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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
		<atom:link href="https://news.mongabay.com/feed/?topic=politics&#038;type=post" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/politics/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:51:33 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<title>News on Politics</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/politics/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Plans of Peru’s new administration spur concern among environmentalists</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/plans-of-perus-new-administration-spur-concern-among-environmentalists/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/plans-of-perus-new-administration-spur-concern-among-environmentalists/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Aug 2026 09:38:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Aimee Gabay]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandra Popescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/03/17050949/peru_221217-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=327225</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Latin America, Peru, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, Development, Energy, Energy Security, Energy Transition, Environmental Policy, Fossil Fuels, Governance, Illegal Mining, Indigenous Peoples, Infrastructure, Natural Resources, Organized Crime, Politics, Pollution, Renewable Energy, and Violence]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Keiko Sofía Fujimori Higuchi from the Popular Force Party was sworn in as the new president of Peru on July 28. Fujimori, who has pledged to tackle insecurity using greater force and militarization, narrowly defeated her left-wing opponent Roberto Sánchez by fewer than 50,000 votes on June 7. The new president has promised to expand [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Keiko Sofía Fujimori Higuchi from the Popular Force Party was sworn in as the new president of Peru on July 28. Fujimori, who has pledged to tackle insecurity using greater force and militarization, narrowly defeated her left-wing opponent Roberto Sánchez by fewer than 50,000 votes on June 7. The new president has promised to expand fossil fuel production and mining across the country, raising concerns among environmentalists and Indigenous leaders about the future of the Peruvian Amazon, as well as its international commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) — a national climate action plan under the Paris Agreement. The country submitted its first NDC in 2016, which was then updated in 2020 and 2025. In its plan, it has committed to diversify renewable energy sources, strengthen sustainable transportation, reduce deforestation, protect natural areas and support Indigenous and local communities, among other mitigation priorities. Experts, environmentalists and Indigenous leaders expressed concerns about the government’s plans, particularly Fujimori’s promise to expand the exploration and exploitation of energy resources, such as the promotion of new lots in the Amazon and the northern coast. Peru&#8217;s President Keiko Fujimori, center, poses for a group photo with members of her cabinet at the government palace in Lima, Peru, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Guadalupe Pardo) “The current government is a bit pragmatic in its decisions because they are really driven by wanting development without considering the consequences for the Amazonian peoples,” Matsés Indigenous leader Leo Chuma Teca Beso told Mongabay&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/plans-of-perus-new-administration-spur-concern-among-environmentalists/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/plans-of-perus-new-administration-spur-concern-among-environmentalists/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-327225</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Antarctic krill fishery closes months early amid increasing fishing pressure</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/antarctic-krill-fishery-closes-months-early-amid-increasing-fishing-pressure/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/antarctic-krill-fishery-closes-months-early-amid-increasing-fishing-pressure/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Aug 2026 14:37:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Francesco De Augustinis]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Autumn Spanne]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/24133947/ShawnHeinrichs-20230209-142451-_DSC43001-gentoo-penguin-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=327086</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Antarctica and Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cetaceans, Conservation, Dolphins, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Law, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Overfishing, Penguins, Seabirds, and Whales]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On Aug. 12, for the second year in a row, the krill fishery in the Southern Ocean closed early after reaching its annual catch limit of 620,000 metric tons. This precautionary quota is intended to prevent overfishing from affecting populations of this shrimp-like crustacean, which forms the base of the region’s food chain. The fishery’s [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On Aug. 12, for the second year in a row, the krill fishery in the Southern Ocean closed early after reaching its annual catch limit of 620,000 metric tons. This precautionary quota is intended to prevent overfishing from affecting populations of this shrimp-like crustacean, which forms the base of the region’s food chain. The fishery’s early closure was confirmed by scientists attending the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) Open Science Conference, held in Oslo, Norway, from Aug. 10 to 14, 2026. “The fishery has closed early (before the end of November) because it has already caught 620,000t of krill,” Simeon Hill, marine and fisheries ecologist at the British Antarctic Survey, told Mongabay in an email. Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) can grow up to 6 centimeters (2.4 inches) long and live predominantly in schools. The species forms the basis of the diets of a large proportion of wildlife populations in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean, including seals, whales, penguins, seabirds, fish and squid. In the last two decades, krill has attracted growing commercial interest owing to its use in aquaculture feed, pet food and omega-3 supplements for human consumption. The early closure of the fishery is linked to the growth of the fishing fleets targeting krill, as well as to the concentration of fishing activities in areas where krill is most abundant. These areas also coincide with the main feeding grounds of wildlife populations, raising concerns about the potential negative impact of this industry on the ecosystem. Antarctic krill (Euphausia&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/antarctic-krill-fishery-closes-months-early-amid-increasing-fishing-pressure/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/antarctic-krill-fishery-closes-months-early-amid-increasing-fishing-pressure/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-327086</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Suriname moves to evict Mennonites and illegal Amazon settlers</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/suriname-moves-to-evict-mennonites-and-illegal-amazon-settlers/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/suriname-moves-to-evict-mennonites-and-illegal-amazon-settlers/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Aug 2026 23:52:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Maxwell Radwin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandre de Santi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/03214304/Atjoni_en_Pokigron_Surinamerivier-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325650</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Global, South America, and Suriname]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[agribusiness, Agriculture, Business, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Farming, Food, Forest Carbon, Forest Destruction, Forestry, Forests, Governance, Industrial Agriculture, Land Conflict, Law, Logging, Politics, Primary Forests, Rainforest Destruction, Rainforests, Sustainable Forest Management, Threats To Rainforests, Tropical Deforestation, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The government in Suriname has started toughening up on land developers who illegally clear the Amazon Rainforest for agriculture and cattle ranching, according to Suriname President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons, speaking at an Aug. 4 press briefing. In recent months, officials have started investigating illegal settlements and revising zoning for hundreds of thousands of hectares of mostly [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The government in Suriname has started toughening up on land developers who illegally clear the Amazon Rainforest for agriculture and cattle ranching, according to Suriname President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons, speaking at an Aug. 4 press briefing. In recent months, officials have started investigating illegal settlements and revising zoning for hundreds of thousands of hectares of mostly primary forest, previously set aside for agribusiness. Many areas under development are connected to Mennonites, a conservative Christian group who migrated to the country from other parts of the region, with plans to establish religious farming communities. “The people who are active there in the interior and have cleared land to live there, are there illegally,” Geerlings-Simons said during the briefing. “And that means that we’re going to take measures against them.” In 2023, Mongabay revealed that private agribusiness investors were working with the government to develop a Mennonite pilot program, in which around 1,000 families would be relocated from Bolivia — and possibly other parts of the region — onto as much as 30,000 hectares (about 74,000 acres) of land in interior departments of Suriname. In 2023 and 2024, Mongabay also published stories detailing the government’s plan to transfer around 467,000 hectares (1,153,982 acres) of mostly primary rainforest from the Ministry of Land Policy and Forest Management to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (LVV) for future agribusiness development projects. Geerlings-Simons during the press briefing Aug 4. Image courtesy of Key tv 8.2 Backlash to the plans focused on Suriname’s 93% forest cover&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/suriname-moves-to-evict-mennonites-and-illegal-amazon-settlers/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/suriname-moves-to-evict-mennonites-and-illegal-amazon-settlers/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325650</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Jute loses ground to plastic despite Bangladesh’s packaging law</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/jute-loses-ground-to-plastic-despite-bangladeshs-packaging-law/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/jute-loses-ground-to-plastic-despite-bangladeshs-packaging-law/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Aug 2026 08:23:29 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kamran Reza Chowdhury]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abu Siddique]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/06081201/onions-in-jute-sacks-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325445</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Bangladesh, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, Consumption, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Governance, Industry, Law, Plastic, Regulations, and Sustainability]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Bangladesh is the world’s second largest producer of the environmentally friendly fiber jute. However, the country has, for decades, grappled with the move to combat the escalating use of the cheaper and more popular, but harmful, plastic-based packaging and synthetic fibers. As a safeguard measure, the government, 16 years ago, enacted a law for the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Bangladesh is the world’s second largest producer of the environmentally friendly fiber jute. However, the country has, for decades, grappled with the move to combat the escalating use of the cheaper and more popular, but harmful, plastic-based packaging and synthetic fibers. As a safeguard measure, the government, 16 years ago, enacted a law for the mandatory use of jute sacks and bags to contain and carry 19 essential commodities, including rice, wheat and fertilizer. The move has been largely unsuccessful, though, with plastic and synthetic fiber invasion as packaging ingredients continuing unabated. Synthetic and poly bags have caused environmental problems such as waste disposal. Nazmul Haque, the government-appointed jute officer in the northern Sherpur district, told Mongabay that a small semi-automatic rice mill — Sakhina Rice Mill — has exclusively been using jute sacks. Sakhina Rice Mill in Sherpur stands out from the crowd by exclusively using jute bags and sacks, debunking the narratives of fellow rice millers that jute sacks and bags reduce their profit margin. “A 50-kilogram [110-pound] capacity synthetic/plastic bag costs 20 takas [16 cents], while a jute sack costs 80 takas [65 cents]. A synthetic/poly bag cannot be reused; it is for one-time use. On the other hand, we can use the same jute sack at least three times for carrying paddy or rice and then mend it, if torn, and use it three more times for carrying rice bran,” Md. Hamez Uddin, a proprietor of Sakhina Rice Mill, told Mongabay. “Jute sacks are economically better,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/jute-loses-ground-to-plastic-despite-bangladeshs-packaging-law/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/jute-loses-ground-to-plastic-despite-bangladeshs-packaging-law/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325445</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Environmental activists in Kenya concerned over billionaire&#8217;s planned oil refinery</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/environmental-activists-in-kenya-concerned-over-billionaires-planned-oil-refinery/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/environmental-activists-in-kenya-concerned-over-billionaires-planned-oil-refinery/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Aug 2026 11:06:34 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Amina Chombo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/05101433/Aliko-Dangote-768x441.