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mongabay.com News - May 2005The real story of Madagascar; new information site explores the island - 31-May-2005Mongabay.com today announced the official launch of WildMadagascar.org, an information site on the island country of Madagascar. The site features more than 3000 photos from across Madagsacar in addition to information on the country's unique flora and fauna, national park profiles, and a wealth of other resources including maps, a travel forum, and news updates. Rhett Butler China�s Imminent Water Crisis - 30-May-2005 China has long suffered from alternating periods of severe flooding and drought. Combined with high pollution levels and a history of heedless and haphazard policies, the country is witnessing a precipitous drop in this most essential supply. Tina Butler "Gray Corps" of senior citizens could help fight poverty, health problems in developing world - 30-May-2005 According to recent data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the United States, the proportion of the population aged 65 years and over is projected to increase from 12.4% in 2000 to 19.6% in 2030. It is this growing segment of the population that could be key to addressing a number of looming social issues both here in the United States and abroad. Rhett Butler Dancing lemur attracts tourists to island of Madagascar - 30-May-2005 In the dry deciduous forests of south western Madagascar there lives a lemur that loudly cusses but "dances" like a ballet performer. Verreaux's sifaka is among the most popular of lemur species, a group of primates endemic to islands off the southeastern coast of Africa. While threatened, Verreaux's sifaka is easily spotted is several of Madagascar's more accessible parks. Rhett Butler Paving of road brings change in the Amazon rainforest - 27-May-2005 Two articles on the effects of the BR163 highway from the AP. Associated Press Second "uncontacted" tribe in Amazon rain forest threatened by loggers - 27-May-2005 A Brazilian Indian tribe armed with bows and arrows and unseen for years has been spotted in a remote Amazon region where clashes with illegal loggers are threatening its existence. Reuters Prize recognizes largest contributor to Amazon rainforest destruction - 27-May-2005 The environmental group Greenpeace nominated President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and five others for its first "Golden Chainsaw" prize -- to be awarded to the Brazilian deemed to have contributed most to the Amazon's destruction. Rhett Butler Tourism in Madagascar; Visting the World's Most Unusual Island - 26-May-2005 Madagascar is a place like no other. Separated from mainland Africa for some 160 millions years, 80% of its native flora and fauna are unique to the island. Rhett Butler Developing sustainable business models that address the needs of the world's poor - 25-May-2005 People involved with international development and poverty alleviation programs are increasingly looking toward the private sector for inspiration and assistance. Many believe that involving business in such efforts will not only bring wealth, respect, dignity, and improved education and health to the world's poor but also prove to be a profitable business strategy. Rhett Butler World Bank aims to reduce deforestation rates by 10% by 2010 with help from WWF - 25-May-2005 WWF and the World Bank (WB) today announced an ambitious global program aimed at reducing global deforestation rates by 10% by 2010. Press release Shareholders ask ExxonMobil to produce report on risks of oil drilling in sensitive areas - 25-May-2005 According Strong support demonstrates that investors believe that drilling in protected areas like the Arctic Refuge is bad for business and bad for the environment. Press release ExxonMobil asked to stay out of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by shareholder group - 25-May-2005 Green Century Capital Management, U.S. PIRG Education Fund, and Clean Yield Asset Management will be attending the ExxonMobil shareholder meeting later this week in an effort to convince the company to stay out of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and to improve company policies on operations in other protected and sensitive areas worldwide. The groups have filed a shareholder resolution with the company on this topic and ExxonMobil shareholders will vote on the proposal at Wednesday's annual meeting. Press release Green party quits government to protest Amazon deforestation - 24-May-2005 According to a report from Reuters, legislators for Brazil's Green Party have quit the government in protest of its failure to slow deforestation in the Amazon. Rhett Butler Helping the poor by selling them stuff - 24-May-2005 Helping the poor by selling them stuff; poverty alleviation through private enterprise. In his book, The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits, Prahalad