Welcome to the latest edition of Global Nature Beat. If you are new here, read my About page to find out what this newsletter is, who I am and why I am doing this. Or just dive in. You’ll find news, reporting resources, job postings, links to some great stories and a look ahead to what’s coming up in the world of biodiversity and nature policy.
Taking The Pulse
Mangroves: Brazil’s president Luiz Inacio ‘Lula’ da Silva signed a decree on 5 June establishing a national programme to boost conservation and sustainable use of mangroves. As Sergio Colombo reports, the ProManguezal programme could help communities to generate income from local mangrove forests, in line with Brazil’s emphasis on promoting a bioeconomy at national and global levels. On 10 June, the Global Mangrove Alliance and the UN High-Level Climate Champions launched a task force to help countries develop commitments to restore, conserve and sustainably manage mangrove forests in their national climate change plans under the Paris Agreement. See the press release from Wetlands International, one of the participating organizations.
Absent forests: A new report from the UN-REDD Programme says that only 8 of the 20 tropical countries with the most deforestation have quantified targets relating to forests in their national climate change plans. This is even though 15 of the countries have strategies for reducing emissions from their forest sectors. The report urges countries to put deforestation targets into their climate change plans — see the press release.
Biodiversity finance: On 17-20 June, the Global Environment Facility's governing body will hold Council meetings for its various funds, with the aim of approving US$736 million in funding for environmental projects. These include the first three projects to be financed by the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund — one in Mexico and two in Brazil. See the GEF's press release or read Sergio Colombo's preview of the GEF meetings and reporting of concerns about the GBFF's ability to plug the gap in finance needed to implement the Global Biodiversity Framework.
European elections: Elections in the 27 member states of the European Union have shifted the make-up of the European Parliament to the political right, with green parties losing the most seats. Kate Abnett reports that, while this will make more ambitious climate policies less likely, most of the existing environmental policies are likely to stay. Right-wing and far right parties are particularly critical of the package of laws in the EU Green Deal. Frans Timmermans, former executive vice president of the European Commission, suggests three ways to update the Green Deal including through a renewed commitment to biodiversity.
UK policy: Nearly 200 biodiversity scientists wrote to all the main political parties in the United Kingdom to ask them to prioritize action to address the loss of nature. They called for legislation to legally bind the government to halting and reversing biodiversity loss, and for a new whole-of-government platform to implement this commitment. Professors E.J. Milner-Gulland of the University of Oxford and Nathalie Pettorelli of the Zoological Society of London explain the rationale for the letter here.
Aquaculture: Aquaculture farms have overtaken wild capture fisheries as the main source of aquatic foods such as fish and shrimp, according to the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA) report released on 7 June. For a summary of the findings, see the press release or this interview with Manuel Barange, head of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
In The Spotlight
Bangladeshi journalist Mafizul Islam says more responsible media coverage of human-tiger conflict is key to protecting people and tigers.
Oliver Milman wrote an explainer about US President Joe Biden's goal of conserving 30 percent of land and water by 2030 — and the extent to which a Trump Presidency could derail the plan.
Indigenous groups are keen to reintroduce sea otters to the Pacific Ocean off Oregon in the United States, but as Avery Schuyler Nunn reports, not everyone is happy.
Climate change is drying out Titicaca, the largest lake in the Andes, reports Tim Brinkhof.
Tips And Resources
On 18 June, Covering Climate Now and Climate Action Against Disinformation have a webinar about strategies pushers of disinformation use to discredit journalists, and how to counter them — register here.
Climate Tracker Caribbean has a new guidebook for climate reporters in the Caribbean.
The Society of Environmental Journalists has a tipsheet for reporting on tornadoes.
On 17 June, Torino Social Impact is hosting a two-hour training on solutions journalism — register here.
Storytelling to Accelerate Climate Solutions — a free-to-download book of academic research in 20 chapters.
See past editions for more tips and resources.
What Caught My Eye
Jeremy Hance reported that an Indonesian court sentenced a rhino poacher to 12 years in prison, a record for wildlife crime.
The latest survey of the world’s most endangered marine mammal, the vaquita, found only 6-8 animals — see the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s press release.
Phoebe Weston wrote about research showing that the spread of cocaine traffickers threatens forests and rare birds in Central America.
Iceland has permitted a company to kill 128 fin whales, reports Karen McVeigh — see the Environmental Investigation Agency’s statement.
