Diego Cevallos

Nobel Laureate Proposes an Equation for Optimism

Scientist Mario Molina predicts that in 10 years the Mexican capital, one of the most polluted cities in the world, could have very clean air.

Montes Azules has lost 300 hectares of forest this year to fire. - Mauricio Ramos

Montes Azules – Forest of Discord

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Environmentalists are at odds about what to do with the Mexican reserve Montes Azules, an area under heavy pressure from several different conflicts, ranging from illegal logging to a guerrilla presence.

Law on the Side of Transgenics?

By Diego Cevallos and - -

A new Mexican law on biosecurity and genetically modified organisms could be taken as a model by other Latin American governments. Environmentalists and some scientists disagree on the virtues of the legislation.

''We'll need imagination after Kyoto''

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Klaus Toepfer, the world's top environment official as chief of the United Nations Environment Program, spoke with Tierramérica in the lead-up to Feb. 16, the day the Kyoto Protocol on climate change takes effect.

The 'Green' Promises of CAFTA

By Diego Cevallos and - -

The environment chapter of the Central American-U.S. free trade agreement has environmental activists divided: for some it is merely ''symbolic'', for others it is a ''major victory''.

''They want transgenics, good or bad''

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Biologist Ignacio Chapela, who discovered that Mexican corn had been contaminated with genetically modified material, spoke recently with Tierramérica. He denounces a campaign by the big biotech transnationals to undermine his reputation.

Apoyo Lagoon in Masaya, Nicaragua - Mauricio Ramos

Maps Ignore Lakes and Lagoons

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Around a thousand bodies of water do not appear in the cartography of Central America, according to the preliminary results of a new study to which Tierramérica had access.

Methane emanates from garbage dumps, livestock waste and some plant - Mauricio Ramos

A Greenhouse Gas Becomes Star of the Market

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Latin America is joining the international movement for trade in methane emissions credits. Environmental activists are giving this approach the thumbs-down.

One of the harpy eagles rescued by the Peregrine Fund -

Harpy Eagle to Take Flight Again

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Panama is a pioneer in rescuing the impressive raptor, the harpy eagle. More than 30 harpy chicks have hatched in captivity there since 2001.

Hurricane Greta thrashed the northern Honduran coast in 1978. Two thousand people were left homeless - NOAA

Bring Out the Anti-Hurricane Artillery

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Within five years there may be methods available to manipulate and reduce the devastating impacts of hurricanes like Ivan, Frances and Jeanne, which have hit the Caribbean in recent weeks.

Industry is one of the leading culprits of greenhouse gas emission - Photo Stock

Small Companies Far from Meeting 'Green' Standards

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Pressure is rising in Mexico for small industries to be incorporated into a new initiative for measuring and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

A 'Green' Blessing on the Big Screen

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Despite its simplistic plot, "The Day After Tomorrow" is being applauded for tackling the prickly issue -- for the first time on the big screen -- of global climate change. Critics and audiences in Latin America share their opinions of the film with Tierramérica.

“If I am freed, I will continue to fight logging”

By Diego Cevallos and - -

NGOs are waging an international campaign for the release of Isidro Baldenegro, a Mexican Indian who has fought illegal logging and deforestation. From prison, where he has been held for more than a year, Baldenegro spoke with Tierramérica.

Ecocide: Forests are decimated in Mexico's Tarahumara sierra. - Claudio Contreras

Indigenous Eco-Activists Await Medals, or Punishment

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Two Mexican indigenous farmers who have fought logging operations could be sentenced to around a decade in prison. To the NGOs, they are prisoners of conscience. To government prosecutors, they are criminals.

Pre-Hispanic tradition states that the gods used maize to create the first human - Claudio Contreras

Transgenic Corn Growing in Mesoamerica

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Two thousand hectares of genetically modified corn are planted in Honduras with government approval. In the rest of the region -- birthplace of this grain -- there are reports that local varieties have been contaminated by transgenic corn.

Children are often the most aware of threats to the environment - Mauricio Ramos

Latin America's Ailing Environment

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Latin Americans lose as many as 11 years off their lives due to environmental degradation, says a new study by the United Nations Environment Program.

Loggerhead turtle. - Alan F. Redes/ARCHELON

Sea Turtles Face Deadly Beaches

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Thousands of sea turtles continue to be hacked or beaten to death in Latin America. The seven species that lay their eggs on the region's beaches all face extinction.

A Passport to the Universe

By Diego Cevallos and - -

The Papalote Children's Museum in Mexico will inaugurate the world's largest digital dome on Feb. 3, with an interactive spectacle that will transport audiences to the farthest reaches of the cosmos, 15 billion light-years away.

To the Rescue of the Tacaná Volcano Watershed

By Diego Cevallos and - -

Work has begun to rescue the watershed of a million-year-old volcano on the Mexican-Guatemalan border. Some 700,000 people, many of them descendants of the Maya, stand to benefit.

A Mixed Decade for NAFTA Environment Accord

By Diego Cevallos and - -

NAFTA's parallel "green" agreement, the only one of its kind, marks its tenth anniversary with the same limited budget it had when it was created and has processed 42 denunciations.

'Natural gas is our hope, our future'

By Diego Cevallos and - -

"We are not looking for a coup. We are defending our fossil fuels," Evo Morales, a lawmaker and indigenous and peasant leader, said in dialogue with Tierramérica about the recent unrest in Bolivia.