| news | india | latam | brasil | indonesia |
|
Mexico’s rising mercury trade fuels toxic gold mining in Latin America: Report (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/mexicos-rising-mercury-trade-fuels-toxic-gold-mining-in-latin-america-report/ - High prices and weak oversight have turned Mexico into one of the main suppliers of mercury for gold mines across Latin America, according to an Environmental Investigation Agency report. - Despite signing an international treaty to combat mercury production, Mexico continues to struggle with mercury smuggling to countries like Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. - Mercury mining has attracted the interest of criminal groups like the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, and today occurs in the states of Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí and Querétaro. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
More than 10,000 species on brink of extinction need urgent action: Study (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/more-than-10000-species-on-brink-of-extinction-need-urgent-action-study/ - New research identifies 10,443 critically endangered species worldwide, with effective protection strategies available if funding and political will follow. - More than 1,500 species, or 15% of the critically endangered species, are estimated to have fewer than 50 mature individuals remaining in the wild. - Just 16 countries hold more than half of all critically endangered species, with concentrations across the Caribbean islands, Atlantic coastal regions of South America, the Mediterranean, Cameroon, Lake Victoria, Madagascar and Southeast Asia. - Improving the status of critically endangered species would cost between an estimated $1 billion and $2 billion annually, a small fraction of global economic activity and less than 2% of the net worth of billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Ambitious Denmark project starts farm-to-forest conversion (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/ambitious-denmark-project-starts-farm-to-forest-conversion/ In December 2024, Denmark embarked on an ambitious plan to cut carbon emissions and restore 250,000 hectares (617,763 acres) or almost 6% of the country into forested area. One local initiative is afforesting agricultural land in Aarhus municipality, home to the country’s second-largest city, where nature is being allowed to take its course — with […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Scientists use the ‘smell of burned plastic’ to measure nanoplastics in the ocean (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/scientists-use-the-smell-of-burned-plastic-to-measure-nanoplastics-in-the-ocean/ Scientists recently estimated, for the first time, that the North Atlantic Ocean contains millions of tons of nanoplastics. To measure it, they used a detection method that picks up the chemical markers, or smell, of trace amounts of burned plastic. “Imagine you forget a plastic knife in the oven, and you turn it on and […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
As Indonesia reclaims forests from palm oil, smallholders bear brunt of enforcement (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/as-indonesia-reclaims-forests-from-palm-oil-smallholders-bear-brunt-of-enforcement/ - Indonesian authorities have reclaimed 2 million hectares (5 million acres) of forest from illegal oil palm plantations under a militarized crackdown, but critics say it disproportionately targets Indigenous communities and smallholders while sparing large corporations, deepening land inequality. - Much of the reclaimed land is being handed over to state-owned plantation company PT Agrinas Palma Nusantara, raising concerns that private monopolies are being replaced by a state one, with some communities pushed into profit-sharing schemes critics call exploitative. - In biodiversity-rich Tesso Nilo National Park, thousands of families are being forcibly evicted, while powerful figures like a local legislator evade sanctions, highlighting a two-tiered policing system. - Activists are calling for a new forestry law to address outdated legislation, protect Indigenous land rights, mandate ecological restoration, and close legal loopholes that allow corporate violators to avoid accountability. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Rising heat threatens female-male ratio of India’s unique gharial crocs (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/rising-heat-threatens-female-male-ratio-of-indias-unique-gharial-crocs/ For India’s critically endangered gharial, a fish-eating crocodile with a slender snout that ends in a bulbous growth, heat is emerging as a major threat, reports contributor Sneha Mahale for Mongabay India. Nest temperatures are rising, researchers wrote in a new study, which could be skewing the sex ratio of hatchling gharials (Gavialis gangeticus) more […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Domestic cats pose interbreeding threat to little known wildcat ancestor (July 30, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/domestic-cats-pose-interbreeding-threat-to-little-known-wildcat-ancestor/ Domestic cats are hugely popular as pets, yet little is known about their ancestor, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat. This species, Felis lybica, is the most widely distributed wildcat in the world, but experts still don’t know its exact population. The wildcat faces several threats to its survival, including interbreeding with domestic cats and the diseases they […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Forget decrees; try patience. Martin Goebel plays the long game in conserving Baja California. (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/forget-decrees-try-patience-martin-goebel-plays-the-long-game-in-conserving-baja-california/ - Martin Goebel champions a patient, relationship-based approach to conservation, focusing on community trust and long-term collaboration rather than top-down mandates or rapid results. - Through LegacyWorks and its ResiMar initiative in Baja California Sur, Goebel and partners work to regenerate ecosystems from mountains to sea by aligning environmental goals with local aspirations, emphasizing social legitimacy as a prerequisite for success. - Drawing from decades of experience, including missteps like the vaquita reserve, Goebel argues that the toughest conservation challenges are social—not ecological—and require humility, listening, and time to build something that truly lasts. - Goebel spoke with Mongabay Founder and CEO Rhett Ayers Butler in Mexico in June 2025. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Indigenous knowledge & agroecology must be at the center of food system transformation (commentary) (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/indigenous-knowledge-agroecology-must-be-at-the-center-of-food-system-transformation-commentary/ - As the world gathers this week in Addis Ababa for the second stocktake of the U.N. Food Systems Summit (UNFSS+4), the urgency of transforming food systems into more resilient, sustainable and inclusive ones has never been more pressing. - While driving this transformation requires many hands, one of the most vital and long undervalued belongs to Indigenous Peoples. Far from being static, their food systems have continually adapted to changing climates, environments and social conditions — offering valuable lessons to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. - “As the world turns its attention to UNFSS+4 in Addis Ababa, we must ensure that Indigenous peoples are not just included but fully recognized as leaders in shaping the future of food systems. Their traditional knowledge must be not only valued, but integrated into the way we design policies, fund innovations, and define solutions,” the author writes. - This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Empathy and spiritual ecology are a conservation solution and ‘radical cure’ (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2025/07/empathy-and-spiritual-ecology-are-a-conservation-solution-and-radical-cure/ The Nature Of is a new podcast series from the nonprofit nature and culture magazine Atmos that speaks with prominent figures in conservation and culture about how humans relate to the natural world, and how they might heal and strengthen that relationship. On this episode of Mongabay’s podcast, its host and Atmos editor-in-chief Willow Defebaugh […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Hamid Moradi, died on July 25th after battling a forest fire in Iranian Kurdistan, aged 36 (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/hamid-moradi-died-on-july-25th-after-battling-a-forest-fire-in-iranian-kurdistan-aged-36/ Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. When flames overtook the hillsides above the Zagros and Hassanabad neighborhoods in the Abidar highlands of Iranian Kurdistan, there was no formal emergency response team. No firebreaks. No protective gear. Only a handful of local environmentalists—among them Hamid […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Killing barred owls to save spotted owls (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/killing-barred-owls-to-save-spotted-owls/ Northern spotted owl numbers have continued to decline in North America’s Pacific Northwest, partly due to competition from barred owls considered invasive in the region. The spotted owl has been protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 1990. To help the northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) recover, some conservationists advocate for culling […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Trump Environmental Protection Agency moves to repeal finding that allows climate regulation (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/trump-environmental-protection-agency-moves-to-repeal-finding-that-allows-climate-regulation/ WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration has proposed revoking a scientific finding that’s long been the central basis for U.S. action to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change. The proposed Environmental Protection Agency rule rescinds a 2009 declaration that determined carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases endanger public health. The “endangerment finding” […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
As gas giants move in, Philippine fishers fight for their seas and survival (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/as-gas-giants-move-in-philippine-fishers-fight-for-their-seas-and-survival/ - Fishing communities along the Philippines’ Verde Island Passage, a haven for marine biodiversity, say the development of a natural gas import hub in the area is leading to environmental degradation. - Fishers say their catches have declined since a liquefied natural gas plant was built in the area a decade ago, and that they’re being turned away from remaining fishing grounds due to the ongoing construction of an LNG terminal. - The Japan Bank for International Cooperation, a key funder of the LNG project, denies these claims, saying in a recent report that it didn’t find evidence that LNG development had led to environmental degradation or a reduction in income for local fishing communities. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
