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☆ Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards finalists announced
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-26 | by ( Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A smiling elephant seal, a stuck squirrel and a contemplative chimpanzee are among the images shortlisted for this year’s Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards. Each year, the competition supports a sustainable conservation organization and the Whitley Fund for Nature has been selected for 2024. The UK-based charity supports conservation leaders from around the global south. “It’s a privilege to be part of this exciting journey, making us all laugh and raising our awareness of animal conservation,” Sullam said. The overall, category and highly commended winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on December 10.

Persons: ”, Stefan Maier, Tom Sullam, “, ” Sullam Organizations: CNN, Nikon, Fund for Nature Locations: London

☆ The funniest wildlife photos of the year
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-25 | by ( Talia Lakritz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

You can opt-out at any time by visiting our Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of the email. Read previewThe Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards announced the finalists in its 2024 photography contest on Thursday. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. The photography contest benefits the Whitley Fund for Nature, a UK-based charity that awards grants to environmental and wildlife conservation leaders. Take a look at the funniest wildlife photos of the year.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Comedy, Business, Fund for Nature

☆ Fires in Brazil’s Pantanal wetland break June record
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-14 | by ( Aditi Sangal | Mia Alberti | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Brazil’s Pantanal, the largest tropical wetland on earth, is ablaze, with fires in June breaking historical records for that month. Brazil’s National Institute of Space Research (INPE) has detected 733 fires in the Pantanal biome so far this month, with the previous record for fires in Pantanal for June being 435 registered in 2005. A view of a burnt monkey amongst the burnt vegetation in the Pantanal, the world's largest wetland, in Corumba, Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil, June 11, 2024. This seasonal flooding makes the Pantanal a unique biome where large swaths of land regularly turn from terrestrial into aquatic habitats and back again. In 2020, the fires destroyed unique habitats and wrecked the livelihoods of many of the Pantanal’s diverse indigenous communities.

Persons: Brazil’s Pantanal, Cynthia Santos, Ueslei Marcelino, ”, Andre Luiz Siqueira, It’s, ECOA, –, Ivana Kottasová, Henrik Pettersson, Krystina Organizations: Reuters, Brazil’s National Institute of Space Research, National Meteorological Institute, Wildlife Foundation, WWF Brazil, Fund, Nature, World Wildlife Fund, CNN Locations: Pantanal, Mato Grosso, Sul, Brazil, Corumba, Wetlands, Canada, South America, Brazilian

☆ Pacific Indigenous leaders have a new plan to protect whales. Treat them as people
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-14 | by ( Jared Formanek | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

Along with the Māori of New Zealand and groups from the Cook Islands, Indigenous leaders from Tahiti, Tonga, Hawaii, and Easter Island signed the He Whakaputanga Moana treaty. In the coming months, she plans to engage with various countries throughout the Pacific to discuss whale personhood legislation. The Cook Islands office said it had “yet to receive a formal submission” from indigenous leaders on the declaration’s implementation. Māori King Tūheitia Pōtatau and Tou Travel Ariki, Cook Islands President of the House of Ariki, at the signing of the He Whakaputanga Moana declaration in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. This came after a global ban on commercial whaling was instituted by the International Whaling Commission in 1986.

Persons: Mere, “, Tūheitia Pōtatau, Josh Baker, ” March’s, ”, Takoko, Britain’s King Charles III, Moana, Māori, Michelle Bender, ” Bender, Carlos Duarte, Ralph Chami, Chami, Miguel Medina, ” Chami, Duarte, Emily Charry Tissier, Charry Tissier, ” Duarte Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Easter, Conservation, Fund, Nature, Conservation International Aotearoa, Ocean Initiative, New Zealand, Nations, New, Commonwealth, CNN, RNZ, New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade, ’ Office, International Whaling Commission, Ocean, King Abdullah University of Science, Technology, Bahia, Natural, Getty, “, International Monetary Fund, Initiative, United Nations Locations: Hong Kong, Rangitukia, New Zealand’s, Cook, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Tahiti, Tonga, Hawaii, Moana, Rarotonga, Atlantic, New, Te Whānau, Pacific, Samoa, Whanganui, “, Zealand, , New Zealand, Wellington, Seattle, Japan, Washington ,, Bahia Malaga, Colombia, AFP

