A fraction of promised climate money reaches Amazon communities: Interview with Latimpacto’s leaders (July 8, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/a-fraction-of-promised-climate-money-reaches-amazon-communities-interview-with-latimpactos-leaders/
- Despite major funding pledges for the Amazon, much of the promised capital never reaches Indigenous peoples and local communities, often because funding structures are poorly aligned with on-the-ground realities.
- Latimpacto, a Colombia-based philanthropic network, is working to close this gap through initiatives that train funders, support locally led innovation and integrate Indigenous knowledge into conservation and development projects.
- Mongabay spoke with Latimpacto’s leaders, Carolina Suárez Visbal and Juan David Ferreira, who say the organization is also advocating for stronger domestic philanthropy across Latin America, arguing that better tax incentives, trust-based grantmaking, and patient, flexible capital are needed to complement international funding.
- Suárez Visbal and Ferreira say they see greater collaboration between Latin America and Southeast Asia as a key opportunity, calling for shared funding mechanisms and knowledge exchange to strengthen conservation of tropical forests and broader socioecological resilience.
Ugandan farmers sue TotalEnergies’ oil pipeline project in UK court (July 8, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/ugandan-farmers-sue-totalenergies-oil-pipeline-project-in-uk-court/
Four Ugandan farmers have filed a lawsuit before the High Court in London, U.K., against a contentious oil pipeline under construction in Uganda and Tanzania, human rights group Avaaz announced at a press conference on July 7. The 1,443-kilometer (897-mile) East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) will stretch from the Tilenga and Kingfisher oil fields […]
Clinical trials begin in DRC epicenter of Bundibugyo strain of Ebola (July 8, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/clinical-trials-begin-in-drc-epicenter-of-bundibugyo-strain-of-ebola/
- Clinical trials that aim to establish a standard treatment for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which is driving the current outbreak, began on July 2.
- The trials are being conducted in Evangelical Medical Center in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, the epicenter of the outbreak.
- Dr. Placide Mbala of the National Institute of Biomedical Research (INRB), is in charge of clinical trials, said the trials could take between three and six months, depending on how the disease evolves on the ground.
Thai rubber smallholders race to meet new EU deforestation rules (July 8, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/thai-rubber-smallholders-race-to-meet-new-eu-deforestation-rules/
Thailand’s natural rubber industry is racing to comply with a new EU anti-deforestation law that will take effect in 2027, reports Mongabay’s Carolyn Cowan. Thailand is the world’s largest producer of natural rubber and relies on approximately 1.7 million small-scale farmers for 90% of its supply. The country exports much of its rubber to China […]
The growing global popularity of wildlife crossings (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/07/the-growing-global-popularity-of-wildlife-crossings/
Nearly three years ago, Newscast guest, author and journalist Ben Goldfarb discussed his book Crossings, which is about wildlife crossings and road ecology. Wildlife crossings help reconnect habitats fragmented by road networks, reducing collisions, helping protect threatened wildlife, and improving genetic diversity. Since that conversation, Goldfarb has documented the growing popularity of wildlife crossings worldwide. […]
‘A targeted, data-driven approach’: Interview with Vietnam’s antipoaching unit (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/a-targeted-data-driven-approach-interview-with-vietnams-antipoaching-unit/
- Members of an antipoaching unit in Vietnam’s Pu Mat National Park recently told Mongabay how technology and on-the-ground patrols are combining to reduce poaching pressure in the park.
- Supported by the NGO Save Vietnam’s Wildlife, the APU integrates tools such as SMART data aggregation software and remotely monitored “PoacherCams” to identify trafficking hotspots and guide patrols more strategically.
- Though technologies like AI are highly effective at aggregating data, the team notes these tools have limits in rugged tropical terrain with limited connectivity and ever-shifting conditions.
- Patrol members say they’ve observed signs of wildlife returning to places that were once heavily hunted.
Illegal fishing takes a toll on Australia’s sea cucumbers (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/illegal-fishing-takes-a-toll-on-australias-sea-cucumbers/
- Researchers blame an increase in illegal fishing for the decline of sea cucumbers in a remote Australian marine park and say many other reefs in the country have also been affected.