That ‘fish’ on the menu? In Brazil’s schools and prisons, it’s often shark (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2025/07/that-fish-on-the-menu-in-brazils-schools-and-prisons-its-often-shark/ Brazil, the world’s top importer of shark meat, is feeding much of it to preschoolers, hospital patients, military staff, public workers and more via government procurements, Mongabay has found. This influx of shark meat into public buildings is exposing infants and other vulnerable groups to high levels of heavy metals like mercury and arsenic, which […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Scientists & communities rush to save rare, diverse Brazilian grassland ecosystem (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/scientists-communities-rush-to-save-rare-diverse-brazilian-grassland-ecosystem/ - Rupestrian grasslands form an ecosystem of extremes: covering a mere 0.8% of Brazil’s territory, they are home to 15% of the nation’s flora. Of the 5,700 plant species catalogued, 40% can only be found there, giving the ecosystem one of the world’s highest endemic rates. - The list of threats to this mountaintop ecosystem is long and includes the invasion of exotic species, urban growth and climate change. But mining poses the greatest threat: A single vein of ore could mean the extinction of dozens of native species. - Community efforts to protect rupestrian grasslands have led to the creation of conservation units, while universities are forming partnerships with mining companies to drive restoration projects. At one time, restoration was thought to be impossible because of the inhospitable zones in which rupestrian grasslands grow, but a recent article has proven the contrary. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Sri Lanka Supreme Court orders $1 bn payment in X Press Pearl marine disaster (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/sri-lanka-supreme-court-orders-1-bn-payment-in-x-press-pearl-marine-disaster/ - Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has ordered $1 billion in compensation from the owners and local agents of the MV X-Press Pearl, which sank off Colombo in 2021, causing the worst maritime disaster in the island’s history and a massive marine plastic spill. - The court held both the vessel’s operators and two former Sri Lankan officials accountable, citing negligence and violations of citizens’ constitutional rights. - The July 24 ruling calls for the establishment of an independent compensation commission and requires the first installment of damages to be paid by September 2025, with a review hearing scheduled for the same month. - Environmentalists describe the judgment as a milestone in line with the “polluter pays” principle, offering a potential model for environmental justice across the Global South. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Golden oyster mushrooms are crowding out native fungi in North America (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/golden-oyster-mushrooms-are-crowding-out-native-fungi-in-north-america/ Golden oyster mushrooms, known for their bright yellow caps and earthy flavors, are native to Asia. However, these prized edible mushrooms have gained popularity throughout North America, where they’re spreading across forests and displacing native fungal species, a recent study has found. Aishwarya Veerabahu, lead author and a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
International Tiger Day: 3 stories of hope (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/international-tiger-day-3-stories-of-hope/ The tiger, once wide-ranging across Asia, has disappeared from much of its historic range. But thanks to concerted conservation efforts and communities willing to coexist with them, the majestic predator is making a comeback in some parts of the continent despite threats including habitat loss and poaching. South Asia continues to be a stronghold for […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Peruvian rainforest defender shot dead in suspected targeted killing (July 29, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/peruvian-rainforest-defender-shot-dead-in-suspected-targeted-killing/ Environmental activist Hipólito Quispe Huamán was shot and killed Saturday night in the Madre de Dios region of southeastern Peru, in what authorities suspect was a targeted attack linked to his work defending the Amazon rainforest, AFP reports. Quispe Huamán was driving along the Interoceanic Highway when he was gunned down, according to local prosecutors. […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Coral restoration after devasting Deepwater Horizon spill shows promise (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/coral-restoration-after-devasting-deepwater-horizon-spill-shows-promise/ When BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in 2011, it led to the largest oil spill in U.S. history, severely damaging marine ecosystems. Part of the settlement money that BP agreed to pay has since been used for a deep-sea restoration project that has achieved significant milestones in spawning corals […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Global warming is altering storms lightning, impacting tropical forests (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/global-warming-is-altering-storms-lightning-impacting-tropical-forests/ - As climate change escalates, intense storms are becoming more common in the tropics and elsewhere, resulting in a variety of forest impacts. Those effects are generating concern among researchers over potentially diminished carbon storage and altered forest composition. - Increasingly common short-lived convective tropical thunderstorms are a key driver of tree mortality, according to one recent study. Researchers estimate that a combination of high winds and lightning is a major, and often unrecognized, driver of tree death. - Research suggests convective storms are increasing in the tropics; this could mean more tree death in some regions, such as Latin America. Conversely, there are conflicting data as to whether lightning may decrease or increase in the tropics under climate change, leading to uncertainty about future impacts. - Beyond the tropics, changing lightning patterns in temperate and boreal forests are linked to increased, often large-scale wildfires that can release vast amounts of carbon dioxide and health-harming particulate matter into the atmosphere. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