☆ Comedy Wildlife Photo Award 2023 winners revealed
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Maureen O'Hare | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The judges of the UK-based Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards have studied more than 1,800 images submitted from 85 countries, assessing whether they are chucklesome, rib-tickling or an out-and-out hoot. And the overall winner for 2023 – drumroll, please, for this is a photo that welcomes musical accompaniment – is a kangaroo striking an air guitar pose. Wildlife conservationThere were an additional 10 entries that were recognized as Highly Commended winners. The awards, founded in 2015 by professional photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks and Tom Sullam, also promote wildlife conservation. The first Comedy Wildlife Guided African Safari will launch in Tanzania in October 2024, guided by the awards’ co-founders Hicks and Sullam and wildlife expert Kate Humble.

Persons: – drumroll, Jason Moore, He’s, Mara, photographerJacek, Otter, joey, ”, Paul Joynson, Hicks, Tom Sullam, Kate Humble Organizations: CNN, Whitley Fund for Nature Locations: Perth, Australia, Tanzania, Sullam

☆ Comedy Wildlife Photo Award 2023 finalists revealed
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Maureen O'Hare | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Fat Bear Week is underway, with public voting starting Wednesday after the event was nearly a casualty of a US government shutdown, and now the UK-based Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards has revealed its 2023 shortlist. Should the crown go to the spherical seal galumphing at speed along the English coast? The awards, founded in 2015 by professional photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks and Tom Sullam, also promote wildlife conservation. Adrian Ślązok/Courtesy Comedy Wildlife Photography AwardsThe expert judges include UK celebrities such as TV presenter Kate Humble and comedian Hugh Dennis, as well as renowned wildlife photographers Daisy Gilardini and Will Bullard-Lucas. The first Comedy Wildlife Guided African Safari will launch in Tanzania in October 2024, guided by the awards’ co-founders Hicks and Sullam and wildlife expert Humble.

Persons: CNN — It’s, There’s, joey, ”, Paul Joynson, Hicks, Tom Sullam, Adrian Ślązok, Kate Humble, Hugh Dennis, Daisy Gilardini, Will Bullard, Lucas, Mara Organizations: CNN, Whitley Fund for Nature Locations: Tanzania, Sullam

☆ Dozens of nations to sign U.N. ocean treaty but implementation still awaits
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Daina Beth Solomon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The global pact to conserve biodiversity on the high seas was finally agreed in March and formally adopted by the United Nations in June. It is seen as a crucial tool to meet a target agreed last year to protect 30% of the earth's land and sea by 2030, known as "30 by 30". At least 60 countries are expected to sign the agreement at the annual United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday. Mads Christensen, interim executive director of Greenpeace International, described the signings as a "powerful signal" and help maintain momentum to meet the "30 by 30" target. "Now politicians must bring the treaty home and ensure it is ratified in record time."

Persons: Borja Suarez, Mads Christensen, Jessica Battle, David Stanway, Stephen Coates Organizations: El, Recovery, Gran Canaria, REUTERS, United Nations, United Nations General Assembly, Greenpeace International, International Union for, Worldwide Fund, Nature, Thomson Locations: El Burrero Beach, Gran, Spain, Singapore

CNN —A zookeeper in Austria has died and another has been seriously injured after being attacked by a rhino, Salzburg police said on Tuesday. The rhino attacked a 33-year-old female animal keeper while she attended to her early morning work in the animal’s enclosure at Salzburg Hellbrunn Zoo, police said in a press release. According to its website, the zoo is home to 150 species and 1,500 animals – including white rhinos. White rhinos are the second-largest land mammal and they can weigh between 3,080 and 7,920 pounds, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature. With fewer than 16,000 white rhinos left, their status is near-threatened.