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325399</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Kenya]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, Development, Economics, Energy, Environment, Environmental Policy, Fossil Fuels, Governance, Natural Resources, Oil, Oil Drilling, and Politics]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Billionaire Aliko Dangote’s choice of Lamu, Kenya, for his oil refinery project, estimated to cost $17 billion, has elicited mixed reactions, with environmental activists warning of its potential risks to the local ecosystem and the community’s livelihoods, while the government is playing up its economic benefits. The Nigerian business tycoon’s decision to locate the refinery [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Billionaire Aliko Dangote’s choice of Lamu, Kenya, for his oil refinery project, estimated to cost $17 billion, has elicited mixed reactions, with environmental activists warning of its potential risks to the local ecosystem and the community’s livelihoods, while the government is playing up its economic benefits. The Nigerian business tycoon’s decision to locate the refinery in Lamu, follows months of speculation about whether the project will go ahead in Kenya, Uganda or Tanzania. Devakumar Edwin, Dangote Industries Limited’s vice president, who is in charge of the oil and gas division, told Reuters that the project, with a capacity to refine at least 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, would be completed within three years. The crude oil is expected to come from within the East Africa region. If completed, the Lamu project would work like a similar one owned by Dangote Industries in Lagos, Nigeria, which can refine at least 650,000 barrels of crude oil in a day. It is currently the biggest oil refinery in Africa. Speaking earlier in July, Kenyan President William Ruto said Kenya had struck a deal with Dangote to have the project in Lamu. He said the project would benefit East and Central Africa, as well as create at least 60,000 jobs for Kenyans during its construction and then operation. Kenyan President William Ruto speaking at State House in Nairobi on July 8, 2026. Image courtesy of Public Service Commission. Concerns about environmental impact Meanwhile, environmental activists have called for transparency and sufficient involvement&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/environmental-activists-in-kenya-concerned-over-billionaires-planned-oil-refinery/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/environmental-activists-in-kenya-concerned-over-billionaires-planned-oil-refinery/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325399</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Mining threat persists in Raja Ampat, Indonesia’s ‘Amazon of the Seas’</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/mining-threat-persists-in-raja-ampat-indonesias-amazon-of-the-seas/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/mining-threat-persists-in-raja-ampat-indonesias-amazon-of-the-seas/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Aug 2026 14:31:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Laura Oliver]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/04142911/GP0SU7TV6-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325289</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Papua, Southeast Asia, and West Papua]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Birds, Business, Conservation, Corporate Environmental Transgressors, Corporations, Ecosystems, Energy Transition, Environmental Policy, Marine, Marine Conservation, Marine Protected Areas, Mining, Natural Resources, Oceans, Pollution, Protected Areas, Sedimentation, Water Pollution, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Raja Ampat, one of the world&#8217;s most biodiverse marine regions, remains under pressure from Indonesia&#8217;s expanding nickel industry as three companies continue to seek permission to develop nickel projects in the archipelago, according to a new Greenpeace report. Located in the heart of the Coral Triangle, in Indonesia’s easternmost Papua region, Raja Ampat [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Raja Ampat, one of the world&#8217;s most biodiverse marine regions, remains under pressure from Indonesia&#8217;s expanding nickel industry as three companies continue to seek permission to develop nickel projects in the archipelago, according to a new Greenpeace report. Located in the heart of the Coral Triangle, in Indonesia’s easternmost Papua region, Raja Ampat hosts some of the planet&#8217;s richest marine biodiversity, including around 75% of the world&#8217;s known coral species, earning it the nickname &#8220;the Amazon of the Seas.&#8221; Public concern over nickel mining in Raja Ampat erupted in 2025 after images showing forest clearing and environmental damage were shared widely on social media. A subsequent backlash prompted the Indonesian government to suspend mining operations and later revoke four of the region&#8217;s five nickel mining permits, leaving only the state-owned PT Gag Nikel mining company in operation in the region. But Raja Ampat remains vulnerable to future mining, according to Greenpeace. Its latest report identifies three companies PT Raja Ampat Nikel Abadi (RANA), PT Waegeo Mineral Mining (WMM), and PT Eka Kurnia Baru (EKB) — pursuing projects on Waigeo Island, the archipelago&#8217;s largest island and home to endemic wildlife including Wilson&#8217;s bird-of-paradise (Cicinnurus respublica), the Waigeo brushturkey (Aepypodius bruijnii), and the Waigeo spotted cuscus (Spilocuscus papuensis). In June 2025, Mongabay reported on WMM and EKB, as both companies filed lawsuits contesting the government’s refusal to officially recognize permits they have held for mining on Waigeo Island since 2023. RANA is the latest company pursuing nickel mining in the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/mining-threat-persists-in-raja-ampat-indonesias-amazon-of-the-seas/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/mining-threat-persists-in-raja-ampat-indonesias-amazon-of-the-seas/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325289</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>David Page wrote about the mountains and worked to protect them</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/david-page-wrote-about-the-mountains-and-worked-to-protect-them/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/david-page-wrote-about-the-mountains-and-worked-to-protect-them/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Aug 2026 15:59:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/01155019/david-page-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325133</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[North America and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environmental Policy, Mountains, and Obituary]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A backcountry ski run can depend on decisions made years before the snow falls. Forest plans determine where motorized vehicles may travel. Congressional appropriations affect whether trails are maintained and land-management agencies can enforce their rules. Public meetings give skiers, snowmobilers, conservationists, and local residents a chance to argue over how mountains should be used. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A backcountry ski run can depend on decisions made years before the snow falls. Forest plans determine where motorized vehicles may travel. Congressional appropriations affect whether trails are maintained and land-management agencies can enforce their rules. Public meetings give skiers, snowmobilers, conservationists, and local residents a chance to argue over how mountains should be used. David Page knew this work in detail. He also knew how to describe what it felt like to move through those mountains. Page, the executive director of Winter Wildlands Alliance, died on July 7th in a multi-vehicle crash on Teton Pass in Wyoming. He was 57. Rio, the family dog who often accompanied him outdoors, died in the accident as well. He had come to conservation advocacy through writing. Raised in Denver, he studied history and Spanish literature at Dartmouth, comparative literature at Berkeley, and creative writing at the University of California, Irvine. He wrote for the New York Times, Men’s Journal, Skiing, and other publications, and became a senior correspondent for POWDER. His guide to Yosemite and the southern Sierra Nevada went through three editions. His articles were closely reported and attentive to the people in them. “The Human Factor,” an examination of the decisions that lead experienced skiers into avalanche danger, was a finalist for a National Magazine Award in 2015. It was later used in avalanche courses. Another article described the immigrant workers whose labor sustains many ski towns. He also wrote about major descents, disappearing whitebark pines, solitary skiers, remote slopes,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/david-page-wrote-about-the-mountains-and-worked-to-protect-them/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/david-page-wrote-about-the-mountains-and-worked-to-protect-them/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325133</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Land records reveal how Mennonites are reshaping Belize’s forests</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/land-records-reveal-how-mennonites-are-reshaping-belizes-forests/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/land-records-reveal-how-mennonites-are-reshaping-belizes-forests/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Jul 2026 18:45:53 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Maxwell Radwin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Andy Lehren]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/31152733/1-FEATURE--768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=324951</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Belize and Central America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agrochemicals, Cattle, Conservation, Crops, Culture, Encroachment, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Farming, Food, Forest Fragmentation, Forests, Governance, Industrial Agriculture, Land Rights, Livestock, Monocultures, Plantations, Politics, Primary Forests, Protected Areas, Rainforests, Ranching, Regulations, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SPANISH LOOKOUT, Belize — When the Mennonite community here purchased a property four years ago in the middle of the Maya Forest Corridor, a government-recognized stretch of land designed to connect forests in the region, conservation groups were concerned. Community members began clearing land before completing an environmental impact assessment, resulting in fires and pollution, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SPANISH LOOKOUT, Belize — When the Mennonite community here purchased a property four years ago in the middle of the Maya Forest Corridor, a