Mesoamerica Fails in Environmental Education

More than 80 percent of the population does not know the meaning of the expression "sustainable development", according to a survey conducted in rural areas of Central America and southern Mexico. And only a minority understands the significance of problems like climate change or species extinction. More than 80 percent of the population does not know the meaning of the expression "sustainable development", according to a survey conducted in rural areas of Central America and southern Mexico. And only a minority understands the significance of problems like climate change or species extinction.

Cash for Farmers Who Destroy Their Coca Crops

Peru's government is paying 150 dollars per hectare of destroyed coca bush, the raw material used in producing cocaine. This economic incentive program has the financial backing of the U.S. government.

Volcanic Impacts

Volcanoes are sleeping giants that can wake up at any time, renewing millennium-old fears among human populations. Eruptions are accompanied by telluric movement -- earthquakes -- and by the massive production of gases, lava, steam, rocks and ash.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Lightning Alert

Around 100 people die each year in Brazil from lightning strikes, which also cause economic losses of 200 million dollars annually, reports the National Institute for Space Research.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Effects of Vanadium Studied

Scientists in Zulia state, in western Venezuela, are studying the effects on human health of vanadium, a mutagenic metal present in petroleum and in fossil fuel residues.

Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: Inadequate Calories in Average Diet

The food situation in Guatemala is of grave concern because the average diet is 2,159 calories, falling short of the average 2,802 calories of most Latin American countries, warns MINUGUA, the United Nations mission to this country.

The Kyoto Protocol and Its Deserters

The multilateral treaty for controlling climate change is looking increasingly weak in the wake of the latest global meeting on the issue, held in India. The appeal issued in the final declaration for more ratifications of the treaty was not enough to compensate for the profound disagreements between governments.

Ecobreves – PERU: Million-Dollar Plan to Handle Sewage

The Peruvian government signed an agreement with Canadian Commercial Corporation, a governmental entity, to build three sewage treatment plants in the capital for a cost of 350 million dollars.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Indigence on the Rise

Argentina's social tragedy is deepening, evidenced by the fact that extreme poverty now affects nine million people, more than a quarter of the population of 35.2 million, according to a new study by the Economy Ministry.

Ecobreves – EL SALVADOR: Efficient Oven Design Honored

Salvadoran engineer René Núñez-Suárez received in New Delhi the individual prize of the Climate Technology Initiative (CTI) for the "turbo-oven", a process of low-temperature combustion that reduces greenhouse gas emissions, like carbon dioxide, associated with the burning of fuels.

Jurassic-era Species on the Way to Extinction

The leatherback sea turtle, contemporary of the dinosaurs and survivor of the Ice Age, could disappear forever due to the impacts of human activities.

Revival of Ivory Carving in India Bad News for Elephants

In spite of its sacred status, the Asian elephant is not safe, warn ecologists as the international conference on endangered animals gets under way in Chile, where delegates will hear proposals to lift restrictions on international trade in the elephant's prized tusks, the source of ivory.

Whales Threatened

The largest living beings on the planet, the whales, are constantly challenged by a tenacious antagonist: humans. Each time there is a global meeting on protected species, like the one taking place Nov 3-15 in Chile, this conflictive relationship re-emerges as a main topic of debate.

Ecobreves – CHILE: Indigenous Women Protect Plant Life

The National Association of Rural and Indigenous Women of Chile this month set up a committee for the defense of native seeds in order to ensure that the authorities recognize autochthonous flora as heritage of humanity and promote the use of local plants in medicine and food.

Kenya's Bid to Save the Elephants

The fate of this land giant will be defined at a global meeting next month in Chile, where five African nations are expected to press for a lift on the ivory trade ban. Kenya says that lifting the ban would encourage poaching.

Animals Never to Return

In Mexico and Central America, 23 animal species have become extinct and another six survive only in captivity.

Climate Change

Predictions are now certain: planet Earth is undergoing a climate change that could have dire consequences for all forms of life. Thousands of delegates are gathered in India to try to reach agreements aimed at confronting this problem, debating at the conference known as COP 8.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Guaraná Genome Research

The guaraná (Paullinia cupana), the famous bush from the Brazilian Amazon, is the first species of the region subjected to genome research, with the goal being to unlock the secrets of its metabolism, and to improve the productivity and quality of the fruit.

Ecobreves – CENTRAL AMERICA: Investing in HIV/AIDS Prevention

Five Central American countries will invest 4.6 million dollars in a regional project aimed at HIV/AIDS prevention, backed by the Central American Economic Integration Bank (BCIE).

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Preserving Genetic Resources

Researchers at Venezuela's National Center for Phytogenetic Resource Conservation are dedicating themselves to preserving the germplasm (seeds, samples or entire plants) of numerous species considered valuable to this South American country.

Eucalyptus Come What May

Despite criticisms from environmentalists, this exotic tree species in full expansion in Brazil, the pioneer in the region for genome research of the plant.