To save pangolins, we need to change the narrative (commentary) (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/to-save-pangolins-we-need-to-change-the-narrative-commentary/ - A new Netflix documentary about pangolins, the world’s most heavily trafficked mammal, is a powerful example of what can happen when media companies highlight the plight of lesser-known species. - Most conservation dollars are directed at animals that already get attention and funding, like lions or elephants, while species like pangolins — which also have important ecological roles — receive comparatively little, so the narrative needs to change, a new op-ed argues. - “We need to promote the visibility of lesser-known threatened species as part of their protection [and] broaden the conservation narrative beyond the most recognizable animals and give the same care and attention to the ones that are less familiar, but still at risk,” the author writes. - This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
To host UN climate talks, Brazil chose one of its poorer cities. That’s no accident (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/to-host-un-climate-talks-brazil-chose-one-of-its-poorer-cities-thats-no-accident/ NEW YORK (AP) — This year’s United Nations climate conference in November is in Belem, Brazil, a city facing high poverty and infrastructure challenges. It’s a location chosen in part to highlight the urgent need for climate action. COP30 President-designate André Corrêa do Lago said in an interview with The Associated Press that it’s important […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Civil society challenges Indonesian deregulation law over rights and environment (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/civil-society-challenges-indonesian-deregulation-law-over-rights-and-environment/ - Indonesia’s controversial Job Creation Law is facing new legal challenges from civil society groups who say it weakens environmental protections and human rights. - One lawsuit targets provisions that restrict public involvement in environmental impact assessments and remove key legal tools for opposing harmful projects. - A second lawsuit challenges special privileges granted to large-scale infrastructure projects, accusing the law of facilitating forced evictions and land grabs. - A case study cited in the legal battle is the Rempang Eco City project, which residents say has displaced Indigenous communities without their consent and through the use of violence. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
A forest garden project attempts to expand into the Sahel (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/a-forest-garden-project-attempts-to-expand-into-the-sahel/ - A project in the Sahel and East Africa claims to fight both soil erosion and poverty through regenerative agroforestry. - U.S.-based NGO Trees for the Future (TREES) trains farmers in what it calls the forest garden approach, an ancient model to plant diverse species next to each other. - The approach is one of seven selected by the U.N. as a world restoration flagship program and aims to scale up massively to plant a billion trees by 2030. - However, some experts say the potential for scaling up is limited, especially in the semiarid Sahel region, given the need for easily accessible sources of water. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
World Nature Conservation Day: How a large, flightless parrot rebounded from the verge of extinction (July 28, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/world-nature-conservation-day-how-a-large-flightless-parrot-rebounded-from-the-verge-of-extinction/ Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. In the mid-1990s, the kākāpō seemed destined for extinction. Only 51 individuals of the flightless, nocturnal parrot remained, all of them descended from a shrinking gene pool and spread across remote corners of New Zealand. A victim of […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Photos: Mangrove photography awards showcase a diverse & fragile ecosystem (July 26, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/photos-mangrove-photography-awards-showcase-a-diverse-fragile-ecosystem/ The winners of the 11th annual Mangrove Photography Awards (MPA) have been announced. The contest, hosted by the U.S.-based Mangrove Action Project, showcases powerful photographic narratives highlighting the importance of one of the planet’s most vital ecosystems. This year, a record-breaking 3,300 entries from 78 countries entered to win in one of six categories: wildlife, […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Batang coal plant’s seawater permit imperils marine life, fishing communities (July 26, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/batang-coal-plants-seawater-permit-imperils-marine-life-fishing-communities/ - The Batang coal-fired power plant in Central Java, now legally permitted to use vast amounts of seawater for cooling, has raised alarms among experts over its impact on marine ecosystems and traditional fisheries. - Since operations began, the plant has displaced fishing communities, polluted coastal waters with heated discharge and caused up to a 50% decline in shrimp catches, particularly affecting traditional fishers in Roban Barat. - Community resistance was met with intimidation and arrests, while some residents accepted compensation from the operator, PT Bhimasena Power Indonesia, further dividing the local population. - Critics, including Greenpeace and KIARA, say the project reflects Indonesia’s coal-centered energy policy, undermining both environmental justice and climate goals, as the country continues to expand fossil fuel use despite international pressure to shift toward renewables. