Kenyan woman hugs a tree for 3 days and inspires a movement (February 3, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/kenyan-woman-hugs-a-tree-for-3-days-and-inspires-a-movement/
Young Kenyan environmentalist Truphena Muthoni has set a Guinness World Record (GWR), for the second time, after embracing a tree for 72 hours. She hugged the tree for three days, Dec. 8-11, 2025, to raise awareness about climate change and protest the destruction of Indigenous forests. In doing so, she caught the attention of the […]
Amazon deforestation may rise 30% as major traders exit historic soy pact (February 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/amazon-deforestation-may-rise-30-as-major-traders-exit-historic-soy-pact/
- Major soy traders like Cargill, ADM and Bunge announced their withdrawal from the Amazon soy moratorium, a move that could increase deforestation in the biome by 30% by 2045.
- Behind the exodus are farmers and ranchers’ associations and local politicians linked to agribusiness.
- Their abandonment of the agreement signals a “green light” for land speculators to clear rainforest for new soy crops, observers warn.
- Advancing deforestation may lead companies to lose market share and intensify agricultural failures due to the lack of rain.
Inside Mongabay with Isabel Esterman and the long arc of environmental reporting (February 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/inside-mongabay-with-isabel-esterman-and-the-long-arc-of-environmental-reporting/
For Isabel Esterman, journalism’s influence is often cumulative. It comes from staying with a subject long enough for the evidence to become harder to ignore. “It’s not one story,” she tells Alejandro Prescott-Cornejo, “but this collective body of reporting, and staying on it has been significant.” That idea runs through her work at Mongabay, […]
Argentina fires ravage pristine Patagonia forests, fueling criticism of Milei’s austerity (February 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/argentina-fires-ravage-pristine-patagonia-forests-fueling-criticism-of-mileis-austerity/
LOS ALERCES NATIONAL PARK, Argentina (AP) — Argentina’s Patagonia region is battling severe wildfires, with vast areas of Los Alerces National Park ablaze. The fires have destroyed over 45,000 hectares of native forests, forcing thousands to evacuate. Critics blame President Javier Milei’s austerity measures, which have slashed firefighting budgets. On Monday, the fires continued to […]
When nature becomes a security risk (February 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/when-nature-becomes-a-security-risk/
Britain’s national security thinking has traditionally been shaped by familiar concerns: hostile states, terrorism, energy supply, and, more recently, cyber threats. A new assessment from the U.K. government adds a different category to that list. Global biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse, it argues, now pose a direct and growing risk to national security, with implications […]
The fair costs for forest rehabilitation in Indonesia (commentary) (February 2, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/the-fair-costs-for-forest-rehabilitation-in-indonesia-commentary/
- Aida Greenbury, a sustainability leader and forestry expert, argues that Indonesia’s plan to spend US$9.2 billion in public funds to rehabilitate degraded forests lacks transparency and risks placing the financial burden on taxpayers rather than those most responsible for deforestation.
- She points to consistent evidence showing that large corporations in sectors such as palm oil, timber, pulp and paper, and mining are the primary drivers of forest loss, raising questions about why national and regional budgets should pay for restoring landscapes damaged by private industry.
- Greenbury calls for clearer disclosure, stronger accountability mechanisms, and a public–private financing model that requires companies linked to deforestation to bear most of the restoration costs, while ensuring reforms are grounded in credible data and community consent.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.
Division’s final journey (February 1, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/divisions-final-journey/
- Division, a four-year-old North Atlantic right whale known as Catalog #5217, was found dead off the coast of North Carolina in January after weeks in failing health caused by a severe fishing-gear entanglement that responders were unable to fully remove.
- Born in 2021 to a female named Silt, Division had already survived three earlier entanglements, a reminder of how early and repeatedly right whales now encounter life-threatening human hazards.
- His death comes amid fragile signs of hope for the species, with fifteen calves recorded this winter in a population of roughly 380 whales, far short of the numbers needed for recovery.
