From Fishers to Forest Keepers: Women and Communities Reviving India’s Mangroves

As the climate crisis intensifies, long-term adaptation strategies have become urgent. Among the most effective nature-based solutions are mangroves—resilient coastal forests that protect communities, preserve biodiversity, and capture carbon.

UN80 – Is it time for the Re-emergence of the Global Ministerial Environment Forum?

“We shall have to do more with less” was the summary message from a meeting in Oslo, Norway, this spring (2025), where the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Espen Barth Eide and Guy Ryder, Under-Secretary-General for Policy at the UN and Chair of UN80, both spoke about UN80 and the necessity to reform the UN.

Better Use of the World’s Expertise in Navigating the Polycrisis

Other articles in this series on clustering conventions that are addressed by the Triple Environmental Crisis of pollution (Stanley-Jones), biodiversity (Schally) and climate change (Azores) I have touched on the idea of clustering not only conventions but the science-policy bodies established separately to serve them. We address the question of the negative consequences of maintaining status quo and identify how “consolidating knowledge” might make a difference.

Kerala’s Human-Elephant ‘Conflict’: Time To Understand a Complex Relationship

In the early part of this year, two deaths in Kerala garnered major media attention. A farmer in Wayanad and a female plantation worker in Idukki were killed in two separate events, within a matter of a few days, by wild elephants. Arikomban, another wild elephant, has become a media favorite recently due to his brushes with human settlements near his habitat. Named so because of his love for ari (rice), the elephant had been relocated from Kerala to Tamil Nadu in 2023 following constant protests from people who also claimed him to be ‘life-threatening.’ Kerala's news outlets widely covered Arikomban's relocation.

The Debacle of the Global Plastics Treaty Negotiations –& Some Ideas for a Way Forward

The debacle that was the latest round of negotiations for a global treaty on plastics (including in the marine environment); known as “INC 5.2” has already been written about at length by many colleagues on all sides of the issues. Despite all the very informative posts, articles, and other analyses, I believe I have several key observations to make, particularly about the process to-date.

UN 80 – Clustering the Climate Conventions

The international governance of environmental challenges has progressively evolved over the past decades, transitioning from isolated treaties addressing specific issues to a complex web of multilateral agreements that aim to foster sustainable development and environmental integrity.

Toward Enhanced Synergies among Biodiversity Related MEAs: Addressing Fragmentation with Strategic Coordination

The governance of nature and biodiversity has evolved from early 20th-century treaties on hunting and migratory species to today’s complex web of multilateral environmental agreements.

Zanzibar’s Blue Economy Offers Hope Amid Rising Seas and Gender Inequity

At dawn on the white-sand shores of Jambiani, 45-year-old Saada Juma braces herself against the pull of the tide, wrangling ropes laced with seaweed. Her hands, hardened by decades of labor, move instinctively as she secures her aquatic crop.

Visualizing a Sustainable Future: The Intersection of Art and Climate Justice

In the 1900s, global discussions around climate change and fossil fuel usage reached new heights, leading to the emergence of climate change art. Since then, it has remained a key theme in contemporary art, with artists and corporations alike continuing to push messages of climate reform to instill a sense of urgency, fear, and shared responsibility in viewers.

Bending the Curve: Overhaul Global Food Systems to Avert Worsening Land Crisis

Current rates of land degradation pose a major environmental and socioeconomic threat, driving climate change, biodiversity loss, and social crises. Food production to feed more than 8 billion people is the dominant land use on Earth. Yet, this industrial-scale enterprise comes with a heavy environmental toll.

Why Crop Diversity Matters for the Future of Food

Across continents and cultures, seeds and plants hold more than the promise of a harvest—they carry the wisdom of generations, the hopes of communities, and the keys to a more resilient future. Yet the diversity of the seeds and plants we grow, eat, and depend upon, is under growing strain.

UN Trade and Environment Agencies Target Plastic Pollution through Global Negotiations and Trade Measures

They are lightweight, cheap, and able to be used in every sector of every supply chain. Few materials have revolutionized manufacturing and the global economy as much as plastics have. They are essential in almost everything, however this comes at a cost. A cost of 1.5 trillion annually in environmental damage, and a 75 percent waste ratio of all plastic ever produced.

Belem City Limits: How to Host a Successful Climate COP

There is no question that most climate activists and governments were delighted when Brazil offered to host the 2025 UN Climate Conference taking place this November.

Climate Reparations are Necessary but Not Sufficient: World Needs Less Growth & More Justice

While recent heat waves were causing thousands of deaths, the Trump administration was busy dismantling policies that regulate greenhouse gases on the theory they don’t harm human health.

Historic Inter-American Court Ruling: A Game-Changer for Environmental Defenders?

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has issued one of the most progressive climate justice decisions of our time. Its historic Advisory Opinion on the climate emergency and human rights, released on July 3, 2025, was unequivocal: States have legal obligations under international human rights law to reduce, prevent, and address climate damage, including reining in big polluters.

Forests, Fossil Fuels, and the Fight for the Future: DRC’s Oil Expansion Sparks Global Alarm

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) stands on the precipice of a profound environmental and social crisis, as the government prepares to auction 55 new oil blocks that cover more than half the country’s landmass.

How Clustering Multilateral Environmental Agreements Can Bring Multiple Benefits to the Environment

The UN80 Initiative, unveiled in March by Secretary-General António Guterres, is a system-wide effort to reaffirm the UN’s relevance for a rapidly changing world.

To Tackle Microplastic Pollution from Synthetic Textiles, Rebuild Natural Fibre Markets

Plastic pollution has emerged as one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. Since the mid-20th century, over 8 billion metric tons of plastic have been produced globally (UNEP, 2021). Shockingly, more than 90% of this plastic waste has not been recycled. Instead, it has been incinerated, buried in landfills, or leaked into the environment where it can persist for hundreds of years, fragmenting into microplastics.

Climate Pressures are Redefining Macroeconomic Resilience in Asia & the Pacific

In the past year, Asia and the Pacific has faced intensifying climate pressures, from extreme heat in Bangladesh and India to devastating floods in northern Thailand and rising food insecurity across the Pacific.

Climate Change An Existential Threat To Humanity, Urges Action – ICJ

The case was “unlike any that have previously come before the court,” President of the International Court of Justice Judge Yuji Iwasawa said while reading the court's unanimous advisory opinion outlining the legal obligations of United Nations member states with regard to climate change.

Kenyan Biochar Project Becomes First in Africa Validated Under European Carbon Standard

In June 2025, Kenyan climate-tech firm Tera became the first African project developer to have its carbon removal initiative independently validated and registered under Riverse, a European standard for engineered climate solutions.