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Two rangers killed in a plane crash in DRC’s Virunga National Park (July 26, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/two-rangers-killed-in-a-plane-crash-in-drcs-virunga-national-park/ Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. The eastern reaches of the Democratic Republic of Congo are no strangers to tragedy. Yet the loss of two Virunga National Park rangers in a surveillance plane crash near Ishango on July 23 underscores once again the mortal […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Across Southeast Asia, Indigenous women challenge extraction and erasure (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/across-southeast-asia-indigenous-women-challenge-extraction-and-erasure/ - Across Southeast Asia, Indigenous women activists face discrimination, repression and violence, while often being excluded or unsupported even within their own communities. - Among them is Maria Suryanti Jun, who is leading opposition to a geothermal project in Poco Leok, Indonesia, citing a lack of transparency and free, prior and informed consent from the community. - Women like Maria face unique challenges in environmental defense due to patriarchal norms, limited education and cultural roles — but are often deeply connected to the land and emerge as key defenders. - Despite obstacles, these activists are building solidarity and pushing for change through international advocacy, capacity-building programs, and expanding women’s access to education and leadership. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Reversing damage to the world’s mangrove forests (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/reversing-damage-to-the-worlds-mangrove-forests/ Mangroves are an important lifeline for biodiversity, climate and coastal communities. Yet they are disappearing 3-5 times faster than total global forest losses, according to UNESCO. On July 26, celebrated as the International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem, we present recent stories by Mongabay’s journalists on emerging threats to these critical ecosystems […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Peru seizes record 4-ton mercury shipment in fight against illegal gold mining (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/peru-seizes-record-4-ton-mercury-shipment-in-fight-against-illegal-gold-mining/ BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Peruvian customs officials have seized a record-breaking shipment of illegal mercury, exposing a cross-border smuggling network fueling illicit gold mining in the Amazon. The 4-ton haul, discovered in June at the port of Callao, was hidden in gravel bags and bound for Bolivia, officials said on Thursday. Experts say it could […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
The sacred humans-bird connection in Ethiopia’s wetlands: Interview with Abebayehu Aticho (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/the-sacred-humans-bird-connection-in-ethiopias-wetlands-interview-with-abebayehu-aticho/ - The Gambella region of Ethiopia is home to 71 bird species that are culturally important to the traditional pastoralist Nuer people and have several uses for the community, such as indicating seasonal changes and fish abundance. - According to a recent study, the Nuer people maintain deep connections with these species, which helps the birds’ conservation, but threats to their habitats and wetlands are increasing. - In the lead up to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP15), Mongabay interviewed the study’s lead author Abebayehu Aticho about the spiritual ties, symbiotic relationships of Nuer people with birds and wetlands, and strategies required for the species’ conservation. - The preservation of traditional knowledge and its incorporation into conservation strategies and policy making at local, national and global levels is important, says Aticho. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
2,000 species at high risk of extinction from natural disasters, study finds (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/2000-species-at-high-risk-of-extinction-from-natural-disasters-study-finds/ - More than 2,000 terrestrial vertebrate species face a high risk of extinction from natural hazards, including hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis, according to a first-of-its-kind study. - Nearly 70% of the high-risk species live exclusively on islands, highlighting the particular vulnerability of island ecosystems. - Only 15% of high-risk species have specific conservation plans in place, while approximately 30% have their entire known range outside protected areas. - The study calls for increased investment in habitat protection, restoration, captive-breeding programs and species translocation to help vulnerable species survive in an era of intensifying natural hazards. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Scientists find millions of tons of nanoplastics in the North Atlantic Ocean (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/scientists-find-millions-of-tons-of-nanoplastics-in-the-north-atlantic-ocean/ Scientists have measured the amount of nanoplastics in the open ocean for the first time and found they make up the vast majority of marine plastic pollution. Plastic debris in the ocean can be of varying sizes. Nanoplastics are the tiniest, about 1,000 times smaller than the smallest microplastics — small enough to go through […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Illegal roads expand in Colombia’s deforestation hotspots (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/illegal-roads-expand-in-colombias-deforestation-hotspots/ - A new report from Colombia’s Inspector General’s Office shows that between October 2024 and March 2025, about 88,800 hectares (about 219,400 acres) of forest were cleared and 1,107 kilometers (688 miles) of irregular roads slashed through seven deforestation hotspots. - In all these critical areas — Río Naya, Meta-Mapiripán, Vista Hermosa-Puerto Rico, Triple Frontera (Guaviare), Llanos del Yarí – northern Chiribiquete, Caquetá and Putumayo — there was a direct relationship between the expansion of irregular roads, deforestation and coca crops. - Experts warn that irregular roads fuel permanent deforestation, opening the door to land-grabs as well as armed actors and their illicit activities. - Colombia reduced deforestation by 36% from 2022-23, reaching the lowest level recorded in 23 years. But deforestation has since increased again, and the government struggles to keep protected areas from being chopped away to make room for illegal roads and coca crops. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
