WWF news
Environment minister Richard Benyon on western gray whales
Richard Benyon, UK minister for the natural environment and fisheries, has backed our call to help protect the critically endangered western gray whale. There may be fewer than 130 of them left, and maybe only 26 breeding females. The whales' key summer feeding habitat is off Sakhalin Island in the Russian Far East - unfortunately the site chosen for one of the world’s biggest offshore oil and gas developments.
Pantanal: protecting the world’s largest wetland
The world’s largest wetland, the Pantanal in South America, is a paradise for wildlife. Its annual cycles of flooding and drought create a strikingly beautiful and rich ecosystem. It’s a haven for nearly 5,000 species of animals and plants, and attracts about a million tourists a year - joining the eight million people who live there. The region’s ‘ecosystems services’ - such as irrigation of agriculture and wildlife tourism - have been valued at US$112bn a year. But this paradise is at serious risk - and here's how we're planning to protect it.
High-level call for green revolution should be heeded
WWF yesterday welcomed a call from the UN High-Level Panel for Global Sustainability, recommending a radical redesign of the global economy, in order to create a healthy environment and improve people’s well-being.
Brazil’s Forest Code takes centre stage at World Social Forum
This week saw civil society groups from across the globe convene at the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Since day one, a critical point of discussion has been the controversial changes to the host country’s long-standing Forest Code, which could see vast swathes of forest destroyed and enormous amounts of CO2 released into the atmosphere.
Ching’s Earth Hour menu: top chef cooks up planet-friendly delights
Ching-He Huang, the face of Chinese cooking on British TV, is calling on food lovers to switch off the lights for WWF’s Earth Hour at 8.30pm on 31 March and enjoy a candlelit meal that’s good for people and the planet.
Elephants in Sumatra pushed closer to extinction by habitat loss
The Sumatran elephant has been officially uplisted from 'endangered' to 'critically endangered' after losing nearly 70% of its habitat and half its population in one generation. We're calling for an immediate moratorium on the destruction of elephant habitat - usually caused by deforestation or agricultural conversion - to make sure there's a future for the species.
WWF Annual Review 2011 - a very memorable year
Don’t miss our attention-grabbing review of 2011 - a special and exciting year for WWF, being our 50th anniversary. It's online now...
Rhino crisis - how you can help
We know you'll feel as angry as we do about the latest shocking figures on rhino poaching - 448 rhinos killed in South Africa alone in 2011, including 19 critically endangered black rhinos. The worst figures on record, and fuelled by rising demand in Asia, particularly Vietnam, where rhino horn is sold as a spurious cancer medicine and even a lifestyle post-party drug for the rich. Rhinos could be wiped out for a hangover cure! Please help us tackle this outrage...
Rena sinking - and ongoing oil threats in New Zealand
Our colleagues in New Zealand have said the number of oiled wildlife reported dead is a tiny fraction of the true figure killed by the Rena oil spill. And they stress that the tragedy should act as a wake-up call for the country's government - proposed legislation for New Zealand’s offshore environment needs to do much more to protect wildlife and minimise the likelihood of damage from any future oil spills.
WWF disputes aviation authority’s call for new runways
WWF and the Aviation Environment Federation (AEF) have rejected a new report from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) that claims new runways are needed in the south-east to meet consumer demand. The CAA's report ignores the advice of the government’s climate advisers, and directly contradicts government policy about making the most of the airport capacity we already have.
KT Tunstall launches WWF’s Earth Hour - in January!
Singer KT Tunstall has switched OFF the Christmas lights at Westfield London to launch the countdown to WWF’s Earth Hour, which is happening on 31 March this year.
WWF’s 10 New Year resolutions for a healthy planet
New Year resolutions to lose weight or stop smoking are so passé! Why not do something that will really make a difference by committing to help save the planet in 2012.
WWF Ambassador Jonathon Porritt celebrates sustainable palm oil
WWF Ambassador Jonathon Porritt has written a blog post on his website in support of the pioneering progress made by the Round table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), and its associated certification for sustainable palm oil, CSPO - despite some tough challenges and critics. Here's an extract from his blog post:
EU court agrees: airlines must clean up their act on emissions
In a historic decision, Europe’s highest court has upheld the innovative EU law that aims to reduce carbon pollution from the world’s aircraft and help tackle climate change. The court ruled against US and other airlines who’d claimed this EU legislation was incompatible with international law. This was despite a last-minute pressurising letter from the US government - you can read a joint NGO response to this letter here.
New agreement to tackle climate change impacts in Himalayas
As part of our Living Himalayas Initiative, we’ve recently played a leading role in securing an agreement between India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh to combat the impacts of climate change in the region.
Brazil's destructive Forest Code vote delayed - but only till March
Thanks in part to campaigners across Brazil and the world, final voting on controversial and destructive changes to the country’s Forest Law has been postponed until March 2012. It's a great first success - but the battle’s not over, and we still need your support to spread the word, and help make sure damaging changes are stopped.
Update 25 Jan: The Brazilian Congress will be reconvening in early February and we're making sure they feel the heat as they step back into office. This week, the World Social Forum - civil society's response to the World Economic Forum - kicks off in Porto Alegre, Brazil. And WWF, together with a committee of other Brazilian organisations, will be using the opportunity to call on President Dilma Rousseff to veto the controversial changes. You can help us today by signing this email petition, already signed by more than 75,000 WWF supporters.
APP’s tiger sanctuary ‘greenwash’ is hogwash
A forest tiger sanctuary, which is claimed by giant paper and pulp producer APP to be proof of their green credentials, is actually being deforested by one of APP's wood suppliers. Latest investigations, with our partners in Sumatra, have confirmed that APP’s claims are not only greenwash, they’re mostly hogwash. We want all buyers and investors to join the many major companies who’ve already cut all ties with APP.
Mekong dam postponement is good news
We’re pleased to hear that government ministers from Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam have jointly agreed to delay a decision on building the Xayaburi dam on the Mekong river in Laos. They’ll wait for further studies on the impacts of this controversial project. We’ve been pushing for a 10-year moratorium on dams on the lower Mekong until all relevant information is available.
Wild Mekong: new species discovered every two days
A new ‘noseless’ monkey with Elvis sideburns and quiff, a psychedelic gecko, a self-cloning skink lizard, five meat-eating plants and a unique leaf warbler are among the 208 species new to science found in the Greater Mekong region in 2010 - as highlighted in a new WWF report, ‘Wild Mekong’. Now we need to make sure they’re valued and protected in this fast-changing region.
WWF’s Durban response: too little, too slow from unambitious leaders
After two weeks of UN climate change talks in South Africa, and despite a day-long extension, world governments have still failed to provide the inspiration, leadership or ambition to seriously tackle climate change. They’ve missed a vital chance to protect our planet and give real hope to hundreds of millions of people around the world who are suffering and will increasingly suffer from climate-related impacts. But we're not giving up so easily...
Journalists: for full news releases, background information and WWF press team contacts, visit our press and media centre.
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