Indigenous Peoples are often the victims of nature conservation, according to a new report by Vicky Tauli-Corpuz presented to the UN this week, as they are expelled from lands they have inhabited for millennia. One reason, she told Joe Eisen, is that indigenous territories are precisely the places where biodiversity is best preserved - thanks to the protective, nurturing presence of their traditional owners.
… Vicky Tauli-Corpuz: 'The better protected areas are those where indigenous … is best preserved - thanks to the protective, nurturing presence of their … highlights the impact of conservation and protected areas on indigenous peoples, was …
There's strong public support for protecting marine wildlife, writes Horatio Morpurgo - so why aren't politicians championing the cause? Labour and Tories alike fear to challenge the big fishing companies that have come to believe they own Britain's offshore waters and seabed. Now it's up to use to prove they're wrong.
… To protect our seas, first we must reclaim them … There's strong public support for protecting marine wildlife, writes Horatio … boats. Lyme Bay - the UK's first major Marine Protected Area But the meeting mattered in …
Remember when the UK was the 'dirty man of Europe'? What has changed since then, writes Caroline Lucas, is our membership of the EU - which has made us raise our environmental performance on everything from fisheries to air pollution, nature conservation, clean bathing waters and renewable energy. Leave, and it could all go into reverse.
… Remain in the EU to protect our environment Caroline Lucas | 20th … and to ensure that people's rights are protected - at work and as consumers. We also … so clearly as the European Union's role in protecting our environment. In many ways, it's …
The the creation of almost a million sq.km of the South Pacific as a fully protected marine area builds on a long Conservative tradition of protecting the natural environment, write Nick Hurd & Zac Goldsmith - and as factory trawlers close in on Pitcairn's pristine waters, the initiative could not have been more timely.
… million sq.km of the South Pacific as a fully protected marine area builds on a long Conservative tradition of protecting the natural environment, write Nick … for inspiration if you're concerned about protecting the natural world. However, in …
Chile's announcement of a 630,000 sq.km marine protected area around Easter Island is altogether welcome, writes Callum Roberts. It forms part of a trend of very large marine reserve declarations that will play a vital role in preserving endangered fish stocks and vital oceanic biodiversity.
… announcement of a 630,000 sq.km marine protected area around Easter Island is … of the Pacific. One of the world's biggest protected areas For a place surrounded by … vast area of neighbouring ocean into a marine protected area (MPA), following an official …
A legal principle dating from Roman times is ripe for use in protecting our waste-filled and over-exploited seas and oceans, writes Deb Wright. Under the 'Public Trust Doctrine' governments are entrusted to protect shared natural resources from abuse, and can be held accountable for neglect of their duties.
… Public Trust Doctrine requires governments to protect our oceans! Deb Wright | 9th March … dating from Roman times is ripe for use in protecting our waste-filled and over-exploited … Trust Doctrine' governments are entrusted to protect shared natural resources from abuse, …
The destruction of the world's wilderness is accelerating with a new clutch of mega projects from dams, roads and mines to large scale agriculture, write James Watson, Bill Laurance, Brendan Mackey & James Allan. It's cost-effective to put a stop to it right now for the carbon value of wilderness alone - never mind the biodiversity and indigenous peoples it safeguards.
… Wilderness needs immediate protection for climate - and much more James … conservation investments that can help protect vanishing wilderness areas. These … existing regulatory frameworks aimed at protecting imperilled species and ecosystems. …
Europe's most important laws for wildlife, the EU's Nature Directives, are under threat in from a recently launched 'review', writes Martin Harper. The official purpose is to make the laws more effective, but in reality it's all part of the Commission's agenda to strip away regulations that impede business in its pursuit of profit.
… Harper | 12th May 2015 Comment Conservation Protected Areas Natural World EU Law Politics … primarily a flood risk management project protecting 300 homes from coastal flooding. … visit yourself, go and see the little terns protected by the Birds Directive at nearby …
President Donald Trump has worked relentlessly to undo environmental and conservation policies from the Obama Administration. Trump will travel to the UK next month, with a mass demonstration planned to meet him. Environmentalists have plenty of reasons to attend. EMILY FOLK provides a run down
… era, the United States took many steps toward protecting the environment and fighting … who had frequently sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the past, became its head. Stream Protection One of the first Obama-era rules …
Ruthless conservation policies at India's Kaziranga reserve claimed 20 lives in 2015 alone, writes Bhaskar Vira. Now, after a BBC film revealed the grim reality of life for local people, the BBC itself is in the firing line - banned from all India's tiger reserves for five years. Successful conservation must build bridges with communities - not fight them!
… north-eastern India, rangers shoot people to protect rhinos . The park's aggressive … contemporary conservation, as the need to protect endangered species comes into contact … balance modernisation and development with protections for the rights of local people - …
An ancient grassland SSSI at Rampisham could be saved following a government decision to put an 'hold' notice on the West Dorset Council's planning consent for a huge solar farm, writes Martin Harper. Now Eric Pickles must 'call in' the case to a public inquiry, or set a truly dreadful precedent for our most precious nature sites.
… Pickles must protect Rampisham Down SSSI from solar farm … security fences, something precious remained, protected from the changing world outside. … sites that are as the nature equivalent of protected buildings, the likes of Stonehenge …
Who are the best guardians of forests and other wild places? Governments? Conservation NGOs? Corporations? No, writes Prakash Kashwan, it's the indigenous peoples who have lived in harmony with their environment for millennia. But to be able do so, they must first be accorded rights to their historic lands and resources, both in law and in practice. Among the countries leading the way, Mexico. Among the laggards, Kenya and India.