US NGO signs deal to manage huge nature reserve in Chad (July 25, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/us-ngo-signs-deal-to-manage-huge-nature-reserve-in-chad/ The government of Chad has signed a 10-year deal with the U.S.-based NGO Sahara Conservation to manage the Ouadi Rimé-Ouadi Achim Faunal Reserve (OROAFR), the group announced July 11. The OROAFR is the largest protected area in Chad, at nearly 80,000 square kilometers (almost 31,000 square miles), around three times the size of Rwanda. “It’s […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Oil ‘does not guarantee stability’: Colombia’s environment minister on energy transition (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/oil-does-not-guarantee-stability-colombias-environment-minister-on-energy-transition/ - Colombia, a major oil-producing country that banned new oil and gas projects, has a goal to progressively move away from oil and gas while strengthening local renewable energy and storage capacity. - Lena Yanina Estrada, the new environment minister and first Indigenous person to hold the position, argues that it’s a model that helps bring long-term stability for the country and its ecosystems in a turbulent world. - The current global and energy landscape is full of twists and turns, with countries diving into or pulling out of fossil fuel commitments in reaction to inflation, wars, politics, energy sovereignty and more. - Mongabay interviewed Minister Estrada to get her take on fossil fuels, renewable energy, infrastructure and how Indigenous rights fit in. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
‘Insignificant risk’ EUDR proposal threatens fight against deforestation, critics say (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/insignificant-risk-eudr-proposal-threatens-fight-against-deforestation-critics-say/ - Some European Union officials want to simplify a section of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), the bloc’s landmark law that seeks to eliminate commodities associated with deforestation. - A European Parliament proposal wants to reconsider a benchmarking system that categorizes trading partners into high, standard and low deforestation risk. - Supporters of the proposal say EUDR rules are still too complicated for producers, while environmental groups say the world’s forests can’t afford further delays. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Where there’s political will, there’s a way to stop tropical deforestation, study finds (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/where-theres-political-will-theres-a-way-to-stop-tropical-deforestation-study-finds/ - A study focused on why deforestation rates have slowed in Indonesia and the Brazilian Amazon revealed that political will was a critical factor, often as a result of pressure from civil society and diplomacy to conserve forests. - The authors surveyed the expert opinions of researchers, policymakers and advocates working on forest conservation in Brazil or Indonesia. - In Brazil, experts said government action — like satellite monitoring and recognizing Indigenous lands — was key to stopping deforestation. - Indonesia’s forest conservation success comes not just from political will, but also from corporate efforts and pressure from civil society groups. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Uruguay confronts a powerful new threat to its palm trees: A tiny red bug (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/uruguay-confronts-a-powerful-new-threat-to-its-palm-trees-a-tiny-red-bug/ MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) — Uruguay’s iconic palm trees are under attack by the invasive red palm weevil, a pest from Southeast Asia. First detected in 2022, the insect has already destroyed thousands of trees, including half of the 19,000 palms in the capital Montevideo. Authorities are waking up to the threat of the voracious insect […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Mounting corporate pressure on Honduras threatens community rights (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/mounting-corporate-pressure-on-honduras-threatens-community-rights/ - New data on foreign arbitration claims in Honduras reveal that the lawsuits filed by corporations against the country now total $19.4 billion in legal claims, equivalent to roughly 53% of Honduras’ GDP in 2024. - The lawsuits, many of which are tied to controversial investments made after the 2009 coup, undermine government efforts to implement reforms that could benefit human rights and the environment. - Seven claims amounting to more than $1.6 billion are from the electricity sector alone, including from renewable energy. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Sri Lanka hit by plastic pollution after cargo ship sinks off Indian coast (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/sri-lanka-hit-by-plastic-pollution-after-cargo-ship-sinks-off-indian-coast/ Sri Lankan authorities, locals and environmentalists say they’re deeply concerned about the possible impacts on the country’s marine ecosystem and coastal communities from the sinking of a container ship off the southern coast of India in May, Mongabay contributor Malaka Rodrigo reported in June. The Liberia-flagged ship MSC Elsa 3 sank on May 25 about […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Historic court ruling says countries legally bound to prevent climate harm (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/historic-court-ruling-says-countries-legally-bound-to-prevent-climate-harm/ The world’s top court has issued a landmark advisory opinion saying that countries are legally obligated to protect the environment and present and future generations from the impacts of climate change. This obligation, the U.N.’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) said on July 23, is grounded in existing environmental and human rights treaties. It also […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Saving polar bears and beluga whales: Interview with Alysa McCall (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/saving-polar-bears-and-beluga-whales-interview-with-alysa-mccall/ - Beluga Cam is a long-running initiative that aims to document the migration of almost 57,000 beluga whales through Hudson Bay in Canada. - The project is run by the nonprofit Polar Bears International in a bid to collect more data about beluga migration as well as to create more awareness about the species. - The initiative got an upgrade this year with a new boat that houses the cameras and other equipment deployed for the work. - As the Arctic rapidly loses sea ice, species such as beluga whales and polar bears bear the brunt in terms of losing access to food and their habitats. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Indonesian palm oil company sues experts who helped secure $18m pollution ruling (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/indonesian-palm-oil-company-sues-experts-who-helped-secure-18m-pollution-ruling/ - Two top Indonesian environmental experts, Bambang Hero Saharjo and Basuki Wasis, are being sued by palm oil firm PT Kalimantan Lestari Mandiri for their court testimony that helped convict the company for massive fires in Borneo. - The lawsuit is widely condemned as a SLAPP (strategic lawsuit against public participation) — a legal tactic to silence critics — and raises concerns about the chilling effect on scientists who testify in environmental cases. - Despite existing anti-SLAPP regulations in Indonesia, poor enforcement has allowed such lawsuits to proceed, with activists calling the case a form of judicial harassment and an attempt to evade responsibility for ecological damage. - The case highlights broader issues of corporate impunity and weak enforcement of environmental rulings, as the company continues to operate and burn peatland, even after a binding court order to pay fines and restore the land. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Sharon Haussmann, guardian of rhinos, died on May 31, aged 51 (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/sharon-haussmann-guardian-of-rhinos-died-on-may-31-aged-51/ Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. In the final months of her life, Sharon Haussmann could still be found walking fence lines, coordinating antipoaching patrols, and debating the finer points of dehorning protocol with field rangers and policymakers alike. The work was unrelenting, the […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Orangutans make up for lost sleep with daytime naps, study finds (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/orangutans-make-up-for-lost-sleep-with-daytime-naps-study-finds/ - New research based on more than a decade of field observations indicates that wild Sumatran orangutans balance their sleep needs much like humans do, by napping during the day. - The team found the shorter an individual’s sleep period overnight, the longer was its cumulative nap period the next day. - Orangutan sleep also varied with temperature, activity levels and proximity of others, indicating the great apes have to trade off between foraging, socializing, traveling and sleep. - Deforestation, habitat fragmentation and climate change are all likely to influence the capacity of orangutans to manage their sleep needs, with clear consequences for their overall health and survival. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Challenges persist in TMC’s bid to mine the deep sea, even after boost from Trump (July 24, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2025/07/challenges-persist-in-tmcs-bid-to-mine-the-deep-sea-even-after-boost-from-trump/ After years of delay, the deep-sea mining plans of Canadian firm The Metals Company (TMC) now appear to be progressing as it pursues a controversial new path to securing a license to mine in international waters under U.S. jurisdiction. Yet critics and some industry observers question how smoothly TMC’s ambitious plans might unfold, citing the […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Ecuador’s new protected areas law sparks debate over security, development (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/ecuadors-new-protected-areas-law-sparks-debate-over-security-development/ - A new law on protected areas in Ecuador is designed to improve security, funding and economic development in the country’s 78 protected areas. - It creates a new service to oversee management decisions and a trust to generate funding for protected areas, while mandating increased technical training for park rangers. - It also strengthens partnerships with law enforcement and the military. - Critics of the law say it militarizes the country’s protected areas and erodes the autonomy of local and Indigenous communities. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Probiotics slow a deadly disease in Florida coral, study finds (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/probiotics-slow-a-deadly-disease-in-florida-coral-study-finds/ A bacterial probiotic helped slow the spread of a deadly disease on great star coral, one of the largest and most resistant corals still surviving in the Florida Reef Tract, a 560-kilometer (350-mile) barrier reef off the coast of Florida, U.S., a recent study found. The treatment involved sealing live great star coral (Montaststraea cavernosa) […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