Conservationists in Brazil are urging the government of Mato Grosso state to reverse its decision to declare a large and biodiverse protected area in the Amazon basin to be illegitimate.
Wildfire smoke killed more than 50,000 Californians over a decade.
The European Commission has withdrawn plans to fund conservation projects in Tanzania, following forced evictions of Maasai people from their lands.
Giada Ferraglioni reported on research showing that stopping overfishing can make a big contribution to action to limit climate change.
Will Hawkes wrote about the millions of insects migrating over huge distances in Europe each year.
TRAFFIC published a report assessing whether China’s laws against money laundering are suitable for combating wildlife-related crimes.
The UN Environment Programme, the UN Economic Commission for Europe and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development have established the Platform for Action on the Green Recovery of Ukraine.
The Wildlife Justice Commission published its latest annual report on progress disrupting criminal networks involved in wildlife trafficking in Africa and South-East Asia.
In Focus: Conservation and Social Justice
Conservation biologist E. J. Milner-Gulland has written a call to action, urging conservationists “to get off the moral high ground and recognize the trade-offs and synergies implicit in achieving nature, societal, and climate goals”.
I value Milner-Gulland’s perspectives highly. In the article, she warns that “conservationists’ priority to protect globally precious and irreplaceable biodiversity does not fully align with priorities for human development, or even for biodiversity conservation at local or national levels.”
Milner-Gulland is writing out of concern that imminent large flows of finance for conservation and nature restoration in the Global South could exacerbate existing power imbalances and injustices.
She says: “if we do not make a stand now, when the structures, metrics, and approaches for channeling international flows of funding for nature recovery are being developed, inequity will be locked in and ultimately both people and nature will lose.” Read the full article in the journal PLOS Biology.
From The Journals
Study maps multi-billion-dollar legal trade in wildlife and identifies top importing and exporting countries for different wildlife groups — read the full paper.
Researchers identified a huge shortfall in the species diversity of native plant seeds needed for ecological restoration — read the full paper or the accompanying article by the authors.
What does the Holy Qur'an say about biodiversity conservation and how does it align with the Sustainable Development Goals? — read the full paper.
Gray whales off the US Pacific coast have shrunk by 13 percent in the past 2-3 decades, raising concern about the state of the marine ecosystem — read the press release or the full paper.
A global review of research on the impacts of solar power development on biodiversity finds large knowledge gaps — read the full paper.
Research from nine Amazon countries suggests that global tracking systems underestimate how much of the planet is already protected — read the press release or the full paper.
Conservation efforts are still failing most threatened species — read the press release or the full paper.
Jobs And Opportunities
UN Climate Summit news is hiring a part-time editor — deadline 19 June.
Climate Arena is offering fellowships for cross-border journalism on climate change in Europe — deadline 25 June.
The Carter Center has year-long fellowships for journalists who want to report on how climate change is affecting mental health — deadline 28 June.
The Uganda Conservation Media Awards are open — submit work by 30 June.
The Bertha Challenge offers a year-long fellowship for activists and investigative journalists focused on farming and the climate crisis — apply by 12 July.
The Earth Journalism Network is supporting content producers in the Philippines to create engaging climate-related information on social media — deadline 15 July.
Environment journalists working in French can apply for a EUR2,500 reporting grant — deadline 8 September.
Bonus content: There are 35 jobs, grants, fellowships and other opportunities listed here for Global Nature Beat’s paying supporters. Paid subscriptions are less than £1 per week. A free seven-day trial is available.
On The Horizon
12-15 June 2024: The 11th Pan-Amazonian Social Forum (FOSPA) takes place in Bolivia.
16-21 June 2024: The World Biodiversity Forum will take place in Davos, Switzerland.
17-21 June 2024: The 7th European Congress of Conservation Biology — theme: ‘Biodiversity positive by 2030’ — takes place in Bologna, Italy.
18-20 June 2024: The Nature-Based Solutions conference will be in Oxford, United Kingdom, and online.
Bonus content: The full calendar for Global Nature Beat’s supporters includes 55 nature-related intergovernmental negotiations, scientific conferences, report launches, and other events up until 2026. Paid subscriptions are less than £1 per week. A free seven-day trial is available.
Whose Eye Was It?
The eye belongs to a crested barbet. Photo credit: Andrew Frier / Flickr — Creative Commons
Thanks for reading. For past editions, see the Archive. If you found it interesting or useful, please share and subscribe. If you want to get in contact, you can reach me at: thenaturebeat@substack.com.