- Division’s short life illustrates how the threats facing right whales are not abstract but cumulative and prolonged, shaping lifespans measured in decades and placing the species’ future in the balance of decisions made far from the water.
Christ Jacob Belseran wins the Oktovianus Pogau Award for courage in journalism (January 31, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/christ-jacob-belseran-wins-the-oktovianus-pogau-award-for-courage-in-journalism/
Today Christ Jacob Belseran received the Oktovianus Pogau Award for courage in journalism from Pantau Foundation. The citation is usually reserved for reporters who continue their work despite adversity and, at times, direct threats. Belseran is a contributor to Mongabay Indonesia and the editor and founder of Titastory, a local outlet he established in […]
Viral hyena incident reveals Nepal’s growing online information disorder (January 31, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/viral-hyena-incident-reveals-nepals-growing-online-information-disorder/
- A false social media claim about hyenas entering an eastern Nepal town highlights how rapidly online misinformation is spreading across the country, as internet and smartphone use rise.
- With dozens of complaints lodged over misleading content in recent months, the information disorder is challenging public trust and distorting perceptions of wildlife, experts warn.
- Nepal remains divided over how to respond, as debates continue between stricter regulation and greater investment in media and digital literacy, amid concerns that existing laws are being used to curb freedom of expression.
Habitat destruction, illegal trade threaten Sri Lanka’s endangered agamid lizards (January 31, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/habitat-destruction-illegal-trade-threaten-sri-lankas-endangered-agamid-lizards/
- Two of Sri Lanka’s rare lizards, the critically endangered Dumbara agama (Cophotis dumbara) and the endangered Ceylon deaf agama (Cophotis ceylanica) are popular on global trading websites as exotic pets since 2015 with the captive bred lizards and juveniles carrying a price tag ranging between $500 to $1000.
- The demand for endemic and exotic lizards as pets is increasing becoming popular, with a spiking demand on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram where Copohotis lizards are among the most popular species to be traded.
- Conservationists warn against the consistent demand contributing to exploitation and over-harvesting of these rare species as climate change and habitat loss make their survival difficult.
Peru to invest $7.6 billion to continue critical minerals extraction (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/peru-to-invest-7-6-billion-to-continue-critical-minerals-extraction/
- Peru’s Ministry of Energy and Mines announced it will invest $7.6 billion to expand and improve mining operations that extract zinc, lead, tin, silver, copper and gold.
- Many of the minerals found in Peru are vital for developing batteries, turbines, solar panels and other technology that will ultimately help lower global carbon emissions.
- Most of the investment will go to upgrading infrastructure and operation safety and efficiency at eight mine sites already in operation, in some cases extending their lifespans.
Solar energy gains ground across Africa, but challenges persist (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/solar-energy-gains-ground-across-africa-but-challenges-persist/
Solar energy is rapidly expanding across Africa, giving hope for electrifying more of the continent with renewable energy. The Central African Republic, for example, generates more than a third of its energy from sunlight, giving it the highest penetration of solar in its electricity mix in Africa. That’s according to the latest report from the […]
A ‘new baseline’: Study captures accelerating sea-level rise in Africa (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/a-new-baseline-study-captures-accelerating-sea-level-rise-in-africa/
- Sea-level rise has accelerated across Africa in recent decades, thanks to global warming and, in particular, to the melting of ice sheets and glaciers, according to a recent study.
- Sea levels across the continent have risen four times faster since 2010, on average, than they had in the 1990s. About 80% of the sea-level rise is due to added water mass from meltwater.
- The impacts include flooding, erosion of coastal land, intrusion of salty seawater into freshwater drinking sources and displacement of coastal communities.
- In many coastal areas, sea-level rise occurs even as the land itself is sinking due to groundwater extraction or other factors, exacerbating its impacts.
