Episoder
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Todd Smith wanted to be a pilot since the age of 5, but an epiphany spurred by seeing a retreating ice cap in Peru revealed that his love of flying conflicted with the planetary harm his industry was causing.
“That was the first seed that was planted, and I was witnessing in that moment climate change and mass tourism firsthand,” he says.
Today, Smith is co-founder of Safe Landing, an organization dedicated to advocating for sustainable aviation reform to adapt to the realities of climate change and ensure the future employment of airline workers. On the latest Mongabay Newscast, he details his journey to leave the industry, and shares what he thinks the airline industry needs to change to in order to adapt to our new climate-changed reality.
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image: Private jet flights account for a small fraction of aviation’s overall emissions — around 4% — though the burden is up to 10 times more per passenger compared to a commercial flight, according to a recent report. Image by lillolillolillo via Pixabay (Public domain).
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction: Todd Smith
(02:10) From airline pilot to climate activist
(12:10) The origins of Safe Landing
(24:04) The future of aviation on a limited carbon budget
(37:10) The inequities of flying
(45:53) Credits
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The new BBNJ (biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction) marine conservation agreement is impressive in scope but has since been rebranded by some as the “high seas treaty,” which risks biasing its interpretation by emphasizing the historical, but outdated, freedoms enjoyed by seafaring (and largely Western) nations.
Elizabeth Mendenhall of the University of Rhode Island joins this episode to discuss the treaty with co-host Rachel Donald, detailing the fascinating and complicated nature of ocean governance beyond the jurisdiction of states. The BBNJ agreement was designed to resolve some of these governance issues, but the text contains ample gray area in how the principles of “common heritage,” the concept that something belongs to all of humanity, will apply to the protection and extraction of resources from the water column and seafloor.
“The treaty design that we ended up with [from] my perspective is not really suited to achieve what it is we say we want to do, which is to create a big network of marine protected areas that's effective in terms of protecting biodiversity,” Mendenhall says.
To learn more and find links to the treaty documents, see the commentary Mendenhall co-authored for Mongabay about the topic earlier this year, here.
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Baleen whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). Image by ArtTower via Pixabay (Public domain).
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(02:51) How biodiverse are oceans?
(05:20) What's at stake?
(07:47) How are the oceans governed?
(10:47) How international ocean management organizations work
(17:13) What is the treaty for?
(21:21) Is it a marine protected area if you can still exploit it?
(27:55) BBNJ vs. 'High Seas'
(29:09) Principles of High Seas and Common Heritage
(35:35) Post-show
(40:13) Credits
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Manglende episoder?
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Just prior to the latest world biodiversity summit (COP 16 in Colombia), a similarly-themed event was hosted by the Australian Government in Sydney: the Global ‘Nature Positive’ Summit featured Indigenous leaders, scientists and conservationists, but political leaders in attendance provided little insight into when key reforms to the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act would take place, which experts, lawyers, and activists have been calling for.
For this episode, Mongabay speaks with delegates to the summit including Barry Hunter, a descendent of the Djabugay people and the CEO of The North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance (NAILSMA), Éliane Ubalijoro, the CEO of CIFOR-ICRAF, and also Ben Pitcher, a behavioral biologist with the Taronga Conservation Society.
These guests share their expertise on the state of biodiversity, what kind of action they want to see from leaders, and what can be done to safeguard species while ensuring First Nations rights.
Image Credit: Barry Hunter on his Country (Djabugay Country) at Mona Mona. Image by Seth Seden.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(02:05) A lack of government action
(04:04) Interview with Barry Hunter
(15:31) Interview with Eliane Ubalijoro
(20:24) Interview with Ben Pitcher
(28:16) Credits
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The Mongabay Newscast recently traveled to San Francisco to join an event hosted by the popular radio show and podcast, Climate One, reflecting on both Mongabay’s 25th anniversary and Jane Goodall’s 90th birthday, for a live audience of 1,700.
