In the 20th century, a new infectious disease emerged and caused an unprecedented environmental catastrophe. Chytridiomycosis, a fungal skin infection, has compounded an amphibian extinction crisis driven by habitat loss, overharvesting and pollution, resulting in 40 per cent of amphibians being threatened with extinction. Today, over 20 years after the first chytrid fungus was [...]
Cameroonian environmental activist Nasako Besingi was arrested on Monday morning (25th September) in Mundemba, southwest Cameroon, at the headquarters of his NGO, SEFE (Struggle to Economize the Future Environment). The premises are reported to have been ransacked and Nasako arrested by a large group of police and soldiers and taken away in the back [...]
Synchronicity Earth partners with six groups (1) working in the Congo Basin, the majority in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Their activities range from challenging large scale hydropower and agribusiness concessions in important forest and riverine areas through to engaging parliamentarians to help give a voice to indigenous peoples. But why the Congo Basin? [...]
A wildlife paradise facing multiple threats Kanburi pit viper by Clare Shenstone At Synchronicity Earth we work to support conservation action where it is needed most worldwide. Our overarching objective of slowing the global loss of biodiversity and tackling the extinction crisis leads naturally to a focus on regions where biodiversity is [...]
"Sharks are beautiful animals, and if you're lucky enough to see lots of them, that means that you're in a healthy ocean. You should be afraid if you are in the ocean and don't see sharks." [...]
The Sepik River basin in Papua New Guinea is an area of outstanding biological and cultural diversity, but a new mining venture now threatens the local population and their environment. The Sepik River meanders through the tropical forests of New Guinea, flowing north from its source in the Victor Emanuel Mountains and briefly [...]
The latest Living Planet Report 2016 should give us all pause for thought... Every two years, WWF works with key partners in the non-profit world to produce a report on the health of the natural world we live in. It incorporates the latest information on species populations and threats to ecosystems and tells us how we [...]
This article first appeared in Patterns of Meaning on the 22nd March 2016. Jeremy Lent is an author whose writings investigate the patterns of thought that have led our civilization to its current crisis of sustainability. His science fiction novel about genetic engineering, Requiem of the Human Soul, was published in 2009. His recent work, The [...]
By Robert Tumwesigye A guest blog by Robert Tumwesigye from Pro-Biodiversity Conservationists in Uganda (PROBICOU). One of the last refuges of the Mountain Gorilla, Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, is under threat from plans to clear fell ancient rain forest on the park’s perimeter to make way for tea plantations. Tea growers, backed by [...]
By Jeremy Lent This article first appeared in Patterns of Meaning on the 16th December 2015. There was a resounding tone of history being made over the weekend in Paris. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was close to tears as he declared: “We have entered a new era of global cooperation on one of the most complex issues [...]