Paper giant denies secretly owning ‘independent’ suppliers
One of the world’s biggest paper producers continues to deny that it secretly owns most of the companies supplying it with wood, despite mounting evidence to the contrary. In the…
Environmental headlines
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When palm oil meets politics, Indonesian farmers pay the price
JAKARTA — Frans remembers getting up just after sunrise on a September day last year in his village of Panca Mukti, in the Indonesian province of Central Sulawesi. He’d been…
A global coral reef monitoring system is coming soon
Coral reef conservation efforts will soon get a major boost with a global monitoring system that will detect physical changes in coral cover at high resolution on a daily basis,…
To protect the Congolese peatlands, protect local land rights (commentary)
LOKOLAMA, Democratic Republic of Congo -- Sometime in March, I found myself trudging forward in a remote swamp in the heart of the Congo rainforest. As I worriedly tried to…
Owner of South African hunting company indicted by US prosecutors over illegal elephant hunt
The owner of a trophy hunting business in South Africa has been indicted by prosecutors with the United States Department of Justice for violating the Endangered Species Act and the…
Can cryptocurrencies save Indonesia’s carbon forests? (commentary)
Blockchain technology is already connecting buyers and sellers around the world, even if they don’t trust each other. It’s cutting through bureaucracy and bypassing corrupt governments, all with just a…
Ecuador: Tribe sees how oil industry affects forest on ‘Toxic Tour’
SUCUMBÍOS PROVINCE, Ecuador — “The land is dead,” says Camilo Pauche as he surveys with consternation the devastation that the oil industry has left in Pacayacu, a village in the Ecuadorian Amazon.…
Taller, older trees fare better during Amazon droughts, study finds
Droughts aren’t usually a problem for rainforests, which, as their name implies, are generally typified by lots of precipitation. But in the past few years, there’s been a noticeable drying…
Private sector leaders seek to ramp up investment in sustainable landscapes with help of public partners
WASHINGTON, D.C. - At the Global Landscapes Forum’s third investment case symposium, held at the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, top investors, business leaders,…
$29 million deforestation fines: game changer for Brazilian soy trade?
Brazilian environmental authorities unleashed Operation Soy Sauce at the end of May, fining soy commodities traders and farmers $29 million for illegal Cerrado deforestation.
This tiny camera aims to catch poachers — before they kill
If it wasn’t for the hidden camera, the poachers might have escaped undetected. A few minutes past midnight on Jan. 19, a camera positioned at an obscure location inside the…
Latam Eco Review: Deforestation encircles Colombia’s Caquetá titi monkey
Below are summaries of the most popular stories by our Spanish language service, Mongabay Latam, from the week of May 21-27. Among the top articles: deforestation is clearing the tiny…
In other news: Environmental stories from around the web, June 1, 2018
Here are a few stories published this week by other news outlets. Tropical forests A new study examines the challenges in producing “deforestation-free” palm oil (Imperial College London/EurekAlert). An effort…
How Colombia became Latin America’s palm oil powerhouse
PUERTO CONCORDIA, Colombia — Councilman Ricardo Vargas* sits at the bus depot in the riverside hamlet of Puerto Concordia where narco-inspired corridos play on the radio and a sea of oil palm expands…
Raid fails to stop gold mining, death threats on Amazon’s Tropas River
Gold mine owners have polluted a river in Brazil’s Tapajós basin and placed a price on the heads of resisting Munduruku leaders. A federal raid in May failed to stem the conflict.
Madagascar court upholds sentence for environmental activist
A farmer turned environmental activist who was convicted on criminal charges after questioning a mining company about its permits has had his appeal denied by a court in Madagascar. The…
Norwegian government report sharply critical of funding for tropical forest conservation
A recent report by Norway’s Office of the Auditor General had some tough criticisms for the country’s International Forests and Climate Initiative (NICFI), one of the chief funders of REDD+…
Indonesia targets illegal fishing vessel owners under new bill
JAKARTA — The owners of ships engaged in illegal fishing in Indonesia could finally face criminal justice under proposed amendments to the country’s fisheries law, as the government seeks to…
Death by hippo poop: Scientists solve a fish massacre in the Mara River
In the Mara River in Kenya, fish die in the thousands every now and then. And the hippopotamus is to blame, a new study has found. Hippos (Hippopotamus amphibius) spend…
Audio: Mexico’s ejidos find sustainability by including women and youth
On today’s episode, a special report on the community-based conservation and agroforestry operations known as ejidos in Mexico. Listen here: I traveled to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula in February to…
Special series
Conservation in madagascar
- Madagascar: Yet another anti-trafficking activist convicted
- One tortoise at a time: Q&A with zoo veterinarian Justin Rosenberg
- Madagascar court upholds sentence for environmental activist
Indonesias forest guardians
- Papuan chef Charles Toto serves up sustainability and environmental protection in a platter
- In eastern Indonesia, a forest tribe pushes back against miners and loggers
- Faith in the forest helps Indonesia’s Dayaks keep plantations, loggers at bay
Conservation effectiveness
- Conservation Effectiveness series sparks action, dialogue
- Response to critique on Conservation Effectiveness series (commentary)
- Seek higher standards to honestly assess conservation effectiveness (commentary)
Amazon infrastructure
- Raid fails to stop gold mining, death threats on Amazon’s Tropas River
- Dutch support soy transport mega-project, posing major risk to Amazon
- Attack of the turtles: ruralists assault environmental laws, Amazon
Asian rhinos
- Geneticists: It’s time to mix the Sumatran rhino subspecies
- Mining, erosion threaten Indian rhino haven
- Guardians of India’s rhinos find it takes a village to fight poachers
