Month: January 2022

While some countries use elaborate technology to tackle climate change, others are turning to natural solutions. One such country is Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, which aims to go carbon neutral by 2060. To reach this goal the government is employing one natural fix: mangrove forests.

Known to absorb four to five times more carbon emissions than other tropical forests, mangroves offer a powerful means to balance out the country’s emissions. 

“People often assume man-made solutions offer the best value for money,” wrote forestry expert Dr Mohammad Basyuni. 

“But our review of 53 nature-based sea defence projects (including 12 mangrove projects) revealed that mangroves could be two to six times cheaper than the commonly used alternative (submerged breakwaters) for conditions with relatively low waves,” he added.

Indonesia is home to 21% of the world’s mangrove population. However, its forests have declined by around 40% – the fastest rate of mangrove deforestation in the world.

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This loss had tragic consequences for the environment. As Mohammad explained, “Recent studies have shown that when mangroves are cleared vast quantities of carbon is released into the atmosphere, which accelerates global warming.”

But it also impacted communities. He added: “Without the natural buffer mangroves provide, coastal communities are left exposed to tropical storms, endangering their homes and lives. And local fishing industries and people’s livelihoods are threatened by the loss of natural habitat for thousands of fish species.”

To undo this damage, the country aims to restore 150,000 hectares of mangroves this year and 1.5 million acres by 2024. 

Last year, it achieved a quarter of its 2022 goal because funds were diverted to tackling the Covid-19 pandemic. This meant that conservation workers restored 34,911 hectares, costing 690 billion rupiah ($48.07 million). 

In 2022 the government will increase this budget to 3.2 trillion rupiah, said Hartono, head of the peatland and mangrove restoration agency.

To find out what you can do to protect mangrove forests visit mangrovealliance.org.

With towering trunks grown over hundreds of years, California redwoods are the tallest living things on Earth. Their size and beauty gave them a sacred status for indigenous Sinkyone people, who occupied these forests generations ago.

Now, for the first time since colonisation in the 16th century, more than 500 acres of redwood forest is being returned to its original guardians.

Two nonprofit organisations, Save the Redwoods League and the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council, purchased the land and are donating ownership to the Sinkyone people. To mark the handover, the forest, formerly known as Andersonia West, has regained its original name, Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ, which means “Fish Run Place.”

“Renaming the property Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ lets people know that it’s a sacred place; it’s a place for our Native people,” said Christa Ray of the Sinkyone Council. “It lets them know that there was a language and that there was a people who lived there long before now.”

Made up of representatives from ten tribal nations, the Sinkyone Council says indigenous people “were forcibly removed by European American settlers generations ago.” 

“This place is within the Sinkyone traditional territory, that for thousands of years it has been and still remains an area of importance for the Sinkyone people, and that it holds great cultural significance for the Sinkyone Council and its member tribes,” said Council chairwoman Priscilla Hunter.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company helped purchase the land as part of a conservation project following accusations that PG&E equipment was responsible for sparking wildfires in the area.

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By handing the land over to indigenous people, the company and environmentalists hope to restore the land and protect threatened wildlife with a combination of Indigenous practices, science-based approaches and fire safety protections.

“We believe the best way to permanently protect and heal this land is through tribal stewardship. In this process, we have an opportunity to restore balance in the ecosystem and in the communities connected to it, while also accelerating the pace and scale of conserving California’s iconic redwood forests,” said Sam Hodder, president and CEO of Save the Redwoods League.

The donation of 523 acres of forest is the second made by Save the Redwoods League to indigenous people, the first being 164 acres of forest also located on California’s North Coast.

Due to excessive logging throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, only five percent of the original old-growth redwood forest remains in the area.

To protect more of the world’s tallest trees donate to Save the Redwoods League.

In the climate-conscious city of Brighton and Hove, authorities are prioritising nature with planning regulations to ensure every new build creates space for birds and bees as well as humans.

The local laws ensure that all new constructions above five metres must offer sanctuary for bees and local bird species. They will use innovative ‘bee bricks’ with holes for bees to inhabit, and nesting boxes suitable for swifts or swallows.

“Bee bricks are just one of quite a number of measures that really should be in place to address biodiversity concerns that have arisen through years of neglect of the natural environment,” said Robert Nemeth, the councillor driving the initiative.

The authorities’ aim is to start restoring biodiversity lost due to previous architectural methods that lacked an understanding of nature’s needs. Since the ‘70s, 41% of UK species have declined due partly to urbanisation and pollution. With soaring extinction rates and increasing urbanisation, it’s important that cities offer space for biodiversity to thrive.

As pollinators that make up over 90% of British bee species, solitary bees play a vital in sustaining ecosystems. By offering them shelter in the urban landscape, along with bird nests, local authorities hope to win back biodiversity. 

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“Increased planting, hedgehog holes, swift boxes and bird feeders are all examples of other cheap and simple ideas that, together, could lead to easy medium-term gains,” Robert said.

Faye Clifton of Green&Blue, a company producing bee bricks, explained how their creations assist solitary bees which struggle increasingly to find homes in cities due to the rigor of modern construction methods.

She said: “Solitary bees nest in crumbling mortar work and old brickwork but modern buildings are so perfect that all the cavities are blocked.”

