Indonesia’s deforestation surges 66% in 2025, reversing years of decline (April 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/indonesias-deforestation-surges-66-in-2025-reversing-years-of-decline/
- New satellite data show that deforestation in Indonesia surged in 2025, up 66% from the previous year, marking a sharp reversal after several years of decline.
- The implications extend beyond forest loss, as rising deforestation could derail Indonesia’s climate goals, including its target of turning the forestry and land use sector into a net carbon sink by 2030.
- NGO Auriga Nusantara points to policy decisions under both the current and former administrations; at the same time, government-backed projects have been allowed to expand into forest areas, often without adequate spatial planning.
Today is Jane Goodall Day. Her movement continues. (April 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/today-is-jane-goodall-day-her-movement-continues/
- April 3, now recognized as Jane Goodall Day, is intended as a day of action—an invitation to carry forward the habits and responsibilities she encouraged, rather than simply commemorate her life.
- From Roots & Shoots to community-led conservation models like Tacare, her work continues through people who apply her approach locally, linking the well-being of people, animals, and the environment.
- Colleagues at the Jane Goodall Institute describe a consistent throughline in her thinking: start small, stay attentive, and build change through actions that accumulate over time.
- The day reflects a broader idea at the center of her life’s work—that progress depends less on scale or certainty than on individuals choosing to act, where they are, with what they have.
Talks to reduce funding for overfishing remain stalled at WTO meeting (April 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/talks-to-reduce-funding-for-overfishing-remain-stalled-at-wto-meeting/
- Delegates at a recent World Trade Organization summit in Cameroon agreed to continue “Fish Two” negotiations aimed at a deal to curb government subsidies that support unsustainable fishing, but progress remains limited, with just three countries blocking consensus despite broad support.
- The first phase of the deal, “Fish One,” entered into force in September 2025 and now has 116 ratifications; but key fishing nations, including India and Indonesia, have not joined.
- Disputes over Fish Two center on fairness: Developing countries argue the draft text disadvantages them, particularly through sustainability-based exemptions that favor wealthier nations with better scientific capacity.
- A four-year “sunset clause” triggered by Fish One’s entry into force now puts pressure on talks: If a full agreement is not reached by 2029, the entire deal, including Fish One, risks collapsing.
Return of the giant tortoises (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/return-of-the-giant-tortoises/
For the first time in nearly two centuries, giant tortoises are once again roaming Floreana Island in the Galápagos, a conservation milestone more than a decade in the making.
Green and gray: Mangroves and dikes show potential in protecting shorelines together (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/green-and-gray-mangroves-and-dikes-show-potential-in-protecting-shorelines-together/
- A recent paper modeled how restoring mangroves in front of water-controlling infrastructure like dikes might create a hybrid coastal defense system in the face of global sea level rise.
- The model found that this combination, put in place today, could reduce the annual damage from storms and flooding by $800 million, and that 140,000 fewer people would be impacted by these events every year.
- They also found that these numbers would increase over time with the impacts of climate change.
- The researchers also evaluated where these projects would be most cost-effective, finding that the benefits disproportionately help lower-income areas, particularly in Southeast Asia, South Asia and West Africa.
Banned but not silenced: Gerry Flynn’s commitment to uncovering the truth across the Mekong (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/banned-but-not-silenced-gerry-flynns-commitment-to-uncovering-the-truth-across-the-mekong/
- Gerald “Gerry” Flynn is Mongabay’s features writer for Southeast Asia, reporting on the intersection of human rights, ecosystems and natural resource governance.
- In January 2025, Flynn was permanently banned from Cambodia in what appeared to be retaliation for his journalistic work; he is now based in Thailand and covers the Mekong region more broadly.
- He emphasizes that environmental journalism in authoritarian contexts must expose realities often omitted from state-controlled media.
- Flynn says he values on-the-ground reporting, amplifying local voices and balancing bravery with safety.
