Habitat News

Let the [RE]CHARGE journey begin: Hitting the road to raise sustainability awareness

Let the [RE]CHARGE journey begin: Hitting the road to raise sustainability awareness

7 October 2019, Zellik – Panasonic’s sustainable rechargeable battery brand, eneloop, has partnered with premium vehicle manufacturer, Jaguar, in a campaign to raise funds for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) engaged in environmental and sustainability projects. eneloop Panasonic and Jaguar were proud to see the [RE]CHARGE Activation campaign come to life at a kick-off event held in…

Forest elephants are our allies in the fight against climate change, finds research

Forest elephants are our allies in the fight against climate change, finds research

Forest elephant extinction would exacerbate climate change. That’s according to a new study in Nature Geoscience which links feeding by elephants with an increase in the amount of carbon that forests are able to store. The bad news is that African forest elephants – smaller and more vulnerable relatives of the better known African bush…

Logging and road building are expanding dramatically in the Congo Basin

Logging and road building are expanding dramatically in the Congo Basin

Logging roads are expanding dramatically in the Congo Basin, leading to catastrophic collapses in animal populations living in the world’s second-largest rainforest, according to research co-led by a scientist at James Cook University in Australia. Just as worrying is that the rate of forest destruction caused by new roads in the Congo Basin has risen…

Local and international organisations call on Ugandan and DRC presidents to protect sensitive ecosystems in new oil licensing round

Local and international organisations call on Ugandan and DRC presidents to protect sensitive ecosystems in new oil licensing round

Kampala and Goma – Nearly 50 civil society organizations (CSOs) from Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and their partners have written to the presidents of Uganda and the DRC calling on them to avoid sensitive ecosystems in the planned and ongoing oil exploration licensing round in the Albertine Graben. The CSOs made the…

Ecology of fear: Cascading impacts of local extinction of large-carnivores in an African savanna ecosystem

Ecology of fear: Cascading impacts of local extinction of large-carnivores in an African savanna ecosystem

A team of Princeton ecologists took advantage of a rare opportunity to study what happens to an ecosystem when large carnivores are wiped out. “Large carnivores play a critical, and disproportionate, role in their ecosystems, and their populations are declining worldwide,” said Justine Atkins, a graduate student in ecology and evolutionary biology at Princeton. “However,…

Roads make development and conservation clash in the Serengeti

Roads make development and conservation clash in the Serengeti

New or upgraded roads in the Greater Serengeti Ecosystem around Serengeti National Park will not reduce growing pressure on the ecosystem, a study shows. A proposed Northern Serengeti all-weather tarmac road that will bisect Serengeti National Park, a World Heritage site, has sparked considerable debate. Opponents say that the road could disrupt the migration of…

The fate of unique species in Tanzania’s coastal forests hangs in the balance

The fate of unique species in Tanzania’s coastal forests hangs in the balance

Tanzania is known for its tapestry of lush forests, expansive grasslands and tropical beaches, and abundant and diverse wildlife. Its coastal forests are part of the Coastal Forests of Eastern Africa biodiversity hotspot – a place recognised for its wealth of wildlife but threatened with destruction, making it a high priority for conservation efforts. These…

Eyes in the sky and on the ground: Engaging communities in forest conservation in the Cameroon Highlands

Eyes in the sky and on the ground: Engaging communities in forest conservation in the Cameroon Highlands

Arend de Haas, African Conservation Foundation, University of Buea The highland rainforests of South West Cameroon are among the oldest forests on the continent. They comprise the richest flora and fauna in continental tropical Africa. The area is one of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots. The region encompasses high levels of unique, as well…

Cameroon’s First Participatory 3D Mapping for Forest Monitoring and Conservation Management

Cameroon’s First Participatory 3D Mapping for Forest Monitoring and Conservation Management

Conservation Unplugged A three-dimensional model of part of the Cameroon Highlands has been unveiled today on Monday 30 May in an official ceremony at the Southwest Regional Delegation of Forestry and Wildlife (MINFOF). A Participatory 3D Mapping project has been conducted earlier this month in communities surrounding the proposed Tofala-Mone East Wildlife Corridor in South…

Massive infrastructure projects could be Africa’s greatest environmental challenge

Massive infrastructure projects could be Africa’s greatest environmental challenge

Bill Laurance, James Cook University Africa’s natural environments and spectacular wildlife are about to face their biggest challenge ever. In a paper published today in Current Biology, my colleagues and I assess the dramatic environmental changes that will be driven by an infrastructure-expansion scheme so sweeping in scope, it is dwarfing anything the Earth’s biggest…