Nature enthusiasts get to discover how successful the initiative is, thanks to a 10-year study of the bricks conducted by Faye. “We want to map the impact across the country,” she said.

Elsewhere in the UK, similar policies to Brighton and Hove’s measures have been adopted in Cornwall and Dorset, aiding pollinators and biodiversity there too.

Learn more about bee bricks at greenandblue.co.uk.

Rewilding specialists Mossy Earth are paving the way towards protecting and restoring ecosystems across the world through rewilding. 

In 2021, the organisation secured one of its biggest corporate partners, Not Just Travel, so £5 of each travel booking will support the projects. Already, Not Just Travel has raised more than £13,000 for the initiative. 

In collaboration with Mossy Earth, Not Just Travel is helping to fund the reintroduction of termites to slow desertification, and rewilding sea otters, who feed on the sea urchins which are devastating sea kelp forests.

“We work with one mission in mind, to restore wild ecosystems, support wildlife and biodiversity and help fight climate change,” said the Mossy Earth team. 

Sea otters are a ‘keystone species’

Sea otters are a keystone species, whose position in the food chain is crucial. By preying on sea urchins, who graze on kelp, they ensure the health of kelp forests and protect the many other species that thrive there. 

Along the California coast, marine recreation is growing and this is having significant behavioural and physiological negative consequences for the Southern sea otter. 

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Mossy Earth’s sea otter disturbance research is well underway in Slough, California. The research the team is gathering will inform the future management decisions relating to the conservation work. Conducting this research is crucial as it helps them better understand how tourism-related activities are negatively impacting sea otters.

Building ponds and mighty termites

Mossy Earth is also helping to build British ponds, which lock in on average 149g of carbon per sq metre, compared to fields and woodlands which lock in 2-5g of carbon per sq m.  

Then there’s the small, but mighty, termite. At just 10 millimetres long and weighing an average of 1mg, termites are not big, but they certainly are clever. 

Their mounds hold vital moisture stores, and more importantly they build tunnels. These allow moisture to permeate the ground easily and so vegetation flourishes on and around termite mounds, locking in life-giving water in arid areas. 

(Read more about this overlooked climate fix which could help cut emissions)

Africa will be hardest hit by climate change, yet has contributed the least. Severe droughts are becoming more common and termites are the heroes here. Despite their size, they play a critical role in holding back desertification. 

With Mossy Earth’s partners in Benin, the fieldwork plan is complete. The first step is to detect existing termite mounds. This will be done through drone mapping, one of the most effective methods. 

The myriad of tiny underground tunnels created by termites allows rainwater to penetrate the soil which helps to slow the spread of deserts in Africa, this is what the team is looking for. 

Rewilding specialists Mossy Earth work with all these projects and more to help fight the ecological and climate crisis – and you can find out more on their website. 

You can also become a member for just £10 a month, and every month Mossy Earth will plant native trees and carry out rewilding projects on your behalf. 

Have you ever wanted to do something positive to help support climate action – but don’t know where to donate, or what organisations to support? That’s exactly why the donation platform Milkywire was set up. 

Its founder, Nina Siemiatkowski, says she’s never been one to do things by the book. When she left the business world to embark on a documentary project, following a pride of lions in Kenya, she was struck by the realities of the situation facing the planet: the world’s wild lion population had halved in numbers in the space of just 20 years, down to 20,000. 

But when she began working with non-profit organisations, she realised they were run by passionate individuals who were limited in resources and faced many risks. 

Fuelled by her frustration at the broken charity system, an idea emerged for a platform that would change the way we give back to the planet and the grassroots organisations who fight for it on our behalf.

(Read more about the founders of the environmental platform Eco-Spotlight.com)

Speaking to Smiley News, Nina says: “After talking with friends and family back home in Sweden, it was clear that there were an abundance of people wanting to support these causes, but not knowing where to start or whom to trust; there was a real sense of distance between organisations and the people who want to support. 

“From this, I created Milkywire – a platform whose purpose is to bridge this gap between trusted and fully vetted charities, and individuals and businesses keen to make a difference.

To put it simply, Milkywire provides a solution to charitable donation, solving the problem of not knowing how your charity donations are really being spent. 

“Using smart, digital solutions, we link users with fully audited, high-impact nonprofits working across the world to save the planet,” says Nina.

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Grassroots organisations often live ‘hand-to-mouth’ with limited financial predictability – and applying for funding takes time that could have been invested in the cause itself. 

“We want to change the game by bringing together a dedicated community of monthly donors, resulting in more security and efficiency for those in the field,” adds Nina. 

“No donation is too small and every action counts. We want everyone to know that their efforts really matter. As humans we’re so powerful when we come together. It only takes a few hundred people to literally change the world.” 

So how does it work?

Firstly, you choose the area where you want to make an impact. That could be protecting wildlife, fighting climate change or saving our oceans for example. 

Once you’ve clicked through, you’re presented with a range of local, award-winning grassroots organisations that are working to eradicate issues related to that topic. You can click through on each one to see the impact they make.

Next, choose the amount you want to give, and get donating!

Find out more about Milkywire on its website – and take action to save our planet.