First, Mongabay founder and CEO Rhett Ayers Butler discusses the news outlet’s biggest successes and impact over a quarter of a century, and then Climate One founder and host Greg Dalton engages Butler and Goodall in conversation about the state of environmental news, the biggest issues they’re working on, their inspirations, and what Goodall wants more people to think about during what she calls a crucial election year.
Here's additional discussion of Mongabay’s 25th anniversary,
Mongabay at 25: A reflection on the journey and future
This is our previous episode where Goodall shares additional thinking on these issues:
Jane Goodall at 90: On fame, hope, and empathy
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Rhett Ayers Butler and Jane Goodall in conversation in San Francisco. Image by Alejandro Prescott-Cornejo/Mongabay.
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Time Codes
(00:00:00) Introduction
(00:00:59) Rhett’s reflections on 25 years of Mongabay
(00:02:27) What makes for a successful newsroom?
(00:07:50) Looking to the future
(00:17:47) Jane Goodall and Rhett Butler in conversation with Climate One
(01:17:30) Credits
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An array of top voices are interviewed or heard on this episode straight from Climate Week in New York, a global gathering of leaders and experts working in the climate and environmental sectors on proactive policies and practical initiatives.
The podcast speaks with several individuals on topics ranging from a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty that’s gaining steam currently to ways of improving the financing of Indigenous communities and conservation organizations working in Africa, and many others. Here’s who appears on the show:
Allison Begalman, co-founder of the Hollywood Climate Summit
Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International
Tzeporah Berman, chair of the fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty
Luisa Castaneda, deputy director of Land Is Life
Paul Chet Greene, member of the House of Representatives of Antigua and Barbuda
Susana Muhamad, minister of environment and sustainable development of Colombia
Mohamed Nasheed, former president of the Maldives
Maria Neira, director of the Department of Public Health and Environment at the World Health Organization
Sam Shaba, CEO of Honeyguide
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Indigenous activists during an End of the Fossil Fuels event during Climate Week 2023. Image courtesy of the Confederation of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin (COICA).
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Time Codes
(00:00) Mongabay at Climate Week NYC
(01:34) Mohamed Nasheed
(04:35) Paul Chet Greene
(05:52) Amitabh Behar
(07:23) PLANETWALKER with Allison Begalman
(12:15) Funding justice with Luisa Castaneda
(18:19) Community-led conservation with Sam Shaba
(24:44) The fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty
(29:19) Juan Bay and the Waorani Nation endorsement
(36:49) Maria Neira from the World Health Organization
(38:39) Susana Muhamad on Colombia’s endorsement
(44:07) Tzeporah Berman talks treaty
(53:32) Rainforest reception and a song
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Drylands are vast and home to a wide array of biodiversity, while also hosting a large portion of the world’s farmland, but they face continued desertification, despite many of them recently experiencing increased vegetation levels.
Five million hectares (12 million acres) of drylands, an area half the size of South Korea, have been desertified due to climate change since 1980, but elevated CO2 levels are also driving a regreening of some areas, which some argue is a positive effect of pumping CO2 into the atmosphere.
However, our guest on this episode says this isn’t necessarily good news: remote-sensing researcher Arden Burrell describes how the CO2 fertilization effect is greening some dryland ecosystems, and why this worries scientists who say it may mask land overuse and decreased water resources.
Read the study here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-024-01463-y
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Green areas saw a growth in foliage from 2000 to 2017, while brown areas represent a reduction. Image courtesy of Joshua Stevens/NASA Earth Observatory.
Time Codes
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(00:00) Introduction
(02:50) Drylands and desertification
(04:19) Impacts of climate change on drylands
(09:33) The CO2 fertilization effect
(23:34) Digging into the models
(30:16) Implications for land overuse
(35:54) Post-show
(41:42) Credits
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Marine biologist and climate policy advocate Ayana Elizabeth Johnson joins this episode to discuss her latest book, What If We Get It Right? Visions of Climate Futures, a compilation of essays and interviews with experts and authors in the climate and environmental fields.
Her book sensitively probes the problems human society faces and potential pathways to address environmental injustice, from the unsustainable industrialization of our food systems to the inequity (or lack) of climate policy in many places.
