Mike DiGirolamo

US constitution

This is the US Constitution page @ the Library of Congress

Sections 9 and 10 have been removed

9 includes habeas corpus, the courts' review of unlawful detention & imprisonment

This gov't can't change the Constitution w/ sneaky editing, but it's a new low: constitution.congress.gov/constitution/

In ‘Hope Dies Last,’ author Alan Weisman chronicles the people fighting for the planet I bought Alan Weisman’s Hope Dies Last in a bookstore despite knowing nothing about it and based purely on the title. Four hundred pages later, I sat down with the author to talk about the miraculous ...

I bought Alan Weisman's book 'Hope Dies Last' in a local shop based purely on the title. 400 pages later, I sat down with the author to talk about the miraculous work of the book’s protagonists trying to solve humanity’s most intractable ecological problems.

🎙️Listen to the interview @mongabay.com

In ‘Hope Dies Last,’ author Alan Weisman chronicles the people fighting for the planet I bought Alan Weisman’s Hope Dies Last in a bookstore despite knowing nothing about it and based purely on the title. Four hundred pages later, I sat down with the author to talk about the miraculous ...

“I started this book because I was really, really, really depressed about how I saw systems breaking down,” Alan Weisman tells me.

“By the end of this book, I was so uplifted by all these people...each of them daring to hope and oftentimes succeeding, that I'm there with them. This ain't over."

That ‘fish’ on the menu? In Brazil’s schools and prisons, it’s often shark Brazil, the world’s top importer of shark meat, is feeding much of it to preschoolers, hospital patients, military staff, public workers and more via government procurements, Mongabay has found. This ...

In Brazil’s schools & prisons, shark is often on the menu

That's not great for public health

An investigation by @philjaco.bsky.social @bykarlamendes.bsky.social & @kuangkeng.bsky.social for @mongabay.com reveals *thousands of tons* of mercury laden, possibly endangered #sharks & rays, are served:

Empathy and spiritual ecology are a conservation solution and ‘radical cure’ The Nature Of is a new podcast series from the nonprofit nature and culture magazine Atmos that speaks with prominent figures in conservation and culture about how humans relate to the natural world, ...

I recently got to speak with @willowonearth.bsky.social, editor-in-chief of the nonprofit nature and culture magazine @atmosmag.bsky.social about the importance of covering nature through the lens of community, identity, arts and culture, and the many insights of her new podcast 'The Nature Of':

An Australian state promised to turn native forest into a national koala park. It’s still being logged The koala was officially declared endangered in the Australian state of New South Wales in February 2022. A year later, the Labor Party promised to create a 315,000-hectare (778,000-acre) Great Koala ...

In my reporting on the still undelivered Great Koala National Park, sources told me native logging continues inside the proposed boundaries of the park, logging has not been halted, and is losing the state millions each year.

Albanese government plotted to maintain native forest logging in NSW if court battle was lost, documents show Exclusive: Anthony Albanese sought ‘advice on strategy’ as federal and state governments prepared for ‘potential impacts of an adverse decision’

"The Albanese government was so worried a court case could halt native forest logging in northern New South Wales that it drew up plans to essentially sidestep federal environment laws in the event of a loss," reports Anne Davies

Astonishing, as native forest logging has lost NSW $70 mil in 4 years

cc @mongabay.com

Singapore’s regreening is a model for cities everywhere Singapore has come a long way since the 1880s, when only roughly 7% of its native forests remained. Since the 1960s, when the city-state gained independence, it has implemented a number of urban regre...

In the 1880s, only roughly 7% of Singapore's native forests remained. Today, nearly 47% of the city is considered green space, providing numerous benefits to human residents and wildlife. I speak with ecologist Anuj Jain about how and why Singapore can be a model for urban re greening.

To change the environment, change the narrative Narratives help shape our society, culture and environment, entrenching beliefs that can help — or harm — our planet and human rights. Tsering Yangzom Lama, story manager at Greenpeace International, ...

Dominant narratives, such as those that insist that taxing the super-rich will harm our economies, often protect harmful systems and the wealthy few, at the expense of both people and the planet.

To build a better and fairer future, we must challenge these narratives and tell new ones.

To change the environment, change the narrative Narratives help shape our society, culture and environment, entrenching beliefs that can help — or harm — our planet and human rights. Tsering Yangzom Lama, story manager at Greenpeace International, ...

Narratives help shape our society, entrenching beliefs that can help — or harm — our planet and human rights. Tsering Yangzom Lama, story manager at @greenpeace.org, speaks with me on the @mongabay.com podcast about how to counter dominant narratives that have fueled exploitation.

