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Planet

Pandas to return to China

Pandas at Edinburgh Zoo will be travelling back to China in December 2023.

Goodbye, Pandas! Why the move?

Well, all pandas are – legally – property of China, where they originate from, and where they are seen as a national treasure. All pandas, no matter where they are, belong to the Chinese state – but sometimes they loan them to other countries and zoos.

Edinburgh Zoo was one such zoo, after passing rigorous tests, when they were able to have pandas Yang Guang and Tian Tian on loan from China.

Yang Guang and Tian Tian cost something like £750,000 a year to loan. Ouch!

So what’s the deal?

It was hoped that Yang Guang and Tian Tian would become a breeding pair – but romance wasn’t in the air for these two furry creatures. Like all great romances, Edinburgh Zoo know there’s no sense in forcing it, and so the two are returning to their native China – where one can only hope they will find their soulmates.

Alison Maclean, the carnivore team leader at Edinburgh Zoo, will be heading back to China with them to help them settle into their new homes, and set them up for their bright new future!

This isn’t the end of the road for Yang Guang and Tian Tian – they can still help their species to thrive (just maybe with someone else).

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

The Orangutan Project. This is a project run by two non-profits with one mission: to ensure the survival of all orangutan species in their natural habitat and promote the welfare of all orangutans. Support them here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.

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Planet

This Formula E racing car is built entirely from scrap electronics

A design studio has built a Formula E racing car entirely from electronic waste.

Amazing! What’s the aim?

This extraordinary car aims to raise awareness of the importance of tackling e-waste. 

The design studio, Lazerian, built it using all kinds of materials that would otherwise have gone to landfill, donated by pupils from Manchester schools. 

It repurposes smartphones, laptops, tablets and even a Nintendo Wii controller which is used as the driving console.

“The message I want to send to people is to take some more thought and consideration over the things that we use on a day to day basis to highlight the problem that we’re in,” said its designer, Liam Hopkins. “We can recycle, reuse and make other things from them rather than just throw them away.”

The project, called Recover E (get it?), was commissioned by the British team, Envision Racing. The vehicle recreates their Gen3 vehicle, which the team describes as “the fastest, lightest, most powerful, and most efficient electric racing machines ever built.”

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Climate Coalition. This is the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change. Find out more and support them here.

Climate Reframe.  Climate Reframe is committed to supporting the climate and environment movement in its transformation towards greater justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI). Find out more.

Trees For Cities. They are working to plant more trees within large metropolitan areas, for the betterment of people and planet. Support them here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Climate Action.

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Planet

Young people involved in climate activism, listen up

There’s up to £40,000 in funding available for you.

Tell me more!

As the charitable arm of The Energy Saving Trust, The Energy Saving Trust Foundation supports charities working on youth-led climate projects. With the help of Airbnb, they are relaunching their Youth Climate Fund for another year.

Organisations that are helping to facilitate youth-led climate action initiatives are able to apply for a grant of up to £40,000, which will be given out over the course of two years.

Why are they doing this?

“We want young people to feel more confident about taking action to address the climate emergency and making their voices heard,” said Jim Metcalfe, chair of the Energy Saving Trust Foundation’s board of trustees. “We encourage organisations to think creatively and embrace new approaches to make climate change relevant, accessible, and engaging to young minds.” 

Apply for the grant and view the funding criteria here.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Climate Coalition. This is the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change. Find out more and support them here.

Climate Reframe.  Climate Reframe is committed to supporting the climate and environment movement in its transformation towards greater justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI). Find out more.

Trees For Cities. They are working to plant more trees within large metropolitan areas, for the betterment of people and planet. Support them here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Climate Action.

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Planet

Pufflings make a comeback

Pufflings are staging a comeback.

What?! Tell me more.

Pufflings – AKA baby puffins – are on the rebound this year, after a catastrophic 2021 breeding season left puffins in Maine thin on the ground.

Now, thankfully, the puffins are looking to be thriving thanks to a certain kind of fish – the sand lace – which is in abundance this year, and a tasty treat for little pufflings.

What else?

Fifty years ago the Audubon Society, an American non-profit organisation dedicated to the conservation of birds, helped to bring back puffins from just a few breeding pairs.

The birds now stand happily at around the 3,000 mark, and it looks like they’re going to have a great year.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Four Paws UK. This charity is an animal welfare organisation, working globally to help animals in need. Learn more here.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.