argues that by regarding the world's masses, who he terms "the bottom of the pyramid," as potential customers, businesses and the poor will be better off. Prahalad suggests that the private sector may do a better job eradicating poverty, building dignity and respect, encouraging entrepreneurship, and reducing dependency than handouts under traditional aid programs Rhett Butler Recordings of coral reef sounds attract fish - 24-May-2005 Using recordings of reef sounds may increase reef fish stocks depleted by shipping traffic, underwater drilling and overfishing. Scientists have discovered that some species of young coral reef fish are lured back to home reefs by sounds they hear while still developing in the egg. Tina Butler Why visit the real island of Madagascar? - 23-May-2005 Later this week Dreamworks releases Madagascar, an animated film depicting a group of zoo escapees who visit the island by the same name off the eastern coast of southern Africa. The real-life Madagascar is a fascinating place to visit. Madagascar's wildlife is among the best in the world in terms of diversity, abundance, and approachability and travel to Madagascar for this purpose is most rewarding. Madagascar also offers spectacular landscapes, an unusual history, and a countryside full of generally friendly and wonderful people. Rhett Butler T3Ci signs RFID analytics pact with Procter & Gamble - 23-May-2005 T3Ci, the leading RFID analytics and applications company, and The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG) today announced a multi-year, non-exclusive joint development agreement to collaboratively identify and build high value RFID applications designed to leverage the EPCglobal RFID standards. T3Ci release A look at why is Madagascar so poor - 22-May-2005 Madagascar is one of the world's poorest countries. In the Human Development Index of 2003, an indicator created by the United Nations Development Programme which measures achievements in terms of life expectancy, educational attainment and adjusted real income, Madagascar was ranked #149 out of 175 counties. Most Malagasy live on less than a dollar per day and nearly half of the country's children under five years of age are malnourished. mongabay.com Tsunami relief, rainforest attack; aid groups conflict over deforestation and reconstruction - 22-May-2005 Tsunami reconstruction efforts result in deforestation. Tina Butler Renewable surf energy; Wave farm to harvest electricity from sea swells - 21-May-2005 A new wave farm will be used to generate electricity from sea swells. Hydro release Rainforest loss in the Amazon tops 200,000 square miles, new figures from Brazilian government - 20-May-2005 New figures from the Brazilian government show that 10,088 square miles of rain forest were destroyed in the 12 months ending in August 2004. Deforestation in the Amazon in 2004 was the second worst ever as rain forest was cleared for cattle ranches and soy farms. mongabay.com Photos of new monkey species found in Africa - 20-May-2005 Photos of the new monkey species discovered in remote mountains in the southern Tanzania. WCS release New monkey discovered in Tanzania - 19-May-2005 Africa�s first new species of monkey for over 20 years has been discovered in remote mountains in the southern Tanzania. The Highland Mangabey was first discovered by biologists from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in a remote highland forest. WCS release Vampire Fish discovered in the Amazon - 19-May-2005 A new species, dubbed the �vampire fish,� was recently discovered in the Araguaia River of the Amazon Basin. Tina Butler Why sustainably-managed eco-friendly wood is more expensive for consumers - 19-May-2005 Eco-friendly wood is all the rage these days. Companies from Ikea to Home Depot require their suppliers of tropical wood to be certified by various organizations like the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which aim to ensure wood is harvested in a sustainable and responsible manner. Typically, sustainablly managed wood products are more costly for consumers. Why is this wood more expensive? Rhett Butler Farming the world's largest fish - an alternative to deforestation - 19-May-2005 Integrated aquaculture offers great potential for sustainable poverty allievation in the Amazon region. It reduces the need to clear land for subsistence agriculture while generating significant economic and nutritional benefits for poor Amazonian colonists. Rhett Butler Should environmentalists fear logging or learn to understand its impact? - 18-May-2005 Environmentalists usually oppose logging, associating it with deforestation and biodiversity loss. A new report, Life after logging: reconciling wildlife conservation and production forestry in Indonesian Borneo, from CIFOR suggests that in reality, many logging operations have a lesser impact than than generally believed by conservationists. Further, since more forests