government-recognized stretch of land designed to connect forests in the region, conservation groups were concerned. Community members began clearing land before completing an environmental impact assessment, resulting in fires and pollution, according to one report. In addition, Mennonites beat a conservation coalition that had also wanted to purchase the land for the corridor. The battle for that piece of real estate is just one example of how Mennonites conduct business in Belize, and how those moves have led to extensive deforestation. The small Central American country, flanked by Mexico, Guatemala and the Caribbean Sea, is about the size of the U.S. state of New Jersey, but its dense jungle is now much smaller than it once was. The nation lost around 20% of its forest cover between 2001 and 2025 — more than 350,000 hectares (865,000 acres), similar to the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Much of the deforestation in Belize has been tied to Mennonites, the conservative and largely insular Christian denomination that began migrating to Belize more than six decades ago, cutting down the rainforest to establish new colonies. While reports documenting Mennonites and deforestation are common, far less understood is the corporate machinery they’ve put in place for this expansion. Mongabay conducted extensive interviews and reviewed dozens of land records to better understand the way Mennonites became one of the most prolific land&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/land-records-reveal-how-mennonites-are-reshaping-belizes-forests/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-324951</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Coral reef experts press on, with climate looming over international conference</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/coral-reef-experts-press-on-with-climate-looming-over-international-conference/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/coral-reef-experts-press-on-with-climate-looming-over-international-conference/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Jul 2026 18:34:42 +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/20/2026/07/31142917/8-conference-attendee-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325038</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and New Zealand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Biodiversity, Climate, Climate Change, Conservation, Coral Bleaching, Coral Reefs, Environment, Environmental Policy, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Impact Of Climate Change, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Oceans, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[AUCKLAND — Lest anyone think scientific conferences must be staid affairs, the International Coral Reefs Symposium closed with inspiration from none other than U.S. rap metal band Rage Against the Machine, known for revolutionary lyrics in the 1990s: “It has to start somewhere. It has to start sometime. What better place than here? What better [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[AUCKLAND — Lest anyone think scientific conferences must be staid affairs, the International Coral Reefs Symposium closed with inspiration from none other than U.S. rap metal band Rage Against the Machine, known for revolutionary lyrics in the 1990s: “It has to start somewhere. It has to start sometime. What better place than here? What better time than now? All hell can&#8217;t stop us now!” Christian Voolstra, a professor at the University of Konstanz in Germany and president of the International Coral Reef Society (ICRS), which organizes the conference, choked up as he read those lyrics at the closing ceremony, as did this reporter. Reflections on how conference participants could address the many threats to coral reefs, including seas that are becoming hotter and more acidic due to climate change, had punctuated the program of more narrowly focused presentations on research and conservation practice during the conference, held July 19-24 in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand. This 16th iteration of the conference, which takes place every four years, drew more than 2,100 participants from more than 90 countries, including coral reef scientists, conservationists, policymakers and community leaders. (Previous ICRS conferences held in locations nearer to Global North research hubs drew even more people.) Recurring themes in conference discussions included how much to focus on climate mitigation, how to characterize and communicate the current condition of coral reefs, and how to empower Indigenous communities and integrate their knowledge systems. A reef off Komodo Island in Indonesia. Image courtesy of Greg Asner/divephoto.org. Prioritizing climate?&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/coral-reef-experts-press-on-with-climate-looming-over-international-conference/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325038</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indigenous Parakanã fear election U-turn may spark new invasions in Brazil</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indigenous-parakana-fear-election-u-turn-may-spark-new-invasions-in-brazil/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indigenous-parakana-fear-election-u-turn-may-spark-new-invasions-in-brazil/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jul 2026 19:08:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Fernanda Wenzel]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandre de Santi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/28112147/1.-Bruno-Peres_Agencia-Brasil_2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=324673</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conflict, Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Governance, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Reserves, Indigenous Rights, Land Conflict, Land Rights, Law, and Politics]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Expelled loggers hope for a political shift to reclaim Indigenous land like bacteria adapting to an antibiotic.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For years, the Parakanã Indigenous people were restricted to less than a third of their territory, isolated in the middle of a vast pasture area occupied by around 100,000 heads of cattle. Illegal gold mining, illegal logging and land grabbing also proliferated inside their land, the Apyterewa Indigenous land, located in Brazil’s River Xingu basin, in Pará state. ​“It is historically the most deforested Indigenous territory in Brazil, and perhaps in the world,” said Wallace Lopes, an environmental analyst in Brazil&#8217;s federal environmental agency, IBAMA. ​The peak of deforestation happened amid the administration of far-right president Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022), who dismantled the country&#8217;s environmental enforcement. In 2022, an area nearly the size of Paris (102.23 kilometers squared or 25,261 acres) was cleared inside the Apyterewa land, according to Brazil&#8217;s space agency, INPE. ​“It was a massive deforestation,” Wenatoa Parakanã, the president of the Tato’á Association, which represents the Parakanã, told Mongabay. “All we can see now is pasture.” The invaders were estimated at 3,000 individuals, more than four times the Indigenous population (730). After two failed attempts by previous administrations to remove the intruders in 2013 and 2017, they felt confident enough to build a small village inside the Indigenous land, with two gas stations, bars, churches and even a school. The task force in Apyterewa Indigenous land to remove invaders counted on the support of Brazil’s Federal Police, Army and the National Force. Image by the Indigenous People Ministry (MPI). Things started to change in 2023, when leftist President&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indigenous-parakana-fear-election-u-turn-may-spark-new-invasions-in-brazil/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-324673</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>An Indigenous take on Colombia’s new gov’t: Interview with a Putumayo Indigenous leader</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/an-indigenous-take-on-colombias-new-govt-interview-with-a-putumayo-indigenous-leader/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/an-indigenous-take-on-colombias-new-govt-interview-with-a-putumayo-indigenous-leader/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>22 Jul 2026 14:12:51 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Aimee Gabay]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Latoya Abulu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/22132247/Santa-Sofia-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=324278</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Colombia, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Controversial, Culture, Governance, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Interviews, Law, and Politics]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In just a few weeks, Colombia will have a new leader. Right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella won Colombia’s runoff election on June 11 with 49.6% of the vote, securing a razor-thin victory over the left-wing candidate Ivan Cepeda, who received 48.7%. De la Espriella has promised to expand fossil fuel production and mining in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In just a few weeks, Colombia will have a new leader. Right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella won Colombia’s runoff election on June 11 with 49.6% of the vote, securing a razor-thin victory over the left-wing candidate Ivan Cepeda, who received 48.7%. De la Espriella has promised to expand fossil fuel production and mining in the country, leaving the future of conservation in the Colombian Amazon, the fossil fuel phaseout commitments made by current President Gustavo Petro’s administration and the rights of Indigenous peoples and other traditional communities open to question. Ahead of de la Espriella’s inauguration on Aug. 7, Mongabay interviewed Marino Peña, an Indigenous Inga leader and president of the Indigenous Zonal Organization of Putumayo (OZIP), to get his take on how the incoming president’s policies might impact communities in the department of Putumayo, in southwestern Colombia. De la Espriella has also promised to reduce the state budget to a minimum and tackle violence using greater force and militarization. For communities in Putumayo, the implications of these promises hold weight. Colombia’s Putumayo region, which has historically been a drug production and trafficking hotspot, is “one of the deadliest regions in Colombia for social leaders.” Illegal mining by armed groups has also grown exponentially in recent years, fueling conflicts, violence, mercury contamination and accelerated deforestation. Due to their critical role as vocal defenders of their territories and of environmental and Indigenous rights, social leaders have frequently found themselves in the crossfire between armed groups and the state. In addition,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/an-indigenous-take-on-colombias-new-govt-interview-with-a-putumayo-indigenous-leader/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-324278</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Research offers nature-positive path to end and reverse biodiversity loss</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/research-offers-nature-positive-path-to-end-and-reverse-biodiversity-loss/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/research-offers-nature-positive-path-to-end-and-reverse-biodiversity-loss/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Jul 2026 15:05:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[John Cannon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[John Cannon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/13144253/25545049372_de54bc4a94_o-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323143</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Governance, Habitat Loss, Indigenous Peoples, Research, and Traditional Knowledge]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[From its nests high in the canopy of the Amazon, the harpy eagle depends on &#8212; and is critical to &#8212; the health of the forest around it. The species controls the numbers of animals such as sloths and monkeys that, unchecked, could consume too many leaves and turn the canopy into lace. But the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[From its nests high in the canopy of the Amazon, the harpy eagle depends on &#8212; and is critical to &#8212; the health of the forest around it. The species controls the numbers of animals such as sloths and monkeys that, unchecked, could consume too many leaves and turn the canopy into lace. But the massive loss of trees in the world’s largest rainforest has hampered the survival of the harpy eagle (Harpia harpyja). Too few tall