The high-end outdoor apparel and gear retailer announced the record-breaking haul Monday, saying the “enormous love” its customers showed to the planet will benefit hundreds of grassroots environmental organizations around the world.
Alaska Native Corporation Reaches Agreement To Permanently Protect Over 44,000 Acres Of Globally Important Salmon Habitat
The Shareholders of the Pedro Bay Corporation Approve Plan to Preserve Their Land; The Conservation Fund Launches Fundraising Campaign
By an overwhelming majority of 90%, shareholders of the Pedro Bay Corporation voted to protect their land for subsistence and cultural use, as well as to benefit fish and wildlife. The vote approves an agreement for The Conservation Fund to purchase three conservation easements on more than 44,000 acres of surface estate land from the Pedro Bay Corporation for $18.3 million. These lands support critical salmon habitat on Iliamna Lake that is essential to the health, vitality and protection of Bristol Bay—the largest wild salmon fishery in the world.
WWF Launches “Forests Forward,” a Global Program to Help Companies Deliver Lasting Science-Driven Strategies to Benefit Nature, Climate and People
Participants include HP Inc.; International Paper Company; Kimberly-Clark; Lowe’s Companies, Inc.; and Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
Today World Wildlife Fund (WWF) launched “Forests Forward,” a new program that engages with companies and other stakeholders around the globe to deliver effective nature-based strategies for forests that help achieve their business and sustainability goals. Working together, WWF and participating businesses aim to realize meaningful, long-term benefits for nature, climate and people. Companies in Forests Forward will also gain a better understanding of how to mitigate sourcing, climate and social risks while demonstrating leadership and building resilient supply chains for the future.
To date, five of the world’s foremost companies have signed on as Forests Forward participants in the United States. They include HP Inc.; International Paper Company; Kimberly-Clark; Lowe’s Companies, Inc.; and Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
Mammal Society welcomes government commitment to ‘nature positive future’ in response to Dasgupta Report
Today, in the wake of the G7 Summit in Cornwall, the Government has announced its response to the Dasgupta Review on the Economics of Biodiversity.
In his February 2021 Report, commissioned by HM Treasury in 2019, Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta stated “Truly sustainable economic growth and development means recognising that our long-term prosperity relies on rebalancing our demand of nature’s goods and services with its capacity to supply them. It also means accounting fully for the impact of our interactions with nature. Covid-19 has shown us what can happen when we don’t do this.”
First release of African Penguins at De Hoop Nature Reserve in South Africa
The release of 30 juvenile African Penguins into the wild this week represents a big step forward to re-establish a penguin colony on the south coast of South Africa. BirdLife South Africa, CapeNature and SANCCOB have partnered together in this ambitious attempt to help this Endangered species.
Indonesian palm oil firm to 'remedy past mistakes' with forest restoration plan
One of Indonesia's most controversial palm oil companies has committed to restore 38,000 hectares of forest in Papua and Kalimantan to make amends for past deforestation.
In 1995 the National Trust for Scotland acquired Mar Lodge Estate in the heart of the Cairngorms. Home to over 5,000 species, this vast expanse of Caledonian woodlands, subarctic mountains, bogs, moors, roaring burns and frozen lochs could be a place where environmental conservation and Highland field sports would exist in harmony. The only problem was that due to centuries of abuse by human hands, the ancient Caledonian pinewoods were dying, and it would take radical measures to save them.
After 25 years of extremely hard work, the pinewoods, bogs, moors and mountains are returning to their former glory. Regeneration is the story of this success, featuring not only the people who are protecting the land and quietly working to undo the wrongs of the past, but also the myriad creatures which inspire them to do so.
Monarchs raised in captivity can orient themselves for migration, study reveals
Monarch butterflies raised indoors still know how to fly south if given enough time to orient themselves, according to new University of Guelph research.
The finding is good news for the many nature lovers and school students who raise monarchs and then set them free to help boost struggling numbers.
From Pens to Dens: A Record Number of Mexican Wolf Pups Fostered into the Wild
Fostered Mexican wolf pups advance genetic recovery effort
Record 22 captive-born Mexican wolf pups were placed in wild dens to be raised in the wild by their surrogate parents after another successful cross-foster season. For six years, wild Mexican wolves have been raising captive-born pups as their own, helping to boost the genetic diversity of this endangered subspecies and moving the wild population towards recovery.
During April and May, nine pups were fostered into three different packs in eastern Arizona and 13 were fostered into five packs in western New Mexico.
Singapore launches new carbon marketplace for nature conservancy projects
Singapore last month launched a carbon trading marketplace backed by its state investment firm, stock exchange and largest bank.
The Climate Impact X initiative has two main platforms: a marketplace for nature-based projects, and an exchange where carbon credits can be freely traded in larger quantities.
Demand for nature-based carbon credits — those linked to ecosystem conservation and restoration projects — has been growing in recent years, but high-quality credits remain scarce.
The new platform aims to harness the potential of nature-based solutions in Southeast Asia, protecting at-risk forests while unlocking high-quality carbon credits for businesses.
Singapore is launching a carbon trading marketplace focused on nature conservancy projects, a move that could protect at-risk tropical forests in the region while unlocking a ready source of carbon credits for businesses.
Axa Will Stop Investing in Firms Linked to Deforestation, Biodiversity Loss
The Paris-based company says it will engage more with companies to push them to be more sustainable
AXA SA’s investment management arm will stop investing in companies that contribute to deforestation or the loss of biodiversity.