in Borneo -- the area of study -- are allocated for logging than for protected areas it is imperative that we have a better understanding of how biological diversity and ecological services can be maintained in such areas and how they can be integrated with protected areas into "multi-functional conservation landscapes." Conservationists, loggers, and policy-makers alike need to recognize that logged-over forests have conservation value and work to ensure that these areas are indeed used for this purpose especially when other options for biodiversity conservation are not available. Rhett Butler Somewhere Out There, Millions of Species Await Discovery - 17-May-2005 While Planet Earth is becoming an increasingly smaller and more familiar world as every corner is explored and colonized, there remain millions of species undiscovered and undocumented. A number of significant species have been discovered in recent months, revealing humans� huge gaps in knowledge of the world around them. Tina Butler Cultivated forests play important economic and ecological role in Indonesia - 17-May-2005 Old growth tropical forests are valuable and irreplaceable ecosystems that house the majority of Earth's known terrestrial biological diversity. While these forests are rapidly disappearing, they are not necessarily being completely cleared without replacement. In some regions, primary forests are being replaced with "cultivated forests" or "forest gardens," where useful trees are planted on farmlands after the removal of pre-existing natural forests. A new report Domesticating forests: How farmers manage forest resources by Genevi�ve Michon explores the characteristics and implications of these forests in Indonesia. mongabay.com Genetically modified agriculture and bioengineered food gains ground - 15-May-2005 A new milestone was reached and surpassed this week as the one billionth acre of genetically enhanced crops was planted. Even though biotech crops became available for the first time only ten years ago, they have been rapidly adopted, as indicated by this massive amount of land now planted. The first US commercial acres were planted in 1996 and now an area larger than the state of California is under cultivation with bioengineered crops. Close to 85 percent of soybeans, 75 percent of cotton and half of the corn in the United States is genetically enhanced; these crops are veritable super varieties whose genes have been manipulated in the lab. These, among nearly a dozen other genetically modified crops, have been altered by scientists for the purposes of producing higher yields or for increased resistance to herbicides, pests and drought Tina Butler How did rainforest shamans gain their boundless knowledge on medicinal plants? - 14-May-2005 For thousands of years, indigenous groups have extensively used rainforest plants for their health needs -- the peoples of Southeast Asian forests used 6,500 species, while Northwest Amazonian forest dwellers used 1300 species for medicinal purposes. Perhaps more staggering than their boundless knowledge of medicinal plants, is how shamans and medicinemen could have acquired such knowledge. There are over 100,000 plant species in tropical rainforests around the globe, how did indigenous peoples know what plants to use and combine especially when so many are either poisonous or have no effect when ingested. Many treatments combine a wide variety of completely unrelated innocuous plant ingredients to produce a dramatic effect. mongabay.com In Madagascar, Woodworking Zafimaniry remember lost forests - 12-May-2005 In the rolling hills of the southeastern highlands of Madagascar there lives a group of people known as the Zafimaniry, or the "the people of the forest." The Zafimaniry are renowned sculptors of wood and traditionally, virtually every member of the community was involved in some aspect of woodworking and cabinetmaking. However, these are not good times for many Zafimaniry. Severe deforestation for slash-and-burn cultivation ("tavy") has left their surroundings nearly completely devoid of trees. Once encircled by vigorous forests, some Zafimaniry villages are more than a day's trek from the nearest natural wood source. As a result, over the past decade, the Zafimaniry have increasingly looked toward tourism as an answer to their the economic plight. The unmoderated flow of tourists into these remote and delicate communities has denigrated their culture and left some Zafimaniry further entrenched in poverty. mongabay.com Rebuilding tsunami-ravaged Indonesia without further deforestation - 12-May-2005 American Forest & Paper Association joins World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International in seeking donated timber for Indonesia. World Wildlife Fund Release Ford Shareholders Criticize Automaker's Economic and Environmental Performance - 12-May-2005 Emphasis on Gas Guzzlers has put the company at risk. Shareholders