumbo flying squid (Dosidicus gigas) fishery, following increased fishing activity and signals of declining stock. Decision-makers also took steps&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/modest-controls-put-on-freewheeling-squid-fleet-at-south-pacific-fisheries-meeting/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Indonesia’s orangutan trafficking cases reveal need for a change in approach (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/indonesias-orangutan-trafficking-cases-reveal-need-for-a-change-in-approach-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/indonesias-orangutan-trafficking-cases-reveal-need-for-a-change-in-approach-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 13:08:46 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Onrizal Onrizal]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11212405/Juv-of-Sumatran-orangutan-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315549</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Aceh, Asia, Indonesia, North Sumatra, Southeast Asia, and Sumatra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Apes, Commentary, Conservation, Crime, Environmental Crime, Environmental Law, Governance, Government, Great Apes, Illegal Trade, Law, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Orangutans, Pet Trade, Trade, trafficking, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Crime, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For months, four infant orangutans lived in limbo in Thailand — not as pets, but as evidence. Confiscated in two separate trafficking cases, they were cared for at the Khao Pratubchang Wildlife Rescue Centre while investigators built their files. On Dec. 23, 2025, the babies finally came home: three Sumatran orangutans and one critically endangered [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For months, four infant orangutans lived in limbo in Thailand — not as pets, but as evidence. Confiscated in two separate trafficking cases, they were cared for at the Khao Pratubchang Wildlife Rescue Centre while investigators built their files. On Dec. 23, 2025, the babies finally came home: three Sumatran orangutans and one critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan, handed over by Thai authorities and repatriated for rehabilitation in North Sumatra. The images were moving — and they mattered. But a hard truth sits behind every heartwarming handover: if the pipeline stays open, the next baby will already be on the move. Just five weeks later, on Jan. 30, 2026, Indonesian officers in East Aceh stopped a truck carrying 53 packages filled with hundreds of protected wildlife specimens and parts, allegedly bound for Thailand. Seen together, these episodes read less like isolated crimes and more like a repeating pattern: seizure, repatriation, new shipment. Wildlife trafficking is an adaptive, transnational business. Repatriation is essential and humane, but it is not a strategy. Prevention is the strategy, and prevention starts by making trafficking unprofitable. Juvenile orangutans confiscated from a trafficker in Indonesia&#8217;s Aceh province in 2015. Photo by Junaidi Hanafiah for Mongabay. Transnational supply pipeline, not “petty crime” Orangutan trafficking and the broader trade in protected wildlife function like a supply chain: capture at the source → local collectors → transporters → cross-border smugglers → end-market buyers. In this chain, couriers are replaceable; organizers and financiers are not. Infant orangutans are especially lucrative because&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/indonesias-orangutan-trafficking-cases-reveal-need-for-a-change-in-approach-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>The dark side of smiling sloths</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/the-dark-side-of-smiling-sloths/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/the-dark-side-of-smiling-sloths/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 08:30:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sam Lee]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sam Lee]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12080354/sloth-on-tree-2026-01-09-07-08-25-utc-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315643</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Central America and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Endangered, Extinction, Social Media, Tourism, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The apparent friendliness of “smiling” sloths have made them tourist darlings, but have also put a target on their backs. In their home range of South and Central America, tourism companies encourage customers to take photos with sloths, and the government fears the smuggling of animals across country borders. The rise in sloth trafficking has [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The apparent friendliness of “smiling” sloths have made them tourist darlings, but have also put a target on their backs. In their home range of South and Central America, tourism companies encourage customers to take photos with sloths, and the government fears the smuggling of animals across country borders. The rise in sloth trafficking has led the governments of Brazil, Costa Rica and Panama to propose stricter rules for the international trade of two sloth species, with the goal of preventing them from sliding into extinction.This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/the-dark-side-of-smiling-sloths/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Bangladesh sees rise in ray, shark fishing as traditional seafood species