Co-host Mike DiGirolamo speaks with Johnson about key insights from her book’s array of interviews, plus lessons learned from fighting for climate policy herself in the form of a “Blue New Deal.”
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Ayana Elizabeth Johnson holding a copy of her book “What If We Get It Right? Visions of Climate Futures.” Image courtesy of Ayana Elizabeth Johnson.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(01:06) What If We Get It Right? A brief review
(05:10) The barriers to change
(09:20) What is 'biophilia'?
(10:42) Agriculture doesn't have to be this way
(12:52) Unsung advice
(16:12) It's all about heat pumps
(18:36) The role of media in covering protests
(21:50) An ocean policy odyssey
(25:43) Credits
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The Phnom Chum Rok Sat community forest used to support local and Indigenous groups in Cambodia’s Stung Treng province, as well as a thriving local ecotourism venture, but that all changed this year when mining company Lin Vatey privately acquired roughly two-thirds of the land and began clearing the forest.
Mongabay features writer Gerry Flynn investigated how this happened with freelance reporter Nehru Pry, and speaks with co-host Mike DiGirolamo about how the 10 individuals behind the land grab, many of whom have connections to powerful Cambodian military officials and their families, managed this land grab. Local community members who have resisted currently face legal intimidation and arrests.
While community forests, such as Phnon Chum Rok Sat, are supposed to belong to the public, this kind of corporate acquisition of land is commonplace in the nation, Flynn says.
“As we see a lot in Cambodia, it’s public forests being turned into private fortunes.”
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Lin Vatey's original mining site inside Phnom Chum Rok Sat threatens to consume the entire forest according to documents seen by Mongabay. Image by Gerald Flynn/Mongabay.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(02:56) A once vibrant community forest
(06:04) Cordoned off from the land
(08:48) Liv Vatey moves in
(17:03) Letter number 1456
(26:24) Arrests and intimidation
(30:06) Ecotourism efforts shut down
(34:14) The 'mental gymnastics' of a government spokesperson
(37:12) Credits
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“Legal personhood” and laws regarding the “rights of nature” are being trialed in nations worldwide, but whether they lead to measurable conservation outcomes is yet to be seen, says environmental economist Viktoria Kahui. Still, she says on this episode of the Mongabay Newscast that she’s very hopeful about them.
There’s a global debate surrounding these laws’ efficacy as a tool for conservation, and growing uneasiness about how they may impose a Western viewpoint upon something as inherently complex and extralegal as nature. Some critics argue that such a concept not only transcends the legal system but also cannot be subjected to it without harming the people and places these laws are intended to empower.
Yet Kahui argues that there’s potential for rights-of-nature laws to develop in context-dependent scenarios, where humans can advocate on behalf of nature in places like Ecuador, which she says is a particularly powerful example.
Read more about legal personhood and the rights of nature here:
Is ‘legal personhood’ a tool or a distraction for Māori relationships with nature?
New guidebook supports U.S. tribal nations in adopting rights-of-nature laws
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Blue water of the Quinault river, Olympic Rainforest. Image by Rhett Butler.
Time Codes
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(00:00) Introduction
(00:58) The global debate on rights of nature
(03:52) Can these laws protect biodiversity?
(07:58) Challenges for legal personhood
(14:10) The advantage of using rights of nature
(24:21) Philosophical qualms with anthropocentric laws
(28:55) How laws can shape our relationships with nature
(33:00) The 'big possibility'
(40:56) There's no silver bullet
(44:01) Credits
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Homeowners and towns along the U.S. East Coast are increasingly building “living shorelines” to adapt to sea level rise and boost wildlife habitat in a more economical and less carbon-intensive way than concrete seawalls. These projects protect shorelines using a clever mix of native plants, driftwood, holiday trees, and other organic materials.
Peter Slovinsky, a coastal geologist with the Maine Geological Survey, joins the Mongabay Newscast to discuss the benefits of living shorelines, how they are implemented in his state, and what other techniques coastal communities should consider in a world with a warming climate and rising seas.
