China’s National Forestry and Grassland Administration announced the upgrade of all pangolin species to highest level of protection and commitment to help protect the species. This will be implemented by introduction of measures to improve their habitat, monitor their populations, and reduce poaching and trafficking, as well as setting up a research center and gene bank for pangolins.
In another move to stamping out trade of the scaly anteater, China took a step further and removed pangolin scales from the official 2020 listing of ingredients approved for use in traditional Chinese medicine.
There is hope for pangolins after all! The increase to the highest level protection and removal of pangolin scales from traditional medicine could be the game changer we have all been waiting for. For more information click here www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-52981804
Aware that we could all do with a dose of positivity at this time, Conservation South Luangwa hopes their challenge proves to be a fun distraction and helps raise awareness for conservation in Zambia and Africa.
Can you do the #CSLZambiaChallenge ?
To join in all you have to do is to complete the challenge, post it online and tag @CSLZambia. Then why not share it and challenge 5 others to do the same?
The moves are:
1 x 180 degree Jump Turn 3 x forward punches 1 x push-up burpee 3 x forward kick-ups Then start your day job.
Music: Shakira’s Waka Waka 2010 World Cup theme or you can choose your own favourite music.
Dr Merlin Tuttle is this afternoon’s speaker on Bats Without Border’s weekly Webinar.
He is sharing his 60 years of experience winning friends for bats. So what are his key ingredients to success? He suggests you ask questions, listen with empathy, sincerely attempt to help, share personal experiences, put people’s fear into perspective and explain relevant bat values.
Today’s talk will take place at 15 hrs (CAT) and pre-registration is essential for new participants. To register visit: www.batswithoutborders.org
If you are unable to join in but would like to catch up on Dr Merlin Tuttle’s talk , along with previous Webinars, then you can watch them again by scrolling down to the bottom of Bats Without Border’s Webinar page.
The foods we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink and the climate that makes our planet habitable all come from nature. Yet, these are exceptional times in which nature is sending us a message: To care for ourselves we must care for nature. It’s time to wake up. To take notice. To raise our voices. It’s time to build back better for People and Planet. This World Environment Day, it’s Time for Nature.
Today is World Environment Day, so why not learn about how all living things on Earth are connected in the web of life and how we can act #ForNature.
World Environment Day is the most renowned day for environmental action. Since 1974 it has been celebrated every year on 5 June – engaging governments, businesses, celebrities and citizens to focus their efforts on a pressing environmental issue.
This year’s theme is biodiversity — a call to action to combat the accelerating species loss and degradation of the natural world. One million plant and animal species risk extinction, largely due to human activities. Hosted by Colombia, in partnership with Germany, World Environment Day urges us to rethink how our economic systems have evolved and the impact they have on the environment. These are issues the world cannot lose sight of even as we tackle the corona virus pandemic and the ongoing climate crisis. Colombia has one of the highest diversities of species in the world, boasting among many others, 3500 types of orchids and 19 per cent of the world’s bird types and their government has made biodiversity preservation a national priority.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are staying indoors but digital platforms provide a great opportunity to act #ForNature. You can register your sustainability initiative – a kitchen garden, an online lesson on biodiversity and the wonders of nature, or a different idea which will be featured on the global map.
To find out more visit the World Environment Day website where you can explore nature around iconic spots and find out how you can join in. You can join in online events, watch live feeds, register your event and see what others are doing around the world in their stories, news and tips.
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the foundation that supports all life on land and below water. It affects every aspect of human health, providing clean air and water, nutritious foods, scientific understanding and medicine sources, natural disease resistance, and climate change mitigation. Changing, or removing one element of this web affects the entire life system and can produce negative consequences.
Human actions, including deforestation, encroachment on wildlife habitats, intensified agriculture, and acceleration of climate change, have pushed nature beyond its limit. It would take 1.6 Earths to meet the demands that humans make of nature each year. If we continue on this path, biodiversity loss will have severe implications for humanity, including the collapse of food and health systems.
The emergence of COVID-19 has underscored the fact that, when we destroy biodiversity, we destroy the system that supports human life. Today, it is estimated that, globally, about one billion cases of illness and millions of deaths occur every year from diseases caused by coronaviruses; and about 75 per cent of all emerging infectious diseases in humans are zoonotic, meaning that they are transmitted to people by animals.
Nature is sending us a message.
Illegal wildlife trade has many negative consequences for human well being and species conservation, when criminal actors trade in endangered species they weaken entire ecosystems and they threaten essential links of the world’s biological diversity. Biodiversity loss, one of the greatest global threats in our time, also means a narrower genetic pool and therefore less resilience to resist diseases of any kind.