dwindle</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/bangladesh-sees-rise-in-ray-shark-fishing-as-traditional-seafood-species-dwindle/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/bangladesh-sees-rise-in-ray-shark-fishing-as-traditional-seafood-species-dwindle/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Mar 2026 07:50:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Khadijatul Kobra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abusiddique]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/12073924/Stingray-04-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315636</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Bangladesh, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Environment, Environmental Law, Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Food Industry, Illegal Fishing, Law, Mangroves, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Marine Ecosystems, Oceans, Overfishing, Rays, Saltwater Fish, Sharks, and Sharks And Rays]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Though seafood is a prevalent protein source in Bangladesh, some fishes, like stingrays and sharks, never appealed to most of the population here, barring a few coastal Indigenous groups. However, the illegal fishing of such species has become common in the country in recent years. In a recent incident on Feb. 21, authorities detained 22 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Though seafood is a prevalent protein source in Bangladesh, some fishes, like stingrays and sharks, never appealed to most of the population here, barring a few coastal Indigenous groups. However, the illegal fishing of such species has become common in the country in recent years. In a recent incident on Feb. 21, authorities detained 22 fishers and confiscated around 400 kilograms (880 pounds) of stingray from the coasts of Sundarbans mangroves. Conservationists and experts working in fishery sectors blame poor law enforcement, lack of awareness among fishers, rising illegal demands and poverty of the fishing community as some of the reasons behind the exploitation of such protected marine species in Bangladesh. Data from WCS Bangladesh’s research shows the country’s waters are home to 10 families of sharks and 12 families of rays. Of them, stingrays and whiprays (Dasyatidae family), locally known as shapla pata, are the most common. More than half the shark and ray species found in Bangladesh are threatened with the risk of extinction, according to the research. A 2018 study shows that in Bangladesh stingrays are mainly harvested by artisanal fishers using gillnets, set bag nets (a low-cost, artisanal commercial method in coastal and estuarine waters) and longline hooks between depths of 5 meters (16 feet) and 40 m (130 ft) by the seashore and in coastal rivers in coastal districts like Noakhali, Bhola, Patuakhali, Khulna and Bagerhat. Fishers collect their catch of stingrays together. Image by Muhammad Mostafigur Rahman. Stingrays have become popular among the poorer&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/bangladesh-sees-rise-in-ray-shark-fishing-as-traditional-seafood-species-dwindle/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>‘We do not have time’: Interview with MEP Delara Burkhardt on the EUDR’s second delay</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/we-do-not-have-time-interview-with-mep-delara-burkhardt-on-the-eudrs-second-delay/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/we-do-not-have-time-interview-with-mep-delara-burkhardt-on-the-eudrs-second-delay/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 22:01:58 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ashoka Mukpo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandrapopescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Deforestation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environmental Law]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environmental Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EUDR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Illegal Logging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Palm Oil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rainforest]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tropical Deforestation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11214717/Still-2026-03-01-174516_2.3.1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315607</guid>

					
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Amazon Soy, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Politics, Forest Destruction, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Logging, Palm Oil, Rainforest Deforestation, and Rainforest Destruction]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In 2023, when the European Parliament passed a law meant to keep products linked to deforestation out of the EU single market, environmentalists were riding high. The landmark piece of legislation, called the European Union Deforestation-free Regulation, or EUDR, had won the support of an overwhelming majority of lawmakers as part of the EU’s Green [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In 2023, when the European Parliament passed a law meant to keep products linked to deforestation out of the EU single market, environmentalists were riding high. The landmark piece of legislation, called the European Union Deforestation-free Regulation, or EUDR, had won the support of an overwhelming majority of lawmakers as part of the EU’s Green Deal. Opposition from commodity-producing countries like Brazil and Malaysia hadn’t derailed the law, which looked like it would promptly cruise into force. And then the winds changed. The 2024 EU elections sent parliament into a sharp rightward turn, partly caused by a “greenlash” against the cost of bold environmental and climate policies. Afterward, the new parliament amended the EUDR to weaken its requirements and decided to delay its implementation for a year, with a spokesperson for the ascendant center-right voting bloc calling it a “bureaucratic monster.” Late last year, the law was delayed for a second time — raising concerns over whether it will now be implemented at all. To get a better understanding of the politics behind the repeated delays and what they say about the EU’s environmental agenda, Mongabay’s Ashoka Mukpo caught up with Germany’s Delara Burkhardt at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. One of the youngest members of parliament, Burkhardt has been the lead negotiator on the EUDR for the Socialists and Democrats Group. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity. Mongabay: I wanted to start by asking you: what is the EUDR and why is it&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/we-do-not-have-time-interview-with-mep-delara-burkhardt-on-the-eudrs-second-delay/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Rights violations prompt world’s largest sovereign wealth fund to divest from Bolloré</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/rights-violations-prompt-worlds-largest-sovereign-wealth-fund-to-divest-from-bollore/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/rights-violations-prompt-worlds-largest-sovereign-wealth-fund-to-divest-from-bollore/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 21:53:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Victoria Schneider]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11214924/IMG_99-e1773265787461-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315605</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Norway]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, Divestment, Human Rights, Oil Palm, Plantations, and Violence]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund has decided to divest from French conglomerate Bolloré, the target of long-running allegations of human rights violations, sexual violence and labor rights abuses at plantations in Africa and Southeast Asia. The decision followed a recommendation issued in 2024 by the ethics council of Norway’s $2.2 trillion Government Pension Fund [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund has decided to divest from French conglomerate Bolloré, the target of long-running allegations of human rights violations, sexual violence and labor rights abuses at plantations in Africa and Southeast Asia. The decision followed a recommendation issued in 2024 by the ethics council of Norway’s $2.2 trillion Government Pension Fund Global, which advised divesting from Bolloré-affiliated companies based on documentation of poor working conditions, gender-based violence and harassment at oil palm plantations in Cameroon. The allegations were against the Socfin Group, a Luxembourg-based holding company in which Bolloré has significant shares. The pension fund had engaged with Bolloré for two years before divesting. In its recently published 2025 responsible investment report, Norges Bank Investment Management, which manages the fund, said that “after [attempts] at engagement, the Executive Board decided in 2025 to exclude the companies based on the recommendation of the Council on Ethics from 2024.”  The Government Pension Fund Global held a 0.4% stake in Bolloré, worth about $70 million, as of June 30, 2025. Bloomberg reports that, by the end of 2025, it no longer owned any shares. “The world&#8217;s biggest pension fund is basically saying that whatever Socfin is doing on their plantations, whatever the governments try doing with their due diligence laws — it is not good enough,” Silva Lieberherr from HEKS, a Swiss NGO that works on land rights, climate justice and humanitarian disasters, told Mongabay, adding that such action highlights “how problematic the plantation economy is. Bolloré has come&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/rights-violations-prompt-worlds-largest-sovereign-wealth-fund-to-divest-from-bollore/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Growing number of Indigenous Twa forced out of DRC’s forests and into towns</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/growing-number-of-indigenous-twa-forced-out-of-drcs-forests-and-into-towns/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/growing-number-of-indigenous-twa-forced-out-of-drcs-forests-and-into-towns/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 21:13:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Jackson Muhindo SivulyamwengeJérémie Kyaswekera]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Latoya Abulu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11210132/Untitled-design-e1773263427861-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315597</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Indigenous Peoples and Conservation]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Congo, Congo Basin, and Democratic Republic Of Congo]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Economics, Forests, Indigenous Communities, Indigenous Peoples, Land Conflict, Politics, Poverty, and Protected Areas]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[NORTH KIVU, Democratic Republic of Congo — Over the last decade, towns in the north of North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have seen the increasing migration of Indigenous Batwa people, according to censuses seen by Mongabay. Traditionally living by hunting and gathering in the Congo Basin forests, many Twa people (also [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[NORTH KIVU, Democratic Republic of Congo — Over the last decade, towns in the north of North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have seen the increasing migration of Indigenous Batwa people, according to censuses seen by Mongabay. Traditionally living by hunting and gathering in the Congo Basin forests, many Twa people (also known as Batwa) have now abandoned their forest-based livelihoods to settle in towns, far from ecosystems their ancestors relied on and developed deep knowledge about. According to Batwa people who spoke to Mongabay, the reasons are various. Some have long been expelled from protected areas, while others are fleeing the growing insecurity in the region. Other groups of Batwa are seeking to escape land conflicts with neighboring Bantu communities, or to find alternative livelihoods in the face of difficulties accessing forest resources, thus severing their ties with the forest. Filipo Anania, one of the Twa community leaders we met in Mavivi, at the Ngite camp, says the outmigration from the forest began with the expulsion of his community from Virunga National Park around 1994. He says they hadn’t initially planned to live in the city and that this move to an urban environment was by no means a conscious choice, but a decision linked to a series of events that forced them to relocate several times. “At first, we were asked to leave the area around the park. We went to settle in Kubeti, near PK25 [in the middle of the forest in outside the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/growing-number-of-indigenous-twa-forced-out-of-drcs-forests-and-into-towns/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Belugas facing euthanasia at shuttered Canada theme park may find new homes in US</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/belugas-facing-euthanasia-at-shuttered-canada-theme-park-may-find-new-homes-in-us/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/belugas-facing-euthanasia-at-shuttered-canada-theme-park-may-find-new-homes-in-us/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 20:45:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rebecca Kessler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/10173303/Marinland09_2412085592-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315512</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Canada, North America, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Dolphins, Endangered Species, Environment, Fish, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Biodiversity, Marine Conservation, Marine Mammals, Oceans, Whales, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For about three decades, beluga whales and bottlenose dolphins greeted more than a million annual visitors to Marineland of Canada. In the sprawling 162-hectare (400-acre) theme park, located a stone’s throw from the world-famous Niagara Falls in Ontario, Canada, dozens of cetaceans enthralled visitors — splashing, spyhopping and leaping in their concrete-lined tanks. Marineland’s peppy [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For about three decades, beluga whales and bottlenose dolphins greeted more than a million annual visitors to Marineland of Canada. In the sprawling 162-hectare (400-acre) theme park, located a stone’s throw from the world-famous Niagara Falls in Ontario, Canada, dozens of cetaceans enthralled visitors — splashing, spyhopping and leaping in their concrete-lined tanks. Marineland’s peppy jingle, “Everyone loves Marineland,” evoked a happy place where love transcended species, and people and marine mammals shared joy. But what the cameras didn’t show was their lives after showtime. Twenty whales — 19 belugas (Delphinapterus leucas) and one killer whale (Orcinus orca) — died between 2019 and 2025. Multiple charges of animal abuse surfaced in the 2010s, though some were later withdrawn. And a 2021 animal welfare inspection found marine animals in distress due to poor water quality in their tanks. In late 2024, Ontario’s animal welfare inspectors said they had visited the park more than 200 times since 2020 for inspections and investigations. In 2018, Marineland’s owner died, and a year later, Canada passed the landmark Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act, which banned the keeping, breeding and trading of cetaceans for entertainment. By then, movies such as Blackfish and Free Willy had changed the public perception of captive dolphins and whales. The lively jingle had turned sour in many people’s minds. In 2021, Marineland became Canada’s last remaining entertainment park with cetaceans. A beluga whale at SeaWorld in San Diego, California, in 2009. The species is native to the Arctic&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/belugas-facing-euthanasia-at-shuttered-canada-theme-park-may-find-new-homes-in-us/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Rush to put AI data centers in space poses poorly understood dangers</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/rush-to-put-ai-data-centers-in-space-poses-poorly-understood-dangers/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/rush-to-put-ai-data-centers-in-space-poses-poorly-understood-dangers/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 19:26:07 +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/20/2026/03/11174825/Image_5_NHQ202602130016orig-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315584</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Artificial Intelligence, Chemicals, Climate Change, Conservation, data, electricity, Energy, Energy Efficiency, Energy Politics, Environment, Environmental Politics, Governance, Ozone