Read Erik Hoffner’s original reporting on living shorelines here.
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Salt tolerant plants are part of a ‘living shorelines’ project on the Blue Hill Peninsula in Maine. Image by Erik Hoffner for Mongabay.
Time Codes
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(00:00) Introduction
(02:19) What is a “living shoreline?”
(04:55) Green over gray
(13:06) How to make a “living shoreline”
(18:59) Case studies and urban applications
(24:50) Adaptation methods that deserve more consideration
(31:13) Reconsidering retreat
(32:48) The geologist’s greatest fears and biggest hopes
(39:35) Credits
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The current clade of H5N1 or bird flu is an "existential threat" to the world’s biodiversity, experts say. While it has infected more than 500 bird and mammal species on every continent except Australia, the number of human infections from the current clade (grouping) 2.3.4.4b is still comparatively small. U.S. dairy workers have recently become infected, and the virus could easily mutate to become more virulent, our guest says.
Joining the Mongabay Newscast to talk about it is Apoorva Mandavilli, a global health reporter for The New York Times. Mandavilli details what virologists and experts know about the human health risks associated with this latest clade, what nations are doing (or not doing) to help contain its spread, and why. She also details how environmental degradation and industrial agriculture help create the conditions for outbreaks like this to occur.
Read Sharon Guynup’s reporting on it here.
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: Highly pathogenic avian influenza killed thousands of black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophris) chicks in the Falkland Islands and Islas Malvinas, where two-thirds of the entire population lives. Image © Julia Emerit and Augustin Clessin.
Time Codes
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(00:00) Introduction
(02:44) The evolution of H5N1
(05:47) Clade 2.3.4.4b
(08:21) Challenges in monitoring the spread
(11:10) What are the human health risks?
(16:34) A spotlight on industrialized animal agriculture
(18:26) A vaccination strategy?
(20:05) What lessons are we learning from other pandemics?
(23:08) The degradation of nature and the frequency of disease outbreaks
(25:57) Credits
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Top National Geographic photographer Kiliii Yüyan joined the show to discuss traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and why Indigenous communities are the world’s most effective conservationists.
Yüyan spoke about this with us in March 2023 and we're sharing the episode again after it recently won a 'Best coverage of Indigenous communities' prize from the Indigenous Media Awards.
While the National Geographic version of "Guardians of Life" is now published, the collaboration between Gleb Raygorodetsky and Yüyan will be published in book form in 2025. Sign up at Raygorodetsky's website here to be notified when it’s out.
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
*Come celebrate Jane Goodall's 90th birthday, and Mongabay's 25th anniversary, during an event hosted by the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco (or virtually) by purchasing tickets atthis link. To get $10 off, use the promo code C1PARTNER. *
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: With a dip net, Karuk fisherman Ryan Reed searches for Chinook salmon under the watchful eye of his father, Ron, on California's Klamath River at Ishi Pishi Falls in October 2020. The Reeds caught no fish in stark contrast to earlier times. Before California became a state, the river saw about 500,000 salmon each fall, but last year just 53,954 mature Chinook swam up, a 90 percent decline. The nation now restricts salmon fishing to Ishi Pishi Falls, but with the slated removal of four dams, the Karuk hope the salmon will return. Image (c) Kiliii Yuyan.
Time Codes
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(00:00) Indigenous peoples: the world's best conservationists
(02:31) Who are the Guardians of Life?
(07:30) Some of Kiliii's favorite memories
(10:39) 'People are not separate from nature'
(18:04) 'Two-eyed seeing': combining Western and Indigenous science
(23:30) Advice from an Indigenous storyteller
(27:26) The Impact of storytelling
(30:52) A kayak is not a ship
(34:02) The Guardians of Life book
(39:50) Credits
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Mongabay newswire editor Shreya Dasgupta joins the Mongabay Newscast to detail her new three-part miniseries, Wild Frequencies, produced in collaboration with the Mongabay India bureau.
