increase font size
Photo: Vivian Grisogono
But there are alternatives....
Donations can be made in euros, pounds sterling, US and Australian dollars and Swiss francs. All donations, however small, are very welcome. We acknowledge donations by email if we have the donor's address. Please let us know if you require a formal paper receipt.
The site contains articles and information on topics related to health, the environment and animal welfare.
While the focus is on Hvar Island in Dalmatia, much of the information is relevant to the rest of Croatia, and some to Europe, the United States and the rest of the world.
The main language of the site is English, but articles in Croatian are being added as quickly as possible. Some of the Croatian articles are translations, some original. Book reviews are in the language of the publication being reviewed.
To see all the articles archived in each category, click on the category name which is given below the title of each article (Environment, Highlights, Notices etc).
For further relevant news items and bits of interesting information, please refer to our Facebook page.
UN-backed report finds even temporary rises above Paris agreement target could cause harm to glaciers and polar ice sheets
Earth’s icy regions face such dangerous melting that global heating should be brought back below 1C after an inevitable period of overshooting global temperature targets, a UN report has found.
Permanent and widespread losses of snow and ice expose a “persistent myth” that overshooting the 1.5C target of the Paris climate agreement – to 2C or 3C – could be manageable or even preferable to urgent cuts to emissions, the report found.
Continue reading...
Devon nature reserve says ‘reckless’ theft of narrow-headed ant colony sets back years of conservation work
A nest containing up to 5,000 of England’s rarest ant species has been stolen from a nature reserve, a conservation charity has said.
Devon Wildlife Trust (DWT) said a nest of narrow-headed ants had been dug up and taken from Chudleigh Knighton Heath nature reserve in south Devon, which is the last place in England where the species still exists.
Continue reading...
Action taken to prevent bottom trawling in the marine protected area and conserve porpoise populations
Greenpeace activists have dropped boulders in the North Sea to snag the dragnets of industrial trawlers fishing in a marine protected area.
Activists onboard the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise dropped the giant stones to form an underwater barrier around the Southern North Sea marine protected area (MPA) – the UK’s most bottom-trawled MPA.
Continue reading...
Disruption to winds above Arctic threatens to alter weather patterns across parts of continent in coming weeks
The stratospheric polar vortex over the northern hemisphere is facing the prospect of an unusually early weakening. Forecast models suggest it could weaken significantly over the next 10 days, when it would typically be strengthening.
A major sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) event is possible. This could influence weather patterns in the following weeks, increasing the likelihood of persistent areas of high pressure across the mid-latitudes and colder conditions weeks later.
Continue reading...
A Guardian investigation has found that despite a recommendation to slow down, leading shipping companies continue to travel above advised speeds in a key habitat for cetaceans
Marine biologist Alice Barbarioli waits with her camera trained on the horizon. A few minutes earlier, the hydrophone beneath the Pelagos research vessel detected codas – the sequence of clicks sperm whales use to communicate.
The sperm whale reveals its head and dorsal fin as those onboard the vessel in the Pelagos sanctuary, a conservation area established to protect marine mammals in the north-western Mediterranean, rush to take photos and note the rhythm of its breathing. After a few minutes, the animal arches its back, and begins to head back into the depths of the sea. They wait to catch a glimpse of its tail.
Continue reading...
Inkpen and Combe, Berkshire: If the price goes down, the village WhatsApp group lights up
Beyond the reach of the gas mains, there is tension about the coming winter. Many rural homes have an open fire or wood burner, but most rely on kerosene oil for hot water and heating. Since the US-Iran war began, its cost has more than doubled. Currently, 1,000 litres (lasting 10-12 weeks) is £1,219. A year ago, it was £549. Seasoned wood is in demand.
We watch the oil price rise, with none of the consumer protections afforded to gas customers. If the price per litre drops, as during the June ceasefire, the village WhatsApp group lights up.
Continue reading...