… To conserve tropical forests and wildlife, protect the rights of people who rely on them … is that there are inherent trade-offs between protecting the environment and securing social … My research shows that when countries protect the rights of forest-dependent people …
The EU's Nature Directives have been doing a great job of protecting Europe's most threatened species and habitats and building up wildlife numbers, writes Catherine Weller, and the UK knows it. But now it's the Directives themselves that are under threat. Other EU countries are standing up for them - but not the UK.
… Directives have been doing a great job of protecting Europe's most threatened species … nine European countries called on the EU to protect two key pieces of nature legislation: … wildlife law. The Habitats Directive alone protects over 1,000 animal and plant species …
Recognising nature as a legal stakeholder with inalienable rights in environmental law proceedings is a powerful counterbalance to corporate dictatorship, writes Mumta Ito. It empowers people and governments to stand up for nature - the underlying basis of our economy and our lives. And it stands in contrast to feeble approaches based on the financialisation and commodification of nature, which may be twisted to justify more destruction.
… rights: a new paradigm for environmental protection Mumta Ito | 9th May 2017 Comment … than in conflict - working synergistically to protect the integrity of the whole. In this … corporations to sue governments for trying to protect people or nature - such as the Bayer …
Although flowing water is fundamental to river ecosystems, temporary streams are distinctive landscape features that support surprisingly diverse communities, writes Rachel Stubbington. However, the biodiversity of these dynamic ecosystems needs greater recognition and protection.
… rivers are living rivers - with our care and protection Rachel Stubbington | 25th July 2016 … ecosystems needs greater recognition and protection. A river without water may seem … abstraction. We need to work together to protect temporary stream communities The Water …
New research from Australia's Great Barrier Reef shows that no-take marine reserves don't just mean more and bigger fish, write Camille Mellin, Aaron MacNeil & Julian Caley. They also boost the resistance of reef communities to disturbances like storms, bleaching and predation, and speed their subsequent recovery. It's time for global rollout of coral reef marine reserves!
… coral cover since 1985. One often-used way of protecting marine ecosystems is to close parts … such as lobsters). But other benefits of protection might be more surprising. In a new … marine reserves. More exposure, but better protection During the study period, several …
Ecologist writer Luke Dale-Harris questions the ability of Natura 2000 to work as an effective environmental regulator
… 2000 has failed to provide the environmental protection it promised Ecologist writer Luke … finally the combined network of over 26,000 protected sites held together as Natura 2000, … wildlife is a shared heritage and thus its protection requires international cooperation …
The killing of Zimbabwe's Cecil the Lion has put a welcome spotlight on the alarming decline of Africa's lions, write Lochran Traill & Norman Owen-Smith. But to save the species, we should not obsess about trophy hunting, but tackle much more serious problems - like snaring and habitat fragmentation.
… drive rare species' populations in isolated protected areas to the brink of extinction . … that trophy hunting contributes to the protection of land, where ecotourism may be … legitimately on land outside the formally protected area is prejudicing not only …
As politicians encourage development around the Kerinci Seblat National Park, Dr. Julian Bloomer explores how the area's endangered species can be protected
… how the area's endangered species can be protected “Hati hati – harimau!” The lady who … site contains 1.4 million hectares of protected forests, and is home to over 4,000 … the tigers’ habitat to a couple of isolated protected areas. Approximately 1.75 million …
REDD+ type projects to protect rainforests face many obstacles but we should not give up on market-based solutions, says Ben Caldecott from the investment bank Climate Change Capital
… argues Ben Caldecott REDD+ type projects to protect rainforests face many obstacles but we … that have a stake in whether a forest is protected or felled is a long one. Getting … to convince local people and governments to protect forests. But, without secure property …
With 27,000 African savannah elephants a year illegally killed for their ivory, the species is in peril, write Ross Harvey & Alexander Rhodes. Now international action at CITES and the closure of domestic ivory markets are attacking the ivory trade at both ends. But we must also give our full support to 'elephant neighbor' communities.
… left across 18 African states, with many protected areas suffering heavy losses and the … that we cannot afford to wait if we are to protect the elephants for the future. At this … 182 member states voted on how best to protect the most endangered species from …
Butterflies were once a common sight in Britain, but they are declining year after year. What is happening to our butterfly population and why does it matter, asks CLIVE HARRIS
… Why protecting our butterflies is vital to the … some species such as the Large Blue are protected by law. Pollinated by insects Four … some species such as the Large Blue are protected by law. …
Giraffe numbers have fallen from 140,000 in 16 years to just 80,000, writes Matt Hayward, and sub-species in East and West Africa are close to extinction. However trophy hunting has led to big population increases in private game reserves in southern Africa. To secure the giraffes' future, beware of simplistic narratives.
… as it reduces the effective size of their protected areas and, if allowed to proceed … and tough. A drive through a well-managed protected area, such as Kruger National Park … wildlife ranches and the reintroduction and protection of giraffes on those lands. There …
Big conservation NGOs increasingly resemble the nature-destroying corporations they should be opposing, writes Margi Prideaux. This ideological capture is reflected in their vapid marketing to conservation 'consumers'; the serious abuse of indigenous communities they should be engaging as partners; and their willing sacrifice of core objectives to money and influence.
… that are destroying the things they want to protect. Despite our collective, decades-long, worldwide commitment to protect wildlife, few indicators are positive. … and other donors to arrange or establish protected areas that extend over large, …