Layer, Pollution, Research, satellite data, Space, Technology, and technology development]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Plans are afoot to launch large mega-constellations of AI data centers into Earth orbit. That ambition, pursued by multiple space industry leaders, coincides with a warning from scientists of potentially “catastrophic outcomes,” as the likelihood of satellite collisions in orbit increases. If all the satellites currently in low Earth orbit were suddenly unable to maneuver [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Plans are afoot to launch large mega-constellations of AI data centers into Earth orbit. That ambition, pursued by multiple space industry leaders, coincides with a warning from scientists of potentially “catastrophic outcomes,” as the likelihood of satellite collisions in orbit increases. If all the satellites currently in low Earth orbit were suddenly unable to maneuver to avoid each other — a problem that could be triggered by a massive solar storm — then a potentially catastrophic collision would likely occur in just under four days, researchers say. That’s the latest finding from the CRASH Clock, a tool developed to monitor the timeframe during which a low Earth orbit satellite collision is likely to happen during a major solar event. Such events are difficult to predict and come with limited warning; solar activity peaks roughly every 11 years. The CRASH Clock assesses the sustainability of space operations, explains Sarah Thiele, first author on the paper and a Ph.D. student at Princeton University. “The paper demonstrates how reliant we are on the continuous successful active management of satellites in orbit, and how the margin for error in these operations is decreasing over time,” she writes in an email to Mongabay. In 2018, the CRASH estimate stood at a comfortable 164 days. But that margin of safety shrank rapidly as the proliferation of satellites surged, and was shortened to 5.5 days by June 2025, while a calculation using orbital data from January 2026 cut it to 3.8 days. “This just shows how reliant&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/rush-to-put-ai-data-centers-in-space-poses-poorly-understood-dangers/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Scientists use rapid 3D scanning to create a digital library of 800 ant species</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/scientists-use-rapid-3d-scanning-to-create-a-digital-library-of-800-ant-species/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/scientists-use-rapid-3d-scanning-to-create-a-digital-library-of-800-ant-species/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 18:10:25 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11174053/Antscan-header-e1773250959963-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315582</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Ants, Evolution, Insects, Research, Science, Technology, and Wildilfe]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Scientists have designed a new technique using robotics to rapidly generate high-resolution, three-dimensional images of ants. Antscan is the world’s first digitized library of nearly 800 ant species belonging to 212 genera from around the globe. They used microtomography, a technique akin to human CT scans, to capture images of internal ant organs with X-rays. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Scientists have designed a new technique using robotics to rapidly generate high-resolution, three-dimensional images of ants. Antscan is the world’s first digitized library of nearly 800 ant species belonging to 212 genera from around the globe. They used microtomography, a technique akin to human CT scans, to capture images of internal ant organs with X-rays. Human scans take just a few minutes, but tiny ants require a higher resolution that takes much longer. “To do a scan of one insect, it may take 10-15 hours for something the size of an ant,” study author Evan Economo from the University of Maryland, told Mongabay in an interview. The researchers scanned thousands of ant specimens collected from museums, individual collections and institutions worldwide, a task that “would take years and years,” Economo said, but with the new technique, it took just a week. The scanning facility was at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany. “This study is transformative as it is the first to do such a huge volume of scans,” Jessica Ware, curator and division chair of invertebrate zoology at the American Museum of Natural History, not involved with this study, told Mongabay in an email. Researchers say a library of 3D ant images can help expand our knowledge of one of the most widespread and successful groups of organisms on Earth. Ants live in nearly every habitat, come in all shapes and sizes and live in complex hierarchical societies. Researchers say a 3D library of their bodies, both inside and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/scientists-use-rapid-3d-scanning-to-create-a-digital-library-of-800-ant-species/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Brazil Supreme Court opens path to mining in Indigenous land for first time</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/brazil-supreme-court-opens-path-to-mining-in-indigenous-land-for-first-time/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/brazil-supreme-court-opens-path-to-mining-in-indigenous-land-for-first-time/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 18:05:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Aimee Gabay]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Latoya