EcoAméricas

09/23/2025

In 2008, Ecuador made history as the first country to recognize the rights of nature in its constitution. But on Aug. 14, President Daniel Noboa’s government shocked environmentalists by merging the Ministry of Environment with the Ministry of Energy and Mines.

Now called the Ministry of Environment and Energy, the move is framed as an efficiency reform. Critics, however, warn it represents a historic setback, arguing that environmental oversight will now sit under the same ministry tasked with expanding oil and mining. They say this undermines the independence of environmental licensing and puts communities and ecosystems—especially in the Amazon—at greater risk from extractive projects.

WWF Ecuador’s Tarsicio Granizo stated: “There is a clear conflict of interest because environmental impact studies must be conducted independently… It seems the goal is to clear the way for extractive activities.”

With $47 billion in new oil investments and $7 billion in mining projects planned, many fear Ecuador’s rights-of-nature legacy is being compromised.

This article was published in this month’s issue of EcoAméricas, available now: http://bit.ly/4nK9rBQ

09/23/2025

In 2008, Ecuador made history as the first country to recognize the rights of nature in its constitution. But on Aug. 14, President Daniel Noboa’s government shocked environmentalists by merging the Ministry of Environment with the Ministry of Energy and Mines.

Now called the Ministry of Environment and Energy, the move is framed as an efficiency reform—but critics warn it’s a historic setback:

* Environmental oversight will now sit under the same ministry tasked with expanding oil and mining.
* Independence of environmental licensing is at risk.
* Communities and ecosystems—especially in the Amazon—may face greater pressure from extractive projects.

WWF Ecuador’s Tarsicio Granizo says: “There is a clear conflict of interest because environmental impact studies must be conducted independently… It seems the goal is to clear the way for extractive activities.”

With $47B in new oil investments and $7B in mining projects planned, many fear Ecuador’s rights-of-nature legacy is being compromised.

This article was published in this month’s issue of EcoAméricas, available now: http://bit.ly/4nK9rBQ

In 2008, Ecuador became the world’s first country to recognize the rights of nature in its constitution, establishing environmental protection as a top national priority. On Aug. 14, the government of President Daniel Noboa sent what critics call the opposite message when it announced the country....

09/23/2025

In July, Brazil’s right-wing Congress passed sweeping reforms to weaken environmental licensing—what green advocates call a “devastation bill.” On Aug. 8, President Lula signed the law but vetoed 63 of its 400 provisions.

Critics say Lula’s partial vetoes don’t go nearly far enough. Key concerns include:�

⚠️ A new Special Environmental License (LAE) fast-tracks “strategic” projects, with a strict 1-year deadline for approval—too short for serious Amazon impact studies.�
⚠️ Self-licensing is now allowed for “small-impact” projects, raising fears of unchecked deforestation.�
⚠️ Attempts to weaken protections for the Atlantic Forest, Indigenous and traditional communities, and protected lands.

Environmentalists warn these changes threaten Brazil’s climate goals and credibility ahead of COP30 in Belém.

As Ane Alencar of IPAM put it: “The LAC provision is the most grotesque one in the law… it gives developers a sense of impunity.”

Continue reading online at: http://bit.ly/47Y4b9d

After Brazil’s right-wing Congress in July approved what green advocates call a “devastation bill,” the stage was set in August for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to veto the environmental-permitting legislation’s most damaging provisions. Signing the bill on Aug. 8, Lula did indeed ma...

09/18/2025

Scientists are raising alarm about the survival of the migratory gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus). Once a conservation success story, the species is now struggling with:

⚠️ Record die-offs – 158 whales washed ashore in the first four months of 2025 alone.
⚠️ Starving whales seen in unusual places, including San Francisco Bay.
⚠️ A historic collapse in calf births – only 85 mother-calf pairs counted this year, the lowest ever.
⚠️ Shrinking Arctic food sources tied to climate change.

Experts warn that large-scale ecosystem change in the whales’ Arctic feeding grounds may be pushing them toward crisis. “I’m really wondering if they’ll make it out,” says Steven Swartz, co-director of Gray Whale Research in Mexico.

Gray whales not only play a key role in ocean ecosystems but also support ecotourism and coastal economies from Mexico to the U.S. and Canada. Their decline would be devastating on many levels.

Continue reading online at: http://bit.ly/4ndvFMS

09/18/2025

Scientists are raising alarm about the survival of the migratory gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus). Once a conservation success story, the species is now struggling with:

⚠️ Record die-offs – 58 whales washed ashore in the first four months of 2025 alone.�
⚠️ Starving whales seen in unusual places, including San Francisco Bay.�
⚠️ A historic collapse in calf births – only 85 mother-calf pairs counted this year, the lowest ever.
⚠️ Shrinking Arctic food sources tied to climate change.

