2016 saw a record 200 killings of people defending their land, forests, and rivers against destructive industries

13 July 2017 (Global Witness) – It has never been deadlier to take a stand against companies that steal land and destroy the environment. Our new report Defenders of the Earth found that nearly four people were murdered every week in 2016 protecting their land and the natural world from industries like mining, logging and […]

Grapes shrivel as Spanish farmers lament a relentless drought

By Sam Jones 8 July 2017 Malpartida de Plasencia, Extremadura (The Guardian) – […] This is not a good year in Extremadura or elsewhere on the Iberian peninsula. Once again, drought has struck, devastating cereal crops, threatening the olive and grape harvest and leaving livestock short of food and water. “This is an awful year […]

State of emergency declared in parts of Italy due to drought – Ten cities on highest heat risk level

By Maria Elena Spagnolo 23 June 2017 (La Stampa) – Many areas of Italy are facing drought due to a shortage of rainfall and high temperatures. The government has declared a state of emergency in the areas around the cities of Parma and Piacenza, in the Emilia-Romagna region. The measure has been taken “as a […]

Australia carbon emissions rise in off-season for first time in a decade

By Michael Slezak and Nick Evershed 7 June 2017 (The Guardian) – Australia’s carbon emissions jumped at the start of 2017, the first time they have risen in the first few months of a year for more than a decade, according to projections produced exclusively for the Guardian.Emissions in the first three months of the […]

Ongoing forest destruction has put Asia-Pacific at risk of missing global development targets – “Forests continue to be degraded and lost at a rate of 3.3 million hectares per year”

15 May 2017 (United Nations) – The destruction of forests in many Asian countries continues apace, threatening the realization of global sustainable development goals by the 2030 deadline, according to the United Nations agricultural agency.“While forests are critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), they continue to be degraded and lost at a rate […]

Experts identify 12 major epicenters of climate risks to international security

Oxford, UK, 9 June 2017 (The Center for Climate and Security) – Security experts have identified 12 key climatic risks to international security that may shape the geostrategic landscape of the 21st century. These 12 risks are explored in a multi-author volume by the Center for Climate and Security and partners titled Epicenters of Climate […]

Catastrophe of Aral Sea shows “men can destroy the planet”, warns UN chief Guterres

10 June 2017 (United Nations) – Continuing his visit to Central Asia, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today visited the Aral Sea – once the world’s fourth largest inland sea, that has now shrunk to about a quarter of its original size due to human mismanagement – where he urged the world to take lesson […]

In Greenland’s northernmost village, a melting Arctic threatens the age-old hunt

By Chris Mooney 29 April 2017 (The Washington Post) – The northernmost village in Greenland sits just shy of 78 degrees north latitude — deep in the Arctic — yet during the summer, meltwater is everywhere. It flows in small rivulets and larger streams, past multicolored houses built against a sloping hill and down to […]

The Tana River, Kenya’s lifeblood, strains under development and drought

By Nathan Siegel14 April 2017 (Mongabay) – Every morning, Abdu Hajy, 65, takes his canoe out into the murky waters of the Tana River Delta to fish. He’s been following the same routine, in his hometown of Kipini on the Kenyan coast, for the last four decades. But he is not sure how much longer […]

These stunning timelapse photos may just convince you global warming is real

By Chelsea Harvey 3 April 2017 (Washington Post) – Melting glaciers, from Greenland to Antarctica, have become symbols of global warming — and monitoring their retreat is one major way scientists are keeping tabs on the progress of climate change. Now, scientists are trying to bring the issue a little closer to home by using […]

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