Nature Beat #66

Updates, stories, resources and opportunities

Jun 02, 2025

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.

In this edition you will find: High seas biodiversity — Ocean darkening — Anti-deforestation law — A broadside for Brazil — Rewilding success — Invasive catfish hunters — Thai lion-cub trade — News from around the world — Journalism tips — Jobs and opportunities — New research papers — And much more.

Taking The Pulse

High seas treaty: On 28 May, the European Union and six of its member states ratified the new treaty on biodiversity in the high seas. That means 29 parties have now ratified the treaty, with 60 needed for it to enter into force. More countries are likely to announce their ratifications during the third United Nations Ocean Conference, which takes place from 9-13 June in Nice, France.

Ocean darkening: New research shows that more than one-fifth of the ocean has grown darker over the past two decades. Light in these areas does not penetrate as deep into the sea as it used to. While the impacts are not yet known, many marine species are likely to be affected — read the press release or the full paper.

GEF: The Global Environment Facility’s 186 member countries are meeting this week (2-6 June) to approve up to US$261 million in funding for climate action, biodiversity conservation and pollution control. The GEF says each dollar will attract up to US$13 in co-financing from other sources, for a total of more than US$2.6 billion.

Brazil: Philip M. Fearnside wrote a stinging rebuke of Brazilian President Lula’s environmental record, saying Lula inhabits a ‘disinformation space’ and is surrounded by ministers promoting the destruction of the Amazon and dependence on oil extraction. The criticism comes as Brazil prepares to host the COP30 climate change conference while also moving ahead with approvals for drilling for oil off the coast of the Amazon and removing requirements for environmental impact assessments.

Deforestation: The European Union's landmark anti-deforestation law continues to be weakened ahead of its entry into force, which has already been postponed by one year to December 2025. The law's reporting requirements have been reduced and, on 22 May, the European Commission announced that commodities from only four countries — Belarus, Myanmar, North Korea and Russia — would face the stiffest scrutiny under the law. Kerstin Canby and Marigold Walkins of Forest Trends call the EU’s country-by-country benchmarking of risks of deforestation in commodity supply chains to be “underwhelming and deeply concerning”. As Kate Abnett reported days later, 11 EU member states are now demanding another delay to the law's entry into force and further simplifications of its rules.

In The Spotlight

Patrick Lee wrote about the 1000-strong ‘foreign-fish hunter squad’ trying to rid Malaysia’s rivers of invasive catfish — and catching them in large numbers.
Solomon Yimer reported on the impacts of the US government’s freeze on overseas aid on Ethiopia’s largest community conservation area, a once-promising initiative that is now at risk of failure.
Phoebe Weston reported on an alliance between farmers and rewilders restoring biodiversity in the Yorkshire Dales national park in the United Kingdom.
Omnia Saed wrote about what the loss of glaciers in Uganda's Rwenzori Mountains means for the Bakonzo people who say their mountain god lives in the ice.

On 3 June, the Global Investigative Journalism Network has a webinar on tools and techniques used by winners of this year’s Sigma Awards for data journalism — register here.
The Secretariat of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity shared a useful overview of the planned intersessional meetings leading up to next year’s Conference of Parties.
The World Resources Institute updated the Climate Watch NDC Tracker showing which countries have submitted their updated climate change pledges and how much they reduce carbon emissions.

See past editions for more tips and resources.

