Concerns about radioactive contamination dog Rio Tinto’s Madagascar mine
Activists have accused mining giant Rio Tinto of dragging its feet in addressing the fallout from a breach that occurred at its mine in Madagascar five years ago and that…
Mongabay series: Conservation in Madagascar
Madagascar has been a global conservation priority for decades, receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in conservation funds from international donors, but rising deforestation, commercial exploitation of wildlife, and degradation of critical habitats suggest that conservation investments may not be reaching their full potential. This series investigates the effectiveness of past conservation spending in Madagascar, examining the factors that contribute to or hinder success, with the aim of informing future investments.
Madagascar: Is NGO-led conservation too conservative to conserve much?
ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar — Madagascar’s natural resources are under threat. Local people use some for food, fuel and shelter, but foreign capital drives the most intense exploitation. Gem dealers oversee the destruction…
Tree-planting programs turn to tech solutions to track effectiveness
ROCHESTER, New York and RANOMAFANA NATIONAL PARK, Madagascar — Tom Snyder wants to change the way people see trees. Specifically, he wants to help donors to Seneca Park Zoo in…
Madagascar’s bold reforestation goal lacks a coherent plan, experts say
RANOMAFANA and ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar — While many U.S. travelers dream of the fabled forests of Madagascar, for Malagasy conservationist Mahandry Hugues Andrianarisoa, 28, it was the verdant landscape of upstate…
Madagascar regulator under scrutiny in breach at Rio Tinto-controlled mine
The government of Madagascar is looking into the actions of its top environmental regulator in the case of a buffer zone breach at a mineral sands mining operation in the…
Can a national management plan halt Madagascar’s shark decline?
MORONDAVA, Madagascar — When older people on Madagascar’s west coast were children, there were so many sharks that they had to be a bit careful when playing in the water.…
Madagascar suspends activities at controversial Base Toliara mine
This week the Malagasy government indefinitely suspended activities of the Base Toliara mine project, the third-largest mining project in Madagascar. It cited friction between the project and local communities and…
What makes community ecotourism succeed? In Madagascar, location, location, location
ANJA COMMUNITY RESERVE, Madagascar — When the Anja Community Reserve opened in 2001 the organizers of this bite-size protected area along the highway knew they’d need to come up with…
A ‘sly’ species of leaf-tailed gecko uncovered from Madagascar
Until they looked into the mouth of a leaf-tailed gecko collected in Madagascar last year, scientists couldn’t be sure they were looking at a new species of lizard. The specimen…
Madagascar calls for assistance as fires imperil its protected areas
Fires razed more than 1,300 hectares (3,200 acres) of forestland in Madagascar’s Ankarafantsika National Park in August and September — four times the size of New York City’s Central Park.…
Madagascar: Opaque foreign fisheries deals leave empty nets at home
TOLIARA AND MORONDAVA, Madagascar — When fishers on the west coast of Madagascar arrive home after a day at sea, children often poke their heads into the pirogues to see…
CITES appeals to countries to watch out for trafficked Malagasy rosewood
International wildlife trade regulators have issued an advisory drawing attention to $50 million worth of Malagasy rosewood logs seized in 2014 in Singapore that could potentially end up in the…
Demand for charcoal threatens the forest of Madagascar’s last hunter-gatherers
MIKEA FOREST, Madagascar — A spear, an ax, a fire starter crafted from cow horn, a hand-carved pipe, and tobacco: these are all of Bezery’s material possessions, and he carries…
Top Madagascar beer maker supports investigation into its corn supply chain
Facing growing scrutiny for sourcing maize from a region in Madagascar that is suffering massive deforestation, the Madagascar beer maker STAR, owned by French brewer Castel, announced its support for…
Loss of Madagascar’s biodiversity is a loss for Earth, Pope says
With three shovelfuls of soil in service of a baobab plant, Pope Francis underlined a central message of his trip to Madagascar: protection of the island nation’s natural riches is…
Madagascar no longer insisting on selling its seized rosewood, for now
A ban on the international trade in rosewood, a prized timber, remains intact following the close this week of a global summit on the trade in wild animals and plants.…
Madagascar: What’s good for the forest is good for the native silk industry
AMORON’I MANIA REGION, Madagascar — People in the highlands of central Madagascar have long buried their loved ones in shrouds of thick wild silk. After several years, they exhume the dead…
Photo essay: Madagascar’s disappearing dry forests (insider)
The dry forest of western Madagascar is famous for its wildlife and baobab trees, including the tourist destinations of Baobab Alley, Tsingy de Bemaraha, and Kirindy Forest. Among the species…
Malagasy president considers backing declaration on conservation goals
If a sufficient number of signatories back a petition outlining conservation priorities for Madagascar it will be sponsored by the Malagasy president, Andry Rajoelina, and be instated as the ‘Declaration…
In Madagascar, villagers oppose plans for a dam that would inundate their land
SAHANIVOTRY COMMUNE, Madagascar — The village of Farihitsara in Madagascar’s central highlands was littered with straw from the rice harvest when Mongabay visited in May. But people weren’t able to…
Special series
Endangered environmentalists
- Fighting to save an endangered ape, Indonesian activists fear for their lives
- Iran sentences eight conservationists convicted of spying
- Watchdog denounces arrests of four anti-mining activists in Indonesia
Indonesias forest guardians
- Reforesting a village in Indonesia, one batch of gourmet beans at a time
- Restoring Sumatra’s Leuser Ecosystem, one small farm at a time
- Indigenous Iban community defends rainforests, but awaits lands rights recognition
Amazon infrastructure
- Belo Monte boondoggle: Brazil’s biggest, costliest dam may be unviable
- Amazon’s Mura indigenous group demands input over giant mining project
- Mega-mining project slated for Brazilian Amazon sparks controversy
Asian rhinos
- Indonesian officials wield sharia law in defense of Sumatran rhinos
- Love triangle complicates efforts to breed Sumatran rhinos
- Indonesia to capture 3 wild Sumatran rhinos to add to breeding population
