Nature Beat #38
Updates, stories, resources and opportunities
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
Biodiversity talks: Government representatives are meeting in Montreal from 12-16 August to make progress in negotiations on a mechanism for sharing benefits that arise when companies use digital information on genetic sequences to develop medicines, foods and other products. Such a mechanism and associated fund could generate billions of dollars for conservation. Agreement on how this will work is one of the main intended outcomes of the Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity later this year. See the CBD Secretariat’s press release and meeting page, or coverage from the Earth Negotiations Bulletin. Journalists can register here for the press conference at the end of the meeting on 16 August.
Deep-sea mining: Brazilian oceanographer Leticia Carvalho was elected to lead the International Seabed Authority (ISA), which is responsible for overseeing the possible development of deep-sea mining in international waters. As Elizabeth Claire Alberts reports, Carvalho’s election — and the defeat of incumbent Michael Lodge — has been welcomed by nongovernmental organizations campaigning against deep-sea mining.
Wildlife trade: The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) shared the outcomes of recent meetings of the CITES Plant Committee (see press release) and the CITES Animals Committee (see press release). The former meeting considered topics including rosewood timber and edible orchids. The latter meeting discussed sharks, reptiles, big cats and seahorses, among others. Both committees agreed on draft decisions for the Conference of the Parties to CITES to adopt, when it next meets in 2025.
Climate and biodiversity: The UN climate change and biodiversity conventions need a joint work programme on climate, nature and people, say researchers writing in the Journal of Applied Ecology. They say such as programme is needed to ensure successful implementation of both the Paris Agreement on climate change and the Global Biodiversity Framework. Their paper recommends how to set up a joint programme and identifies what it should work on. See the press release for more details.
Biodiversity targets: The European Union shared its targets for implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework — see press release. The deadline for parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity to submit their targets was 1 August. Search for your country’s submission here.
Indigenous rights: Organizations advocating for indigenous lands rights in the context of conservation are hailing a decision by the African Commission of Human and Peoples Rights in favour of the Batwa people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The government of the DRC had evicted Batwa people from their ancestral forest in the 1970s to create a new national park. Over the following decades, the landless Batwa have suffered greatly. The African Commission’s decision rules that the DRC government violated the Batwa people’s rights. It urges the government to apologize, pay compensation and recognize Batwa land rights within the national park. See the joint statement by the Forest Peoples Programme, Rainforest Foundation UK, Amnesty International and the Indigenous Peoples’ Law and Policy Programme — or read Chris Lang’s story on the case.
In The Spotlight
Hillary Rosner reported on plans for an ‘internet of animals’ — a global system of sensor-equipped wildlife that scientists will use to monitor species and their environments.
Kenny Torrella reported on the major environment groups that are supporting the meat industry’s questionable sustainability claims.
Nepal’s community forestry scheme greatly increased the country’s forest cover but is now under threat, reports Tanka Dhakal.
Aruna Chandrasekhar, Yanine Quiroz and Giuliana Viglione produced an excellent explainer on what deep-sea mining means for climate change and biodiversity.
Tips And Resources
Dialogue Earth is offering a free course on reporting climate change in Africa — early completers can apply for reporting grants.
Poynter has a free course for journalists who want to learn how best to apply for grants to support their work.
The Journalist’s Resource shared a summary and recording of its recent webinar on carbon offsets.
In September, Covering Climate Now is holding a free three day online summit to help journalists integrate climate change into political reporting.
NPR has tips for journalists covering climate change and extreme weather.
Brazilian media outlet ((o))eco is holding a two day seminar on environment journalism — see the schedule and register here to watch online.
See past editions for more tips and resources.
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What Caught My Eye
More than a billion birds die in the United States each year after colliding with buildings, reports Rais Esat.
Fermín Koop interviewed biologist Sandra Díaz about the prospects for achieving the ‘transformative’ change needed to address the root causes of biodiversity loss.
Suzannah Evans Comfort shared a summary of her findings from interviews with 50 environment journalists.
Heather Tallis and colleagues explain why and how to 'mainstream' nature in policymaking.
Rene Ebersole, Rachael Bale and Oliver Payne have set up Wildlife Investigative Reporters & Editors — the “only media organization expressly dedicated to deeply investigating commercial-scale exploitation of animals and nature”.
World Trade Organization negotiations towards a deal to end state subsidies that support overfishing have once again failed, reports Elizabeth Fitt.
Kenya launched a national initiative to coordinate biodiversity conservation activities by state and non-state actors.
The US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has controversially scrapped a US$2 million project on how to combine Western and Indigenous ways of understanding nature, report Jeffrey Mervis and Rodrigo Pérez Ortega.
From The Journals
Links between lion farming in South Africa and the illegal trade in lion bones — read the press release or the full paper.
A systematic review of climate change impacts on biodiversity in the Congo Basin — read the full paper.
Mineral extraction threatens thousands of vertebrate species, especially fish — read the press release or the full paper.
Conservation should include non-threatened species because of their contributions to people — read the full paper.
Study in Liberia provides national-scale evidence of the role of forests in enhancing food security — read the press release or the full paper.
Federal agencies in the United States should focus more on invasive species in their plans for adapting to climate change, say researchers — read the full paper.
A new database shows that companies are including genetic sequences from hundreds of species of marine life in patent filings — read the full paper.
Jobs And Opportunities
The Earth Journalism Network is hiring an editorial assistant — rolling deadline.
StateImpact Oklahoma is hiring an environment and science reporter.
Internews is seeking an environmental media consultant for a project in Jordan, Lebanon and Tunisia — rolling deadline.
Dialogue Earth is hiring an assistant editor (short-term contract) — deadline 12 August.
The Earth Journalism Network is offering virtual reporting fellowships to support journalists to remotely cover the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP16) and UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) — deadline 15 August.
EJN also has story grants for journalists covering marine issues in the Mediterranean — deadline 19 August.
The Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalism (Abraji) is seeking mentors for its Environmental Advocates project — deadline 16 August.
The Sustainability Media Academy invites journalists in Asia to apply for its third season of training workshops — deadline 20 August.
Journalists in southern Europe can apply to join the Magmatic School of Environmental Journalism — deadline 30 August.
Carbon Brief is hiring a science editor — deadline 2 September.
Bonus content: There are 30 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
20-22 August 2024: IUCN's USA Regional Conservation Forum takes place in Washington, DC.
25-31 August 2024: The 12th World Wilderness Congress (WILD12) takes place in the Black Hills of South Dakota, United States.
3-5 September 2024: IUCN's Asia Regional Conservation Forum takes place in Bangkok, Thailand.
9-11 September 2024: IUCN's West Asia Regional Conservation Forum takes place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
16-20 September 2024: IUCN's Oceania Regional Conservation Forum takes place in Suva, Fiji.
17 September 2024: Global Landscape Forum - Africa will take place, with sessions online or in-person in Nairobi, Kenya.
Bonus content: The full calendar for Global Nature Beat’s supporters includes 45 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.
In Case You Missed It
My previous post…
Whose Eye Was It?
The eye belongs to a crested oropendola. Photo credit: Nathan Rupert / Flickr — Creative Commons
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