trees in the vicinity of their nests means fledgling chicks don’t have enough safe places to land as they learn to fly. Habitat loss, along with hunting, has led to the bird’s listing as vulnerable by the IUCN. Removing it entirely could accelerate the demise of the entire ecosystem, conservationist Harvey Locke told Mongabay in an interview, which could have knock-on effects such as diminished rainfall on farmland in the region. “The harpy eagle is not just an amazingly cool bird,” said Locke, the co-founder of the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative based in Canada. “It&#8217;s not a luxury in that biome. It&#8217;s vital to it.” Just as other keystone species, such as elephants, beavers and bison, play similar roles in their respective environments, harpy eagles help hold together even heavily impacted ecosystems, Locke said. “If we pull these pieces out, it unravels,” he added. Research shows keystone species, such as the harpy eagle (Harpia harpyja) pictured here with a tufted capuchin (Cebus apella), play essential roles in maintaining the health of the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/research-offers-nature-positive-path-to-end-and-reverse-biodiversity-loss/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323143</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Why Africa should link nutritional data with fisheries management (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-africa-should-link-nutritional-data-with-fisheries-management-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-africa-should-link-nutritional-data-with-fisheries-management-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Jul 2026 14:11:12 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Essam Yassin Mohammed]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/14134651/54324375381_0dfb827375_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323387</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and East Timor]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Commentary, Environment, Environmental Policy, Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Food, Governance, Marine, Marine Conservation, Natural Resources, Nutrition, Oceans, and Saltwater Fish]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Off the coast of Timor-Leste, fishers are building something many countries still lack: A clearer picture of how small-scale fishing nourishes people. For six years, fishers have logged their trips and recorded the gear used, the habitats visited and the catch brought home in a digital system built with the government of Timor-Leste. More than [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Off the coast of Timor-Leste, fishers are building something many countries still lack: A clearer picture of how small-scale fishing nourishes people. For six years, fishers have logged their trips and recorded the gear used, the habitats visited and the catch brought home in a digital system built with the government of Timor-Leste. More than 77,000 trips later, that data has produced a study that urges governments to change how they think about fisheries management. The value of a catch is not just measured in kilos; where people fish and the gear they use can shape the nutrients that end up in local diets. Small pelagic fish can be rich in iron, calcium, zinc and omega-3s, while marine invertebrates gathered by hand, often by women and usually overlooked in official statistics, can also be nutritionally important. That matters because fisheries are too often managed around what is landed and sold, not who is nourished. A session during the Our Ocean conference in Mombasa, Kenya. Image by Malavika Vyawahare/Mongabay. After the first Our Ocean Conference held on African soil, this evidence feels especially timely. That event in Mombasa in June put Africa’s ocean future in the global spotlight, but the real test now is whether new commitments help countries build the systems needed to manage aquatic foods for people and not just for production, trade and conservation. Now the question is what those commitments will deliver. For decades, fisheries management has been built around one question: How many tons were landed?&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-africa-should-link-nutritional-data-with-fisheries-management-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323387</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Official tied to commercial breeding to represent US at global wildlife trade meeting</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/official-tied-to-commercial-breeding-to-represent-us-at-global-wildlife-trade-meeting/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/official-tied-to-commercial-breeding-to-represent-us-at-global-wildlife-trade-meeting/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Jul 2026 20:50:58 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/11193438/RRL-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323166</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[North America and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Lemurs, Politics, Reptiles, Wildlife, and Wildlife Trade]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Jenifer Chatfield, a high-ranking U.S. official whose family breeds wild animals for profit, will reportedly lead the U.S. delegation attending next week’s meeting of CITES, the global wildlife treaty, in Geneva, Switzerland, multiple sources told Mongabay. Chatfield, who serves as the Department of the Interior’s deputy assistant secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, is [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Jenifer Chatfield, a high-ranking U.S. official whose family breeds wild animals for profit, will reportedly lead the U.S. delegation attending next week’s meeting of CITES, the global wildlife treaty, in Geneva, Switzerland, multiple sources told Mongabay. Chatfield, who serves as the Department of the Interior’s deputy assistant secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, is expected to attend the 34th meeting of the CITES Animals Committee, scheduled July 13-17. Sources, who wished to remain anonymous because of the fraught political climate in the U.S., informed Mongabay that Chatfield will participate as one of the six-member delegation attending the Animals Committee and Plants Committee meeting. These two scientific advisory bodies evaluate biological and taxonomic information about various animal and plant species to help CITES regulate international trade in endangered species. The committees meet twice between the every-three-year Conference of the Parties, which gathers all CITES signatories to vote on proposals. Chatfield, a board-certified veterinarian, appointed to her position in May 2025 by the second administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, will be leading a delegation of five scientists and another staff member from the U.S. Department of State, Mongabay has learned. This would be the first time such a delegation would be headed by a political appointee rather than a biologist well-versed in the sciences of conservation and taxonomy. “Usually, it is the chief of the U.S. CITES Scientific Authority who is the head of delegation,” said Susan Lieberman, vice president of international policy at the U.S.-based NGO Wildlife Conservation Society.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/official-tied-to-commercial-breeding-to-represent-us-at-global-wildlife-trade-meeting/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323166</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Scientists use AI to produce first high-resolution map of global seagrass extent</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/scientists-use-ai-to-produce-first-high-resolution-map-of-global-seagrass-extent/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/scientists-use-ai-to-produce-first-high-resolution-map-of-global-seagrass-extent/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Jul 2026 12:51:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhishyant Kidangoor]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhishyantkidangoor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/10103637/IMG_2026-07-10-031214-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323038</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Australia, Bahamas, Caribbean, Cuba, Global, Indonesia, North America, Oceania, Southeast Asia, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Artificial Intelligence, Biodiversity, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, data, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Policy, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Mapping, Marine, Marine Conservation, Marine Protected Areas, Mitigation, Oceans, Plants, Politics, Protected Areas, Remote Sensing, Research, Satellite Imagery, Science, Seagrass, Software, Technology, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Almost 70% of the global extent of seagrass meadows is found off the coasts of just five countries. However, only 21% of this fall within marine protected areas. These are some of the key findings from the first high-resolution map of seagrasses around the world. Scientists at Arizona State University in the U.S. used satellite [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Almost 70% of the global extent of seagrass meadows is found off the coasts of just five countries. However, only 21% of this fall within marine protected areas. These are some of the key findings from the first high-resolution map of seagrasses around the world. Scientists at Arizona State University in the U.S. used satellite imagery and artificial intelligence to map seagrass cover over two periods, 2019-2020 and 2023-2024. According to a study, recently published in the journal Nature, the team identified “148,506 km2 of seagrass globally,” or about 57,340 square miles, a combined area larger than England, with the majority lying in subtidal areas. “We wanted to map seagrass in a very accurate manner,” Jiwei Li, an assistant professor at ASU’s School of Ocean Futures, who led the study, told Mongabay in a video interview. “And tell people where the seagrass is and where there is potential to protect it.” Scientists mapped seagrass ecosystems using satellite data and AI technology. Pictured above is a satellite image from a coast off of Richmond, Canada, along with the seagrass ecosystems highlighted in green to the right. Image courtesy of Jiwei Li, Arizona State University. Seagrasses are the only flowering plant species in the ocean, and form vast meadows in shallow waters. Apart from being habitats for many marine species, these meadows are also crucial carbon sinks that can absorb CO2 35 times faster than terrestrial forests. They also protect coastlines and filter pollutants in the water. However, seagrass ecosystems face threats from&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/scientists-use-ai-to-produce-first-high-resolution-map-of-global-seagrass-extent/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323038</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>War reveals the isolation of Iran’s scientists</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/war-reveals-the-isolation-of-irans-scientists/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/war-reveals-the-isolation-of-irans-scientists/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jul 2026 18:39:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[John Cannon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/03153524/greater-flamingo-Phoenicopterus-roseus-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322511</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Iran, and Middle East]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conflict, Conservation, Culture, Environment, Finance, Funding, NGOs, Politics, Research, Science, and War]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The smiles on the faces of Iman Ebrahimi and his colleagues in the photograph are revealing: After more than a month of war in Iran, a tenuous ceasefire in mid-April offered a brief window for the team to travel to one of Ebrahimi’s favorite field sites. Maharloo Lake is the “hottest spot for flamingo breeding [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The smiles on the faces of Iman Ebrahimi and his colleagues in the photograph are revealing: After more than a month of war in Iran, a tenuous ceasefire in mid-April offered a brief window for the team to travel to one of Ebrahimi’s favorite field sites. Maharloo Lake is the “hottest spot for flamingo breeding in Iran,” he said excitedly on a video call during a rare period of stable internet early in the war. They saw “at least 5,000” greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) that day, he said, though there were probably more beyond the reach of their binoculars. “It was incredible.” A salt lake that tinges pink when summer heat shrinks its footprint, the lake