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Planet

2,000 rhinos to be released in Africa

A non-profit will be releasing 2,000 white rhinos from captivity in Africa.

Incredible! What’s the story?

African Parks is a conservation NGO that manages 22 protected areas in partnership with 12 governments across Africa. 

They recently purchased a rhino breeding farm, which currently holds 2,000 southern white rhinos in captivity. 

What’s happening now?

The plan is to reintroduce those rhinos to the wild over the course of 10 years – one of the biggest project of this kind ever undertaken in Africa. The plan is not only to free the rhinos, but also to shield them from poaching, protecting the species long term.

To learn more about the project, you can visit the African Parks website.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Four Paws UK. This charity is an animal welfare organisation, working globally to help animals in need. Learn more here.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.

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Planet

Could this new fund restore global biodiversity?

A brand new global biodiversity fund has launched in Vancouver.

Great! What’s the story?

The new Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF) was launched at the GEF Assembly in Vancouver – and both Canada and the United Kingdom have agreed to contribute funding.

Initial contributions include 200 million Canadian dollars from Canada and 10 million pounds from the United Kingdom.

What does this mean?

The fund will go towards fostering and protecting biodiversity across the world. While other countries are still putting together their initial financial contribution, this fund is promising for the future of the world’s biodiversity.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Woodland Trust. This is the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity, concerned with the creation, protection, and restoration of native woodland heritage. Support them here.

The Climate Coalition. This is the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change. Find out more and support them here.

The Ocean Conservation Trust. A charity of Ocean optimists taking action to protect and restore nature for a thriving Ocean. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Climate Action.

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Planet

How to make your money matter donating to climate-related causes

The climate emergency will increasingly have severe impacts ranging from floods and storms to wildfires and deadly wetbulb temperatures. Actions to ward off the worst of this crisis range from individual lifestyle changes or “micro-consumerist bollocks” as George Monbiot has aptly put it; to more impactful approaches such as collective direct action. Those who lack the time can also donate to the organizations making a difference.

To help people safely send money to organizations with their best interests at heart, Giving Green offers a solution. 

Giving Green is a guide for individuals and businesses to make more effective climate giving decisions.

“We perform rigorous research and recommend highly effective climate initiatives, so you can give with confidence,” they write on their website.

Between data analytics helping individual dollars go as far as they can and researching organizations making sure they do what they say they do, Giving Green helps strengthen the power that giving can have.

It all started as a vision from Dan Stein, who at the time was already working in anti-poverty and agriculture spaces where he worked with donors to find what works best for them. But with the climate crisis looming the perspective changed.

“Climate was becoming more and more a part of my work as that affected agriculture in poor countries but also part of my life apart from work, worried about the climate crisis and trying to figure out what I could do,” Dan tells Smiley News. “As an individual talking with other individuals and the donor networks we were working with, it became clear that there was that a lot of people that wanted to do something about climate change and they wanted to allocate money towards it, but couldn’t quite figure out what to do.”

That was the start of Giving Green. He stepped away from the idea for a short period but it kept eating at him and he returned to it, hoping to make a difference. 

“I felt like there was this hunger both within myself and within others I was talking to, to figure out how to really address some of the big systemic issues with climate change and trying to figure out how me is just one person could actually do something,” Dan says. “So I decided to start Giving Green to apply some of these tools of the evidence, ecosystem and international development that I’ve been working on for years.”

Giving Green’s process is very fluid, choosing to go with the flow, seeking out organizations but also letting them come to them and doing the due diligence to find good organizations that will put money to good use.

“We’re looking for the places where we think like the marginal dollar can do a lot of good,” Dan says.

In the three or so years they’ve been in business, Giving Green has directed over $5.5 million to climate organizations and that number doesn’t look like its going to stop growing. As a whole, Dan’s future plans for Giving Green is to find ways to increase their reach and influence. 

“We don’t want to be a huge organization, but we want to be a little bit bigger so that we can really cover the philanthropy space a little bit more comprehensively,” Dan says. “I think there’s still some still really great organizations out there that we would like to highlight that we just don’t have the capacity to do and the big thing for us is becoming more of a household name.”

Charity check-in

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Women Invested to Save Earth Fund. This organization helps support underrepresented and underfunded Black, indigenous, and women of color-led organizations across the world. Find out more and support them here

Collective Sun. They help nonprofits get outfitted with solar power capabilities. Check them out here.