The new policy, which comes into effect on Wednesday, targets firms involved in cattle, soy, and timber extraction industries, AXA Investment Management said in the statement. It’s an extension of an existing ban on investing in palm oil producers that haven’t been certified sustainable.
Half the trees in two new English woodlands planted by jays, study finds
Former fields were naturally regenerated with oak trees growing from acorns buried by the birds
More than half the trees in two new woodlands in lowland England have been planted not by landowners, charities or machines but by jays.
Former fields rapidly turned into native forest with no plastic tree-guards, watering or expensive management, according to a new study which boosts the case for using natural regeneration to meet ambitious woodland creation targets.
Instead, during “passive rewilding”, thrushes spread seeds of bramble, blackthorn and hawthorn, and this scrub then provided natural thorny tree “guards” for oaks that grew from acorns buried in the ground by jays.
The study, published in the journal Plos One, followed the fate of two fields next to Monks Wood, a nature reserve in Cambridgeshire. One, a barley field, was abandoned in 1961. The other, former grassland, was left alone in 1996.
After just 24 years, the grassland area, known as “the new wilderness”, had grown into a young wood with 132 live trees per hectare, 57% of which were oaks.
Arrival of Dutch bison boosts natural grazing at Danish rewilding initiative
This April a herd of seven European bison from the Netherlands arrived at the Lille Vildmose protected area in Denmark, which is a member of the European Rewilding Network. Their presence will help to boost biodiversity and support the health and further growth of the entire European bison population.
Podcast: It’s an ‘incredibly exciting’ time for the field of bioacoustics
On this episode of the Mongabay Newscast, we look at why it’s such an “incredibly exciting” time to be involved in the field of conservation bioacoustics — and we listen to some new and favorite wildlife recordings, too.
Our guest is Laurel Symes, assistant director of the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics at Cornell University’s Lab of Ornithology. Symes tells us about how a new $24 million endowment will allow the center to expand its support for bioacoustics research and technology around the world and why this field is poised to make a huge impact on conservation.
After our conversation with her, we listen to some of the most interesting bioacoustics recordings we’ve featured on the Mongabay Newscast, including the sounds of elephants, lemurs, gibbons, right whales, humpback whales, and frogs.
Today we take a look at the growing world of bioacoustics research and listen to a number of recordings of wildlife, from owls, lemurs, and elephants to seals, right whales, and humpbacks.
Arabian oryx population surges at Abu Dhabi nature reserve as conservation efforts pay off
The species was hunted almost to extinction in the early 1970s but hundreds now thrive in Al Dhafra
The number of Arabian oryx in the UAE's largest nature reserve increased by more than a fifth in less than four years, a new study revealed.
Environment Agency Abu Dhabi carried out an aerial survey of the 6,000-square-kilometre Al Dhafra reserve to assess the success of ongoing conservation efforts.
The desert antelope had been hunted to verge of extinction in the 1970s.
Government says yes to Highly Protected Marine Areas
The Wildlife Trusts cheer long fought-for arrival of first ever sea sanctuaries where all damaging activities will be banned
Last year, the Benyon review of Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) was published by Defra. The Wildlife Trusts backed its recommendations that HPMAs should be an essential part of the UK network for protection and recovery of the marine environment, and that the government should introduce HPMAs as soon as possible.
Today, on World Oceans Day 2021, Defra has announced it will begin the process for designating HPMAs by the end of 2022, setting an ambitious commitment to protect our seas. The Wildlife Trusts believe there is an overwhelming case for the designation of HPMAs across our seas which would see a ban on all damaging activities, offering the strictest possible protections for the marine environment and giving nature the best chance of recovery.
The Wildlife Trusts have called for HPMAs for the last three years and launched a petition urging speedy implementation which was signed by over 10,000 people. Joan Edwards, director of policy and public affairs at The Wildlife Trusts was invited to be on the Government’s HPMA panel.
The City is about to embark on a massive spending spree to try and protect habitats for native animals, including koalas.
Gold Coast Council today announced the largest wildlife corridor land purchase scheme in its history, with $11 million being allocated from the budget to try and create wildlife corridors.
It’s understood at least 40 sites covering over 3515 hectares, from Numinbah Valley to Coomera, have already been eyed off for purchase.
Poaching declines in Tanzania following prosecution of ivory trafficking ringleaders
Taskforce on Anti-Poaching says it penetrated 11 criminal syndicates in five years.
Conservation groups say wildlife crime networks have moved from East to West Africa.
Government says elephant populations have grown to 60,000 from 43,000 in 2014.
Tanzania targets ‘zero-poaching’ after thousands of arrests.
Once known as the world’s elephant killing fields, Tanzania appears to have halted the worst ivory poaching within its borders, making more than 2,300 arrests of poachers and traffickers over five years.
England’s infrastructure projects will be ‘nature positive’, ministers vow
Biodiversity pledge is part of formal response to landmark review of economic importance of nature
The UK government has committed to leaving the environment in “a better state than we found it” in response to a landmark review of the economic importance of nature.
Major transport and energy infrastructure projects in England will need to provide a net-gain for biodiversity, and the government said it would ensure all new bilateral aid spending did not harm the natural world as part of an effort to ensure a “nature-positive” future.
