Maya Lin, known for creating the aesthetically spare and inspiring Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Washington D.C., has produced another powerful tribute designed to prompt a reaction of awe and sober reflection.
Tags: · biodiversity, extinction, Maya Lin, pollution, species loss, What is Missing
Lemurs, a threatened species (Photo: Orsoman/Dreamstime)
They are slipping through our fingers. Our tenuous hold on the Earth’s threatened animals, plants and fish, rivers and oceans, forests and ice caps is not strong enough. It’s not for lack of trying — environmental and eco-conscious groups are in a constant scramble to slow the lengthening list of losses.
Every year, more than 2 million acres of Amazon rainforest – called “the lungs of our planet” for its massive daily recycling of carbon dioxide into oxygen – is lost to logging, agriculture, roads and more.
At last count, out of 44,837 known species of living creatures on Earth, nearly 40 percent are threatened and 804 are extinct.
Tags: · Amazon rainforest, Arbor day, attracting bees, attracting butterflies, backyard wildlife habitat, biodiversity, Climate Change, conservation, Earth Day, eco-tourism, ecosystem, endangered species, extinct species, Fair Trade goods, invasive species, Madagascar, sustainable seafood
By Ashley Phillips
Green Right Now
When President Barack Obama was sworn into office just one year ago, he promised hope to a country in the midst of economic, environmental, and political turmoil. Environmentally, however, the Obama administration that promised “change” has fallen a few cents short, according to one key environmental group, The Center for Biological Diversity.
The administration’s actions (and inaction) are speaking louder than its words, in the view of the center’s Obama Administration First-Year Report Card. Obama’s overall grade: a “C” in protecting (and failing to protect) the environment.
Tags: · biodiversity, Center for Biodiversity, Copenhagen, environmental programs, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Obama Administration, Obama First Year Report Card on environment, Offshore Drilling, roadless law, species protection
By Melissa Segrest
Green Right Now
The polar bear is the high-profile furry face of animals threatened by climate change. With Arctic ice melting at an increasing pace — due to global warming — its range and habitat is disappearing.
But, the polar bear is just one of many species endangered by a warming planet and other man-made threats. Beyond the tragedy of extinction of a species is the chain reaction in the environment triggered by that loss.
That complex web of life that connects people, animals, plants and places is known as biodiversity, and is the underpinning of life on Earth. To raise awareness of its importance to the planet, the United Nations has declared 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity.
Courtesy IUCN / Staghorn coral thicket © L De Vantier
Tags: · Arctic fox, beluga whale, biodiversity, Climate Change, clownfish, emperor penguins, Endangered animals, endangered species, global warming, International Union for Conservation of Nature, International Year of Biodiversity, IUCN, koalas, leatherback turtle, Polar Bear, quiver tree, Red List, ringed seal, Salmon, staghorn coral
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
If you are looking for native plants for your garden – truly native plants that belong by heritage in your region and state – we have found a bouquet of information.
Novices and master gardeners alike will find a bounty of advice at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center website, where they’ve the Native Plant Information Network that spans the United States now lists some 7,200-plus native plants.
Tags: · Ask Mr. Smarty Pants, biodiversity, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, native flowers, Native Plant Information Network, wildflowers
Barbara Kessler
Andrew Winston
Danielle Nierenberg
Anthony Swift