Persons: zookeeper, Ulrike Ulmann, “, Ulmann Organizations: CNN, Salzburg Hellbrunn Zoo, Salzburg University Hospital, Fund, Nature Locations: Austria, Salzburg, Tamu, Athos

☆ Australia's Great Barrier Reef stays off UNESCO danger list, still under 'serious threat'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A colony of mushroom leather coral grows on the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Cairns, Australia October 25, 2019. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File PhotoSYDNEY, Aug 1 (Reuters) - A UNESCO heritage committee on Tuesday stopped short of listing Australia's Great Barrier Reef as a site that is "in danger" but warned the world's biggest coral reef ecosystem remained under "serious threat" from pollution and the warming of oceans. The UN panel has asked the government to submit a progress report by February 2024. The World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia said UNESCO could place the reef on the endangered list if the government failed to demonstrate progress on existing commitments. "There's an opportunity for Australia to lift its game before it is required to provide a progress report ... next year."

Persons: Lucas Jackson, Anthony Albanese, Richard Leck, Renju Jose, Lincoln Organizations: REUTERS, UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Cultural Organization, Labor, UN, Fund, Nature, Australia, Thomson Locations: Cairns, Australia, Queensland, Sydney

☆ Climate nears point of no return as land, sea temperatures break records, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Sea temperatures also broke April and May records. Global average sea surface temperatures hit 21C in late March and have remained at record levels for the time of year throughout April and May. Australia's weather agency warned that Pacific and Indian ocean sea temperatures could be 3C warmer than normal by October. Though this year's high sea temperatures are caused by a "perfect combination" of circumstances, the ecological impact could endure, she said. The Worldwide Fund for Nature, however, warned of a "worrying lack of momentum" during climate talks in Bonn this month, with little progress made on key issues like fossil fuels and finance ahead of November's COP28 climate talks in Dubai.

Persons: Kerry, Sarah Perkins, Kirkpatrick, Piers Forster, El Nino, Annalisa Bracco, Li Shuo, John Kerry, Li, David Stanway, Ali Withers, Gloria Dickie, Jamie Freed Organizations: EU, Australia's University of New, U.S ., World Meteorological Organization, El Nino, University of Leeds, Georgia Institute of Technology, DUBAI, The, Nature, Thomson Locations: Beijing, SINGAPORE, Bonn, Australia's University of New South Wales, United States, North America, Canada, U.S . East Coast, India, Spain, Iran, Vietnam, Paris, 1.5C, California, Africa, November's, Dubai, China, Copenhagen, London

☆ World hits record land, sea temperatures as climate change fuels 2023 extremes
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Persons: Cpl Marc, Andre Leclerc, Kerry, Sarah Perkins, Kirkpatrick, Piers Forster, El Nino, Annalisa Bracco, Li Shuo, John Kerry, Li, David Stanway, Ali Withers, Gloria Dickie, Jamie Freed Organizations: Canadian Forces, REUTERS, EU, Australia's University of New, U.S ., World Meteorological Organization, El Nino, University of Leeds, Georgia Institute of Technology, DUBAI, The, Nature, Thomson Locations: Mistissini, Quebec, Canada, Beijing, SINGAPORE, Bonn, Australia's University of New South Wales, United States, North America, U.S . East Coast, India, Spain, Iran, Vietnam, Paris, 1.5C, California, Africa, November's, Dubai, China, Copenhagen, London

☆ Half a Year After the COP Agreement on Nature, Companies Are Increasingly Looking at Their Biodiversity Impact
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Joshua Kirby | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +8 min

While mandatory reporting on nature may still be a long way off, for some companies, measuring their impact on nature makes good business sense. “Not enough companies are actually measuring their corporate biodiversity impact,” said Steve Kennedy, associate professor in business sustainability at the Rotterdam School of Management. Biodiversity impact, on the other hand, remains a more nebulous concept, with widespread uncertainty about what to measure and how to measure it. While biodiversity impact remains difficult to assess, more complete data can help, said Zoe Balmforth, co-founder of biodiversity-data startup Pivotal. And companies will soon have a final framework on which to base their voluntary biodiversity reporting.

