Remembering Some of the Earth Defenders Who Were Killed in 2019

Here are some of the brave souls who gave their lives in 2019 in defense of the environment. There have been an increasing number of environmental activists murdered in recent years. Many of the murders in 2019 took place in Brazil which is currently being ruled by far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. In Brazil a total of 56 defenders were assassinated in 2017 alone. At least eight land defenders were killed in 2018 in the Brazilian state of Para alone.

The Rising Toll of Murdered Environmental Activists

Each year environmental activists are killed for trying to defend the natural world. It is fitting that we start the year by remembering the brave souls who are on the front lines of efforts to protect their land, water or local wildlife. For every environmental activist killed hundreds more were assaulted. This includes the indigenous activists in Brazil who had their hands cut off with machetes by ranchers. To add insult to injury the perpetrators of these villainous acts are almost never caught.

Suspected Assassins of Berta Cáceres Arrested in Honduras

On May 11th the Honduran government arrested four men and charged them with the murder of indigenous environmental activist Berta Cáceres. She was killed because of her opposition to the Agua Zarca hydropower project in the Gulacarque river basin. Men affiliated with Desarrollos Energéticos S.A. (DESA), the Honduran company building the dam, are implicated in her murder.

The shots that killed Berta echoed around the globe. The world was outraged that the winner of the 2015 Goldman Environmental Prize, was savagely gunned down for what can only be described as her noble efforts to defend the rights of her people and protect the land on which they live.

The Slaughter of Innocents: Our Complicity in the Murder of Environmentalists

All around the world, people who are on the front lines of efforts to protect our planet are murdered for their eco-advocacy. They put their lives on the line, and they are being slaughtered while the world does not appear to notice. Many other environmentalists are subject to intimidation, violence, stigmatization and criminalization. As revealed in a 2012 article, environmentalists are persecuted and killed all over the world. In 2012, there were a total of 147 environmentalists murdered. Although these heinous crimes are getting more media coverage, the frequency of these killing appears to be accelerating.

Activists Opposing Illegal Logging Murdered in Peru

The persecution and murder of environmental activists is an all too common event in our world, now four more people have been added to that list. The murders took place on September 1, 2014, near the Peruvian border with Brazil. All indications are that the four Asheninka natives were killed by illegal loggers. The Ashaninkas are Peru's leading Amazon ethnic group and they have been subject to growing violence.

One of those killed was the prominent anti-logging campaigner, Edwin Chota. Chota had been repeatedly threatened before his assassination and had asked for protection from Peruvian authorities. He was the leader of Alto Tamaya-Saweto, a community in Peru’s Amazon Ucayali region. He has fought for his people’s right to gain titles to their land and expel illegal loggers.

Balken Flooding and the Costs of Climate Change

Much of the former Yugoslavia (Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia) is under water and hundreds of thousands of buildings are inundated across the region. Some of the worst flooding ever experienced in the area has killed almost 50 people and triggered more than three thousand landslides.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated and millions of people are affected. People all across the region are cut off with no water, food, power or communications. The floods are exposing some of the more than one hundred thousand mines and driving the biggest mass migration in the Balkans since the war in the 1990s. 

Video - Years of Living Dangerously (Premiere Full Episode)

Watch the world premiere of the new series, "Years of Living Dangerously" which involves celebrities and respected journalists as they span the globe to explore the issues of climate change and cover intimate stories of human triumph and tragedy. The "Years of Living Dangerously" takes you directly to the heart of climate change issues in an awe-inspiring, cinematic documentary series event.

Infographic - Climate Change: Threat or Opportunity

Senators All Night Vigil Urging Action on Climate Change

Starting on Monday, March 10 and concluding on Tuesday, March 11, 28 Senators (26 Democrats and two independents) will be speaking all night to urge action on climate change. Immediately following votes on the evening of Monday, March 10 until approximately 9 am ET Tuesday, March 11, Senators from the Senate Climate Action Task Force will be holding the Senate floor to urge action on climate change.

Why Climate Change is a Clear and Present Danger: The Facts About Global Warming

According to climate scientist Andrew Emory Dessler we have a "robust understanding" of climate change that makes it hard to refute anthropogenic global warming. This article summarizes what we know about climate science.

Dessler is a climate scientist and Professor of Atmospheric Sciences at Texas A&M University. He is an expert in atmospheric chemistry, climate change and climate change policy. He has been studying the atmosphere since 1988. His peer-reviewed publications on climate change, include studies of the cloud and water vapor feedbacks and climate sensitivity.

Infographic - People Living Less than 5m Above Sea Level

Environmentalists Continue to be Murdered or Silenced by Courts All Around the World

If the killing of environmentalists were not enough, courtrooms all around the world are actively silencing environmental protest. Seven hundred advocates have been murdered in the last ten years and countless others are being silenced by courts. A recent report by human rights organization Global Witness documents the murders of more than 700 environmental and indigenous-rights activists over the last ten years. That translates to an average of more than one murder each week over the last decade.

The Global Witness data does not include those who are being jailed, assaulted, intimidated, harassed, or otherwise abused. We must support those who are persecuted for admirable activities like protecting wildlife, resisting illegal logging, or protesting against destructive corporate activities. It is unconscionable that people should be subjected to such treatment, it is even worse that the world often ignores the sacrifices they make for their noble endeavors.

Event - Flooding Conference 2014 with CIWEM RCG

Flooding Conference 2014 will take place on January 30 at the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM), 15 John Street, London. The subtitle for this event is, "Delivering Flood & Coastal Schemes & Projects Partnering, Joint Funding and Frameworks, Developing Practice and Emerging Lessons."

