biodiversity
Worldwide Coral Reefs Are In “Dire Threat”
A new US report demonstrates that climate change and a variety of other factors could destroy all of the world’s coral reefs by 2050. Coral reefs are more than just a pretty place for divers to pass their time. They are absolutely essential to the proper functioning of international marine ecosystems, and to the communities […]
Stay The Extinction Of Egypt’s Sacred Cats
Leopards in Egypt are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. During certain periods of ancient Egyptian history it was illegal to kill cats, any cats. The punishment for said infraction? Death. Cats were considered so sacred that only the Pharaoh was permitted to own them. Now, not only […]
“Dam” Victory for Turkey’s Environmentalists!
This beautiful valley might have been flooded by another Turkish dam Turkey’s ongoing water resources and energy problems have already resulted in the damming of a number of rivers in that country to create reservoirs for both water storage and creation of hydro electricity. A planned government project to construct a dam across the Macahel […]
Seventy Percent Of Turkey’s Birds Join Downhill Path To Extinction
This Imperial Eagle is one of several species in Turkey that face extinction. Birds accustomed to breeding and rearing their young in healthy wetlands are being pushed out as lakes dry up and agricultural and industrial activity take precedence. And reptiles. And mammals. Even humans are being displaced as accelerated drought and fire sweep through […]
Loss Of Marine Life Could Lead To Ecosystem Collapse
Research shows that if we aren’t able to stay the loss of ocean biodiversity, we could witness total ecosystem collapse. The loss of ocean predators such as Bluefin Tuna, which were given insufficient protection at a last year’s International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT), and sharks – like those poached by Yemeni […]
Biodiversity Under Threat At Yemeni ‘Alien-Island’
In the alien and isolated landscape of the Socotra Island, just off the coast of Yemen, biodiversity is in a struggle for survival Declared an UNESCO world heritage site in July 2008, the Socotra Archipelago which is located in the northwest Indian Ocean is home to some of the rarest species in the world. According […]
Environmental Factors Turn Once Harmless Sharks Into Killers
These are the two sharks killed by Egyptian authorities following several attacks off the Sinai peninsula last week. One of the sharks responsible for some attacks remains at large. There are many consequences of climate change that scientists foresaw: melting glaciers, rising temperatures, freak storms, flooding, drought, and continued loss of biodiversity. Then there are […]
Israel Carmel Fire – Taking Stock of How It Happened
View of the Israel Carmel Forest fire encroaching on the University of Haifa campus. Image credit University of Haifa An act of God, arson, or negligence? A lot of questions are being asked by Israelis as to why they needed to suffer the worst fire in the nations’s histrry this weekend – a fire that […]
Interview With Israeli Designboom Competition Winner Anna Braverman
Already on her way to international acclaim, Israeli designer Anna Braverman talks to Tafline about the designboom competition, the philosophy of design, and life as a student in Japan. The winner of the Tokyo Designers Week in Japan and designboom endangered species competition, Anna was chosen out of 2,078 participants from 86 different countries. The […]
Biodiversity Is In Peril: Thought Leaders Appeal for Change at Desert Conference
Dr. Gotlieb reports from the the Drylands, Deserts and Desertification Conference in Israel – an event drawing hundreds from ten countries. With a species extinct every 20 minutes the problem is more severe than we might think. Dire predictions, and new approaches, described the tenor of presentations made during the opening day of the Drylands, […]
Biodiversity Convention In Nagoya: Keeping The Jellyfish Out Of Our Sandwiches
Will the UN Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) in Nagoya, Japan fare better than Copenhagen? It’s easy to bandy about the term biodiversity, but much less easy to pin down its meaning. Harder still is to enumerate just how important biodiversity is to human life. The rate at which species are going extinct is 100-1000 times […]
Syngenta: Use GMOs To Boost Turkey’s Agricultural Sector
Though hunger is a compelling reason to consider GMOs, we are introducing too many genetic unknowns and defying nature’s superior wisdom. Turkey’s organic industry is picking up speed despite the continued use of chemicals for some farms, and various other Middle Eastern countries have demonstrated that local, natural farming practices can be sustainable. Even Dubai’s […]
Islamic Ministers To Roll Up Their Green Sleeves In Tunisia
Islamic ministers from 30 organizations and countries will get together early October in order to put the environment back on the political map. Tunisia will host a conference of Islamic environment ministers in early October to look at how environmental issues can be impacted from a governmental perspective. The 4th Islamic environment ministers conference will […]
California Desert Tortoises Will Be Relocated To Make Room For BrightSource Energy Plant
The California Energy Commission ruled that climate change and energy needs are more important than plants and tortoises. Confronting the joint need to protect biodiversity while expanding alternative energy projects, after three years of deliberation, a fourth BrightSource Energy Concentrated Solar Power Plant was approved by California’s Energy Commission. Impeding approval of the Israeli company’s […]