Experts warn that large-scale ecosystem change in the whales’ Arctic feeding grounds may be pushing them toward crisis. “I’m really wondering if they’ll make it out,” says Steven Swartz, co-director of Gray Whale Research in Mexico.

Gray whales not only play a key role in ocean ecosystems but also support ecotourism and coastal economies from Mexico to the U.S. and Canada. Their decline would be devastating on many levels.

Continue reading online at: http://bit.ly/4ndvFMS

Concerns about the survival of the migratory gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus) are growing. Sightings of malnourished or “skinny” animals, accounts of whales scrounging for food in strange places, a record number of documented mortalities, and a historic drop in calf births have triggered alarm...

08/27/2025

Two groundbreaking legal opinions, one from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) and another from the International Court of Justice (ICJ), have declared that a healthy climate is a basic human right.

Though not legally binding, these opinions give environmental defenders, policymakers, and negotiators new tools to push for:

- Stronger climate action

- Protection for vulnerable communities

- Recognition of the rights of nature

- Reparations for climate-related harm



The IACtHR opinion (June 3) applies across the Americas and the Caribbean, while the ICJ opinion (June 23) applies globally to U.N. member nations. Both reinforce the need for urgent mitigation, adaptation, and sustainable development with a human rights lens.

For many observers, the significance of the IACtHR opinion lies not only in its content but in the unprecedented amount of input sought by the court, which included public hearings in Barbados and Manaus, Brazil. The Caribbean and the Amazon are among the regions in the court’s jurisdiction that are most vulnerable to climate change.

The result is an advisory opinion that “confirms that the courts are on the right side of history,” says Luisa Gómez, senior attorney at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for International Environmental Law. She adds that the opinion “not only can, but should have long-lasting effects … and we can use this advisory opinion as a real toolkit to demand better climate justice.”

This article, written by Barbara Fraser, was published in the most recent issue of EcoAméricas, available in print and online at: https://bit.ly/3HOVovE

08/27/2025

Two groundbreaking legal opinions, one from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) and another from the International Court of Justice (ICJ), have declared that a healthy climate is a basic human right.

Though not legally binding, these opinions give environmental defenders, policymakers, and negotiators new tools to push for:
�✅ Stronger climate action�✅ Protection for vulnerable communities�✅ Recognition of the rights of nature�✅ Reparations for climate-related harm

The IACtHR opinion (June 3) applies across the Americas and the Caribbean, while the ICJ opinion (June 23) applies globally to U.N. member nations. Both reinforce the need for urgent mitigation, adaptation, and sustainable development with a human rights lens.

For many observers, the significance of the IACtHR opinion lies not only in its content but in the unprecedented amount of input sought by the court, which included public hearings in Barbados and Manaus, Brazil. The Caribbean and the Amazon are among the regions in the court’s jurisdiction that are most vulnerable to climate change.

The result is an advisory opinion that “confirms that the courts are on the right side of history,” says Luisa Gómez, senior attorney at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for International Environmental Law. She adds that the opinion “not only can, but should have long-lasting effects … and we can use this advisory opinion as a real toolkit to demand better climate justice.”

This article, written by Barbara Fraser, was published in the most recent issue of EcoAméricas, available in print and online at:

Two legal opinions issued in June, which state that a healthy climate is a basic human right, place new tools in the hands of environmental defenders, national policy makers and climate negotiators, experts say. The advisory opinions from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) and the Int...

08/13/2025

Abejones de Mayo, or May beetles (Phyllophaga spp.), have traditionally been so characteristic of the start of Costa Rica’s rainy season that there is even a popular saying, “clumsy as a May beetle,” to describe their erratic flight in the presence of artificial light.

But populations of the once-ubiquitous insects, also known as June bugs and July beetles elsewhere, appear to have cratered in recent years. “They used to swarm a single light bulb by the dozen, but it’s become apparent even to the general population that this phenomenon is a thing of the past,” says Andrés Arias, a biologist at the University of Costa Rica (UCR).

Also alarming, scientists have yet to explain the relatively sudden plight of the beetle, a key food source for animals ranging from birds and bats to frogs, armadillos and snakes.

“The population loss is so obvious that society is turning to academia to ask for explanations as to what’s happened to all the May beetles,” says Arias. “But we don’t have the facts. There are no studies.”

This article was published in the most recent issue of EcoAméricas, available in print and online at:http://bit.ly/3UstXKU

08/13/2025

Abejones de Mayo, or May beetles (Phyllophaga spp.), have traditionally been so characteristic of the start of Costa Rica’s rainy season that there is even a popular saying, “clumsy as a May beetle,” to describe their erratic flight in the presence of artificial light.

But populations of the once-ubiquitous insects, also known as June bugs and July beetles elsewhere, appear to have cratered in recent years. “They used to swarm a single light bulb by the dozen, but it’s become apparent even to the general population that this phenomenon is a thing of the past,” says Andrés Arias, a biologist at the University of Costa Rica (UCR).