Abulu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Amazon]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11172342/Cinta-Larga-men-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315573</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Amazon Conservation, Amazon Mining, Amazon People, Conflict, Conservation, Environment, Environmental Law, Forests, Governance, Illegal Mining, Indigenous Communities, Indigenous Cultures, Indigenous Groups, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Reserves, Indigenous Rights, Land Conflict, Land Rights, and Mining]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On Feb. 3, at the request of an association of the Indigenous Cinta Larga people in the Amazon, the Brazilian Supreme Court authorized the possibility of mining exploration and exploitation inside an Indigenous territory for the first time. While the decision does not automatically authorize mining in the Cinta Larga Indigenous territory, it has set [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On Feb. 3, at the request of an association of the Indigenous Cinta Larga people in the Amazon, the Brazilian Supreme Court authorized the possibility of mining exploration and exploitation inside an Indigenous territory for the first time. While the decision does not automatically authorize mining in the Cinta Larga Indigenous territory, it has set a deadline for Congress to regulate mining in all Indigenous lands, and has established provisional rules in case mining is approved. The absence of such mining laws has meant that many Cinta Larga people have been unable to benefit economically from mining within their Indigenous territory in southwestern Brazilian Amazon, where some of the world’s largest diamond deposits are thought to exist and are being mined illegally. Unregulated illegal mining has caused river contamination, deforestation, violent conflicts and social problems in some communities. The court decision also framed lack of regulation as an Indigenous autonomy issue. If approved, this will allow Indigenous peoples to mine in their territories, as well as any company if they receive permission — subject to social and environmental checks. In this case, a portion of the profits must be shared with Indigenous communities for matters of collective interest. “The main motivation was to seek economic autonomy and better living conditions for the community,” Gilmar Cinta Larga, a Cinta Larga leader and coordinator of the Patjamaaj Association, which is one of several associations that act as a representative body for the Cinta Larga people, told Mongabay via WhatsApp. “The Cinta Larga&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/brazil-supreme-court-opens-path-to-mining-in-indigenous-land-for-first-time/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Towering lava fountains of Hawaii&#8217;s Kilauea volcano trigger park and highway closures</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/towering-lava-fountains-of-hawaiis-kilauea-volcano-trigger-park-and-highway-closures/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/towering-lava-fountains-of-hawaiis-kilauea-volcano-trigger-park-and-highway-closures/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 17:57:25 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11175408/AP26069835799307-e1773251777864-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315587</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Hawaii, North America, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution and Volcanoes]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[HONOLULU (AP) — The latest lava fountaining episode of an erupting Hawaii volcano reached 1,000 feet (300 meters) high Tuesday, prompting temporary closures at a national park and part of an important highway because of falling glassy volcanic fragments, including ash. Kilauea, on Hawaii&#8217;s Big Island, has been dazzling residents and visitors for more than year with [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[HONOLULU (AP) — The latest lava fountaining episode of an erupting Hawaii volcano reached 1,000 feet (300 meters) high Tuesday, prompting temporary closures at a national park and part of an important highway because of falling glassy volcanic fragments, including ash. Kilauea, on Hawaii&#8217;s Big Island, has been dazzling residents and visitors for more than year with an on-and-off eruption that periodically sends fountains of lava soaring into the sky. The fountaining that began Tuesday morning marked the eruption&#8217;s 43rd episode since it began in December 2024. A livestream showed two fountains of bright-red lava and smoke. It&#8217;s unclear how long the fountaining will last. Some episodes have lasted a few days and others a few hours. Like other times, the molten rock was confined within Kilauea&#8217;s summit crater inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and hasn’t threatened homes or buildings. But the lava fountains were creating trouble for neighboring communities and a highway where the volcanic fragments and ash, known as tephra, was falling. The tephra prompted temporary closures at the national park around the summit and a partial closure of Highway 11, an important route around the island, on either side of the park. Hawaii County officials also opened a shelter at a district gymnasium for residents and tourists impacted by the road closure or falling tephra. There were no people using the shelter soon after it opened, said Tom Callis, a county spokesperson. The National Weather Service issued an ashfall warning. Volcanic tephra can irritate eyes, skin and the respiratory system, according to