Beef and the Amazon Rainforest
Lungs of the World For the last three years, the Amazon rainforest–often called the “Lungs of the World”–has been burning. In 2020 alone, more than 19 million acres of forest were destroyed by fires that devastated the world’s largest rainforest (Vox). This destruction has caused a feedback loop of heating and drying that is only […]
How Technology Can Help the Climate Crisis
Films from the 80s, such as Bladerunner, predicted that we’d have flying cars and infinite, sky-high architectural structures. Our supposed, imminent reality is also shown in Avatar, an imaginative film that showed thriving life only outside of Earth. The reason movies are thought-provoking is that they imprint your memory with possible futures. It can be […]
Poaching: Slaughter by Criminal Syndicates
Every year the illegal wildlife trade grows. From the capture of small primates sold as exotic pets to the destruction of the wild rhino population for their horns, poaching is an issue that is pressing for today’s wildlife. The poaching industry has grown with the help of criminal syndicates funding the process. By enticing struggling […]
The Exotic Animal Trade Tragedy
Take a moment to imagine this. A baby parrot travels thousands of miles with its beak and feet taped together, trapped in a tube. Tiny turtles cross oceans stuffed into socks with tape over their shells to prevent their heads from emerging. And, pygmy monkeys endure hours, if not days, wrapped up in underwear in […]
Coral Bleaching
Imagine yourself on a warm sunny beach, palm trees swaying overhead and crystal clear waves breaking along the coast. You look out at the horizon—baby blue for miles on end. It seems like paradise. Yet this idyllic tropical getaway is hiding a growing ecological cancer. Unbeknownst to the casual onlooker, just beneath the water and […]
Construction vs. Conservation: Threatening Wildlife to Build a Wall
Extended across the continent from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean is 2,000 miles of division. On one side, you are Mexican. On the other, American. But rather than a mere line that determines legality and splits our allegiances, can we also appreciate this stretch of earth stitches North America together? Our U.S.-Mexico […]
Megafauna on the Menu: Eating our Largest Animals to Extinction
Megafauna on the Menu: Demolishing ecology with our insatiable taste for the world’s largest species The world’s largest animals are impressive not only in stature but also ecological impact. Wildlife conservation has a term—umbrella species—that describes a species whose living requirements meet or exceed those of other species living in the same area. Therefore, by […]
A Gentle and Kinder Way to Travel – Respecting Wildlife and Nature
What is ecotourism? As with many things in 2020, the coronavirus pandemic brought with it a pause in the tourism industry. With this pause in tourism, travel, and everyday emissions the world was able to start to recover from decades of human pollution and issues (what issues? Specifics?). We all saw those amazing pictures of […]
Local Communities Saving Endangered Species
There is a delicate balance between the lives of people and the lives of animals. As a society, we often forget that we are part of nature ourselves. Our choices, our lives, and our beliefs are important factors in this world we all call home. While many of us in the United States may be […]
Sea Turtle Nesting Site: A Turtle Tradition
As they scuttle across the sand toward the ocean, newborn sea turtles are already creating decades-deep memories. They imprint on the chemical specifics of the sand, coast, and ocean. These become a coordinate system of directional cues that, ten to fifteen years later, guide mature females back to their birthplace. Just as the tide predictably […]
