In a petition addressed to Multilateral Development Banks, Member States of the African Union, Member States of the United Nations, and donor countries and partners of the Central African Forest Initiative, the African Climate Reality Project is calling for world leaders to save the Congo basin peatlands from oil exploration and corruption. The Congo Basin, home to the … [Read more...]
Kenyan tea farmers switching to renewable energy
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting many Kenyan communities, which depend on the tea sector, as the tea sector's output and demand in tea is falling. However, an innovative Kenyan project running three years is continuing to create thousands of healthier homes, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, while reducing the demand for firewood which helps reduce … [Read more...]
EU must tackle forest destruction to reduce the risk of pandemics
While the world continues to grapple with the devastating consequences of Covid-19, WWF is calling for urgent action to address the key drivers it has identified which will cause future zoonotic disease outbreaks. In a new report Covid-19: Urgent Call to Protect People and Nature, WWF identifies a number of environmental factors which drive the emergence of zoonotic … [Read more...]
The slow, steady return of Europe’s biggest wild cat
After several decades of low numbers, the return of the lynx to the European forests is slow but steady. The Eurasian lynx was once quite common in most of Europe. Nevertheless, most original populations became extinct, or their abundance has been dramatically reduced in the last two centuries due to hunting, landscape changes, and habitat fragmentation that hinder … [Read more...]
Victory for nature and the rule of law in Bulgaria
The Bulgarian Supreme Administrative Court suspended the execution of Pirin National Park's new management plan, which would have allowed construction in 66% and logging in 48% of the national park and World Heritage Site. WWF-Bulgaria has been fighting to prohibit new logging and construction in Pirin National Park since November 2016, activities that would endanger many … [Read more...]
Durban named greenest city in the world
Durban is the greenest city in the world as reported by the first Husqvarna Urban Green Space Index. The HUGSI Index is an AI-powered satellite solution to help decision makers monitor the proportion and health of green spaces in cities across the globe. Jenna Robinson, Husqvarna South Africa marketing manager for this leading global manufacturer of outdoor power products, … [Read more...]
How can we take action to fight climate change?
The words ‘climate change’ are known by 41% of South Africans, according to a recent August 2019 Afro barometer Survey. However, there is quite a stark difference between having a term in our lexicon, and knowing what it means. There seems to be a stream of never-ending news on events like the April 2019 KwaZulu-Natal floods, and severe drought leaving several provinces … [Read more...]
EWT embarks on project to save endangered tree
The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) are embarking on a new project to save nature’s life-givers – trees. The Pepper Bark Tree (Warburgia salutaris) is listed as Endangered, both globally and nationally, on the IUCN Red List. This is largely due to illegal and unsustainable harvesting of these trees for their bark, which is commonly used in traditional medicine, including … [Read more...]
Large illegal logging operation uncovered in Mozambique
In October 2019 a successful security operation led to the arrest of several suspects involved in a large illegal logging operation in Mozambique’s Coutada 4, a hunting concession that lies on the northern border of Zinave National Park. After hearing what sounded like chainsaw operations in an area where logging is strictly prohibited and having suspicions confirmed by … [Read more...]
Bloemfontein battling high levels of pollen this spring
Bloemfontein residents are in the grip of the hay fever season as tree and grass pollen levels surged to a whopping 115 grains per cubic metre (grains/m³) this spring. “It’s the first time that pollen levels are being monitored in the city of roses, which is an important milestone”, says Prof Jonny Peter, Head of the UCT Lung Institute’s Allergy Unit. “Bloemfontein … [Read more...]
Ethiopia plants 350 million trees to fight deforestation
Ethiopia has planted more than 350 million trees in 12 hours, its government announced, claiming a world record. Across the country, volunteers took part in the mass planting as part of the “Green Legacy” initiative, a programme that aims to reforest large swathes of the land. The efforts far surpassed an original target of planting 200 million seedlings in a day. … [Read more...]
Arbour week celebrates good green deeds
Climate change is the 21st century’s greatest threat to both humanity and biodiversity. The massive increase in the amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases being released into the atmosphere by industrial processes, transportation and veld fires (to name a few) is increasing the global temperature which is resulting in an adverse change in weather patterns. In … [Read more...]
Amazon rainforest fires leave São Paulo in the dark
Forest fires have dramatically increased in the Brazilian Amazon this year in the wake of soaring deforestation rates, raising concerns among environmentalists about the fate of the planet’s largest tropical forest. The number of active fires amounted to 74,155 between January 1 and August 20, a spike of 85 percent compared to the same period in 2018, according to data from … [Read more...]
