Ocean heating breaks record, again, with disastrous outcomes for the planet

Ocean heating breaks record, again, with disastrous outcomes for the planet

A lemon shark in the mangroves in the Bahamas. Image by Anita Kainrath / Ocean Image Bank. By Elizabeth Claire Alberts via Mongabay Human actions are rapidly changing the world’s oceans, whether through overfishing, pollution or coastal development. But among the most intense pressures placed on the seas right now is humanity’s ongoing burning of fossil fuels, pumping dangerous amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which in turn has pushed sea temperatures to record levels. […]

January 31, 2024 6

Environment

Ancient Roman wine production may hold clues for battling climate change

Remnants of a mixed ‘alberata’ vineyard in Marche (Italy). Dimitri Van Limbergen, Author provided Dimitri Van Limbergen, Ghent University It is no secret that the Romans were heavy wine drinkers. Estimates put the average Roman male’s consumption at a litre or more of diluted wine per day. The drink was also a symbol of civilised behaviour, and widely used as a drug, medicine and ritual beverage. Winemaking was therefore a […]

January 30, 2024 16

Africa

El Niño: Malawi’s harvest of maize – its staple food – may fall by 22.5% this year

By Joachim De Weerdt, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) ; Channing Arndt, CGIAR System Organization; James Thurlow, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) ; Jan Duchoslav, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) ; Joseph Glauber, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) ; Liangzhi You, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) , and Weston Anderson, University of Maryland Maize is the preferred staple of most of southern Africa. […]

January 30, 2024 41

Environment

Scientists warn of ‘extinction crisis’ stalking Africa’s raptors

An adult secretarybird on a flat-topped tree. Image by LionMountain via Pixabay (Public domain). By Malavika Vyawahare via Mongabay Secretarybirds build their nests high in flat-topped acacia trees to avoid land-bound predators. So when researcher Wesley Gush climbed up those trees to get to their nests, he knew it was a surprise for them. What the nestlings did surprised him too: They played dead, according to Gush. But a new study warns that the […]

January 30, 2024 21

Environment

Climate change made 2023 Amazon drought 30 times more likely, scientists say

The river that supplies water to the Kokama Indigenous People of the Porto Praia community was mostly dry in October of 2023. Image © Marizilda Cruppe / Greenpeace. By Carla Ruas via Mongabay Global warming was the main driver of the severe drought that parched the Amazon River Basin in 2023. That is the alarming conclusion of a new report from World Weather Attribution (WWA), a team of international climate scientists […]

January 29, 2024 14

Environment

Africa’s savannah elephants: small ‘fortress’ parks aren’t the answer – they need room to roam

By Celesté Maré, Aarhus University and Robert A.R. Guldemond, University of Pretoria Africa is home to about 410,000 savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana), most of them living in southern Africa. Over 290,000 elephants (70%) are spread across 103 protected areas which vary in size, connectivity and protection. In a recent research paper we explored how elephant populations across southern Africa performed under different conservation approaches. This work formed part of […]

January 26, 2024 17

Environment

Meticulous Eastern Cape effort to keep vultures from extinction

A committee of Cape vultures explore their new surroundings soon after their arrival at Shamwari game reserve in the Eastern Cape. Photo: John Yeld By John Yeld via GroundUp It is hoped a new captive breeding facility at Shamwari game reserve in the Eastern Cape will help stem plummeting vulture numbers across southern Africa and prevent their imminent extinction. Earlier this week, 163 majestic white-backed vultures and Cape vultures took an […]

January 26, 2024 31

Business / Economics

Women lifestyle influencers are changing the face of the far right – podcast

By Avery Anapol When you think about the far right, you probably picture groups of young, white men carrying images of swastikas or torches like those seen at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. But the face of the far right is changing, at least on social media. In this episode of The Conversation Weekly podcast, we hear about new research into a cohort […]

January 25, 2024 14

Africa

Lagos styrofoam, plastics ban brings applause and concern

From trash-strewn pavements to street vendors packing meals in polystyrene containers, plastic waste is a constant menace in the urban landscape of Lagos, Nigeria's economic capital and the continent's most populous city. That image could soon change if the local Lagos State government manages to implement its recent ambitious ban on the use of polystyrene and single-use plastics. Sunday's announcement of the ban on styrofoam boxes and single-use plastics, "with […]

January 25, 2024 24