Brazilian banks to verify satellite deforestation data for rural credit (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/brazilian-banks-to-verify-satellite-deforestation-data-for-rural-credit/
SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s banks will be required to verify official satellite deforestation data before approving rural credit beginning on Wednesday in the South American country. Under the new rule, financial institutions must check whether a property appears in a government registry of areas with potential illegal deforestation after July 31, 2019. The database, maintained […]
Railroad & tariff war boost soy in Brazil’s Cerrado, endangering Indigenous lands (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/railroad-tariff-war-boost-soy-in-brazils-cerrado-endangering-indigenous-lands/
- Driven by the tariff war between the U.S. and China, soy production in Brazil’s Mato Grosso state is breaking records and encroaching on the Cerrado biome.
- Logistics projects such as the Ferrogrão railroad are expected to scale up production, further increasing the risk of deforestation.
- In the Tirecatinga Indigenous Land, amid still-standing Cerrado, Indigenous peoples are already feeling the impacts of pesticides and dams.
New species discovered in Cambodia’s rare rocky ecosystems (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/new-species-discovered-in-cambodias-rare-rocky-ecosystems/
Scientists have discovered at least 11 new species in the caves and rocky outcroppings of northern Cambodia’s Battambang and Stung Treng provinces. The findings were compiled into a new biodiversity report. Seven new species have already been formally described and another four are in the process. To map the biodiversity in the nation’s karst ecosystems, […]
How underinvesting in information threatens our collective well-being (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/how-underinvesting-in-information-threatens-our-collective-well-being/
- This essay is adapted from the article, “Information as Civic Infrastructure—and How Philanthropy Can Support the Ecosystem,” which was originally published in Nonprofit Quarterly on March 3, 2026.
- While philanthropy traditionally funds direct solutions like land conservation or technology, it often overlooks the fragile information environment that these interventions require to succeed.
- The lack of credible, verified data creates an “information gap” that allows environmental harms to go unnoticed and undermines the public oversight necessary for regulatory and market accountability.
- Investing in the core capacities of a healthy information ecosystem—such as data verification and digital security—provides the essential clarity needed to address our most urgent global challenges.
How wild cattle recovery is transforming local livelihoods near key Thai reserve (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/how-wild-cattle-recovery-is-transforming-local-livelihoods-near-key-thai-reserve/
- Banteng, a species of wild cattle, have suffered an 80% population decline across their range in recent decades. But in Thailand, populations are rebounding strongly in well-protected areas.
- Decades of strict habitat protection and ranger patrols have reduced poaching and recovered numbers to such an extent that several herds have spread outside of protected sites into surrounding buffer areas, where enforcement of wildlife laws is limited.
- In an effort to protect the growing herds, villagers living in the buffer area of Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, who once experienced conflict with the banteng, have set up a community-led ecotourism initiative based on banteng-watching.
- The wildlife tours are creating powerful cultural, social and financial deterrents to poaching, and the banteng are proving to be a key species around which to rally local support for conservation.
Linda Dakin-Grimm and Geo Chen join Mongabay’s board as it expands global coverage (April 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/linda-dakin-grimm-and-geo-chen-join-mongabays-board-as-it-expands-global-coverage/
- Mongabay has appointed Linda Dakin-Grimm and Geo Chen to its board of directors, adding legal, philanthropic and investment expertise to support its mission of independent environmental journalism.
- Their appointments come amid rapid organizational growth, with traffic up 166% and story production rising 44% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period last year.
- The organization continues to expand its editorial capacity and global reach, including new investments in key reporting areas, additional language offerings, and a fellowship program that is expected to nearly double in size.
- Mongabay’s growth is guided not by scale alone but by how its reporting informs decisions by policymakers, practitioners and communities working on environmental challenges.
Australia’s flying foxes offer valuable services & deserve better reputation: Study (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/australias-flying-foxes-offer-valuable-services-deserve-better-reputation-study/
A new study in Scientific Reports provides the first economic valuation of the ecosystem services provided by flying foxes in Australia, focusing on their significant contribution to the timber industry.