was flush with water when they visited. “This is a very lovely place, but I&#8217;ve never seen Maharloo like this,” Ebrahimi said. The winter rains had been heavier than normal, to be sure, but he said he also suspects that agricultural and industrial activity, muted by the war, were drawing off less water from the lake — an unanticipated impact. Ebrahimi and his teammates from the NGO AvayeBoom Bird Conservation Society are doing their best to track the conflict’s effects on Iran’s environment. They’ve noticed, for example, shifts in bird aggregations, apparently moving away from areas that reverberate with airstrikes. But the war has also laid bare the damage caused by international sanctions imposed by the U.S., the EU and the U.N., along with other moves to cut Iran off from the rest of&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/war-reveals-the-isolation-of-irans-scientists/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/war-reveals-the-isolation-of-irans-scientists/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322511</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Santa Marta report by 57 nations defines rapid fossil fuel transition path</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/santa-marta-report-by-57-nations-defines-rapid-fossil-fuel-transition-path/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/santa-marta-report-by-57-nations-defines-rapid-fossil-fuel-transition-path/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jul 2026 16:17:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Julian Reingold]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/02091344/banner-Image-Report-presentation-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322332</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Colombia, Global, and Netherlands]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Alternative Energy, Climate, Climate Change, Energy, Environment, Environmental Policy, Fossil Fuels, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, and Impact Of Climate Change]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[London Climate Action Week (LCAW) kicked off in June amid an unprecedented European heat wave and with a special statement by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warning, “We have just lived through the eleven hottest years ever recorded … with higher temperatures to come. London isn’t just calling — it’s cooking,” he said. &#8220;We cannot [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[London Climate Action Week (LCAW) kicked off in June amid an unprecedented European heat wave and with a special statement by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warning, “We have just lived through the eleven hottest years ever recorded … with higher temperatures to come. London isn’t just calling — it’s cooking,” he said. &#8220;We cannot double down on a system based on fossil fuels that is driving both the climate crisis and the energy crisis … These twin crises have once again exposed the limits of an outdated model of development,” the U.N. chief said. “This is our moment of choice. Our moment of truth. Our moment of opportunity. Let&#8217;s seize it.&#8221; Just such an opportunity came later at LCAW with the launch of the outcome report derived from the First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, which was held in April in Santa Marta, Colombia. That landmark summit was co-hosted by Colombia and the Netherlands and convened 57 countries, a “Coalition of the Willing” accounting for roughly 30% of global energy demand and about 20% of global energy supply — a group committed to a rapid fossil fuel phaseout. The meeting was called to serve as a viable complement to the formal U.N. climate consensus negotiating process, which has been blocked from climate action for decades by large petrostates and lobbied against by the fossil fuel industry. The new report released June 23 presents a summary of Coalition of the Willing stakeholder-led dialogues and includes strategies for a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/santa-marta-report-by-57-nations-defines-rapid-fossil-fuel-transition-path/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322332</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Crackdown lets rainforest reclaim illegal road in rare win for the Amazon</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/crackdown-lets-rainforest-reclaim-illegal-road-in-rare-win-for-the-amazon/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/crackdown-lets-rainforest-reclaim-illegal-road-in-rare-win-for-the-amazon/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jul 2026 14:38:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rafael Spuldar]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandre de Santi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/04/19153134/dirt-roads-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322254</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Crime, Development, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Governance, Indigenous Reserves, Indigenous Rights, Infrastructure, Law, Politics, Protected Areas, Remote Sensing, Roads, and Satellite Imagery]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A vanishing road in the Xingu region exemplifies what is at stake in Brazil’s October election.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In 2022, an illegal road cutting the length of a full marathon through two strictly protected areas in the Brazilian Amazon threatened to do what conservationists feared most: Split the Xingu Socioenvironmental Corridor, a mosaic of Indigenous territories and conservation units covering some 26 million hectares (64 million acres), in half. Four years later, satellite images reveal the 42.8-kilometer (26.6-mile) road is gone, swallowed by regrowing forest — something rarely seen in the region. Its disappearance runs counter to everything that typically happens when a road appears in the Amazon. “Here, the road is the beginning of everything, the beginning of the devastation,” Bruno Ferreira, a researcher at the conservation nonprofit Imazon, part of the MapBiomas mapping network, told Mongabay. Usually, roads give birth to a set of new roads (legal or illegal) that spawn from the main one, creating a fishbone pattern in satellite images. Imazon research suggests that 95% of deforestation in the Amazon happens within 5 km (3 mi) of a road, meaning that illegal cattle ranching and logging would have been virtually unstoppable had this one road been consolidated. For the organizations monitoring the region around the Xingu, a key tributary of the Amazon, the now dead road is proof that the alliance between civil society and a willing government can reverse destruction that once seemed irreversible — and a reminder of what is at stake as Brazil heads into a tightly contested presidential election in October. Uncovered in 2022, the 42-kilometer-long illegal road ran along&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/crackdown-lets-rainforest-reclaim-illegal-road-in-rare-win-for-the-amazon/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322254</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Illegal timber imports from Cambodia, Laos skirt Vietnam safeguards, report reveals</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/illegal-timber-imports-from-cambodia-laos-skirt-vietnam-safeguards-report-reveals/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/illegal-timber-imports-from-cambodia-laos-skirt-vietnam-safeguards-report-reveals/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jul 2026 11:35:51 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/10/09032420/RESIZED-Preah-Roka_Mongabay_Andy-Ball-5-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322242</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Cambodia, Laos, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Corporations, Crime, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Forest Destruction, Forest Loss, Forests, Governance, Illegal Logging, Logging, Primary Forests, Rainforests, Supply Chain, Timber, Timber Laws, timber trade, Trade, Tropical Deforestation, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Illegally sourced timber from Cambodia and Laos continues to enter Vietnam’s supply chains despite recent efforts to tighten legality controls, according to a new report from U.K.-based watchdog the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). Falsified paperwork, manipulated harvesting quotes, and intermixing of timber from multiple sources are just some of the ways well-established criminal networks perpetuate [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Illegally sourced timber from Cambodia and Laos continues to enter Vietnam’s supply chains despite recent efforts to tighten legality controls, according to a new report from U.K.-based watchdog the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). Falsified paperwork, manipulated harvesting quotes, and intermixing of timber from multiple sources are just some of the ways well-established criminal networks perpetuate the illicit trade, EIA teams uncovered during a four-year investigation. “We repeatedly observed mechanisms through which timber from questionable sources could be incorporated into formal trade channels,” says Thomas Chung, forest timber campaigns lead for the EIA. Vietnam is one of the world’s largest timber exporters. As a major manufacturing hub of furniture, flooring and other wood products, it plays a key role in international supply chains, shipping roughly $17 billion in timber and timber products in 2025. Timber from neighboring Laos and Cambodia represents a relatively small share of Vietnam’s total supply, the EIA report says, accounting for less than 9% of all timber shipments into the country. However, it carries an outsized legality risk that significantly undermines Vietnam’s efforts to ensure legal sourcing. To maintain access to lucrative export markets, such as the U.S., the EU, Japan and China, the country has made several recent updates to its national timber legality framework, known as the Vietnam Timber Legality Assurance System (VNTLAS). However, the EIA investigation indicates these efforts are being grossly undermined by persistent imports of illegal timber from Cambodia and Laos, exposing key weaknesses in the VNTLAS system. A consistent issue was&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/illegal-timber-imports-from-cambodia-laos-skirt-vietnam-safeguards-report-reveals/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322242</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indonesia&#8217;s blackouts reignite debate over coal-dependent energy transition</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 09:45:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/09/09170445/chimneys-of-Suralaya-coal-power-plant-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322168</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, East Java, Global, Indonesia, Java, Southeast Asia, and Sumatra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Alternative Energy, Bioenergy, Carbon Emissions, Climate Change, Coal, Emission Reduction, Energy, Energy Security, Energy Transition, Environmental Policy, Fossil Fuels, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Health, Just Transition, Pollution, Public Health, Renewable Energy, and Research]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Calls are mounting for Indonesia to accelerate its energy transition after widespread blackouts struck Java and Sumatra in recent weeks, exposing what analysts say are deep vulnerabilities in a power system that remains highly centralized and heavily dependent on coal. In late May, large parts of Sumatra lost electricity after a transmission line [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Calls are mounting for Indonesia to accelerate its energy transition after widespread blackouts struck Java and Sumatra in recent weeks, exposing what analysts say are deep vulnerabilities in a power system that remains highly centralized and heavily dependent on coal. In late May, large parts of Sumatra lost electricity after a transmission line in Jambi failed. Just days later, a separate outage disrupted power across parts of Java, Indonesia&#8217;s most populous island and economic center. While officials initially pointed to technical problems, state utility PLN later said constrained coal supplies had contributed to the Java outage. For energy analysts, the outages underscore a broader structural problem. &#8220;The dependence on a centralized, coal-dominated electricity system is a threat to energy supply security,&#8221; said Fabby Tumiwa, executive director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR). To reduce the risk of more widespread outages, analysts at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), a U.S.