In the effort to protect the Serengeti—arguably Africa’s most famous ecosystem—one of the major problems is the bushmeat trade. Population growth, little available protein, poverty, and a long-standing history of hunting has led many communities to poach wildlife within Serengeti National Park. Interviewing over a thousand community members in the western Serengeti, scientists found that…

Forest company and conservation group signatories to the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA) welcome Ontario’s support today of their approach and joint recommendations on an action plan for an area of the province’s boreal forest almost five times the size of Metro Toronto. The action plan recommendations aim to secure the future of the 3…

New findings have emerged in the field of sunburns, the painful yet protective immune response from ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The skin turns reddish and becomes hot to the touch, making it very uncomfortable. UV radiation can also cause general fatigue, mild dizziness, and possible skin diseases. A new study from the University of California (UC)…

The 21 member companies of the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC), and nine leading environmental organizations, have endorsed an unprecedented agreement – the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement – that applies to 72 million hectares of public forests licensed to FPAC members. The Agreement, when fully implemented, will conserve significant areas of Canada’s vast Boreal…

The Danish city of Copenhagen has won the European Green Capital Award for 2014. Copenhagen was chosen for its achievements in “eco-innovation and sustainable mobility,” for being a role model for the green economy in Europe and for engaging its citizens to feel they are part of the green solution.

Mad cow disease is a fatal disease in cattle that causes portions of the brain to turn sponge-like. This transmissible disease is caused by the propagation of a misfolded form of protein known as a prion, rather than by a bacterium or virus. The average time from infection to signs of illness is about 60…

From fresh rover tracks to an impact crater blasted billions of years ago, a newly completed view from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows the ruddy terrain around the outcrop where the long-lived explorer spent its most recent Martian winter. This scene recorded from the mast-mounted color camera includes the…

Technology gets old – it’s just the way it works (or stops working). So what do you do with it when it’s time for a new laptop or cell phone? Unless you’ve got one of the new biodegradable cell phones, you probably don’t want to chuck all that plastic and silicon into a landfill where…

A report from a high-powered commission today blasted the government, regulators, and Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) for not anticipating and preventing the crisis at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant triggered by a powerful earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. Multiple reactor meltdowns and massive radiation releases forced authorities to evacuate 150,000 people from around…

Whaling is the hunting of whales mainly for meat and oil. Its earliest forms date to at least 3000 BC. So it has long been a successful economic activity but not too good for the whales whose population tends to be endangered. The Republic of Korea has announced plans to kill endangered whales under a…