Cut out the Fireworks
Popular fireworks should be replaced with cleaner drone and laser light shows to avoid the highly damaging impact on wildlife, domestic pets, and the broader environment.
science
Gardeners of the Forest
If elephants, which are already critically endangered, become extinct, the Central and West African rain forest – the second largest on Earth – would lose 6-9% of its ability to capture atmospheric carbon, exacerbating planetary warming.
Unnecessary Deaths by Fire
Each year, 20,000 premature deaths in the United States are caused by the smoke from human-ignited fires.
A Lungful of Flying Lead
Children living near a small airport in Santa Clara County, California have been found to have concerning levels of the poisonous metal lead in their blood.
Sunburnt Algae
Climate change threatens endangered marimo algae balls with extinction through deadly sunburn.
Deep-sea Soot
Up to one a half million tonnes of carbon, soot, and other particles from combustion end up in deep-sea trenches every year.
Breathing Plastic
In Auckland, 74 metric tonnes of microplastics are dropping out of the atmosphere onto the city every year, the equivalent of more than 3 million plastic bottles falling from the sky.
Risky Resilience
In the Western United States, an increase in forest resilience has been linked with a higher mortality risk for trees.
Caring Corals
Corals resistant to disease can help protect more vulnerable corals. Raising corals with diverse genotypes builds resilience amid disease and climate changes in reefs.
Rays of Hope
Despite the global decline in manta rays because of over fishing over the past 50 years, reef manta rays in Indonesia have been recovering and thriving, mostly due to long-term conservation and management measures in the region.