Florida Bicycle Association. An organization that helps mobilize people and promote greener living and safer biking. Find out more

This article aligns with the UN SDG Climate Action.

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Planet

Paddling 15 marathons – for the planet

A small non-profit is launching ‘Race for Rivers’, to encourage paddleboarders to monitor our rivers.

Tell me more!

Non-profit Planet Patrol is dedicated to cleaning up our waterways through community collaboration and water sports such as paddleboarding (psst, you can read our interview with Planet Patrol founder Lizzie Carr here!).

That’s why they are encouraging people to get out on the rivers on their paddleboards this September and take part in a massive relay. It starts on the 11th of September in Godalming, Surrey and finishing on the 8th of October in Stainton, Lake District. 

Along the way, paddleboarders will be testing the water quality every 5km, culminating in over 750 readings by the end.

How do I get involved?

Volunteers will undertake distances varying from 2km to 20km before handing over the paddleboard to the next participant. You can sign up here to get involved. 

“Race for Rivers is not just a challenge; it’s a pressing call to action to protect our blue spaces,” said Lizzie. “Retracing this route as a community rather than an individual feels incredibly poignant. We’re running out of time and the value of citizen science must be recognised and formally incorporated as part of the solution to tackling gaps in monitoring.”

To learn more about Planet Patrol, as well as the Race for Rivers relay, you can visit the Planet Patrol website.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Charity: Water. This is a global nonprofit organisation on a mission to end the water crisis by bringing clean and safe water and sanitation programs to all. Learn more here.

The Canal & Rivers Trust. The Rivers Trust are conservation experts who work to create wild, healthy, natural rivers. Support them here.

Rewilding Britain. They aim to tackle the climate emergency and extinction crisis, reconnect people with the natural world and help communities thrive. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Clean Water and Sanitation.

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Planet

Palau reef showing resilience to warming waters

As climate change raises global sea temperatures, coral bleaching is becoming more frequent and intense. As stories of die-offs pile up, hopeful news is becoming rarer, which is why recent reports from the Pacific are so uplifting. 

A study published in Nature Communications reports that a remote coral reef system in Palau, a Pacific nation of more than 300 islands, has become increasingly tolerant to rising water temperatures.

Palau’s reefs experienced powerful marine heat waves in 1998, 2010, and 2017, yet each successive event led to less coral bleaching, the study found.

Explanations for the reef’s resilience are varied, from hardier coral species to genetic adaptation, but the pace at which the reef is growing accustomed to heat may not keep up with ocean warming. 

“This apparent increase in tolerance that we’ve mentioned in this recent study could be due to a lot of things,” study lead author Liam Lachs, a researcher at Newcastle University in the UK, told Mongabay.

“I think the next big challenge is trying to disentangle what the drivers were and if there are any associated risks, trade-offs, or costs. For instance, losing all of the thermally sensitive species is obviously a big cost because you also lose the ecological function of those species on the reef.”

Even with that in mind, it’s still good news to see nature adapting in some way while we try and find a solution to global warming on land. 

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Four Paws UK. This charity is an animal welfare organisation, working globally to help animals in need. Learn more here.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life Below Water.

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Planet

Four critically endangered gharial crocs born in a Texas Zoo

The gharial crocodile is a critically endangered lizard with a thin snout that calls India and Nepal home. Also known as gavial or fish-eating crocodile has an estimated population of 800 left in the wild.

Stateside, at the Fort Worth Zoo in Texas, there have been four “groundbreaking births” of the gharial crocodile in what’s been called a “historic conservation success.” 

Of the 35 gharial crocodiles living in US zoos, four are in the care of the Fort Worth Zoo including one male and three females. Two of those females laid the clutches, introducing a new bloodline into the populations not living in the wild.

“The Fort Worth Zoo is the only institution in the United States to have produced multiple offspring of this critically endangered species,” the zoo said in a statement. “The Zoo is incredibly proud to announce this groundbreaking conservation success, quadrupling the number of births to ever take place in the U.S.”

All of the Fort Worth gharials are 42-43 years old. Gharial crocodiles can live up to 50-60 years, so it’s possible the zoo could develop future clutches and hatchlings.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Four Paws UK. This charity is an animal welfare organisation, working globally to help animals in need. Learn more here.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.