-based think tank, said Indonesia should accelerate the      deployment of decentralized renewable energy, particularly rooftop solar combined with battery energy storage systems (BESS). &#8220;For Indonesia, an archipelago of thousands of islands, rooftop solar combined with battery energy storage systems offers a viable alternative to diesel power, which can be costly and challenging to supply,&#8221; IEEFA researchers Mutya Yustika and Randi Bachtiar wrote in a recent analysis. Unlike fossil fuels, they noted, solar power is not vulnerable to fuel supply disruptions or price volatility. Because rooftop systems can be installed on homes, businesses and industrial&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322168</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Bangladesh unveils sweeping EV incentives to cut emissions and pollution</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Jun 2026 06:28:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kamran Reza Chowdhury]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abu Siddique]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/30061227/pollution-in-bangladesh-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322071</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Bangladesh, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Aerosol Pollution, Air Pollution, Cities, Development, Electric Cars, Environment, Environmental Policy, Governance, Law, Pollution, Regulations, and Transportation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In an unprecedented move, Bangladesh has upended its previous policy of heavily taxing electric vehicles (EVs) and promoting fossil-fuel-run transport. While placing the tax and tariff proposals for the next fiscal year starting on July 1, finance minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, in his budget speech in the parliament on June 11, unveiled a set [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In an unprecedented move, Bangladesh has upended its previous policy of heavily taxing electric vehicles (EVs) and promoting fossil-fuel-run transport. While placing the tax and tariff proposals for the next fiscal year starting on July 1, finance minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, in his budget speech in the parliament on June 11, unveiled a set of coordinated tariff structures to promote EVs and solar energy to reduce carbon emissions and combat air pollution. The minister offered zero tariffs for the import of electric buses and trucks, the setting up of vehicle charging stations, and the production of solar energy; hiked tariffs for fossil-fuel-powered transport; reduced registration fees for EVs; and introduced a set of incentives with the target of reducing pollution from the transport sector, which contributes 9% of greenhouse gas emissions. This is the first coordinated government initiative for transitioning Bangladesh’s long-overdue modernization of the transport system, as pollutants from thousands of diesel-run buses and trucks aggravate the air pollution in mega-cities like Dhaka and Chattogram. According to UN estimates, more than 235,000 people die from complications due to air pollution every year in Bangladesh, with hundreds of thousands of people suffering from asthma and other respiratory diseases. Traffic in Dhaka. According to UN estimates, more than 235,000 people die from complications due to air pollution every year in Bangladesh. Image by joiseyshowaa/b k via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0). The tax waiver and concession The government has decided to offer a “full exemption (except value-added tax)” on the import&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322071</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Women patrol Tanzania’s Pemba waters in a community-led push to protect the sea</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jun 2026 11:38:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Akana]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/27103927/20260622_1048430-1bis-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321946</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, Indian Ocean, and Tanzania]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[blue economy, Conservation, Environmental Policy, Fish, Fishing, Freshwater Fish, Governance, Illegal Fishing, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Trade, Water, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[PEMBA, Tanzania — Patrolling the sea is not the kind of work many women on Tanzania’s Pemba Island are traditionally expected to do. Yet, for Amina Gharib Issa, it has become part of her life recently. At 55 years old, Issa has spent years around the sea, including as a fisher. But when fish stocks [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[PEMBA, Tanzania — Patrolling the sea is not the kind of work many women on Tanzania’s Pemba Island are traditionally expected to do. Yet, for Amina Gharib Issa, it has become part of her life recently. At 55 years old, Issa has spent years around the sea, including as a fisher. But when fish stocks began dwindling and communities in Pemba introduced temporary closures, periods during which fishing is suspended to allow marine life to recover, she took on the task of helping patrol the waters to ensure the rules were respected. She is part of a seven-member community patrol team that goes out about eight times a month, checking boats, fishing gear and licenses. The work can mean hours on the water, sometimes in rough conditions, for pay of about $8 a day. In much of Pemba, women participate widely in fisheries, but being out on patrol with men is another matter. The community is predominantly Muslim, and gender roles can be closely examined. &#8220;Some of the women are not permitted by their husbands,&#8221; Ali Said Hamad, a member of the Mwambao team, said, explaining one of the reasons more women do not join. Said has spent decades on these waters — not as an enforcement officer — but helping implement community-led conservation programs. For those women who do patrol the waters, family support can make the difference. Issa said her husband supported her decision to take part. Her work is part of a broader community-led conservation effort supported&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/women-patrol-tanzanias-pemba-waters-in-a-community-led-push-to-protect-the-sea/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321946</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Asia&#8217;s shark and ray hotspots remain poorly protected, study finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/asias-shark-and-ray-hotspots-remain-poorly-protected-study-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/asias-shark-and-ray-hotspots-remain-poorly-protected-study-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>26 Jun 2026 03:52:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Malaka Rodrigo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Dilrukshi Handunnetti]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/25201215/1-A-famiky-of-Critically-Endangered-Winghead-Hammerhead-sharks-and-a-threatened-Eagle-ray-died-due-to-fisheries-in-Baththalangunduwa-ISRA-c-BRT-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321855</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Global, and Sri Lanka]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Bycatch, Conservation Solutions, Environmental Policy, Extinction, Fish, Fisheries, Gillnets, Illegal Fishing, Marine Animals, Marine Protected Areas, Overfishing, Protected Areas, Rays, shark finning, Sharks, and Species]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[COLOMBO — The majority of 122 marine areas identified across Asia as critical for the survival of sharks, rays and chimaeras remain largely unprotected despite supporting some of the world’s most threatened marine species, according to a new study. Published in Biodiversity and Conservation, the study assessed the network of important shark and ray areas [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[COLOMBO — The majority of 122 marine areas identified across Asia as critical for the survival of sharks, rays and chimaeras remain largely unprotected despite supporting some of the world’s most threatened marine species, according to a new study. Published in Biodiversity and Conservation, the study assessed the network of important shark and ray areas (ISRAs) across 19 Asian countries and territories and found that only 5.4% of their total area overlaps with recognized marine protected areas (MPAs). Just 2.8% falls within fully protected no-take zones where extractive activities are strictly prohibited. Critically endangered sharpnose guitarfish landed from the Palk Bay ISRA are recorded in a fish market in the village of Mathagal, Sri Lanka&#8217;s Jaffna district. Fish markets and landing sites are valuable points for fisheries data collection and monitoring. Image courtesy of Blue Resources Trust. Together, these ISRAs cover more than 1 million square kilometers (approximately 386,102 square miles) of ocean and support sharks, rays and chimaeras, also known by the umbrella term elasmobranchs. Nearly three-quarters of these species are listed as threatened with extinction on the IUCN red list, highlighting the urgency of conserving these habitats, said study lead author Adriana Gonzalez-Pestana, a Ph.D. candidate at Charles Darwin University (CDU) in Australia and member of the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group ISRA project. IUCN is the global wildlife conservation authority. Critically endangered stripenose guitarfish caught within the Pasikuda &amp; Kalkuda ISRA in Sri Lanka&#8217;s east and being sold at a local fishery. Image courtesy of Blue Resources&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/asias-shark-and-ray-hotspots-remain-poorly-protected-study-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/asias-shark-and-ray-hotspots-remain-poorly-protected-study-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321855</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Wildlife helps regulate the climate &#038; this belongs in policy discussions (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/wildlife-helps-regulate-the-climate-this-belongs-in-policy-discussions-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/wildlife-helps-regulate-the-climate-this-belongs-in-policy-discussions-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Jun 2026 15:26:01 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Jérôme Pinti]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2021/11/05173648/kjs_20180711-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321788</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Commentary, Conservation, Decarbonization, Environment, Environmental Policy, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When we talk about climate change and wildlife, most people think about the impact of climate change on animals. We see individual organisms struggling to find food and being pushed into new places and environments, with global consequences for species distribution and animal abundances. What many overlook is the other side of that relationship: Wildlife [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When we talk about climate change and wildlife, most people think about the impact of climate change on animals. We see individual organisms struggling to find food and being pushed into new places and environments, with global consequences for species distribution and animal abundances. What many overlook is the other side of that relationship: Wildlife can help heal our climate. Wild animals help shape how ecosystems store carbon, move nutrients, recover from disturbance, and remain resilient as conditions change. That is the message behind the new Scientific Consensus on Wildlife and Climate, currently endorsed by more than 300 scientists from around the world, and counting. The consensus makes a simple but important point for climate policy: We should account for wild animals and their ecological roles when designing climate plans, because natural systems are incomplete without the species that help them function. Climate mitigation conversations typically focus on technology and infrastructure. More recently, we have become better at talking about forests, wetlands, seagrass, and other natural habitats that store carbon. All of those ecosystems matter, but we are sometimes missing an important piece: The animals living in and moving through those systems. Animals ranging from plankton to sperm whales (pictured) and everything in between move carbon from the ocean’s surface into the deep sea through a variety of processes. Image courtesy of The Dominica Sperm Whale Project. A 2023 paper in Nature Climate Change estimated that protecting and restoring wild animal populations and their ecological roles could increase carbon