Persons: Jennifer Motles, Philip Morris, Motles, Katie Critchlow, Rémy Cointreau, Eric Vallat, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, ”, Steve Kennedy, Kennedy, “ It’s, “, ” Philip Morris International’s, Nicolo Filippo Rosso, Zoe Balmforth, Balmforth, Cameron Frayling, Frayling, U.N, JULIAN HABER, Kering, PMI’s Motles, Joshua Kirby Organizations: Philip Morris International, Data, Sustainable Business, Fund, Nature, PMI, Rotterdam School of Management . Companies, SAS, Bloomberg, World Bank, REUTERS Governments, United Nations ’, pharma, GSK, Gucci Locations: Montreal, American, of Mexico, Lake Erie, Colombia, Kunming, Canada, joshua.kirby

☆ Vodafone and Nestlé Created Panels to Avoid ‘Greenwashing’ Allegations
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Dieter Holger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Vodafone Group and Nestlé have set up panels of experts to double check environmental claims before they appear on products and marketing, a move by the multinationals to avoid allegations of so-called greenwashing. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is updating its environmental marketing guidelines and the EU has proposed that businesses need to offer scientific evidence. The panels at Nestlé and Vodafone are examples of how companies are stepping up their due diligence of green claims in response to mounting scrutiny, tighter regulation, shifting consumer preferences and the threat of lawsuits. So far, that hasn’t happened, Mr. Reiter said. The packaged-foods company’s panels are staffed by employees from marketing, regulatory, scientific affairs, sustainability, legal and communications.

☆ Platypus returns to Australian national park for first time in half a century
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( James Redmayne | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] A platypus is released by CEO of Taronga Zoo Cameron Kerr and Scientists back into Sydney's Royal National Park for the first time in over fifty years, in Sydney, Australia, May 12, 2023. ... Read moreSYDNEY, May 14 (Reuters) - The platypus, a species unique to Australia, was reintroduced into the country’s oldest national park just south of Sydney on Friday in a landmark conservation project after disappearing from the area more than half a century ago. Four females were released on Friday into the Royal National Park, which was established in 1879 and is the second oldest national park in the world. No confirmed platypus sightings have been reported in the park, located about 35 kilometres or one hour’s drive south of Sydney, since the 1970s. The platypuses, which live along Australia's east coast and in Tasmania, were collected from various locations across south-eastern New South Wales state and subjected to various tests before relocation.

☆ Nations reach accord to protect marine life on high seas
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea came into force in 1994, before marine biodiversity was a well-established concept. The treaty will create a new body to manage the conservation of ocean life and establish marine protected areas in the high seas. "For the first time, we are getting a binding agreement for the high seas, which until now have hardly been protected," Lemke said. Several marine species — including dolphins, whales, sea turtles and many fish — make long annual migrations, crossing national borders and the high seas. The high seas have long suffered exploitation due to commercial fishing and mining, as well as pollution from chemicals and plastics.

☆ Countries gather to thrash out U.N. ocean protection treaty
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Delegations from hundreds of countries will meet in New York this week in an attempt to hammer out a new legally binding ocean protection treaty that green groups believe will decide whether efforts to safeguard global biodiversity can succeed. Last August, an earlier round of talks on the new United Nations ocean conservation treaty were suspended, with countries unable to reach an agreement on financing. Sharing the proceeds of "marine genetic resources" and the establishment of ocean environmental impact assessment rules for development were also major sticking points. "There seems to be an appetite to actually finalise the treaty now," said Jessica Battle, ocean expert at the Worldwide Fund for Nature. "Genetic resources and the issue of finance will be the end game," said Greenpeace's Li.

☆ This startup that connects conservation projects with funders just raised $8 million. Check out the 30-slide pitch deck Lemu used to secure the fresh capital.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A startup hoping to channel more cash into conservation via its app just raised $8 million. Chilean startup Lemu is developing a marketplace that ranks conservation projects on priority and impact. A Chilean startup connecting conservation projects with funders just raised $8 million. It plans to list and rank high-priority and high-impact conservation projects in the hope that the app's users will donate money, or "invest," in them. It will have two ranking features: LemiImpact, a local-level impact ranking based on potential project outcomes, and LemuRank, which is a global ranking of high-priority conservation efforts.

