Indonesia’s blackouts reignite debate over coal-dependent energy transition (July 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/indonesias-blackouts-reignite-debate-over-coal-dependent-energy-transition/
- Recent blackouts in Sumatra and Java exposed vulnerabilities in Indonesia’s electricity system, with PLN saying constrained coal supplies contributed to the Java outage.
- Energy analysts say the outages exposed the risks of Indonesia’s centralized, coal-dependent electricity system and strengthened the case for distributed renewable energy such as rooftop solar.
- A recent study identified six coal plants on Java as priority candidates for early retirement, estimating their closure would eliminate 93.5 million metric tons of annual CO₂ emissions.
- Environmental groups say biomass co-firing allows aging coal plants to keep operating while creating new pressures on forests and rural communities supplying wood fuel.
Recent discoveries of ‘lost’ Mekong giant salmon carp renews hope for the fish (July 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/recent-discoveries-of-lost-mekong-giant-salmon-carp-renews-hope-for-the-fish/
A large fish once feared extinct in Cambodia has been recorded in the country’s waters for the fourth time since 2020, renewing hope for the species. The Mekong giant salmon carp (Aaptosyax grypus), a critically endangered large-sized freshwater fish, was formally described from the Mekong River in 1991. Over the next 14 years, there had […]
The blueprint for building a fairer world without breaking the planet (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/06/the-blueprint-for-building-a-fairer-world-without-breaking-the-planet/
A group of more than 40 researchers spent 20 months devising a plan for the world to achieve ecological sustainability within planetary boundaries, all while seeing incomes rise for 98% of the global population and reducing working hours for everybody by half to two and a half days a week. The plan to achieve this […]
Fossils reveal a prehistoric crocodile relative that walked on two legs (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/fossils-reveal-a-prehistoric-crocodile-relative-that-walked-on-two-legs/
Dinosaurs like tyrannosaurs and velociraptors famously walked on two legs. But they weren’t the only bipedal prehistoric creatures to exist. In a study published in June, paleontologists shared the discovery of a new bipedal shuvosaurid, an ancient, distant relative of crocodiles, that lived 212 million years ago in what is now the U.S. state of […]
Gelada monkeys huddle in the cold: Photo of the week (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/gelada-monkeys-huddle-in-the-cold-photo-of-the-week/
A group of geladas monkeys (Theropithecus gelada), pictured above, huddle to keep warm on a cold day in the Wilhelma Zoo in Stuttgart, Germany. Endemic to Ethiopia’s cold Afroalpine and sub-Afroalpine grasslands, the species is the only primate, apart from humans, that primarily lives on land rather than trees. They spend most of their time […]
Cypriot natural gas could start flowing from ExxonMobil’s discoveries by 2033 (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/cypriot-natural-gas-could-start-flowing-from-exxonmobils-discoveries-by-2033/
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Natural gas could start flowing by 2033 out of two undersea deposits discovered by ExxonMobil off Cyprus, a senior executive with the company said Tuesday, helping to turn the east Mediterranean island nation into a new European energy hub. The largest U.S. oil company and its consortium partner, QatarEnergy, consider the most likely option for […]
Secret Amazon species may be new source of ibogaine for addiction treatment (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/secret-amazon-species-may-be-new-source-of-ibogaine-for-addiction-treatment/
- A new harvesting method allows an undisclosed Amazon plant to provide production of ibogaine, a psychedelic compound known for its largely unregulated and understudied properties in helping chemical addiction.
- Regarded as sacred in Gabon, the iboga plant that’s the primary source of ibogaine has been subject to poaching and smuggling, leading to the decline of its natural reserves and encouraging researchers to seek out alternatives.
- The substance is at the center of a new political and scientific movement to advance medicinal studies of natural compounds labelled today as illegal drugs.
Foreign nationals attempt to fly to Europe with rare cacti from southern Brazil (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/foreign-nationals-attempt-to-fly-to-europe-with-rare-cacti-from-southern-brazil/
- Brazilian authorities detained Czech, German and Russian nationals carrying hundreds of cacti and their seeds, all native to Southern Brazil.