dioxide&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/wildlife-helps-regulate-the-climate-this-belongs-in-policy-discussions-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/wildlife-helps-regulate-the-climate-this-belongs-in-policy-discussions-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321788</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Leaked study warns of irreversible damage from iron ore mine in Guinea UNESCO site</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/leaked-study-warns-of-irreversible-damage-from-iron-ore-mine-in-guinea-unesco-site/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/leaked-study-warns-of-irreversible-damage-from-iron-ore-mine-in-guinea-unesco-site/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Jun 2026 10:36:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Josef SkrdlikOliver Dunn]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/24071536/WesternChimpanzee_NzerekoreGuinea_augustofaustinoINaturalistBYNC4.0large-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321728</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Guinea, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Chimpanzees, Critically Endangered Species, Economics, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Governance, Illegal Mining, and Mining]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[CONAKRY — Over the next few months, Guinea’s environment ministry will review an environmental and social impact assessment for an iron ore mine in the country’s Nimba Mountains. The project, named Kon Kweni, is to be carved out of Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Comprising a unique combination of tropical [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[CONAKRY — Over the next few months, Guinea’s environment ministry will review an environmental and social impact assessment for an iron ore mine in the country’s Nimba Mountains. The project, named Kon Kweni, is to be carved out of Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Comprising a unique combination of tropical forest and high-elevation savanna, the Nimba highlands are a biodiversity hotspot, home to dozens of endemic species. According to the environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA), these highlands would face “direct and major risks,” “irreversible damage,” and “threat to species survival” if the mining operations go ahead. The impact assessment is an essential step toward securing a mining permit and commencing operations on a project that has been in discussion since 2003, when Guinean mining company SMFG was founded. (The company acquired by U.S. miner Ivanhoe Atlantic in 2019.) Mongabay obtained a copy of the ESIA, a confidential document. The assessment was commissioned by Ivanhoe and carried out by Biotope, a French environmental consultancy, and reveals how Ivanhoe is planning to go about developing the Nimba concession and how the plan is projected to impact Nimba’s ecosystems. In the Mount Nimba Strict Forest Reserve, 2006. Image by Manfred Schweda via Wikicommons (CC BY-SA 4.0) Guinea’s environmental regulator, the AGEE, a branch of the environment ministry, will assess the project’s anticipated environmental impact and the company’s proposed plans to mitigate damage, alongside the precision and comprehensiveness of its assessments. Seydou Cissé, the AGEE director, said the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/leaked-study-warns-of-irreversible-damage-from-iron-ore-mine-in-guinea-unesco-site/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/leaked-study-warns-of-irreversible-damage-from-iron-ore-mine-in-guinea-unesco-site/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321728</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Failed promises to clean air in South Africa’s coal belt take toll on public health</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Jun 2026 06:53:15 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Joe Walsh]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Malavikavyawahare]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/24064856/Kusile-Power-Station-South-Africas-largest-plant-at-4800MW-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321552</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, South Africa, and Southern Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Clean Energy, Coal, Energy, Environment, Environmental Policy, Governance, Health, Pollution, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[eMALAHLENI, South Africa — Elisabeth Moutloang, 49, lives in the shadows of Duvha Power Station, a 3,600-MW coal-fired power station owned and operated by Eskom, South Africa’s national energy provider. Between it and her community of Masakhane, in the south of eMalahleni, is a coal mine where she used to work twenty years ago as [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[eMALAHLENI, South Africa — Elisabeth Moutloang, 49, lives in the shadows of Duvha Power Station, a 3,600-MW coal-fired power station owned and operated by Eskom, South Africa’s national energy provider. Between it and her community of Masakhane, in the south of eMalahleni, is a coal mine where she used to work twenty years ago as a weighbridge clerk, monitoring the weight of coal-laden vehicles entering and exiting the mine, before it was abandoned. She left the job after seven months but in that time had developed a serious lung problem, which was detected because the mine conducts a health screening before starting employment and when an employee leaves. “When I went to have my exit medical done, I was told that I have a hole on my left lung. That&#8217;s when I started having sinus problems, that&#8217;s when I started having chest problems. At one stage I had bronchitis,” Moutloang says. “I thought I was going to die.” At the time, she had health insurance from her employer and was able to get the right medicine for the condition. Hers is not a unique story for a resident of eMalahleni (which translates to “place of coal”) located in South Africa’s eastern province of Mpumalanga, 130 kilometers (81 miles) east of Johannesburg. The town lies in the heart of the Highveld Priority Area (HPA), spanning 31,100 km encompassing 12 municipalities, which was designated in 2007 as a priority area for tackling air pollution, because the air quality was very poor. A&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/failed-promises-to-clean-air-in-south-africas-coal-belt-take-toll-on-public-health/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321552</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>South America’s farms depend, in part, on a healthy Amazon</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-americas-farms-depend-in-part-on-a-healthy-amazon/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-americas-farms-depend-in-part-on-a-healthy-amazon/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>22 Jun 2026 08:30:41 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/22052817/amazon_201362-26x-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321533</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Conservation, Drought, Ecosystem Services, El Nino, Environment, Environmental Policy, Environmental Services, Fires, forest degradation, Forests, Hydroelectric Power, Natural Capital, Nature-based climate solutions, Precipitation, Rainforests, Restoration, Saving Rainforests, Solutions, Soy, Threats To Rainforests, Tropical Deforestation, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[&#160; The Amazon is often described in terms of how much carbon it stores. It also moves vast amounts of water. Its trees draw moisture from the soil and return it to the air through transpiration. Some rain caught by the canopy also evaporates back into the atmosphere. That moisture falls again, some of it [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[&nbsp; The Amazon is often described in terms of how much carbon it stores. It also moves vast amounts of water. Its trees draw moisture from the soil and return it to the air through transpiration. Some rain caught by the canopy also evaporates back into the atmosphere. That moisture falls again, some of it inside the basin and some of it far downwind. For much of South America, the forest helps sustain rainfall, farming, hydropower, and urban water supplies. A recent paper in Nature, by Nico Wunderling and colleagues, gives this hydrological role greater weight in the climate case for the Amazon. The authors used a dynamical systems model and atmospheric moisture tracking to estimate how deforestation and warming interact across the basin. Without deforestation, their model finds a critical global warming threshold of about 3.7 to 4.0 degrees Celsius, beyond which up to a third of the Amazon forest risks losing stability. When deforestation is included, the risk becomes much larger at a lower level of warming. Under deforestation of 22% to 28% of the biome and warming of 1.5 to 1.9 degrees Celsius, the model finds a near system-wide transition affecting 62% to 77% of the forest. Rain over the Amazon. Photo by Rhett Ayers Butler Those numbers should be treated carefully. The Amazon is not a single ecological unit. Western forests, southern forests, flooded forests, upland forests, secondary forests, and fire-damaged edges differ in species composition, rainfall, soils, and drought tolerance. A model cannot capture every&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-americas-farms-depend-in-part-on-a-healthy-amazon/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/south-americas-farms-depend-in-part-on-a-healthy-amazon/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321533</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>What’s at stake for the environment in Colombia’s upcoming election?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-at-stake-for-the-environment-in-colombias-upcoming-election/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-at-stake-for-the-environment-in-colombias-upcoming-election/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>19 Jun 2026 15:55:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Aimee Gabay]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandra Popescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Amazon]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/06/21194943/colombia_1875-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321507</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Colombia, Global, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity Hotspots, Conservation, Crime, Deforestation, Development, Drivers Of Deforestation, Ecosystems, Energy Transition, Environment, Forest Destruction, Forests, Governance, Human Rights, Indigenous Peoples, Infrastructure, Land Conflict, Land Use Change, Organized Crime, Politics, Traditional People, and Violence]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Colombia’s first round of presidential elections on May 31 saw right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella take the top spot with 43.7% of the vote, followed by left-wing candidate Iván Cepeda, with 40.9%. The future of the Colombian Amazon, the fossil fuel phaseout commitments made by current President Gustavo Petro and the rights of Indigenous [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Colombia’s first round of presidential elections on May 31 saw right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella take the top spot with 43.7% of the vote, followed by left-wing candidate Iván Cepeda, with 40.9%. The future of the Colombian Amazon, the fossil fuel phaseout commitments made by current President Gustavo Petro and the rights of Indigenous peoples and other traditional communities are all at stake during the runoff on June 21. Colombia has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030 and has a legally binding net-zero target for 2050. Analysts at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) say Petro’s government made some progress, but deep reductions in emissions are critical, in particular from deforestation and agriculture, as well as reforms to phase out fossil fuel subsidies. As a result, who Colombia elects next will have major implications for the country’s climate ambitions. When Petro took office in 2022, he made the fossil fuel phaseout and environmental protection central features of his government’s agenda. He promised to become a leader in the defense of life, which involved transforming the country’s relationship with nature and “Total Peace” (Paz Total) — his administration’s flagship peace policy aimed to end Colombia’s decades-long armed conflict. Petro opposed new oil and gas exploration contracts and has been vocal about environmental justice and the energy transition at the international level, including at the United Nations General Assembly, the World Economic Forum in Davos and the United Nations Climate Change Conferences (COPs). In April,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-at-stake-for-the-environment-in-colombias-upcoming-election/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-at-stake-for-the-environment-in-colombias-upcoming-election/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321507</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>With plastic treaty in limbo, Mongabay speaks to top negotiator Julio Cordano</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/with-plastic-treaty-in-limbo-mongabay-speaks-to-top-negotiator-julio-cordano/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/with-plastic-treaty-in-limbo-mongabay-speaks-to-top-negotiator-julio-cordano/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Jun 2026 17:31:34 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Charles Pekow]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/18161338/2.