- The Australian government has launched an operation to crack down on illegal fishing in the country’s Northern Territory where the problem is acute, including for high-value sea cucumbers.
- But as long as the market for sea cucumbers remains strong in China and other East Asian countries, experts say, wild populations of this slow-growing animal could collapse and put the health of reef systems at risk in Australia and beyond.
Roads, loggers close in on an unprotected refuge for isolated Kakataibo (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/roads-loggers-close-in-on-an-unprotected-refuge-for-isolated-kakataibo/
- Isolated peoples and forests in the Kakataibo Extremo Norte area of the Peruvian Amazon are under threat from illegal loggers, drug traffickers, the construction of illegal roads, and multiple forestry concessions.
- Indigenous leaders and organizations have sought formal recognition for the area as an Indigenous reserve since 2021, but the Ministry of Culture rejected the application in 2023 because it relates to isolated Kakataibo people who are already recognized by the Peruvian state and receive protections in a nearby reserve.
- Sources told Mongabay that threats to the area’s isolated groups are increasing, exposing them to significant risk due to their extreme vulnerability.
In AI race, Indigenous values could guide environmental issues, researchers suggest (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/in-ai-race-indigenous-values-could-guide-environmental-issues-researchers-suggest/
- A recent study provides a framework for the integration of Indigenous knowledge and values into AI governance and examines how these ethical principles can translate to practical requirements for individual AI projects.
- The authors say that Indigenous ecological knowledge embodies collective responsibility and could provide an ethical basis for questioning whether the scale of a proposed AI model is justifiable given its environmental cost, prioritizing ecological integrity over unbounded technological expansion.
- Some Indigenous researchers voice skepticism over whether a broad category of ‘Indigenous values’ exists and whether Indigenous knowledge could truly be translated into AI tools.
Cabo Verde program and its fishers have been protecting the sea for 10 years (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/cabo-verde-program-and-its-fishers-have-been-protecting-the-sea-for-10-years/
- In Cabo Verde, 190 fishers from seven of the archipelago’s 10 islands volunteer with the Guardians of the Sea program, reporting illegal practices and sightings of marine megafauna as they go about their daily fishing work.
- Their presence at sea acts as a strong deterrent against illegal activities and raises awareness among other fishers about the importance of long-term, sustainable marine management, according to a program co-founder.
- Fishers have always been a pillar of Cabo Verde’s economy and identity. The country hosts a fleet of approximately 1,535 vessels, ranging from artisanal to semi-industrial, and the sector provides a livelihood for coastal families.
Tornadoes and storms in central China kill at least 11 people (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/tornadoes-and-storms-in-central-china-kill-at-least-11-people/
BEIJING (AP) — Tornadoes and storms hit central China, killing at least 11 people and injuring hundreds, state media reported on Tuesday, while areas in the south suffered record-breaking rain. Thunderstorms battered parts of Hubei province’s eastern region on Monday night, affecting 14,600 people, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. More than 330 people were injured, and […]
Belief-based use increasing threat to yellow-billed kite, an important African scavenger (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/belief-based-use-increasing-threat-to-yellow-billed-kite-an-important-african-scavenger/
- Yellow-billed kites are widespread across Africa. But conservationists warn that in the absence of heavily-hunted vultures, this bird is now targeted for use in belief-based rituals in West Africa.
- A survey spanning two hunting seasons in southern Benin estimated that more than 20,000 yellow-billed kites were poached for consumption and for sale in fetish markets. Researchers tallied nearly 2,000 birds for sale in markets.
- Poaching is also occurring in neighboring Togo and Nigeria.
- Experts are concerned that at this scale, poaching could quickly lead to population-level declines. They urge action to control hunting and sale of this bird.
‘The only possible transition is a just transition’: Interview with WEF’s Clemence Schmid (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-only-possible-transition-is-a-just-transition-interview-with-wefs-clemence-schmid/
- Kenya formally launched the National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP) in collaboration with the Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP), an initiative of the World Economic Forum, at the Our Ocean conference held in Mombasa.
- Plastic pollution is a pressing threat to Kenya’s marine ecosystems, fisheries and coastal livelihoods, driven by poor or non-existent waste management on land, along the coast and at sea.
