Tag: ecology

We are being poisoned every day, so why do we keep voting for more pollution? Ask a lobbyist

George Monbiot There are some things we rightly find intolerable, such as the possession of poorly trained, aggressive dogs. There are other things, whose impacts are many thousands of times worse, that we decide just to live with. What makes the difference? Visibility is one reason: a photo of a large dog with bared teeth… Read More We are being poisoned every day, so why do we keep voting for more pollution? Ask a lobbyist

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Modi govt unlocks forests for business, a pursuit that began in 2015

Modi govt’s dogged pursuit of a plan to open forests for commercial plantation began shortly after taking office, documents show. Though it faced pushback for hurting tribal rights and forests, the plan reached a fruition through the recent Forest (Conservation)Act amendment. Tapasya & Nitin Sethi The Modi government persisted in finding ways to open up… Read More Modi govt unlocks forests for business, a pursuit that began in 2015

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Amazon deforestation continues to plummet

By TIK ROOT August was another month of relatively good news for the Amazon rainforest: The rate of deforestation has continued to decline significantly. Earlier this week, Marina Silva, Brazil’s environment minister, announced a 66.1 percent decrease in Amazon deforestation compared to last August. That amounted to a loss of about 217 square miles, according to… Read More Amazon deforestation continues to plummet

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Titicaca: the world’s highest navigable lake is drying out

Water levels at Lake Titicaca – the highest navigable lake in the world and South America’s largest – are dropping precipitously after an unprecedented winter heat wave. The shocking decline is affecting tourism, fishing and agriculture, which locals rely on to make a living. “We don’t know what we will do from now until December because the… Read More Titicaca: the world’s highest navigable lake is drying out

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Artist captures the impact of climate crisis over 150 years on Mont Blanc

Joanna Moorhead A British landscape artist who recreated a climb made 150 years ago to document the impact of the climate crisis on western Europe’s highest mountain says what he found was so grim it reminded him of the “dark paintings” of Francisco de Goya. French painter Gabriel Loppé’s artwork The Shadow of Mont Blanc at Sunset, painted… Read More Artist captures the impact of climate crisis over 150 years on Mont Blanc

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I have studied emperor penguins for 30 years. We may witness their demise in our lifetime

Barbara Wienecke Last week I saw a headline announcing that last year thousands of emperor penguin chicks had died in the Bellingshausen Sea, when the fast ice broke out unusually early. I was deeply saddened and devastated, but not surprised. The region where this dreadful event occurred has been one of the fastest warming areas… Read More I have studied emperor penguins for 30 years. We may witness their demise in our lifetime

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Endless fallout: the Pacific idyll still facing nuclear blight 77 years on

You do not grow crops, you do not eat coconut, you do not drink the water: Stephen Palumbi, marine scientist The film Oppenheimer has shone a spotlight on the dawn of US nuclear weapons tests. In the Marshall Islands, where 23 of those earth-shattering blasts happened, people have never been able to forget Lucy Sherriff… Read More Endless fallout: the Pacific idyll still facing nuclear blight 77 years on

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The world is burning. Who can convince the comfortable classes of the radical sacrifices needed?

Simone Weil’s life illustrates the capacity to give up the things we feel we’re owed – such as a carbon-intensive consumer-driven lifestyle Justine Toh Nero fiddled while Rome burned. The saying takes on new meaning after the hottest July ever, devastating wildfires in Greece and Canada, and the declaration by the UN secretary general, António Guterres,… Read More The world is burning. Who can convince the comfortable classes of the radical sacrifices needed?

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Ocean justice

Chris Armstrong ; Antje Scharenberg Treasure trove or rubbish dump? In either case, oceans are being spoiled. Concepts from ‘mare liberum’ to ‘common heritage’ don’t safeguard the blue planet’s largest frontier from escalated seabed mining, industrialised fishing and waste disposal, nor global inequality and racialized violence. Could a democratic World Ocean Authority be the answer?… Read More Ocean justice

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