Dasgupta details her journey with Mongabay-India senior digital editor Kartik Chandramouli. They travel the country speaking with researchers, listening and studying to the sounds produced by bats, Asian elephants, sarus cranes, wolves and many other animals. The emerging field for which this study is named, bioacoustics, is helping researchers lay foundational knowledge crucial for conservation measures.
Listen to the miniseries on the ‘Everything Environment’ podcast or by clicking the links below:
Wild Frequencies: Find Them
Wild Frequencies: Know Them
Wild Frequencies: Us and Them
Like this podcast? Please share it with a friend and help spread the word about the Mongabay Newscast.
*Come celebrate Jane Goodall’s 90th birthday, and Mongabay’s 25th anniversary, during an event hosted by the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco (or virtually) by purchasing tickets at this link. To get $10 off, use promo code C1PARTNER. *
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones.
Image Credit: An Indian flying fox (Pteropus giganteus). Image by sunnyjosef via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
Time Codes
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(00:00) Enter: Bioacoustics
(02:51) What Is the New 'Newswire' Service at Mongabay?
(05:50) What is Wild Frequencies?
(08:45) Going a Little Batty
(17:59) The Complicated Lives of Sarus Cranes
(21:44) Animal 'Societies' We Don't Normally Hear In Cities
(30:07) Credits
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Scientists described Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) over 10 years ago, a pathogen that causes the deadly disease chytridiomycosis which is currently devastating salamanders and frogs around the world, contributing to a global amphibian decline.
But thanks to a successful cross border (U.S., Mexico & Canada) effort to keep it out, it has yet to arrive in North America: the Bsal Task Force is made up of scientists from each nation using education, outreach, science and policy to keep the disease from reaching the continent.
Founding task force co-chair Deanna Olson of the U.S. Forest Service joins the podcast to discuss its successes, lessons learned that can help managers prevent other wildlife disease outbreaks, and the challenges that lie ahead.
To learn more about Bsal and the task force, please see Mongabay's six-part podcast series, published in 2020 on Mongabay Explores:
Podcast: International task force unites North America to protect salamander diversity
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website under "Podcasts" or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all of our previous ones. Search "Mongabay Newscast."
Image: A fire salamander in Normandy, France. Image by William Warby viaCreative Commons license.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(03:05) What is Bsal?
(05:57) The Bsal Task Force Assembles
(08:02) On the Hunt for a Silent Killer
(17:49) The Team Behind the Scene
(21:36) Lessons Learned and Broader Implications
(25:30) Community Involvement and Cultural Significance
(29:08) Policy Gaps and Biosecurity Challenges
(40:56) Scientific Innovations and Experimental Approaches
(48:14) Not "If" But "When"
(50:58) Credits
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U.S. states such as Vermont and Massachusetts are cutting thousands of acres of forest for solar power projects, despite the fact that this harms biodiversity and degrades ecosystems' carbon sequestration capacity.
Journalist and author Judith Schwartz joins the Mongabay Newscast to speak with co-host Mike DiGirolamo about the seeming irony of cutting forests for renewable energy, and why she says states like hers are 'missing the plot' on climate action: she lives near a forest in southwestern Vermont where a company has proposed an 85-acre project that would export its electricity 100 miles south, to customers in Connecticut.
A recent report found that such deforestation in nearby Massachusetts is unnecessary to meet that state's clean energy commitments, and would be better achieved by using already developed land like rooftops and parking lots, instead of farms or forests.
Yet the acreage lost to solar energy projects in Massachusetts since 2010 has already released the equivalent of the annual emissions of more than 100,000 cars.
Read Judith Schwartz's commentary for Mongabay about this situation here.
*Come celebrate Jane Goodall’s 90th birthday and Mongabay’s 25th anniversary during an event hosted by the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco (or virtually) by purchasing tickets at this link. To get $10 off, use promo code C1PARTNER. *
Listen to the entire conversation on the Mongabay Newscast wherever you get your podcasts from.
If you want to support the podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing. Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet, and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage, mongabay.com, or follow Mongabay on any of the social media platforms for updates.
Please send your ideas and feedback to [email protected].