From sports desk to nature’s frontlines: David Akana’s unlikely path to lead Mongabay Africa (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/from-sports-desk-to-natures-frontlines-david-akanas-unlikely-path-to-lead-mongabay-africa/ - David Akana, Director of Programs at Mongabay Africa, leads with a vision of inclusive, long-term environmental journalism, drawing on a career that began in sports reporting and evolved through development communications and conservation storytelling. - Since taking the helm, Akana has built a diverse, multilingual newsroom and expanded Mongabay’s reach across the continent, with a strategic focus on reporting in local languages like Swahili to deepen engagement and impact. - Grounded in the belief that journalism can inform, empower, and hold power to account, Akana emphasizes patience, integrity, and a mission-driven approach to storytelling in the face of disinformation and growing environmental threats. - Akana spoke with Mongabay Founder and CEO Rhett Ayers Butler in July 2025. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
World’s smallest snake spotted by scientists in Barbados after 20-year absence (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/worlds-smallest-snake-rediscovered-in-barbados-after-20-year-absence/ - Scientists rediscovered the world’s smallest snake, the Barbados threadsnake, after it had been missing from scientific observation for 20 years. - The tiny blind snake required microscopic examination to distinguish it from an invasive look-alike species before being confirmed and returned to the wild. - The finding represents a rare success story on an island where 98% of primary forests have been cleared and many endemic species have gone extinct. - Researchers plan continued surveys to map the snake’s range and develop habitat protection strategies for this critically endangered species. | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Trump’s budget would end 7 decades of climate data collection (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/trumps-budget-would-end-7-decades-of-climate-data-collection/ The Trump administration’s proposed 2026 budget for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) cuts funding for several critically important national laboratories and observatories. On the chopping block is Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawai‘i, which has been recording atmospheric carbon data every day for nearly 70 years. Mauna Loa Observatory sits atop a volcano […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Nepal launches action plan to boost endangered dhole conservation (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/nepal-launches-action-plan-to-boost-endangered-dhole-conservation/ Once widespread throughout much of Asia, the wild dog known as the dhole has disappeared from more than 75% of its historical range, according to the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. In Nepal, there are an estimated 500 dholes (Cuon alpinus) remaining, but recent sightings suggest they may be making a comeback. This has […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Mongabay journalist Karla Mendes wins 2025 Oakes Award for environmental journalism (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/mongabay-journalist-karla-mendes-wins-2025-oakes-award-for-environmental-journalism/ Mongabay reporter Karla Mendes has won the 2025 John B. Oakes Award for Distinguished Environmental Journalism, announced on July 23. Her investigation in the Brazilian Amazon uncovered a direct connection between the expansion of the cattle industry in Maranhão state and an increase in violent crime against the inhabitants of the state’s Arariboia Indigenous Territory. […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
A look at megafires as an Oregon wildfire approaches the 100,000-acre mark (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/a-look-at-megafires-as-an-oregon-wildfire-approaches-the-100000-acre-mark/ A wildfire burning in a sparsely populated region of central Oregon has become the largest fire this year and is on the verge of surpassing 100,000 acres to become a megafire. The blaze dubbed the Cram Fire is burning about 100 miles southeast of Portland. Nearly 900 personnel have been deployed, and officials say it’s […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
James ‘Buddy’ Powell, defender of manatees, died on July 19, aged 70 (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/james-buddy-powell-defender-of-manatees-died-on-july-19-aged-70/ In 1967, on the spring-fed waters of Florida’s Crystal River, a teenager named James “Buddy” Powell encountered a stranger in a rowboat. The man, a Cornell University graduate student, was looking for manatees — a species so obscure then that few had studied it in the wild. Powell, who knew the local springs better than […] | |
| Check Twitter | |
|
Study highlights dangers of declaring conservation success too soon (July 23, 2025) https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/07/study-highlights-dangers-of-declaring-conservation-success-too-soon/ The IUCN Red List has long been the globally recognized gauge for assessing how close to extinction a given species is. An improvement in the species’ conservation status from a higher to a lower threat category, known as downlisting, can signal conservation success. But a recent study says this must be done cautiously to avoid […] | |
| Check Twitter | |