Founder's briefs News

Founder’s Briefs is an occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Rhett founded Mongabay in 1999 to raise awareness about tropical forests and biodiversity. In 2012, he transitioned Mongabay to a non-profit organization and oversaw its growth into a multinational, multilingual news service. Beyond Mongabay, Rhett has advised a range of institutions, while his writing and photography have appeared in hundreds of publications. Rhett's work has been recognized with the Heinz Award and the Parker/Gentry Award, among other honors.

For 50 years, Philip Fearnside has calculated the costs of losing the Amazon

Rhett Ayers Butler 31 Aug 2026

A Williams electric blue day gecko (Lygodactylus williamsi). Image by Rhett Ayers Butler / Mongabay.

Conservation is bringing species back. Governments must help those gains last

Rhett Ayers Butler 19 Oct 2026

Andean Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruvianus). Photo by Rhett A. Butler

Nearly 90% of countries adopt biodiversity targets, but most remain off track

Rhett Ayers Butler 17 Oct 2026

Hoatzin in the Amazon rainforest. Photo by Rhett Ayers Butler

Amazon deforestation falls 42% to a record low

Rhett Ayers Butler 16 Oct 2026

A Peruvian artisanal fisher poses with a jumbo flying squid. Image courtesy of National Society of Artisanal Fishing of Peru (SONAPESCAL).

From paper parks to lasting protection, here’s what works in marine conservation

Rhett Ayers Butler 15 Oct 2026

Jaguarundis are sometimes known as the “otter cat” due to their distinctive, uncat-like appearance. They’re unique for their wide range of vocalizations, including “chirping” like a bird.

The jaguarundi is relatively easy to see. That may have hidden its decline

Rhett Ayers Butler 14 Oct 2026

Grauer's gorilla troop in Kahuzi-Biega National Park. Photo credit: Strong Roots Congo.

In a first for the DRC, a homegrown NGO will co-manage a wildlife reserve

Rhett Ayers Butler 13 Oct 2026

Project team members prepare juvenile bull kelp for transplanting in Clayoquot Sound. Image courtesy of Graeme Owsianski/Redd Fish Restoration Society.

First Nation-led effort replants kelp forests in Clayoquot Sound

Rhett Ayers Butler 12 Oct 2026

Jane Goodall in 2024. Courtesy of the Jane Goodall Institute.

A year ago today, Jane Goodall died at 91. Her message is more important than ever

Rhett Ayers Butler 1 Oct 2026

Giraldo Alayón García

Giraldo Alayón García, Cuba’s ‘spider man,’ died on Sept. 24

Rhett Ayers Butler 1 Oct 2026

Pratap Singh Chundawat via his Facebook page.

Pratap Singh Chundawat rescued a leopard from a well. He died in the line of duty, aged 40

Rhett Ayers Butler 30 Sep 2026

Jaco Muller. Image courtesy of the Rhino Momma Project.

Jaco Muller turned his 15-year-old son’s idea into 197 rhino births

Rhett Ayers Butler 29 Sep 2026

The mountain lion photo that helped change Los Angeles

Rhett Ayers Butler 28 Sep 2026

Illustration of the clownfish photo taken by Debby Ng.

A clownfish’s last stand

Rhett Ayers Butler 14 Sep 2026

Michael Painter in the Brazilian Amazon. Photo by David Wilkie.

Michael Painter put Indigenous land rights at the center of conservation

Rhett Ayers Butler 2 Sep 2026

A view of the presidential palace in Indonesia's new capital, Nusantara. Image courtesy of Leah Varjacques.

Recording a rainforest before Indonesia’s new capital changes it

Rhett Ayers Butler 31 Aug 2026

For 50 years, Philip Fearnside has calculated the costs of losing the Amazon

Rhett Ayers Butler 31 Aug 2026

Hà Đình Đức with the great softshell of Hồ Gươm. Photo by ZNews Vietnam

Hà Đình Đức, guardian of Hanoi’s legendary turtle, died at 86

Rhett Ayers Butler 28 Aug 2026

Daniel Janzen and the long work of bringing back a forest

Rhett Ayers Butler 24 Aug 2026

Patricio Segura. Courtesy of Patagon Journal

Patricio Segura, journalist who defended Patagonia’s rivers, died of hantavirus, aged 54

Rhett Ayers Butler 23 Aug 2026

Pete Brosius in Sarawak

Pete Brosius brought Penan forest stewardship in Sarawak into court

Rhett Ayers Butler 22 Aug 2026

A Timor green pigeon (Treron psittaceus).

Only a few hundred Timor green pigeons may remain. There is still time to save them

Rhett Ayers Butler 17 Aug 2026

Steve Smit. From his Facebook page

Steve Smit, South Africa’s “Monkey Man,” has died

Rhett Ayers Butler 15 Aug 2026

John Salehe. Photo courtesy of AWF

John Salehe helped shape Tanzania’s community conservation movement

Rhett Ayers Butler 15 Aug 2026

Chimpanzees at Tacugama

What makes chimpanzee conservation last? Lessons from Sierra Leone

Rhett Ayers Butler 11 Aug 2026

A group of cow elk traverses an active mine site as they move between forest patches. Image courtesy of Brittany L. Slabach.

Wildlife in the eastern US are making a comeback

Rhett Ayers Butler 10 Aug 2026

Mariano Cenamo. Photo by Renato Stockler / Folha Press

Mariano Cenamo, advocate for a sustainable Amazon bioeconomy, has died, aged 46

Rhett Ayers Butler 10 Aug 2026

Tree cover is not the same as ecological recovery

Rhett Ayers Butler 7 Aug 2026

Vinod Rishi

Vinod Rishi helped give India’s elephants room to roam

Rhett Ayers Butler 6 Aug 2026

The Alta Floresta titi monkey is the symbol of Alta Floresta bridges program. Image courtesy of Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and Projeto Reconecta.

Amazon canopy bridges enable 15,000 wildlife crossings without a single roadkill

Rhett Ayers Butler 5 Aug 2026

Doña Oscarina. Photo by Ana Amelia Hamdan / ISA

Doña Oscarina, master ceramicist, documented Indigenous knowledge along the Tiquié River

Rhett Ayers Butler 4 Aug 2026

A whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus) stalks the reef at Luf Island, Papua New Guinea.

Four Pacific nations are planning one of the world’s largest ocean corridors

Rhett Ayers Butler 4 Aug 2026

A local community takes part in a tree plantation project in 2018.

Bangladesh plans to plant 250 million trees. Keeping them alive will be harder

Rhett Ayers Butler 3 Aug 2026

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