africa
Mali’s centuries-old pastoralist traditions wilt as the climate changes
Movement is a way of life among the Kel Tamasheq of northern Mali. Living near Timbuktu, the transhumance traditions of this branch of nomadic Tuaregs (or Touaregs) who speak Tamasheq have persisted since before the 15th century. According to Aboubacrine ag Mohamed Mitta, a member of the Kel Tamasheq people, their ancestors were pure nomads. They […]
Read MoreCourt order blocks Shell’s seismic surveys off South Africa’s Wild Coast
A South African court has ordered oil giant Shell to suspend plans for seismic blasting along the country’s Wild Coast, in a decision hailed by environmentalists. The Dutch oil giant is prospecting off the coast of Eastern Cape province for viable oil and gas reserves below the seabed. “The case is not just about Shell […]
Read MoreChanges to Madagascar’s trawling sector raise questions and hopes
This is part three of a three-article series on industrial fishing in Madagascar’s waters. Part one looked at offshore fishing; part two focused on a new exclusive-access zone for small-scale fishers. Earlier this year, there was an unusual stoppage: in March and April, normally the heart of Madagascar’s shrimp fishing season, the nation’s trawlers remained […]
Read MoreMadagascar’s small fishers cheer new trawl-free zone, but do trawlers obey it?
This is part two of a three-article series on industrial fishing in Madagascar’s waters. Part one focuses on offshore fishing; part three looks at changes to the near-shore trawling sector. NOSY FALY, Madagascar — For decades, tensions have simmered between Madagascar’s small-scale fishers and the industrial trawlers that operate near the country’s coast. In 2017, […]
Read MoreKenya court orders return of $13m in seized rosewood to suspected traffickers
In May 2014, the Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) seized a consignment of wood at the port of Mombasa. Shipping records listed the cargo only as “wood” headed for Hong Kong: in fact, the MV Kota was carrying 646 metric tons of Malagasy rosewood (Dalbergia spp.), worth up to $13 million. KWS deemed the consignment illegal. A […]
Read MoreThe Congo Basin’s 10 most consequential stories from 2021
For the Congo Basin, 2021 proved to be an up-and-down year. Funding commitments totaling in the billions of dollars were announced that would help forested countries preserve some of the highest-quality tropical rainforest left on the planet. And research into the world’s largest tropical peatland, which is found in the Congo Basin, continues to expand […]
Read MoreNew flavor of vanilla farming aims to stop deforestation in Madagascar
MANAKAMBAHINY ATSINANANA, Madagascar — To make a simple phone call here requires walking for at least an hour, over deforested foothills, through a small village and across a river to reach a mountain peak where cell service is available. This trek is among the duties of a dozen teenagers working on a farm in this […]
Read MoreAs Ethiopia’s war rages, a 400-year-old conservation site is scarred by battle
A major fire has burned more than 1,000 hectares, or nearly 2,500 acres, of grassland in the Guassa Community Conservation Area of Ethiopia. While any long-term impacts are yet to be assessed, the fire — which coincided with a local battle in Ethiopia’s ongoing civil war — is the most severe damage in 40 years […]
Read MoreThe past, present and future of the Congo peatlands: 10 takeaways from our series
This is the wrap-up article for our four-part series “The Congo Basin peatlands.” Read Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four. In the first half of December, Mongabay published a four-part series on the peatlands of the Congo Basin. Only in 2017 did a team of Congolese and British scientists discover that a […]
Read MoreCarbon and communities: The future of the Congo Basin peatlands
This is the fourth article in our four-part series “The Congo Basin peatlands.” Read Part One, Part Two and Part Three. The muddy cores that Ian Lawson and his colleagues pull from the swampy peatlands of the Congo Basin might not look like much at first glance. Layers of clay and silt are interspersed here […]
Read More