Also alarming, scientists have yet to explain the relatively sudden plight of the beetle, a key food source for animals ranging from birds and bats to frogs, armadillos and snakes.

“The population loss is so obvious that society is turning to academia to ask for explanations as to what’s happened to all the May beetles,” says Arias. “But we don’t have the facts. There are no studies.”

This article was published in the most recent issue of EcoAméricas, available in print and online at:

Abejones de Mayo, or May beetles (Phyllophaga spp.), have traditionally been so characteristic of the start of Costa Rica’s rainy season that there is even a popular saying, “clumsy as a May beetle,” to describe their erratic flight in the presence of artificial light. But populations of the o...

07/29/2025

Once hunted to protect livestock, jaguars in Brazil’s Pantanal are now the stars of a booming ecotourism economy.

At Fazenda Caiman—a 53,000-hectare private ranch turned conservation hub—local guides like Wendell Ribeiro now lead safaris instead of hunts. The ranch hosts a luxury lodge and supports multiple wildlife initiatives, including the Onçafari project, a nonprofit jaguar-conservation project that has operated since 2011 at Caiman and has expanded from the Pantanal into three other Brazilian biomes—the Amazon rainforest, the Cerrado savanna and the Atlantic Forest.

“This is the best place in the world to see jaguars,” said biologist Lucas Morgado, an ecotourism guide at Caiman, as he drove a group of visitors in a roofless vehicle outfitted to navigate the Pantanal’s dirt roads. “No tourist leaves here without seeing at least one jaguar. We’ve gone from 35 sightings in 2012, with 16% of visitors seeing jaguars, to 1,072 sightings in 2024, with 100% of visitors seeing jaguars. When we began, almost 15 years ago, jaguars were scared by the vehicles and would leave. Now they are accustomed and you can see them very relaxed.”

📸: Daniel Gutman

This article is available online at: http://bit.ly/456HgFB

🐢🐬🐧

07/28/2025

Once hunted to protect livestock, jaguars in Brazil’s Pantanal are now the stars of a booming ecotourism economy.

At Fazenda Caiman—a 53,000-hectare private ranch turned conservation hub—local guides like Wendell Ribeiro now lead safaris instead of hunts. The ranch hosts a luxury lodge and supports multiple wildlife initiatives, including the Onçafari project, a nonprofit jaguar-conservation project that has operated since 2011 at Caiman and has expanded from the Pantanal into three other Brazilian biomes—the Amazon rainforest, the Cerrado savanna and the Atlantic Forest.

“This is the best place in the world to see jaguars,” said biologist Lucas Morgado, an ecotourism guide at Caiman, as he drove a group of visitors in a roofless vehicle outfitted to navigate the Pantanal’s dirt roads. “No tourist leaves here without seeing at least one jaguar. We’ve gone from 35 sightings in 2012, with 16% of visitors seeing jaguars, to 1,072 sightings in 2024, with 100% of visitors seeing jaguars. When we began, almost 15 years ago, jaguars were scared by the vehicles and would leave. Now they are accustomed and you can see them very relaxed.”

📸: Daniel Gutman

This article is available online at: http://bit.ly/456HgFB
�

Until just a few years ago, it was common for men gathered in the local bars of Brazil’s Pantanal region, site of the world’s largest freshwater wetland, to swap stories about their latest jaguar-hunting experiences. So says Wendell Ribeiro, 48, a native of the region. Like many friends and fami...

07/22/2025

As deforestation and human-driven land-use change continue to fragment natural habitats globally, scientists are increasingly warning of an impending sixth mass extinction. Among the most effective, yet underutilized, tools to address this crisis are biological corridors—landscapes that connect protected areas, enabling the movement of species, genes, and ecological processes.

From the jaguar populations of Mexico’s Gran Calakmul region, which traverse international boundaries, to the voluntary conservation areas in Jalisco, Mexico, that integrate sustainable land use and habitat preservation, biological corridors play a crucial role in maintaining genetic diversity, preserving ecosystem stability and supporting climate regulation and carbon cycles.

That being said, structural connectivity—such as forest corridors—is not sufficient without functional connectivity, which ensures viable populations of native species. Aquatic systems, including rivers and marine environments, must also be protected to facilitate ecological continuity.

Experts emphasize that legal recognition and robust public policy are urgently needed to mainstream connectivity into national and regional conservation strategies.

“Without the integration of connectivity into legal frameworks, meaningful conservation cannot be fully implemented,” says Juan Bezaury-Creel, previously Mexico representative for U.S.-based The Nature Conservancy.

This article was published in the most recent issue of EcoAméricas, available in print and online at: https://bit.ly/3TJsO1e