Aim

The ways of working and funding arrangements involved in the delivery of major flood and coastal schemes and projects are changing fast. The aim of this conference for flood and erosion risk professionals will be to showcase the developing and innovative partnership approaches to the effective delivery of schemes and projects. This will include the identification of the multiple benefits, working with partners, large consortia projects, framework agreements, shared services agreements, different contractual arrangements and risk management

The Costs of Flood Damage will Rise Along with Sea Levels

Flooding is a very expensive corollary of global warming. While we cannot connect individual weather events directly to global warming, the storm that hit Europe in early December is nonetheless a powerful reminder of what the future will look like as the world continues to warm. Much of the billion dollars worth of damage caused by Xaver is due to flooding caused by storm surges.

As global warming continues and ice keeps melting, sea levels will keep rising which will increase the damage caused by storm surges. A warmer planet not only increases the volume of sea water, it is also expected to increase precipitation in places that need it least. As reported by 350.org, global warming has already raised global sea level about 20 cm since 1880, and the rate of rise is accelerating. Scientists expect roughly 60 to 210 more cm of sea level rise this century, depending on whether or not we can limit greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).

Flooding is a very costly phenomenon. A 2013 study in Nature concluded that flooding could cost the world’s cities $60 billion a year, even with major investments in flood protection. If we don’t make those investments, the cost could be up to $1 trillion a year.

Video - Sea Level Rise: A Slow-Motion Disaster

Sea-level rise is a slow-moving threat that presents a tremendous risk to some of America's most populous cities. As climate change drives sea levels higher, and more Americans than ever are calling the coastal U.S. home, cities like Miami, New York and New Orleans will likely face billions of dollars in flood-related damages per year if nothing is done to address climate change. The Center for American Progress visited Norfolk, Virginia, a city on the front-lines of the fight against rising seas, to talk to residents and community leaders about their efforts to save the city and learn to live with the water. One thing is clear: doing nothing is not an option.

Video - Truck Carrying Oil Crashes Killing 204 Illustrating the Dangers of Transporting Fossil Fuels

This video shows the aftermath of a crash involving an oil bearing tanker truck that killed more than 200 people in the Congo in July, 2010. The video reiterates, the horrible lessons learned from the tragic July, 2013, explosion of a train bearing oil in Canada in which an entire town was decimated. Fossil fuels are a danger on public roads, and they are no safer on rail lines, shipping lanes or in pipelines. Whether by train, pipe, ship or truck, fossil fuels cannot be safely transported.

Top 25 Oil Spills in the Last Decade

Here is a listing of the worst oil spills in the world in the last ten years. The information is listed in the following order: The name of the spill is followed by the country, location, date and quantity of oil spilled. Quantities are measured in tonnes of crude oil with one tonne roughly equal to 308 US gallons, or 7.33 barrels, or 1165 liters. 
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1. Deepwater Horizon, United States, Gulf of Mexico, 20 April 2010 – 15 July 2010, 627,000 tonnes

2. 2010 ExxonMobil oil spill, Nigeria, Niger Delta, 1 May 2010, 95,500 tonnes

3. Xingang Port oil spill, China, Yellow Sea, 16 July 2010 - 21 July 2010, 90,000 tonnes

Worldwatch Institute: The Looming Threat of Water Scarcity

Some 1.2 billion people-almost a fifth of the world-live in areas of physical water scarcity, while another 1.6 billion face what can be called economic water shortage. The situation is only expected to worsen as population growth, climate change, investment and management shortfalls, and inefficient use of existing resources restrict the amount of water available to people, according to Worldwatch Institute's Vital Signs Online service (www.worldwatch.org). It is estimated that by 2025, 1.8 billion people will live in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, with almost half of the world living in conditions of water stress.

2012 Review of Forests and Trees

In 2012 we saw some very significant findings related to the importance of forests for the health and well being of the planet. We also saw destructive trends that are compromising forests as well as efforts to undermine forests protections. While forests create jobs and significantly contribute to the economy they also play a crucial role in mitigating climate change. Forests cover 30 percent of Earth's land surface and store 45 percent of the carbon found in terrestrial ecosystems and sequester as much as 25 percent of annual carbon emissions from human activities.

Forests reduce the impacts of climate change by sequestering carbon and releasing oxygen, however, less trees means more carbon and less oxygen. This constitutes a dangerous feedback loop. Declining forests are being impacted by global warming and this is interfering with the natural processes that mitigate climate change. In addition to reducing atmospheric CO2, forests are important for drinking water, they protect against soil erosion and contribute to biodiversity that provides habitats for countless species of plants and animals.

Documentary: On Coal River

In the words from Mother and Director Francine Cavanaugh: We are documentary filmmakers but parents first. I was four months pregnant when we began filming over 6 years ago in Coal River Valley WV. Our first visit was to the local elementary school and we were blown away by its proximity to a large coal facility plant and looming sludge pond. We were also blown away by the spirit of resistance and resolve of a few individuals who took on the mission to have the school moved to a safer ground as well as taking on the coal industry that has been entrenched in their community for over a hundred years.

Judy Bonds whose story we follow says “I am first a mother and a grandmother and to the young people in the world today I have to say I am sorry for what we have done to your world because this is your planet first”. I feel her words today as our son is now seven and I continue to feel the responsibility to do as much as I can to make this a better world for him and all of the worlds children to live in and I continue to receive inspiration from people like Judy Bonds, Maria Lambert, Ed Wiley, and Bo Webb who are all parents and grandparents first.