ask Ford's Directors to align executive compensation and lobbying policies with increased gas mileage. Green Century Capital Management Release Bizarre rodent discovered in Southeast Asia; Oddity new to science - 11-May-2005 A team of scientists working in Southeast Asia have discovered a long-whiskered rodent with stubby legs and a tail covered in dense hair. But don't call it a squirrel. Or a rat. Because it's actually more like a guinea pig or chinchilla. But not quite. In fact the new species, found in Laos by scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and other groups, is so unique it represents an entire new family of wildlife. Wildlife Conservation Society Release Falling price of rice calms street violence in Madagascar - 11-May-2005 According to the agriculture minister of Madagascar, the country's rice output has increased causing prices of the island's staple food to fall and reducing the risk of further unrest over the rising cost of living. Last month the capital city of Antananarivo was rocked by protests over rising inflation. Students took to the streets throwing rocks and petrol bombs at police while setting fires. These demonstrations were mild in comparison to last June's protests where students were joined by army reservists and poor mothers. mongabay.com Using nanotechnology to fight cancer - 10-May-2005 Last fall, The National Cancer Institute (NCI) announced a new $144.3 million, five-year initiative to develop and apply nanotechnology to the fight against cancer. Through this initiative, NCI hopes to further enable the early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. mongabay.com New fox species discovered in jungle of Borneo - 10-May-2005 Scientists may have discovered a new species of fox-like mammal in the rainforests of Borneo. The animal was caught on film by an automatic infra-red camera positioned in the forest of the Kayam Menterong National Park in the Indonesian section of the island during a survey by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Scientists say the animal is has a reddish-colored coat, a bushy tail, and slightly extended back legs, suggesting that it may be partly arboreal. Local hunters failed to recognize the creature from the pictures. Rhett Butler Collapsing vanilla prices will affect Madagascar - 9-May-2005 Surging vanilla production in countries from Papua New Guinea to Colombia is causing the price of vanilla beans and extract to plummet in markets around the world. The drop in vanilla prices is expected to hit Madagascar, the world's largest producer of vanilla beans, especially hard. Most affected will be growers in the tropical northeastern part of the island who have relied on the valuable crop for years. Rhett Butler Genographic Project stirs controversy - 9-May-2005 National Geographic’s Genographic Project: Whose Blood, Whose History, Whose Gain? Tina Butler Project seeks to understand human origins and migration - 9-May-2005 Ted Waitt, founder of the Waitt Family Foundation, believes the Genographic Project will promote harmonious living across national boundaries and cultural lines by improving and expanding understanding and awareness about shared origins and journeys. Tina Butler Indigenous groups oppose National Geographic, IBM project - 9-May-2005 The Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism (IPCB), an organization that provides educational and technical support to indigenous peoples in the protection of their biological resources, cultural integrity, knowledge and collective rights, is distressed at the news of this new endeavor. Tina Butler The Giant Jumping Rat, another oddity from Madagascar - 8-May-2005 The giant jumping rat is the largest rodent in Madagascar, roughly equivilant in size to a rabbit. Rhett Butler Hardwood flooring linked to illegal timber smuggling ring, says group - 8-May-2005 Environmentalists today revealed how hardwood flooring sold across the U.S. is linked to the world’s largest illegal timber smuggling operation. Following two years of undercover investigations, The Environmental Investigation Agency, a non-profit group, has exposed how a leading distributor of hardwood flooring, Goodfellow Inc., is selling flooring made from logs illegally felled in Papua province of Indonesia. The Environmental Investigation Agency Wood Smuggling Link between Indonesia and China - 8-May-2005 Rampant smuggling of illegal timber from Indonesia to China is a billion dollar trade threatening the last remaining intact tropical forests in the Asia-Pacific region, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and Telapak revealed at a press conference today in Jakarta. The Environmental Investigation Agency Reefs worth more for tourism than fishing in Australia - 8-May-2005 The planet's largest living organism is worth more to Australia as an intact ecosystem for tourism than an extracative reserve for fishing. Rhett Butler