Who gives up land for the world’s climate fixes? (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/who-gives-up-land-for-the-worlds-climate-fixes/
Planting trees has become one of the most widely promoted responses to climate change. As forests grow, they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while offering habitat for animals, plants and other organisms. The idea is straightforward: Expand forests, and the planet gains both climate mitigation and renewed biodiversity. Yet the land required to remove […]
Ethiopian women plant trees, restoring lands & livelihoods (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/ethiopian-women-plant-trees-restoring-lands-livelihoods/
- In southern Ethiopia, unsustainable farming practices and tree cutting for fuel are causing land degradation.
- The Integrated Women’s Development Organization has planted fruit and other trees as well as grass for animal fodder to restore soil and tree cover and provide additional income for its members.
- IWDO recently became a member of the GLFx network, connecting it with similar independent, community-oriented groups to strengthen its work protecting and restoring healthy forests and other landscapes.
Thai court rules gold mine liable, but villagers face uncertain justice (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/thai-court-rules-gold-mine-liable-but-villagers-face-uncertain-justice/
- A Thai court has ruled a gold mining company liable for environmental damage and health impacts, ordering compensation for nearly 400 villagers and mandating cleanup measures.
- The landmark verdict, Thailand’s first environmental class action, is being appealed, delaying payouts and prolonging an already decade-long legal battle.
- Villagers say the compensation falls far short of their losses, with many continuing to suffer from contamination, health issues and ruined livelihoods.
- The case highlights ongoing tensions over mining impacts and accountability, as operations continue and communities push for stronger legal action and remediation.
Marina Silva steps down as Brazil’s environment minister to run for Congress (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/marina-silva-steps-down-as-brazils-environment-minister-to-run-for-congress/
SAO PAULO (AP) — Marina Silva is stepping down as Brazil’s environment minister so that she can run for Congress in national elections. Under Brazilian law, ministers must leave office six months before the vote. Silva returned to the job in 2023 and helped drive a sharp drop in deforestation after major losses under former […]
American Samoa said ‘no’ to deep sea mining, Washington heard ‘faster’ (commentary) (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/american-samoa-said-no-to-deep-sea-mining-washington-heard-faster-commentary/
- The U.S. government is moving fast to grant leases to corporations for deep sea mining in places like the territory of American Samoa: once issued, these are very difficult to rescind.
- Leaders there have weighed in against this lease on cultural and environmental grounds, but the federal agency in charge has merely acknowledged this dissent while continuing to move forward.
- “American Samoa is not a test case; it’s at risk of becoming the federal government’s blueprint” on deep-sea mining licensing, a new op-ed states.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
A ‘big book’ documenting Cameroon’s sharks & rays fills critical conservation gap (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/a-big-book-documenting-cameroons-sharks-rays-fills-critical-conservation-gap/
- Between 2015 and 2023, researchers working with fishers recorded more than 7,000 sharks and rays caught at sea and landed along Cameroon’s coast.
- The recorded animals represent 45 species, of which 13 are critically endangered.
- Their research found that most sharks and rays landed in Cameroon’s fisheries are juveniles, raising serious concerns about population recovery.
- The data help scientists better understand species composition, catch trends and conservation priorities along Cameroon’s coast.
Working together, Indigenous peoples & researchers describe new Amazonian palm (April 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/working-together-indigenous-peoples-researchers-describe-new-amazonian-palm/
- Although used for centuries by the Cacua Indigenous people in Colombia, the táam palm was, until recently, unknown to science. During fieldwork in the village of Wacará, two botanists were offered to eat a fruit they had never seen before, so they set out to discover what species it was.
- With help from the Indigenous community, they were able to find the palm and collect samples in line with the Cacua people’s approach to conserving the plant.
- Lab tests showed that táam was a palm species previously unknown to science that researchers named Attalea taam. After the discovery, the botanists returned to the community and started a participatory process to study the palm’s ecology and distribution.
- Several members of the Cacua community co-authored the scientific paper describing the new species. By relying on Indigenous knowledge and mapping, the researchers say they have obtained better results than through using just a Western scientific approach.