Image: An array of ground mounted solar panels. Image by Derek Sutton via Unsplash
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(03:09) The Irony of Clearing Forests for Renewable Energy
(10:19) AI and Data Centers Increasingly Demand More Energy
(16:24) Forests and Heat Mitigation
(25:46) Community Awareness and Action
(35:10) Credits
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Australian agronomist Tony Rinaudo's reforestation project in Niger was failing – with 80% of his planted saplings dying – until he stumbled upon a simple solution in plain sight: stumps of previously cut trees trying to regrow in the dry, deforested landscape.
The degraded land contained numerous such stumps with intact root systems, plus millions of tree seeds hidden in the soil, which farmers could encourage to grow and reforest the landscape, something he refers to as 'an invisible forest in plain view.'
Today, the technique known as Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) is responsible for reforesting six million hectares in Niger alone.
Rinaudo speaks with Rachel Donald on Mongabay's podcast about his journey implementing this technique and its massive potential to help tackle biodiversity loss and food insecurity through resilient agroforestry systems.
Read more about FMNR at Mongabay, here.
*Come celebrate Jane Goodall's 90th birthday, and Mongabay's 25th anniversary, during an event hosted by the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco (or virtually) by purchasing tickets at this link. To get $10 off, use promo code C1PARTNER. *
Love our podcasts? Please share them with a friend!
If you want to support the podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing. Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet, and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage, mongabay.com, or follow Mongabay on any of the social media platforms for updates.
Please send your ideas and feedback to [email protected].
Image: Results of Farmer Natural Regeneration in Luhundwa, Tanzania, from 2019 – 2022. Photo courtesy of LEAD Foundation.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(02:43) The Concept of FMNR
(04:42) Underground Forests & Hidden Potential
(07:33) Roadblocks and Revelations in Niger
(14:00) The Social and Environmental Benefits of FMNR
(20:28) Regenerating Earth's Degraded Land
(25:11) "We don't have centuries to make a change."
(30:59) The Power of a Social Movement
(42:41) Undeployed Solutions
(47:55) Credits
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The premier of the Malaysian state of Sarawak recently announced new dam projects on three rivers in Borneo without the informed consent of local people.
The managing director of the Sarawak-based NGO SAVE Rivers, Celine Lim, joins the podcast to discuss with co-host Rachel Donald how these potential dam projects could impact rivers and human communities in Borneo. She also reflects on lessons learned from a recent visit with Indigenous communities in California, who successfully argued for the removal of dams on the Klamath River and are now restoring its floodplain.
She says her community relies on the Tutoh River for food and transport, so the announcement “definitely threw the community into a frenzy because no one knew of this plan before the announcement.”
Read the full story from Danielle Keeton-Olsen and view footage of the guest's trip to California with the Borneo Project here at Instagram.
Love this conversation? Please share it with a friend!
If you enjoy the Mongabay Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing. Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet, and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage, mongabay.com, or follow Mongabay on any of the social media platforms for updates.
Please send your ideas and feedback to [email protected].
Image Credit: A man steers his motorboat near Long Moh village on August 26, 2023. The village is located along the Baram River. Image by Danielle Keeton-Olsen for Mongabay.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Introduction
(02:36) A lack of consultation
(10:05) Legal rights and UNDRIP
(13:42) Impact of hydropower projects on Sarawak
(20:39) A relationship with the river
(27:58) Solidarity and solace on the Klamath River
(33:10) Breaking down the cognitive dissonance
(43:16) Credits
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Last year, Mongabay launched a brand-new bureau dedicated to covering the African continent daily in French and English. The team is led by veteran Cameroonian journalist David Akana, who chats with co-host Mike DiGirolamo about the importance of covering the African continent and why news that happens there is of keen interest to audiences worldwide.
Akana details his team's coverage priorities, including solutions-oriented stories, which he says are vital to delivering a fair picture of the continent.
"The bottom line here is that whatever happens – whether it's in the business of forests [or] biodiversity or climate change in the Congo Basin [it] has linkages to anywhere else in the world," he says.
View all of Mongabay Africa’s coverage at its website, here.
Read a related Q&A with David Akana here.
