OUR HEALTH IS COMPROMISED BY OUR GLOBAL FOSSIL FUEL ADDICTION

4 November 20224 November 2022

OUR HEALTH IS COMPROMISED BY OUR GLOBAL FOSSIL FUEL ADDICTION

Climate change is affecting the health of people around the world; transitioning to net-zero emissions could be the greatest health opportunity this century

By Associate Professor Celia McMichael, Professor Kathryn Bowen and Professor Mark Stevenson, University of Melbourne

Climate change threatens to undermine the health of people around the world, with more intense and frequent extreme weather events, increased heatwave exposure, climate-related food insecurity, alteration in the spread of infectious diseases and exacerbated mental ill-health.

These are just some of the findings of the 2022 report of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change, published in The Lancet.

Read the article on PURSUIT

27 October 202227 October 2022

10 steps you can take to lower your carbon footprint

Small changes alone won’t stop climate change, but your actions are still worthwhile and there has never been a better time than NOW!

While each of us have a minimal impact to the overall state of our Earth — if all of us make simple steps towards a lower carbon footprint we can collectively make a BIG difference.

Check out this insightful article from the Washington Post for ideas then get underway!

21 October 202227 October 2022

Fishing exclusion zone benefits fishers hundreds of kilometres away, study finds

For many commercial and recreational fishers, marine protected areas (where fishing is excluded) are viewed with scepticism.

Critics have questioned the legitimacy of what is referred to as the spillover effect — where excluding fishing is hypothesised to produce ecological and/or commercial fishing benefits beyond the boundaries of the protected area.

Key points:

Researchers compared catch rates outside the world’s largest marine protected area off Hawaii, before and after fishing was excluded
Yellowfin tuna catch rates were boosted by 60 per cent within 100 nautical miles of the boundary, and total “other” species were also higher
Increased tuna catch rates were seen for 300 nautical miles from the boundary

But research published today in Science suggests fishing exclusion zones can benefit both fishers and the marine environment, and that fish yields for some species can be boosted up to several hundred kilometres away from the protected habitat.

30 September 202227 October 2022

Regenerative Agriculture author opportunity

The British Ecological Society Policy Team is seeking authors to contribute to a new report on regenerative agriculture. The term “regenerative agriculture” is gaining traction and it is increasingly being used in different contexts with a variety of meanings by academics, policy-makers, NGOs and land managers. The lack of an agreed definition could result in a loss of credibility of the term, which could be used by companies to become more appealing to environmentally-aware consumers, with little scrutiny.

Find out more and apply by Tuesday 1 November

15 August 202115 August 2021

July 2021 was the hottest month in history

Many have suspected our dear Earth is hotter than ever — the NOAA has now presented data that statistically proves it. Last month was the hottest in recorded history and it seems this is a shadow of things to come… check out their summary with links to more details here.