-INC5-3-MM-6761-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321458</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environment, Environmental Policy, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Health, Industry, Interviews, Interviews with conservation players, Planetary Health, Plastic, and Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[You can’t dictate a solution to the worldwide plastic pollution crisis, according to Julio Cordano, the new chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) for a global plastic treaty. He said consensus will be needed. Cordano was elected INC chair in February 2026. That appointment came after INC repeatedly failed to meet its [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[You can’t dictate a solution to the worldwide plastic pollution crisis, according to Julio Cordano, the new chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) for a global plastic treaty. He said consensus will be needed. Cordano was elected INC chair in February 2026. That appointment came after INC repeatedly failed to meet its own deadlines for achieving an agreement to deal with the world’s rapidly escalating plastic pollution crisis. INC began treaty negotiations in 2022 with the goal of achieving an agreement by 2024. But negotiators remain deadlocked and nowhere near an accord. That puts Cordano — a career Chilean diplomat and director of the Environment, Climate Change and Oceans Division of Chile’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs — in a difficult position. Today, 184 nations, known as the parties, can&#8217;t even agree on whether a treaty should include binding limits on plastic production (a stance held by the roughly 70 High Ambition Coalition member nations), or focus only on voluntary plastic waste management, reuse and recycling (a position held by the Like Minded Group of a handful of petrostates). Talks continue this year, but INC doesn’t expect another formal negotiating session until March 2027 at the earliest. With Cordano in the challenging position of finding common ground between the parties, Mongabay reached out for an exclusive interview to determine his hopes and concerns for the treaty process. He doesn&#8217;t often speak to the press and declined a Mongabay interview request, but agreed to answer questions submitted in writing.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/with-plastic-treaty-in-limbo-mongabay-speaks-to-top-negotiator-julio-cordano/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321458</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Thailand, EUDR pressure on small-scale rubber farmers prompts private-sector assistance</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-thailand-eudr-pressure-on-small-scale-rubber-farmers-prompts-private-sector-assistance/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-thailand-eudr-pressure-on-small-scale-rubber-farmers-prompts-private-sector-assistance/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jun 2026 02:02:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/14133641/1.-Banner-option-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321134</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Southeast Asia, and Thailand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[agribusiness, Business, Certification, Commodity agriculture, Corporations, Crops, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, EUDR, Farming, Forest Products, Governance, Industrial Agriculture, Industry, Law, Plantations, Rubber, Supply Chain, Sustainable Forest Management, Trade, and Zero Deforestation Commitments]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KRABI, Thailand — Beneath a humid canopy of rubber trees, Sathit Phromraksa pauses to inspect a coagulated ball of rubber in a palm-sized bowl fastened to a trunk. Last night, he and his wife worked their way through the plantation, carefully carving a line in the bark of each tree to stimulate the flow of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KRABI, Thailand — Beneath a humid canopy of rubber trees, Sathit Phromraksa pauses to inspect a coagulated ball of rubber in a palm-sized bowl fastened to a trunk. Last night, he and his wife worked their way through the plantation, carefully carving a line in the bark of each tree to stimulate the flow of milky latex. With a total 500 trees to tap in their 1.6-hectare (4-acre) plantation, their work took them from midnight to 3:30 a.m. “I inherited this rubber farm from my father,” says 59-year-old Sathit, a lifelong resident of Namgaan subdistrict in Thailand’s Krabi province. “Back then, my family used a lot of chemicals to control weeds and pests, but now, we follow organic practices.” Sathit is one of roughly 1.7 million smallholders who produce 90% of Thailand’s natural rubber supply across millions of individual plantations, most of them no bigger than his. For many, staying profitable is a constant challenge amid fluctuating market prices, crop diseases and climate change. Now, the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is poised to add to the pressures facing small-scale producers like Sathit. Under the law, set to take effect in January 2027, only suppliers who can prove their land wasn’t cleared after Dec. 31, 2020, will be allowed to continue selling rubber to EU markets. As the world’s leading natural rubber producer, the economic implications for Thailand are significant. While the bulk of its exports go to China and Malaysia, the value of Thai rubber entering the EU increased by&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/in-thailand-eudr-pressure-on-small-scale-rubber-farmers-prompts-private-sector-assistance/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321134</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>‘Flamingo Revolution’ aims to stop Kushner-backed resort on protected Albanian delta</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/flamingo-revolution-aims-to-stop-kushner-backed-resort-on-protected-albanian-delta/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/flamingo-revolution-aims-to-stop-kushner-backed-resort-on-protected-albanian-delta/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Jun 2026 19:54:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Stefan Lovgren]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Autumn Spanne]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/12163942/DJI_20250913010858_0043_D_Banner-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321100</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Europe]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation, Development, Ecosystems, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Marine, Oceans, Politics, Protected Areas, Protests, Rivers, Tourism, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[VJOSA-NARTA, Albania — In late April, heavy machinery began moving into the Pishë Poro-Narta protected landscape on Albania&#8217;s Adriatic coast without permits or public notice. Bulldozers and excavators felled coastal pine trees, flattened sand dunes, and cut new roads through previously untouched habitat. Then, barbed wire fences went up along the shoreline. The incursion was [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[VJOSA-NARTA, Albania — In late April, heavy machinery began moving into the Pishë Poro-Narta protected landscape on Albania&#8217;s Adriatic coast without permits or public notice. Bulldozers and excavators felled coastal pine trees, flattened sand dunes, and cut new roads through previously untouched habitat. Then, barbed wire fences went up along the shoreline. The incursion was the realization of a luxury resort development backed by Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;s son-in-law. The development plans of Kushner’s Affinity Partners, a private equity fund, stretch from the uninhabited Sazan Island into the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape, the delta region of Albania’s Vjosa River that includes Pishë Poro-Narta. Roughly twice the size of Paris, the Vjosa-Narta area shelters flamingos, Dalmatian pelicans (Pelecanus crispus), loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) and more than 70 endangered species, among them the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus). Neither Affinity Partners nor the office of the prime minister of Albania responded to Mongabay’s requests for comment. Aerial drone video of demonstrators gathering at Dalan Beach on June 6 for a rally near the site of the original resort-construction site. Footage by Stefan Lovgren for Mongabay. &nbsp; When protesters arrived at the site, security guards confronted them. Video of a demonstrator being dragged across the dunes on May 30 near the village of Zvërnec went viral. Soon demonstrations erupted in Tirana, the Albanian capital, in what has since been dubbed the Flamingo Revolution. The protests have grown larger every day, with tens of thousands demanding accountability for corruption, an end to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/flamingo-revolution-aims-to-stop-kushner-backed-resort-on-protected-albanian-delta/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/flamingo-revolution-aims-to-stop-kushner-backed-resort-on-protected-albanian-delta/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321100</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Brazil carves an Amazon national park to make room for grain railway</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/brazil-carves-national-park-to-make-room-for-grain-railway/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/brazil-carves-national-park-to-make-room-for-grain-railway/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Jun 2026 18:06:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[André Schröder]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandre de Santi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/11142851/003_FlorestaJamanxim_ViniciusMendonca-Ibama-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320998</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Amazon, Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Forests, Governance, Infrastructure, Logging, Politics, Rainforest Destruction, Rainforests, and Threats To Rainforests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Brazil's Supreme Court ruling revives a controversial Amazon railway and sets a precedent about protected areas.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A ruling by Brazil’s Supreme Court has given new momentum to one of the most controversial infrastructure projects in the Brazilian Amazon: The Ferrogrão railway. The plan is to link Sinop, in the grain-producing state of Mato Grosso, to the port of Miritituba in Pará, a key commodity export hub on the Tapajós River. Conceived by the agribusiness sector to reduce grain transportation costs, Ferrogrão is a priority project for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s administration, despite warnings about its potential impacts on Indigenous territories and protected forests in an Amazon region already under significant socio-environmental pressure. In May, the justices upheld a 2017 law that removed 862 hectares (2,130 acres) from Jamanxim National Park, a conservation unit located in Pará state, to allow Ferrogrão to pass through the protected area. The initiative had been challenged on the grounds that Brazil’s Federal Constitution requires a formal law to reduce the size of protected areas, rather than the conversion into law of a provisional measure issued by the executive branch. “The STF decision does not give the green light to the Ferrogrão project, which still must undergo environmental studies and the licensing process,” said Alice Dandara de Assis Correia, an attorney at Instituto Socioambiental (ISA), a nonprofit that advocates for environmental and Indigenous rights. “But the courts have ruled that specially protected areas can be altered through an expedited process, an extremely dangerous shortcut that could pave the way for Congress to approve similar changes in other protected areas facing&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/brazil-carves-national-park-to-make-room-for-grain-railway/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320998</doi>				</item>
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