- The species targeted are critically endangered and highly prized by collectors worldwide.
- The foreigners caught by police include amateur botanists who are renowned among the international cactus-loving community.
- Illegal removal from nature harms the preservation of species that can take up to 10 years to become productive.
What’s jimbu? The herb that bolsters an iconic Nepali dish could also help save snow leopards (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/whats-jimbu-the-herb-that-bolsters-an-iconic-nepali-dish-could-also-help-save-snow-leopards/
- Communities in the remote Himalayan Phu Valley in Nepal have begun farming jimbu, an aromatic chive central to a staple food, dal bhat. Some 37 households are involved in the pilot project.
- This herb offers a potential conservation dividend: Its pungent smell deters blue sheep from raiding crops. Since they’re snow leopards’ main prey, it may reduce the cats’ visits to human settlements and lower livestock predation.
- Growing jimbu, with three yearly harvests, could generate about 12 million rupees ($79,500) in communities where potato farming offers little cash income.
- Experts caution that the model is not universally replicable and warn against blanket adoption across other snow leopard habitats, emphasizing site-specific conservation needs.
Tiny new marsupial species, not seen in two decades, confirmed from museum specimens (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/tiny-new-marsupial-species-not-seen-in-two-decades-confirmed-from-museum-specimens/
Researchers have confirmed a new-to-science species of marsupial in Australia’s Northern Territory. The tiny mouse-like carnivore has been named the Arnhem Plateau planigale (Planigale petrophila) after the area where it’s thought to live in; its scientific name translates to rock lover. Planigales are the world’s smallest marsupials, some weighing just a couple of grams. Only […]
Bangladesh unveils sweeping EV incentives to cut emissions and pollution (June 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/bangladesh-unveils-sweeping-ev-incentives-to-cut-emissions-and-pollution/
- In the national budget announced on June 11, the Bangladeshi government waived tariffs on the import of electric vehicles (EVs) such as buses and trucks between July 1, 2026, and June 2030, while increasing tariffs on fossil fuel-run vehicles.
- A tariff waiver was also announced for setting up charging stations for EVs.
- The government aims to replace 25% of buses and 30% of trucks with electric alternatives, in line with the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).
- Besides adaptation, the South Asian country is now embarking on mitigation to reduce carbon emissions and air pollution that kill hundreds of thousands of people every year.
A coastal Philippine farm offers a blueprint for farming with wetlands (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-coastal-philippine-farm-offers-a-blueprint-for-farming-with-wetlands/
- The Glinoga Integrated Farm in the Philippines’ Quezon province uses permaculture techniques to grow crops in harmony with the surrounding coastal ecosystem.
- One study looking at permaculture farms across 11 provinces in the Philippines found that Glinoga had the highest level of crop diversity among the farms it surveyed.
- Farm operator Ninieveh Glinoga converted the farm to a permaculture system after decades of incapacity by relatives and tenants had left the farms soil degraded.
Aquatic animal and terrestrial meat trades now almost on par, FAO report finds (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/aquatic-animal-and-terrestrial-meat-trades-now-almost-on-par-fao-report-finds/
- The FAO recently released its State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA) report, a biennial collection of data that policymakers, scientists and civil society groups rely on.
- Global fisheries and aquaculture production, including algae as well as animal products, reached a record 235 million metric tons in 2024, with farmed aquatic animal production surpassing 100 million metric tons annually for the first time. This brings the total aquatic animal product trade close to that of terrestrial meat.
- The report, which covers around 70% of global fisheries, found that sustainably fished stocks fell by 2.1% to a new low of 62.4%.
- The report projects continued growth in aquatic animal production from both fisheries and aquaculture, but warns that achieving it sustainably and equitably will require greater investment, effective governance and continued innovation.
Human rights abuse allegations continue to rise in the mining sector, report finds (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/human-rights-abuse-allegations-continue-to-rise-in-the-mining-sector-report-finds/
- The U.S. and European Union have intensified efforts to secure the minerals needed for a clean energy transition. But as investment grows, so does conflict throughout the sector.
