“UK suspends ban on pesticides linked to serious harm in bees”

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/23/uk-suspends-ban-pesticides-linked-serious-harm-bees?CMP=EMCENVEML1631

Farmers will be able to use blacklisted pesticides linked to serious harm in bees after the UK government temporarily lifted an EU ban.

“Death of Cecil the Lion Prompts Calls for Trophy Hunting Ban”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-29/death-of-cecil-the-lion-prompts-calls-for-ban-on-trophy-hunting

Animal-rights activists are pushing for African countries to stop trophy hunting after a 13-year-old collared lion named Cecil was allegedly killed without a permit in Zimbabwe.

U.K.-based charities Four Paws and Lion Aid called for an immediate ban on lion exports from African countries that allow hunting. Catherine Bearder, a member of the European Parliament, said the U.S. and EU should follow Australia in placing a moratorium on importing lion parts.

“Hermes Probes Crocodile Slaughtering After Birkin Complaint”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-29/hermes-probes-crocodile-treatment-after-birkin-voices-concern

Hermes International SCA said it will penalize any breach of its animal welfare code after Jane Birkin voiced concern over crocodile slaughter methods in the luxury industry.

The actress asked Hermes to remove her name from the Birkin bag after an investigation into crocodile-skinning techniques by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, according to the group. PETA’s video depicted sites in Texas and in Zimbabwe that it said are suppliers to the Paris-based company.

“Climate change threat must be taken as seriously as nuclear war – UK minister”

 

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/13/climate-change-threat-serious-as-nuclear-war-uk-minister?CMP=EMCENVEML1631

The threat of climate change needs to be assessed in the same comprehensive way as nuclear weapons proliferation, according to a UK foreign minister.

Baroness Joyce Anelay, minister of state at the Commonwealth and Foreign Office, said the indirect impacts of global warming, such as deteriorating international security, could be far greater than the direct effects, such as flooding. She issued the warning in a foreword to a new report on the risks of climate change led by the UK’s climate change envoy, Prof Sir David King.

U.S. Goes After African Elephant Slaughter With Ivory Ban

President Barack Obama said his administration will issue new regulations prohibiting almost all U.S. sales of African ivory in a bid to help protect elephants and other endangered species.

Details

I returned from my trip to to the amazon this morning and will be posting the details of my expedition soon. This may take a couple of weeks as I need to share photos with the others on the expedition.

“Scientists discover new way to kill malaria parasite”

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2015/07/07/Scientists-discover-new-way-to-kill-malaria-parasite/4391436272977/?nll=1

Researchers have identified one of the proteins that allows the parasite that causes malaria to enter red blood cells and prevented it from doing so in lab tests, potentially paving a path toward new drugs to treat the disease.

“Satellite Images Show Economies Growing and Shrinking in Real Time”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2015-07-08/satellite-images-show-economies-growing-and-shrinking-in-real-time

Some 250 miles above the Earth, a flock of shoebox-size Dove satellites is helping to change our understanding of economic life below. Images from these and other satellites, combined with big-data software, are helping to create what former NASA scientist James Crawford calls a “macroscope” to “see things that are too large to be taken in by the human eye.” Aid organizations can use the results to distribute donations. Investors can mine them to pick stocks.

“This Pond Scum May Fuel Your Airplane”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-07/this-pond-scum-already-in-your-smoothie-may-fuel-your-airplane

The future of Japan’s biofuel industry may be pond scum. Or more specifically, green algae that’s swirling around in tanks on a tropical Okinawan island.

“Nobel Prize-Winning Scientists Call For Action To ‘Minimize The Substantial Risks Of Climate Change’”

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/07/06/3677180/nobel-laureates-climate-change-action-plan/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cptop3

Sixty years ago, Nobel laureates gathered on a tiny island in Western Europe and warned the world of the dangerous effects of nuclear weapons.

Last Friday, on the same island, 36 Nobel Prize winners took up another cause: climate change, which they said poses a “threat of comparable magnitude” to nuclear war.