Darjeeling zoo’s trailblazing efforts to save the endangered red panda
Not only has it successfully rewilded nine in the past two years – with plans to release a tenth soon – but has established India’s first genetic biobank facility to preserve the DNA of vulnerable Himalayan species. At the heart of Darjeeling Zoo’s success is its Topkeydara Conservation Centre,...
Current in Planet
Which of our favourite foods could disappear in a warmer world?
The climate crisis poses risks to all living beings on Earth, including the plants and animals we choose to feed ourselves with. Which of our favourite ingredients could disappear from menus in a warmer world? When thinking about what life might be like warmer world, we tend to focus on...
Global warming confirmed to be supercharging deadly weather
A database of hundreds of studies compiled by Carbon Brief has provided overwhelming proof that previously ‘impossible’ heatwaves would have had virtually zero chance of happening without the additional heat trapped by fossil fuel emissions. Confirming what most of us already suspected, a new analysis has provided...
India ranks lowest in Global Nature Conservation Index
The country’s environmental protection efforts are being scrutinised after it ranked 176th. India’s score of 45.5 out of 100 in this year’s Global Nature Conservation Index positions it among the worst-performing countries in the world. The assessment, conducted by Ben-Gurion University and BioDB, looked at land management, biodiversity threats, governance capacity,...
Everything you need to know about COP
The 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is kicking off in Baku, Azerbaijan, and will be continuing for the next two weeks. What’s the purpose of the annual summit, what’s the focus this year, and after almost three...
Implications for the climate under a second Trump term
There’s been nothing to suggest Trump isn’t still in his ‘drill, baby, drill’ bag. Here’s a reminder of why a second term of his presidency is so concerning for US climate reform. Election day has been won by Donald Trump. Whether that is cause for despair or celebration depends who...
Why doesn’t the US want to collectively save nature?
Besides the Vatican, it’s the only nation in the world that hasn’t joined the Convention on Biological Diversity – the single most important global treaty designed to safeguard Earth’s animals and ecosystems. What’s behind this reluctance to stave off ecological collapse? As it stands, only two countries haven’t joined the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD): the Vatican and the US. Given America has some of the strongest...
I attended Mercy Corps’ leading agricultural summit on Africa
I had the privilege of attending the 8th AgriFin Annual Learning Event, organized by Mercy Corps AgriFin in Nairobi. The gathering brought together a diverse group of professionals all deeply committed to shaping the future of agriculture in Kenya and across Africa. The MO of Mercy Corps’ AgriFin Learning Event is to use technology to enhance the resilience of smallholder farmers, particularly in Kenya’s dryland areas which are among the...
Spain is facing its worst natural disaster in 50 years
Amid weather warnings for storms and heavy rain, more than 70 people have been killed after flash floods struck eastern parts of the country. Those in the worst-hit areas have been advised to stay at home. Three days of mourning have been declared in Spain in the aftermath of storm DANA, which so far has killed more than 70 people. On October 29, weather warnings were issued in eastern...
Britain shuts its last power plant and opts for eco-friendly fuel
The last coal power plant in Britain was closed last week, marking the end of over 140 years of coal-fired electricity and the beginning of more eco-friendly fuel use in the country. Ratcliffe-on-soar, in central England, was home to the last coal power station in the UK. After more than half a century of turning coal, it finished its final shift last Monday at midnight. The UK government has hailed...