county&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/towering-lava-fountains-of-hawaiis-kilauea-volcano-trigger-park-and-highway-closures/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Plastic, from home and abroad, spills into Türkiye’s waters</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/plastic-from-home-and-abroad-spills-into-turkiyes-waters/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/plastic-from-home-and-abroad-spills-into-turkiyes-waters/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 16:59:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Guia BaggiUtku Kuran]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rebecca Kessler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/11152022/4377-compressed-plastic-waste-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315550</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Europe, Mediterranean Sea, Middle East, and Turkey]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Economy, Environment, Environmental Law, Fish, Industry, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Marine Crisis, Microplastics, Oceans, Plastic, Pollution, Recycling, and Waste]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[ADANA, Türkiye — Along the final stretch of the Seyhan River, in southern Türkiye, plastic bits in various colors dot the water and sediment. When the river bends, shredded plastic, degraded by the elements, forms large gray patches. Downstream, where the Seyhan flows into Mersin Bay, debris large enough to display clues to its origin [&#8230;]]]>
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							<![CDATA[ADANA, Türkiye — Along the final stretch of the Seyhan River, in southern Türkiye, plastic bits in various colors dot the water and sediment. When the river bends, shredded plastic, degraded by the elements, forms large gray patches. Downstream, where the Seyhan flows into Mersin Bay, debris large enough to display clues to its origin lies scattered across the wetland: wrinkled German-labeled packages of Thai-style chicken noodles, unopened single-use cutlery from the U.K., an empty margarine box from Spain, among many others. Between the small village of Baharlı and the sea, fishing barracks stand at the juncture of a large canal and the river. A fisher uses a wooden oar to lift the anoxic black sediments and show how plastic fragments have become ubiquitous across the riverbed. They are everywhere, his colleague Halil Balıkçıoğlu told Mongabay, along with sewage and chemical waste from big factories. “It wasn&#8217;t like this 30 years ago,” Balıkçıoğlu said. “We used to make tea with this water.” Fishing barracks at the juncture of a large canal and the Seyhan River. Image by Utku Kuran for Mongabay. In recent years, there’s been a rapid evolution in the local recycling industry largely fed by imports of foreign waste. According to U.N. Comtrade data, 677,663 metric tons of plastic scraps traveled to Türkiye in 2024 alone, 77% of it from the U.K. and the EU combined. Since China closed its doors to plastic waste imports in 2018, Türkiye has become a major destination. Most of this scrap heads&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/plastic-from-home-and-abroad-spills-into-turkiyes-waters/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>Thai data center boom sparks fears of water shortage, air pollution</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/thai-data-center-boom-sparks-fears-of-water-shortage-air-pollution/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/thai-data-center-boom-sparks-fears-of-water-shortage-air-pollution/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 03:54:01 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Gerald Flynn]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Air Pollution]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Air Quality]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Artificial Intelligence]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[data]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economic benefits]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Energy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Energy Transition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Freshwater]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Freshwater Ecosystems]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Freshwater Fish]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Governance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Infrastructure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Local communities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[planetary health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rainwater collection]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Renewable Energy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Resource Conflict]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[riverine communities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water extraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Water Pollution]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/10054228/20251216__DATA-CENTER_THAILAND_ANDY-BALL-5-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315482</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Southeast Asia, and Thailand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, data, Economy, Energy, Freshwater, Freshwater Ecosystems, Governance, Infrastructure, Natural Resources, Planetary Health, Renewable Energy, Resource Conflict, Technology, Waste, Water Crisis, Water Pollution, and Water Scarcity]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This story was produced in collaboration with the Environmental Reporting Collective (ERC). Read the ERC’s story on the impacts of data centers globally here. CHONBURI, Thailand — The sun had yet to rise at 6 a.m., but Sarayuth Sonlacksa was already crouched on his wooden jetty, hoisting up plastic crates of crabs from his pond [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[This story was produced in collaboration with the Environmental Reporting Collective (ERC). Read the ERC’s story on the impacts of data centers globally here. CHONBURI, Thailand — The sun had yet to rise at 6 a.m., but Sarayuth Sonlacksa was already crouched on his wooden jetty, hoisting up plastic crates of crabs from his pond to see if any had reached the size needed to sell to restaurants in Bangkok. He’s able to farm crabs this far inland, said Sarayuth, a former biochemist, thanks to the unique ecosystem provided by the mix of seawater, brackish water and freshwater that flows through the Bang Pakong River into the creeks near his home on the border between Chachoengsao and Chonburi provinces in eastern Thailand. But that delicate balance, he fears, may be upended by a new data center being built in Chonburi’s Khlong Tamru subdistrict, 10 kilometers (6 miles) from his crab farm in Chachoengsao province. The facility is one of at least 19 data centers reportedly planned or under construction in Chonburi and neighboring Rayong province. With the data centers springing up in an already heavily industrialized area that has struggled with water shortages and pollution, local residents say they fear the new sector could make the situation worse. “For me, data centers are better than normal factories,” Sarayuth said. “But for sure they will result in more water conflict, with more competition for resources, and more wastewater.” Sarayuth Sonlacksa inspects his crab farm, some 10 km from the construction site&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/thai-data-center-boom-sparks-fears-of-water-shortage-air-pollution/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<title>The Wild League aims to turn sports mascots into conservation champions</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/the-wild-league-aims-to-turn-sports-mascots-into-conservation-champions/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/the-wild-league-aims-to-turn-sports-mascots-into-conservation-champions/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Mar 2026 01:15:24 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Liz Kimbrough]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Lizkimbrough]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Biodiversity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Conservation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[green]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Happy-upbeat Environmental]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wildlife]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wildlife Conservation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/09120840/Indochinese-tiger_RAB-768x512-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315542</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global, India, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Green, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Mammals, Wildlife, and Wildlife Conservation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Lions, tigers and bears aren&#8217;t just among the world&#8217;s most iconic wildlife. They&#8217;re also among the most popular mascots in professional sports. A new study published in BioScience finds that across 50 countries and 10 team sports, 727 professional organizations use wild animals in their names, logos or fan nicknames. The most frequently represented species [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Lions, tigers and bears aren&#8217;t just among the world&#8217;s most iconic wildlife. They&#8217;re also among the most popular mascots in professional sports. A new study published in BioScience finds that across 50 countries and 10 team sports, 727 professional organizations use wild animals in their names, logos or fan nicknames. The most frequently represented species — lions, tigers, grey wolves, leopards and brown bears — are all  threatened in the wild. The research, led by Ugo Arbieu, a postdoctoral researcher at Paris-Saclay University in France, identified 161 distinct animal taxa represented across those teams, spanning mammals, birds, insects, sharks and more. Threatened species and those with declining populations were selected as mascots significantly more than other animals or symbols. Mascots for rival teams Auburn University (tiger) and University of Alabama (elephant). Photo by Adam Brasher&#8217;s via Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0). With these clubs social media followers totaling more than a billion combined, the authors argue that there&#8217;s an enormous untapped opportunity to channel the emotional bond between fans and mascots into real conservation action. &#8220;Animal imagery is everywhere,&#8221; Arbieu told Mongabay. &#8220;Across the five continents and across all sports, and both for men and women teams.&#8221; Beyond the big cats and wolves, he said, there is a long tail of unique species represented. &#8220;There is so much potential to communicate, educate about biodiversity and what it is, but also to engage people in a different way of looking at nature.&#8221; The idea came to Arbieu while playing the video game&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/the-wild-league-aims-to-turn-sports-mascots-into-conservation-champions/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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