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If you enjoy the Mongabay Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing. Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet, and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage, mongabay.com, or follow Mongabay on any of the social media platforms for updates.
Please send your ideas and feedback to [email protected].
Image: David Akana giving an interview at COP 28 in Dubai, UAE. Image courtesy of David Akana.
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Timecodes
(00:00:00) Introduction
(00:02:18) David's Journey to Mongabay
(00:06:28) Focus Areas of Mongabay Africa
(00:10:46) Challenges in African Media Coverage
(00:12:09) A Multilingual Reporting Strategy
(00:15:27) Engaging With African Audiences
(00:18:46) Making An Impact in the Congo Basin
(00:22:40) Importance of Congo Basin Coverage
(00:26:16) Future Vision for Mongabay Africa
(00:29:40) Why Everyone Should Be Reading African News
(00:33:23) David's Favorite Spot In Nature
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The biotic pump theory has been controversial in the climate science community ever since Anastassia Makarieva and Victor Gorshkov published their paper about it to the journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics in 2010.
If true, the theory sheds light on how the interior forests of vast continents influence wind and the water cycles that supply whole nations, flipping traditional hydrological and atmospheric science on its head.
Anastassia Makarieva joins this episode to discuss the theory and its implications for future climate modeling with co-host Rachel Donald.
Want more? Read a related Amazon-specific interview with Makarieva and Antonio Nobre here.
Love this conversation? Please share it with a friend!
And if you really enjoy the Mongabay Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing. Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet, and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage, mongabay.com, or follow Mongabay on any of the social media platforms for updates.
Please send your ideas and feedback to [email protected].
Image: Physicist Anastassia Makarieva co-developed the biotic pump theory of how forests direct the movement of moisture. Image ZED/Grifa Filmes.
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Timecodes
(00:00:00) Introduction
(00:02:41) Understanding the Biotic Pump Theory
(00:09:38) Tipping Points
(00:15:31) The Climate Regulating Function of Ecosystems
(00:25:51) Lagging Behind the Data
(00:33:20) Building a Different Climate Model
(00:41:04) Addressing the Controversy
(00:45:41) Territory, Boundaries and Water
(00:52:13) Credits
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Burning wood to generate electricity – ‘biomass energy’ – is increasingly used as a renewable replacement for burning coal in nations like the UK, Japan, and South Korea, even though its emissions are not carbon neutral.
On this episode of the Mongabay Newscast, reporter Justin Catanoso details how years of investigation helped him uncover a complicated web of public relations messaging used by industry giants that obscures the fact that replanting trees after cutting them down and burning them is not carbon neutral or renewable and severely harms global biodiversity, and forests.
Catanoso lives near biomass industry giant Enviva in North Carolina and has reported on their practices extensively, including the claim that they only use sustainable wood waste in their product, which his investigation disproved. Though it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this year, it remains the single largest producer of wood pellets globally.
“When those trees get ripped out, that carbon gets released. And that comes before we process this wood and ship it…then we burn it and don't count those emissions. This is just [an] imponderable policy,” he says in this episode.
Read Justin's coverage of the UK biomass firm Drax and their attempt to open two large wood pellet plants in California to ship 1 million tons annually to Japan and South Korea, where they will be burned in converted coal plants.
If you enjoy the Mongabay Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing. Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet, and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage, mongabay.com, or follow Mongabay on any of the social media platforms for updates.
Please send your ideas and feedback to [email protected].
Image: Wood pellets for biomass energy. Image courtesy of Dogwood Alliance.
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Timecodes
(00:00:00) Introduction to Biomass and Carbon Emissions
(00:03:08) Understanding the problems with biomass fuel
(00:08:18) Clear-Cutting in North Carolina and British Columbia
(00:12:48) Physics Doesn't Fall for Accounting Tricks
(00:19:55) Understanding the Arguments from the Industry
(00:25:30) Picking Apart the Logic
(00:28:26) Why We Don't Have Long-term Solutions
(00:34:27) Overcoming an Impossible Situation
(00:39:55) Post-chat
(00:49:28) Credits
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