Cop17, focused on protecting nature and restoring ecosystems, concludes on Saturday with critics saying system allows ‘one idiot’ to stall progress
Calls are growing for major reforms to UN biodiversity summits as countries fail to deliver on their promises to halt the destruction of the natural world, with governments likely on track to continue their record of never having met a target in the 34-year history of the convention.
Two weeks of negotiations at biodiversity Cop17 in Yerevan, Armenia, concluded on Saturday morning with countries vowing to redouble their efforts to meet this decade’s targets, which include commitments to protect 30% of the planet for nature, restore nearly a third of Earth’s degraded ecosystems and reform $500bn (£410bn) of environmentally damaging subsidies.
Continue reading...
At more than $52m, the race has become the most expensive in US history, but residents are fed up with flooding
Aida Havel mulled her fate over coffee after working the early voting polls all day in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. “We are trapped,” she concluded.
The Dare county commission candidate lives about 50 miles (80km) south, on Hatteras Island on the state’s Outer Banks.
Continue reading...
From feeding schoolchildren to recycling tyres, these entrepreneurs are challenging stereotypes while solving social and environmental problems
Africa is thought to have a higher proportion of female entrepreneurs than any other continent and yet many still struggle to access financing. Four business leaders from Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya and Malawi tell us about the inspiration behind their success – and the challenges women still face.
Continue reading...
Allerton Project attracts abundant wildlife and its success can offers clues to reversing the sharp drop in populations
Farmer Alastair Leake is standing in a field of sprouting winter wheat, pointing at his experiment. One side was ploughed before planting, with green shoots breaking through neat rows of upturned soil. On the other, the crop was drilled directly into the earth, emerging through a messy carpet of “trash” – stems, stubble and crop residue from previous harvests.
“When we’re watching to see where the birds are landing to feed, none of them are going on to the ploughed side,” says Leake, the director of the Allerton Project farm, standing on the trashy side. “They’re all coming and feeding down here.
Continue reading...Concerns from staff, parents, carers or the child themselves will trigger an immediate escalation of care.
Saskia Reeves-Priestley didn't know she had a Vitamin D deficiency until she suddenly collapsed at work.
Chomping on vegtable skins, seeds and stalks could give us vital fibre, say food scientists.
Doctors are finding vitamin D deficiency is increasingly widespread in the UK, especially in young people. But the symptoms are difficult to spot and can be missed.
It will cause huge disruption in some parts of England and Wales, say GP leaders.
Senior doctors to stage 48-hour walkout, beginning on 25 November, in dispute over pay and pensions.
Some creators are claiming they can spot "ferritin face". Doctors aren't so sure.
Videos in which people claim to spot the signs of low iron have attracted millions of views online.
The doctor says she faced a brutal investigation after she passed on complaints brought to her by other doctors.
The scientists involved say the results could mark a turning point in cancer treatment, bringing personalised medicine a step closer.
Deep in the mountains of Palawan, Conservation International scientists are capturing what few people ever see: the secret lives of the Philippines’ rarest species.
At Maido — the Lima restaurant recently crowned the best in the world — one of the star dishes is paiche, a giant prehistoric river fish.Its journey to the table begins on a small family farm deep in Peru’s Amazon.
“Jane Goodall forever changed how people think about, interact with and care for the natural world,” said Daniela Raik, interim CEO of Conservation International.
Conservation International’s Neil Vora was selected for TIME’s Next 100 list — alongside other rising leaders reshaping culture, science and society.
Climate change is happening. And it’s placing the world’s reefs in peril. What can be done?
After decades of negotiation, the high seas treaty is finally reality. The historic agreement will pave the way to protect international waters which face numerous threats.
The Amazon rainforest, known for lush green canopies and an abundance of freshwater, is drying out — and deforestation is largely to blame.
The ocean is engine of all life on Earth, but human-driven climate change is pushing it past its limits. Here are five ways the ocean keeps our climate in check — and what can be done to help.
In a grueling and delicate dance, a team led by Conservation International removes a massive undersea killer.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. These pictures might be worth even more. An initiative featuring the work of some of the world’s best nature photographers raises money for environmental conservation.
