Photograph by: Enric Sala, National Geographic
January 9, 2020
It is well-established that biodiverse ecosystems generally function better than monocultures. Ecologists at the University of Zurich have now shown that the same is true on a larger scale: Having a mix of different land-covers including grassland, forest, urban areas and water bodies improves the functioning and stability of a landscape—irrespective of the plant species diversity, region and climate.
January 9, 2020
Rare plant species are far more likely to go extinct than common species, yet we know surprisingly little about global species abundance.
Most efforts to quantify species abundance focus on local communities, according to the authors of a study published late last year in the journal Science Advances, which limits our ability to accurately assess plant rarity.
January 9, 2020
A three-day mapathon to mark the city’s existing green cover and devise strategies to augment it will commence at St. Teresa’s College on Thursday.
The mapathon is being conducted under the Cities4Forests project, a global initiative by the World Resources Institute (WRI) which has partnered with the Kochi Corporation. The project envisages expanding green patches in cities and mitigating the impact of climate change by protecting wetlands and biodiversity.
January 7, 2020
When the United Nations welcomed heads of state to the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, a global consensus was reached to take vital steps to save the planet. To that end, more than 170 nations gave their support to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. But was not the only treaty at the summit. There was also a Convention on Biological Diversity. The climate change treaty is well understood internationally — even if the Trump administration and its congressional allies continue to engage in dangerous denialism and obstruction.
January 6, 2020
The Duke of Cambridge, Prince William has announced the Earthshot Prize: an ambitious set of challenges to inspire a decade of action to repair the planet. In what is set to be a “super year” for the environment, with crucial summits including the Convention on Biodiversity in China and the COP26 Climate Change Conference in the UK, Prince William will team up with global partners on a decade-long project that reaches every corner of the earth.
January 6, 2020
A new study, accepted in Environmental Research Letters, has found that diverse natural forests with a mix of tree species are more reliable and stable at absorbing and storing carbon than plantations dominated by just a few tree species, both over time and across diverse conditions. The study was co-authored by scientists from Columbia University's Earth Institute and its Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology.
January 3, 2020
Nature Conservancy’s Lynn Scarlett says a series of international agreements in 2020 could set the stage for more sustainable economies by 2030
Imagine a massive container ship moving across the ocean at top speed, headed straight for a rocky island. The island is one mile away, which might seem far off, but turning a large ship moving at high speeds takes considerable effort. There’s still time for the ship to avoid running aground, but only if it starts the turn now.
This is the situation all of us are in today. The imminent collision we face is a world wrecked by climate breakdown and biodiversity loss, and the container ship – well, we’re all on that ship, and the engine of the current global economy is driving us straight toward the rocks.
January 2, 2020
China on Wednesday began a 10-year fishing ban on key areas of the Yangtze River to protect biodiversity in the country's longest river, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
Starting from this year, the ban will be observed in 332 conservation areas in the Yangtze River basin, which will also be expanded to all natural waterways of the river and its major tributaries from no later than Jan. 1, 2021.
January 2, 2020
As apocalyptic wildfires continue to rage across Australia, the loss of life in the region is reaching staggering numbers. Ecologists at the University of Sydney now estimate that nearly half a billion animals and plants have been wiped out since the fires began several months ago.
January 2, 2020
Incessant political turmoil in the United Kingdom, United States, and other nations will likely last well into the new year, complicating many researchers’ work. The U.K. election last month made the country’s departure from the European Union a near-certainty, and its scientists now face losing EU science grants and scientific collaborators. In the United States, a presidential election in November will determine the role of scientists in future policy deliberations; many experts on climate change and other environmental issues assert that the Trump administration has ignored scientific evidence.
December 31, 2019
At the end of a tumultuous decade for biodiversity, in which a report based on the most comprehensive study of life on Earth warned that “nature is declining globally at rates unprecedented in human history”, we spoke to some of the world’s leading voices on the environment about their greatest fears for the next decade – and also their hopes. As the IPBES report’s authors noted: “It is not too late to make a difference, but only if we start now at every level from local to global.”
December 29, 2019
A ceaselessly growing human population and an ever-expanding world economy based on the unsustainable demands of a few over-consuming nations, have already caused habitat degradation, forest fragmentation, and forest loss that are unprecedented in human history. Throughout the tropics, large tracts of forest have been converted to monocultures by industrial agriculture and degraded by the extraction of fossil fuels, metals, minerals, and other natural resources. This has resulted in significant declines in biodiversity.
December 30, 2019
A land reclamation project in Tung Chung touted as Hong Kong’s first “eco-shoreline” will boost marine biodiversity and give people the chance to get close to nature, according to Hong Kong authorities.
December 2, 2019
How much time do we have left? This question concerns more and more people who are aware of the consequences and urgency of climate change and species extinction. A lot of time has been lost, but there is a date that must be delivered: the international community must agree on ambitious goals at the World Biodiversity Summit in October 2020.
December 17, 2019
The recent bleak results at the COP25 climate summit in Madrid created enough reasons to be pessimistic about the future of the planet.
But next year could see a big shift thanks to three key summits, which could help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect biodiversity and look after the oceans. In many ways, it seems like 2020 will be a make-or-break year for the environment.
