Nature Beat #42

Updates, stories, resources and opportunities

Sep 13, 2024

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

Environment defenders: More than 2,000 environment and land defenders have been murdered since 2012, according to Global Witness. Its latest report shows that nearly 200 of these murders took place last year, with 40 percent of them being in Colombia, which next month hosts the Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. The report recommends actions for governments and private companies to take.

Public opinion: Ipsos surveyed 22,000 people in 22 countries to assess views about the state of the planet. Across the 18 countries that are members of the G20, a large majority (72 percent) of people support making it a criminal offence for governments or leaders of large businesses to approve or permit actions that cause serious damage to nature and our climate.

Most people (59 percent) are very or extremely worried about the state of nature and 69 percent believe the Earth is close to tipping points. Earth4All and the Global Commons Alliance commissioned the survey. It also revealed strong and widespread support for immediate action on climate change, wealth taxes and economies that prioritize the health and wellbeing of people and nature. Read the press release or explore the data.

Biodiversity in Indigenous territories: In recent years, hundreds of scientific papers, media stories, UN reports and statements by nongovernmental organizations have said that 80 percent of the planet’s biodiversity is in the territories of Indigenous Peoples. But, according to a new paper in the journal Nature, this statistic has no scientific basis and its use could harm efforts to recognize the important roles of Indigenous Peoples and their territories in conserving the world’s biodiversity.

Crucially, the authors of the paper are not saying that indigenous territories do not have much of the world’s biodiversity. Rather, they are saying that biodiversity is too complex to sum up in a simple metric, and that the statistic in question appears to have originated in a misinterpretation of another statistic. Read the full paper, a commentary by two of its authors, an editorial in Nature, or Thomas Cox’s story on the debate the paper sparked.

Planetary health: A new study by the more than sixty scientists from the Earth Commission concludes that our economic system and the way we use resources must change fundamentally to ensure even basic living standards. The study highlights the extent to which human activities are damaging the natural systems that support life, and provides a pathway towards safe and just future. Read the press release or the full study.

In Focus: The Social Cost of Biodiversity Loss

Research published last week documented a rare natural experiment that revealed the human costs of biodiversity loss. When a fungal disease killed many insect-eating bats in the United States, local farmers lost key allies against crop pests. The study concludes that famers responded by increasing pesticide use by 31 percent. This led to an 8 percent increase in infant mortality — an estimated 1,334 additional infant deaths. The study quantifies the benefits that bats provide — and the consequences for agriculture and human health of biodiversity loss. See the press release, the full paper, the accompanying commentary or this story by Benji Jones.

In The Spotlight

Gideon Sarpong went undercover to report on a thriving illegal trade in sea turtles in Ghana.
Isabella Kaminski reports that, for the first time, part of the ocean has been granted legal personhood, with a Brazilian city’s decision to recognize its waves as living beings.
Damian Carrington wrote in depth about how to improve the parlous state of nature in England’s national parks.

Tips And Resources

On 30 September, the Columbia Climate School has an webinar on global food systems and climate change.
On 17-19 September, Covering Climate Now holds its ‘Climate on the Ballot’ online summit for journalists — on day two, journalists from India, Mexico and the United Kingdom will discuss bringing a climate change angle to coverage of national elections.
Jelter Meers and Madeleine Ngeunga shared advice on how to investigate the investors behind environmental destruction and will cover this topic in a webinar on 17 September.

See past editions for more tips and resources.

In Focus: The UN Biodiversity Conference (COP16)

COP16 — the sixteenth conference of parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity — is just six weeks away. Here are some resources:

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) outlined its five priorities for COP16.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) published its position paper on scientific and technical issues.
On 17 September, the World Resources Institute is holding an online press briefing on the upcoming UN conferences on biodiversity and climate change.
On 20 September, the Wilson Center and the Pulitzer Center have an online event on the significance of the UN biodiversity conference — register here.

What Caught My Eye

The Government of Namibia wants to cull hundreds of wild animals including elephants, hippos and zebra — the Environmental Investigation Agency calls the plan ‘an abdication of responsibility’.
A large study in the United Kingdom showed that family doctors can improve people’s mental health by prescribing nature-based activities— read the press release or the full study.
California, the fifth largest economy in the world, says it is on track to protect 30 percent of its land by 2030 as 25 percent is now protected, reports Hayley Smith.
Mary Kate McCoy wrote about a Mexican community that learned to live with crocodiles and saw its fishermen’s catches grow ten-fold.
Jonathan Tonkin wrote an engaging explainer of why and how more having more biodiversity makes ecosystems more resilient.
Marine scientist Alec Moore wrote about his research using 18th century documents to show the staggering loss of sea life in the waters off Wales.
Amazon Watch released a report on threats posed by organized crime and illegal mining to Indigenous communities and the Amazon rainforest in Ecuador.
A gold rush also threatens Cambodia’s forests, including protected areas — see Anton Delgado’s digital photo exhibition.
The secretariat of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) has drafted summaries of the recent meetings of its Animals Committee and Plants Committee.
Hundreds of new Key Biodiversity Areas have been identified in the Congo Basin and the Tropical Andes.
Environmental defenders are being criminalized in Viet Nam, reports Hướng Thiện.
More than 750 species were newly-identified in Australia last year.
Lawmakers in China are reviewing a draft law on national parks that aims to balance ecological preservation with the well-being of local communities.
WWF published research and a new tool that identifies how different countries can make their food systems sustainable — see press release.

From The Journals

The scientific journal Conservation Biology has published a special issue devoted to research on wildlife trade involving species that usually get less attention than elephants and tigers. You will find papers on parrots, turtles, sea-snakes, crayfish, giant snails, hornbills, pitcher plants, cacti and more — see the contents page with links to each research paper.
Four plant species that wild gorillas eat — apparently to self-medicate — and that local communities use in traditional medicine have antibacterial and antioxidant properties — read the press release or the full paper.
As coral reef ecosystems in the Indian Ocean degrade, grey sharks spend less time there — read the press release or the full paper.
Social media data exposes illegal recreational hunting and wildlife depletion in Brazil — read the full paper.

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Jobs And Opportunities

Journalists in Latin America can apply for in-person training on climate change reporting organized by Connectas and CIJ — deadline 15 September.
Mongabay invites journalists from six francophone countries in Africa to apply for its environmental reporting fellowship — deadline 16 September.
The Baltimore Banner seeks an environment and climate reporter — no deadline listed.
Internews is hiring a program officer for its Conservando Juntos (Together for Conservation) project in the Western Amazon — rolling deadline but applicants are encouraged to apply by 20 September.
The German taz Panter Foundation is offers a long-term series of workshops on climate change reporting for 25 female journalists from the Middle East and North Africa — deadline 20 September.
The Washington Post is hiring a ‘Power and politics editor, climate and environment’ — deadline 19 September.

Bonus content: There are 28 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

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.

23-23 September 2024: UN Summit of the Future takes place in New York City, United States.

23-26 September 2024: A CITES dialogue meeting on trade in live African elephants will take place in Maun, Botswana.

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.

Whose Eye Was It?

The eye belongs to a great curassow. Photo credit: Grigory Heaton / 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.