The outcome of the Iraq and Syrian conflicts may rest on who controls the region’s dwindling water supplies, say security analysts.
Rio Tinto’s Namibian miners are said to be dying of cancers after extracting uranium ore for the British and US military in the 1970s.
Charity Rhino Ark says rhinos in Kenya are increasingly vulnerable to organised poaching gangs and should be protected in sanctuaries.
World grain reserves are so dangerously low that severe weather in the US or other food-exporting countries could trigger a hunger crisis next year.
Biofuel producers have taken over land around the world that could feed nearly one billion people, says international charity Oxfam.
Water scientists say mankind may have to switch almost completely to a vegetarian diet over the next 40 years to avoid catastrophic shortages.
Lonesome George inspired scientists who want to conserve the planet’s biodiversity, writes John Vidal.
Amnesty International has reported that Shell lied about the magnitude of an oil spill in the Niger Delta.
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/ 13 January 2012
With unusual weather in Europe and the Americas, low Arctic ice, droughts in Africa and Latin America, 2012 picks up where 2011 left off.
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/ 12 December 2011
Scientists have warned that global leaders will need to commit to slashing carbon emissions drastically, despite the agreement reached in Durban.
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/ 28 October 2011
Captain Paul Watson is sending three ships to intercept, chase and harass the Japanese — he promises "aggressive non-violence".
Her solution, to work with the most vulnerable women to repair their own degraded environments and empower themselves, proved inspirational.
We’ve always had El Niños and La Niñas but the greenhouse gas build-up is making them worse.
Abu Dhabi shows the way forward.
Environmental groups fear oil industry is not prepared for potentially catastrophic impact of oil spills in the Arctic.
Bolivia is set to pass the world’s first laws granting nature equal rights with humans.
Two new books examine the negative impact of the West, and suggest alternatives to the status quo.
US envoy warns that reserves are perhaps 40% overstated and the kingdom won’t be able to keep prices down.
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/ 10 January 2011
How much would you pay for the most biologically rich patch of land on Earth?
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/ 27 November 2010
As the world prepares for the Cancún summit, <b>John Vidal</b> visits people on the frontline of the battle against global warming.
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/ 18 November 2010
A field trip to find new plant and insect species in the Chaco will endanger remote Indian tribes, anthropologists and indigenous leaders warn.
After two years of development, engineers unveil a renewable energy prototype that is powerful, fast and drop-dead gorgeous.
The cost of meat, sugar, rice, wheat and maize soars as the World Bank predicts five years of price volatility.
In the future nearly all the world’s major rivers are expected to come under increased pressure to provide water for farming and industry.
UN chief’s leaked letter fingers ill-considered draft agreement that pitted rich against poor.
Big Oil is holding its breath. BP’s shares are in steep decline after the debacle in the Gulf of Mexico.
An investigation reveals how rich countries faced by a global food shortage now farm an area double the size of the UK to guarantee supplies.
Africa’s economic prosperity is being undermined by Western farming. John Vidal reports.
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/ 10 January 2010
Environmental campaigner Paul Watson has lost one of his boats in a confrontation but is determined to save the oceans from "the greed of man".
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/ 18 December 2009
Until now Copenhagen’s most famous citizen was a girl with a fishy tail sitting on a rock. No more.
The European Union and rich nations are making themselves inaccessible to the press in Bangkok and the developing countries are furious.
Two years ago, the United Nations’s Food and Agriculture Organisation expected biofuels to help eradicate hunger and poverty for up to two billion people. Last week, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon raised doubt over that policy amid signs that the world is facing its worst food crisis in a generation.