Freshwater aquarium fish are important food source in many tropical countries - 5-May-2005 Those fish in your home aquarium may be important food sources in their native lands. According to figures recently released by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) Fisheries Department many fish typically kept by aquarium owners figure significantly in the daily nutrition of people in tropical Africa, Asia, and South America. mongabay.com 'Human footprint' to increase with repeal of roadless rule - 5-May-2005 The Bush administration's repeal a Clinton-era federal rule that banned road construction, logging and other development in some 58.5 million acres of roadless public land will likely increase the 'human footprint' on pristine wildlands in the United States. mongabay.com Illegal loggers make a fortune; American forestry companies attempt to fight back - 5-May-2005 A new report published by Seneca Creek Associates and Wood Resources Institute, says that illegal logging hurts legitimate timber operators by driving down market prices for wood and tarnishing the industry's reputation through shady dealings with corrupt regimes. While maximizing their harvest without regard for regulations or the long-term impact of their activities, these illicit operators reduce their costs through the use of well-placed bribes to avoid taxes and royalties. mongabay.com Ethnologists attempt to show forest dwellers perils of leaving the rain forest - 5-May-2005 A team of experts has spent months comparing the lives of the Punan people, who still live as hunter-gatherers in the forest of Indonesian Borneo, with those of tribe members who have been lured away by civilisation. AFP For What It’s Worth: Ecological Services and Conservation - 4-May-2005 For a long time, preserving natural spaces was considered to be a favor to the environment without a true, measurable benefit to businesses, industrial production and productivity. In recent years however, scientists are increasingly producing substantial evidence to support the notion that the natural environment supplies a diverse range of renewable economic benefits beyond timber and fish. These benefits are termed “ecological services” and provide such valuable functions as water treatment, pollination and sediment capture, simply by remaining intact. Tina Butler Free floating fishing nets kill marine mammals, turtles and sea birds - 4-May-2005 NOAA scientists battle ocean 'ghostnets' using remote sensing technology. NOAA release People of Madagascar have origins in Borneo, Africa - 3-May-2005 A new study in the American Journal of Human Genetics confirms that the people of Madagascar have origins in both East Africa and also distant Borneo. mongabay.com Where are the fish? Ocean fisheries in trouble - 3-May-2005 Talks began in Canada this week aimed at addressing the deteriorating condition of the world's marine fisheries, but in an atmosphere with little reason for optimism. Past efforts to manage fisheries or control overfishing have largely failed to slow the depletion of marine resources. mongabay.com Scientists search for Mongolian Death Worm - 3-May-2005 A group of English scientists are spending a month in the Gobi desert in search of the Mongolian Death Worm, a fabled creature said to lurk in the sands of the hostile region. The three to five feet long long creature is known to the locals as Allghoi khorkhoi, Mongolian for intestine worm because it is reported to look like the intestine of a cow. Mongolian nomads have made extraordinary claims about the animal, reporting that the death worm can spit a corrosive yellow saliva that acts like acid and that they have the ability to generate blasts of electricity powerful enough to kill a full grown camel. mongabay.com World population growth rate continues to plummet - 2-May-2005 According to figures released earlier this year by the UN, global birth rates fell to the lowest level in recorded history with the average woman in the developing world having 2.9 children, down from an average of nearly 6 babies in the 1970s. UN demographers also predict that fertility in most of the developing world will fall below the replacement level (2.1 children per woman) before the end of the 21st century. Factors leading to falling birth rates include increased level education for women, the use of contraceptives, and urbanization. mongabay.com Environmentalists hope new film will help conservation efforts in Madagascar - 6-May-2005 Environmentalists hope new film will help conservation efforts in Madagascar. The Wall Street Journal XML / RSS feed | current news | archive This page only includes recent news articles on mongabay.com released after March 31, 2005. For the latest updates on the site, please visit mongabay.com. News index | RSS | News Feed Advertisements: Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing |
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