By Erick Akasa As the 22nd Conference of Parties (COP 22) to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change opens in Marrakesh, Morocco, on November 7, in far away Kenya some school pupils are making an impact by planting trees – one tree at a time — away from the pomp and glamor. The pupils of…
Countries agree to curb greenhouse gases in largest climate breakthrough since Paris
By Eric Akasa Nearly 200 countries struck a landmark deal Saturday to reduce the emissions of powerful greenhouse gases, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), in a move that could prevent up to 0.5 degrees Celsius of global warming by the end of this century. The amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer endorsed…
Poachers still given lifeline as CITES Parties fail to agree full ban on international trade in lion parts
Parties today at the 17th Conference of the Parties (CoP 17) of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Johannesburg voted in favor of a much diluted decision by establishing a zero annual export quota for bones, claws and teeth removed from the dead carcasses of wild lions to be traded for…
3rd International Off-Grid Renewable Energy Conference opens in Nairobi to drive off-grid deployment worldwide
More than 500 participants gathered in Nairobi today for the opening of the third International Off-Grid Renewable Energy Conference (IOREC). Organised by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the conference aims to boost electricity access through the development of off-grid renewables. Today, roughly 15 per cent of the world’s population lives without electricity, but off-grid…
CITES takes a Byte out of Wildlife Cybercrime
http://kurld.com/image.php?pic=/images/wallpapers/wildlife-images/wildlife-images-20.jpgWildlife cybercriminals will be under more scrutiny than ever following the commitment by all 183 Parties to Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES), to stamp out illegal online wildlife trade. The decision was taken at a high level meeting held during the CoP17 of the CITES being held in…
Environmentalists fear for the Nairobi Park
By PETER NGILA The Nairobi National Park has been under human and commercial encroachment, fuelled by the construction of the already-completed Phase One of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), Nairobi Green Belt Movement manager Gayling May has said. Speaking last Saturday during a walk through the park, May said, “the future of the park is…
CITES: Namibia loses in its bid on ivory market
Fifty-seven Parties to CITES have voted against a motion from Namibia claiming that a proposal to regulate domestic ivory markets is inadmissible as outside the scope of the Convention. The United States stated that “Parties have addressed domestic markets where there is a clear nexus between domestic and international trade. There is no better example…
Wildlife Cybercrime Centre Stage at CITES
Online wildlife crime poses a serious threat to endangered animals including elephants, rhinoceros, reptiles and birds, experts gathered at the CoP17 meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) said According to Tania McCrea-Steele, IFAW’s Global Wildlife Cybercrime Project Lead, at a time when counts show historic lows of African elephants, and…