Decade of Action on the Sustainable Development Goals Is Under Way

The Sustainable Development Goals are known as the world’s blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. The 17 goals are all interconnected, and in order to …

World’s Consumption of Materials Hits Record 100bn Tonnes a Year

The amount of material consumed by humanity has passed 100bn tonnes every year, a report has revealed, but the proportion being recycled is falling. The climate and wildlife emergencies are driven by the unsustainable extraction of fossil fuels, metals, building materials and trees. The report’s authors warn that treating the …

Massive, Border-Spanning Campaign Needed to Combat Locust Upsurge in East Africa

Desert Locust swarms in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia – already unprecedented in their size and destructive potential – could swell exponentially and spill over into more countries in East Africa if efforts to deal with the voracious pest are not massively scaled up across the region, FAO warned today. “This …

Humans Risk Living in an Empty World

Humanity will have given up on planet Earth if world leaders cannot reach an agreement this year to stop the mass extinction of wildlife and destruction of life-supporting ecosystems, the United Nation’s new biodiversity chief has warned. Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the acting executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological …

Huge ‘Hot Blob’ in Pacific Ocean Killed Nearly a Million Seabirds

A million seabirds died in less than a year as a result of a giant “blob” of hot ocean, according to new research. A study released by the University of Washington found the birds, called common murres, probably died of starvation between the summer of 2015 and the spring of …