On Mongabay’s legacy (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/on-mongabays-legacy/
- Mongabay did not set out to redefine environmental journalism, but grew by filling persistent information gaps around ecosystems and communities far from centers of power, treating those places as inherently consequential.
- Its legacy is rooted in persistence: returning to the same regions over years, building institutional memory, and allowing patterns in deforestation, governance, and community adaptation to become visible.
- Structurally, Mongabay demonstrated that a distributed network of local journalists could produce rigorous, globally relevant reporting at a time when foreign bureaus and specialist beats were disappearing.
- Mongabay Founder and CEO Rhett Ayers Butler reflects on 15 years since he decided to transition Mongabay into a nonprofit, prioritizing influence, reach, and public access to information over traffic, ownership, or easy metrics of success.
New data highlight Peru’s growing oil and gas footprint in the Amazon (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/new-data-highlight-perus-growing-oil-and-gas-footprint-in-the-amazon/
Peru has the most oil and gas projects heading into production in the Amazon, according to a new data set published by the Stockholm Environment Institute. At 85 blocks in pre-production in the rainforest, that’s more than the 68 in Colombia and 53 in Brazil. Peru has 173 oil and gas lease blocks in total, […]
‘Blew us away’: Researchers find nitrogen boost spurs faster tropical forest growth (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/blew-us-away-researchers-find-nitrogen-boost-spurs-faster-tropical-forest-growth/
- A new study in Panama finds that nitrogen availability limits forest growth in the early stages of regeneration.
- Nitrogen addition to newly cleared land and 10-year-old forests substantially boosted regeneration, though adding nutrients to older forests did not have the same effect
- The study also found that phosphorus availability did not limit forest growth at any stage of forest maturity.
- The researchers recommend ensuring nitrogen-fixing species are included during reforestation.
Brazil declares açaí a national fruit amid biopiracy concerns (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/brazil-declares-acai-a-national-fruit-amid-biopiracy-concerns/
Brazil recently passed a law to recognize açaí, a berry endemic to the Amazon, as a national fruit, citing concerns about biopiracy — the commercial exploitation of native species and traditional knowledge without consent or fair compensation. Açaí is a staple food in northern Brazil, where it’s eaten as a savory paste typically served with […]
Cameroon cookstove project looks to slow forest loss (January 30, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/cameroon-cookstove-project-looks-to-slow-forest-loss/
- The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) hopes new cookstoves that require less wood than traditional varieties will slow forest loss in Cameroon.
- Mongabay visited one of the villages where CIFOR’s project is taking place to talk to people who are involved in it.
- Long-term success rates for similar projects in Africa have often been low.
- CIFOR wants to break that trend by encouraging people to adopt the new cookstoves and keep using them.
Australia’s land-use squeeze (January 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/01/australias-land-use-squeeze/
- Australia’s recent land use change has steadily reduced and degraded native vegetation, shrinking the amount of intact habitat available to wildlife and weakening ecosystem resilience.
- Clearing has been concentrated in productive regions, especially along the eastern seaboard and parts of the north, where agriculture, development, and resource extraction continue to reshape landscapes.
- The biodiversity impacts are not only about area lost: fragmentation breaks habitats into smaller, drier, more isolated patches, making populations more vulnerable to fire, heat, invasive species, and local collapse.
- Conservation tools like protected areas and restoration help, but they struggle to keep pace when habitat loss continues through thousands of incremental decisions across overlapping state and federal systems.
Data show oil and gas blocks cover one-fourth of Ecuador, mostly in the Amazon (January 29, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/01/data-show-oil-and-gas-blocks-cover-one-fourth-of-ecuador-mostly-in-the-amazon/
Ecuador has 65 oil and gas lease blocks, 88% of them in the Amazon, covering a quarter of the country’s total area. That’s according to a new data set from the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI). Many of the lease blocks overlap with several Indigenous territories, including the Cuyabeno-Imuya Intangible Zone, which is home to 11 […]