What Caught My Eye

Emma Bryce wrote about some fascinating research about the potential for farming seagrass to produce grain with net-zero carbon emissions and side benefits for biodiversity.
Friends of journalist Dom Phillips have completed the book that he was researching about how to save the Amazon when he was murdered alongside Brazilian activist Bruno Pereira. On 5 June, The Guardian will launch a podcast series about the men and their work.
Ana Norman Bermudez reported on Thailand's booming trade in captive-bred lion cubs.
Emily Thrift wrote about her research showing how microplastics are moving through terrestrial food webs — from soil to slugs to songbirds.
Genetic analysis shows that many otters in exotic animal cafes in Japan are related to populations in poaching hotspots in Thailand, reports Carolyn Cowan.
Matt Simon wrote about the strange way penguin poop might be cooling Antarctica.
Regina Lam asked experts what China joining the UN Agreement on Port State Measures means for ocean conservation and the fight against illegal fishing.
Protected areas in Afghanistan are displacing nomadic herders who have long protected the land, reports Manija Mirzaie.
China added thousands of species in the annual update to its register of biodiversity.
In India, the Centre for Science and Environment released a report on challenges facing community seed banks preserving agricultural biodiversity that can help farmers adapt to climate change
Synchronized surveys across the Indian state of Tamil Nadu recorded 798 bird species in just four days, reports S.V. Krishna Chaitanya.
Costa Rica is experiencing a sharp rise in wildlife trafficking.
Environmental organizations praised Nigeria’s new Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Bill as it passed its final reading in the House of Representatives…
… and Ajibola Adedoye reported on problems with the existing legal framework that show why the new law is needed.
The Trump administration’s termination of funding for wildlife and forest rangers in Africa and Asia opens the door to illegal hunters, miners and loggers, writes Joe Figel.

From The Journals

A 20-year dataset covering 900 species shows that biodiversity enhances ecosystem stability — read the press release or the full paper.
We need a major rethink of how to achieve the targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework to take account of how climate change threatens progress — read the full paper.
The spread and impact of high-pathogenicity avian influenza in wild birds and mammals, now numbering 94 species, of South America and Antarctica — read the full paper.
The evolution and modernization of China’s ecological and environmental governance — read the full paper.
Solutions for eight key environmental issues — read the press release or the full paper.
Experts often falsely identify illegal ivory products as legal antiques — read the full paper.
Forests offset global warming more than thought but rapid emissions cuts are still needed — read the press release or the full paper.
More than five million trafficked seahorses were seized between 2010 and 2021 — read the press release or the full paper.
Environmental DNA analysis can be integrated into existing air quality monitoring networks to monitor biodiversity at relatively low cost — read the full paper.

Do You Find This Useful?

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Jobs And Opportunities

Bonus content: There are 23 jobs, grants, fellowships and other opportunities listed here for Global Nature Beat’s paying supporters. Paid subscriptions are less than £1 per week.

The Pulitzer Center is offering grants for stories reporting on the systems, organizations, and people that enable corruption across the Global South and is particularly interested in environmental investigations.
Agência Pública is offering Brazilian journalists microgrants for stories on greenwashing and the energy transition — deadline 15 June.
Young journalists around the world can apply for a Climate Feed fellowship — deadline 20 June.
The European Journalism Centre is offering grants of up to 50,000 euros through its Journalism Science Alliance program — deadline 4 August.
Inside Climate News invites journalists in the United States to apply for its fellowships on climate, environment and environmental justice reporting — deadline 15 August.

Introducing Planet Ficus

I’ve started another newsletter called Planet Ficus. It is devoted to stories about what I think are the world’s most fascinating plants — the strangler figs and their kin, which have shaped our world and our species in profound ways. If that sounds interesting, please subscribe — or check out the introductory post for a quick tour of what makes fig trees so important and what kinds of stories I will be sharing.

On The Horizon

9-13 June 2025: The third UN Ocean Conference takes place in Nice, France.

10-11 June 2025: The ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity and the World Resources Institute are holding the 2025 Biodiversity Science Forum in Jakarta, Indonesia.

15-20 June 2025: The International Congress for Conservation Biology (ICCB 2025) will take place in Brisbane/Meanjin, Australia.

16-26 June 2025: The subsidiary bodies of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change hold their 62nd meeting in Bonn, Germany.

Bonus content: The full calendar for Global Nature Beat’s supporters includes nature-related intergovernmental negotiations, scientific conferences, report launches, and other events up until 2026.

Whose Eye Was It?

The eye belongs to an Asiatic lion. Photo credit: Mayurisamudre— Wikimedia 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.