☆ Travel companies are ‘greenwashing’ — here are 3 ways to find ones that aren't
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

But finding companies that are serious about sustainability isn't easy, said James Thornton, CEO of tour company Intrepid Travel. "You see hotels saying they're sustainable, and then you're using these little travel bottles for shampoos and shower gels," he said. "The honest truth is that every travel company is ultimately contributing towards the climate crisis," he said. "So the best thing any travel company can start to do is measure the greenhouse gas emissions it creates." Other companies with B Corp status include Seventh Generation, Ben & Jerry's, Aesop — and Patagonia, which Thornton called "arguably the most famous B Corp in the world."

☆ Abalone and Dugongs threatened with extinction, warns IUCN Red List
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The effects of human activity from climate change to pollution are “devastating” marine life, with nearly a tenth of underwater plants and animals assessed so far threatened with extinction, the latest Red List of Threatened Species showed on Friday. “It shows that we are having quite a devastating impact on marine species,” Craig Hilton-Taylor, head of the IUCN Red List, said. Linda Lombardi/AP/FILEHilton-Taylor said the portion of marine species facing extinction was likely much higher than current data shows because those analyzed so far have tended to be widespread fish species, not currently under threat. The latest list reviews abalone species, a type of mollusc sold as a luxury seafood item, for the first time and found that around 44% of them face extinction. “The awful status of these species should shock us and engage us for urgent action,” said Amanda Vincent, chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission Marine Conservation Committee.

"There's now a big push to get nature into sovereign debt markets," said Simon Zadek, executive director at NatureFinance, which advises governments on debt-for-nature swaps and other types of climate-focused finance. At that level, it would be the biggest debt-for-nature swap struck to date. The combined value of swap deals to date is $3.7 billion, according to the data. Securing the buy-in of development banks is usually key for the economics of a deal. The WWF has projects in Central and South America where they are monitoring deforestation by tracking jaguars, said Brenes, who has worked on debt-for-nature swaps for the last 25 years.

☆ O suprafață de pădure de dimensiunea Franței s-a regenerat în ultimii 20 de ani
▼ + stars: | 2021-05-11 | by ( Onixmedia Srl | ) diez.md time to read: +2 min

O suprafață de pădure de dimensiunea Franței s-a regenerat în ultimii 20 de aniO suprafață de pădure de dimensiunea Franței s-a regenerat natural la nivel mondial în ultimii 20 de ani, arată un studiu citat de BBCPădurile regenerate ar putea absorbi echivalentul a 5,9 gigatone de dioxid de carbon – mai mult decât cantitatea anuală de emisii produsă de SUA, potrivit grupurilor de conservare. William Baldwin-Cantello de la WWF a spus că regenerarea naturală a pădurilor este deseori mai „ieftină, productivă și favorabilă biodiversității decât plantarea activă de păduri”. În același timp, el spune că regenerarea pădurilor trebuie apreciată la adevărata valoare. O suprafață de mărimea Olandei s-a regenerat acolo în ultimii 20 de ani. Totodată, în pădurile din nordul Mongoliei 1,2 milioane de hectare de pădure s-au regenerat în ultimii 20 de ani.

Persons: William Baldwin Organizations: BBC, World Wide, WWF Locations: Franței, SUA, Atlanticului, Brazilia, Olandei, Africa Centrală, Canada, Braziliei

☆ (studiu) World Wide Fund for Nature – arată impactul reducerii consumului de carne asupra mediului
▼ + stars: | 2021-04-07 | by ( Onixmedia Srl | ) diez.md time to read: +1 min

Studiul a analizat aşa-numita dietă flexitariană, ai cărei adepți consumă în medie 470 de grame de carne pe săptămână, prin comparație cu un german obișnuit care consumă 817 grame de carne săptămânal. Împreună cu produsele lactate, aceasta reprezintă 70% din emisiile de carbon provenite din producția de hrană. Reducerea consumului de carne la jumătate ar putea reduce emisiile de carbon ale Germaniei cu 27 %, echivalentul a 56 de milioane de tone, potrivit WWF. Per ansamblu, Germania produce circa 210 milioane de tone de emisii de carbon din producția de alimente în fiecare an. WWF a îndemnat publicul să-şi reconsidere dietele și a făcut un apel la guvernul german să ia în calcul introducerea unei taxe pe produsele de origine animală.

Organizations: WWF, Agerpres Locations: Germaniei, Germania

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