- The initiative seeks to accelerate the transition to a circular plastics economy, which aims to reduce plastic pollution, valorize materials traditionally considered ‘waste’ and generate economic opportunities in the process.
- Mongabay spoke to Clemence Schmid, Director, Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP), on the sidelines of the Mombasa conference to understand what the collaborative effort is trying to achieve in Kenya.
Rare seed collection offers hope for last wild tree of its kind from Chile (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/rare-seed-collection-offers-hope-for-last-wild-tree-of-its-kind-from-chile/
On Chile’s Robinson Crusoe Island, in the South Pacific, a tree juts out precariously from the side of a steep cliff. It’s the last known wild individual of Dendroseris neriifolia. To prevent its total extinction in the wild, conservationists recently collected seeds from the tree and have begun trials to cultivate them. All 11 species […]
The Gaza scientist still tracking manta rays from a war zone (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/the-gaza-scientist-still-tracking-manta-rays-from-a-war-zone/
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. Mohammed Abu Daya is a marine ecologist from Gaza. His work focuses on spinetail devil rays, also known as giant devil rays, a critically endangered species that moves through the Mediterranean and beyond. Few scientists specialize in these […]
Himalayan pangolin emerges as distinct species, 189 years after first described (July 7, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/himalayan-pangolin-emerges-as-distinct-species-189-years-after-first-described/
- A new genomic and morphological study has revalidated Manis aurita, a pangolin species first described in Nepal in 1836 and then forgotten for some 189 years.
- The species, given the common name the Himalayan pangolin, was among what researchers long assumed was a single, widespread species, the Chinese pangolin.
- Confirming the species has immediate implications, including prospects of better protection and more nuanced approaches to conservation.
NGO support can negatively impact allocation of Amazonian territorial rights, research finds (July 6, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/ngo-support-can-negatively-impact-allocation-of-amazonian-territorial-rights-research-finds/
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have played a critical role in the fight to secure title to ancestral Indigenous lands in the Amazon. They can provide financial assistance and legal representation in court, but new research shows that for groups that do not benefit from this support, the arrival of NGOs may cause more harm than good. […]
As East Africa’s oceans change, coastal women build new livelihoods (July 6, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/07/as-east-africas-oceans-change-coastal-women-build-new-livelihoods/
MALINDI, Kenya (AP) — Across East Africa’s coastline, climate change and industrial fishing are threatening the livelihoods of millions who depend on the ocean. In Kenya, women are turning to community tourism, mangrove restoration and other nature-based enterprises as declining fish stocks force them to adapt. Their experiences mirror a regional push to strengthen coastal […]
María Laura Tolmos, 37, turned a childhood in the Amazon into her life’s work (July 6, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/maria-laura-tolmos-37-turned-a-childhood-in-the-amazon-into-her-lifes-work/
- María Laura Tolmos, who died of breast cancer on June 21st in Barcelona, aged 37, grew up in the Peruvian Amazon, where the forest became the foundation of her life and work.
- A forest scientist trained in Peru and Germany, she completed a Ph.D. in forest sciences and forest ecology at the University of Göttingen in 2024.
- At Wilderness International, she served as co-director of science and helped found Wilderness International Perú, bringing rigor, field knowledge, and institutional trust to its conservation work.
- In the field, she was exacting and deeply alive to nature, whether checking research methods, sleeping in a hammock in the forest, joining night surveys, or noticing the species and details others passed by.
The women leading a quiet conservation revolution in a Nigerian gorilla sanctuary (July 6, 2026)
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-women-leading-a-quiet-conservation-revolution-in-a-nigerian-gorilla-sanctuary/
- Women’s conservation collectives in the communities surrounding Nigeria’s Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary are working to defend the wildlife, forests and rivers in a protected area that’s home to threatened gorillas and chimpanzees.
- Funded by membership dues, these groups carry out patrols, investigate wildlife crimes, and work collaboratively with traditional leadership structures to censure violators.
- One of the groups’ notable successes comes in ensuring that rules aimed at protecting the environment are upheld without bias or favoritism.
- The successes of the pioneering women’s collectives have inspired the formation of similar initiatives in other villages surrounding the sanctuary.