- The Business and Human Rights Centre released the 2025 findings for its Transition Mineral Tracker, which monitors allegations of abuse by large-scale mining of bauxite, cobalt, copper, lithium, manganese, nickel, iron ore and zinc.
- The NGO reviewed 299 mining operations and their owners, counting 329 allegations of abuse, up from 156 the year before.
- The allegations increased in every region of the world, but nowhere has been worse than in South America, which has seen 447 allegations since 2010.
Hong Kong’s urban cockatoos could be a genetic lifeline for Indonesian ancestors (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/hong-kongs-urban-cockatoos-could-be-a-genetic-lifeline-for-indonesian-ancestors/
A noisy population of feral yellow-crested cockatoos living in the dense, urban landscape of Hong Kong may hold the genetic key to saving the species from extinction in Indonesia, according to a new study. The yellow-crested cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea) is critically endangered in its native range in Indonesia and Timor-Leste, with fewer than 2,000 individuals […]
One mountain lion changed the food web in a California suburb, study finds (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/one-mountain-lion-changed-the-food-web-in-a-california-suburb-study-finds/
- The presence of a mountain lion in a small biological preserve near Stanford University in California transformed the local food web.
- A recent study drew on nine years of camera trap data from Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve and found that when a puma began to visit, coyotes, deer, gray foxes and brush rabbits changed their behavior and native plant density increased.
- About 82% of protected areas in the United States are smaller than 5 square kilometers, roughly 2 square miles, making small suburban preserves increasingly important for wildlife as urban development expands.
- Jasper Ridge is far too small to support its own population of mountain lions, but is linked to the Santa Cruz Mountains, underscoring the importance of wilderness corridors in supporting wildlife.
As Amazon oil drilling begins, scientists warn of risks to a little-known reef (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/as-amazon-oil-drilling-begins-scientists-warn-of-risks-to-a-little-known-reef/
- Brazilian state oil and gas company Petrobras has started drilling in the Equatorial Margin after years of political, scientific and environmental disputes over the risks posed by oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon River.
- Researchers warn that the Amazon Reef system harbors a wealth of biodiversity and has not been widely studied, despite being close to Petrobras’s exploration block.
- Scientists disagree about the composition and extent of the Amazonian reefs, while environmentalists denounce attempts to downplay their ecological importance.
- Experts warn that an oil spill could reach mangroves, small-scale fisheries, and even neighboring countries, due to strong marine currents in the area.
São Tomé declares first two of eight planned marine protected areas (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/sao-tome-declares-first-two-of-eight-planned-marine-protected-areas/
The West African island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe has formally designated its first two protected sites off its coast. This comes less than a year after presenting its plans to establish a national network of eight marine protected areas (MPAs) covering 93 square kilometers (36 square miles) in the Gulf of Guinea. The two […]
The Ideas Shaping Environmental Action (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/specials/2026/06/the-ideas-shaping-environmental-action/
What ideas are shaping responses to the environmental crisis? The Mongabay Newscast picks the brains of authors, researchers, activists and storytellers exploring the systems behind biodiversity loss and climate change. From economic inequality and governance to Indigenous knowledge and climate fiction, this podcast series examines how ideas about change take shape, gain influence and tackle […]
Telling one guiña from another: It’s all about the angle (June 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/telling-one-guina-from-another-its-all-about-the-angle/
- Guiña are small cats found in Chile and Argentina. Though in 2025 the IUCN downlisted the species to least concern, not enough is known about populations under threat from habitat loss, persecution and forest fires.
- To help fill those gaps, researchers switched the angle of the camera traps used for surverying the species to film guiña individuals from above rather than at ground level. That enabled them to identify individual cats during camera trapping between February 2019 and November 2020 in a protected area in Reñihué Valley, Chile.
- If used more widely in camera trap surveys, this technique could help accurately estimate guiña populations in the wild.
- The researchers also say this technique could be applied to other small cat species.