This nonprofit connects frontline conservationists with funders, catalyzing impact Jean-Gaël “JG” Collomb says community-based conservation organizations know best how to tackle the complex conservation challenges unique to their ecosystems. However, they’re also among the most unde...

In the wake of the USAID funding cuts, nonprofit org Wildlife Conservation Network is working to connect community based conservationists with funders around the world. In my conversation with CEO JG Collomb he explains WCN's philosophy, and why he encourages funding without strings attached:

A graph showing the International House Price-to-Income Rations 1987/1992 to 2024. Australia: 2.8 to 9.7 Canada: 3.0 to 5.4 Ireland: 2.8 to 5.1 New Zealand: 2.8 to 7.7 UK: 3.0 to 5.6 US: 2.7 to 4.8

I've been told avocado toast is to blame for this.

Yes. You're correct. The problem is indeed very solvable. I've reported on the subject here: news.mongabay.com/podcast/2024...

64% of Australians live in these five major cities, and they are all in the top 15 most expensive cities to live in, in the world. Calling this a "crisis" is perhaps the only objective way to describe it.

And yes, Sydney is *still* the second most expensive market on the list.

Text: Even the smallest Australian market, Adelaide endures an impossibly unaffordable median multiple of 10.9, ranked 90th among the 95 markets. Melbourne, with impossibly unaffordable median multiple of 9.7, is the 87th least affordable. Brisbane was an impossibly unaffordable 9.3 and ranked 85th out of 95. Perth at 8.3, was the 82nd least unaffordable market. It is remarkable that these markets are less affordable than widely recognized world cities like New York, London, or Chicago.

What if I were to tell you that Adelaide is now more expensive to live in than Honolulu or San Francisco?

That's just one finding on Demographia's new housing affordability report, which doesn't have any comforting words about any major Australian city: www.newgeography.com/files/Demogr...

This is excellent reporting. Anyone and everyone who is looking at covering plastics, the global plastic treaty or related subject matter, you must read this.

Fundamental question of whether a river is alive has less to do with whether 'legal personhood' or 'rights of nature' is used to justify protection. It's the act of considering a river as an entity with rights, and dependents

Original podcast posted in this thread explains.

(There's a transcript)

Credit goes to my co-host Rachel Donald for diving into Macfarlane's latest read and doing an excellent job hosting this conversation.

If you're curious to know my connection with rivers, listen to the post show conversation.

Some rivers have rights, but author Robert Macfarlane argues they’re also alive This week on Mongabay’s podcast, celebrated author and repeat Nobel Prize in Literature candidate Robert Macfarlane discusses his fascinating new book, Is a River Alive?, which both asks and provides ...

Something I've taken away from editing this Mongabay podcast episode is the very act of asking the question "Is a river alive?" is the entire point. Being able to see a river as something more than a resource to simply exploit may be a pathway to saving the life rivers sustain, including us. Listen:

Click on the article and scroll to the bottom.

How do ‘rights of nature’ and ‘legal personhood’ laws differ, and what’s their conservation potential? Nations across the globe are trialing “rights of nature” laws and “legal personhood” for various ecosystems and a range of reasons, from Indigenous reconciliation to biodiversity protection. While the...

I recommend listening to the conversation. It's a podcast episode. Or give Macfarlane's book a read.

"What legal obligations could a river possibly have?"

Quite a few, as some rivers have legal rights. Many are actually considered legal entities with legal obligations. Feel free to listen here:

Some rivers have rights, but author Robert Macfarlane argues they’re also alive This week on Mongabay’s podcast, celebrated author and repeat Nobel Prize in Literature candidate Robert Macfarlane discusses his fascinating new book, Is a River Alive?, which both asks and provides ...

Is a river alive?

Nobel prize contender and celebrated author Robert Macfarlane explores this question with @racheldonald.bsky.social on the latest @mongabay.com podcast here:

Really like this part too. Wish we could implement something like this in NSW. It would be a game changer:

YouTube video by Mongabay How to Cover Plastic Pollution | Mongabay Webinars

Plastic pollution (and the shocking amount of plastic production) is a major global issue. Plastic pollution is widespread, including the deepest part of the ocean, and even inside our bodies. If you want to learn how to report on plastic pollution, join me and three seasoned experts in 4 hrs here:

Interesting aside, but my guest on this podcast explains which nations have these harsh tariffs and she specifically commends a few nations that don't. Full conversation is available on Spotify/Apple or wherever you get podcasts.

Soaring coffee prices are fueled by deforestation, but solutions exist Roughly a billion people enjoy coffee daily, and more than 100 million people rely on it for income. However, the coffee industry is the sixth-largest driver of deforestation and is also rife with hum...

So in effect these coffee producing nations don't get very much of the economic benefit that nations in the US/EU/UK and Japan do for roasting and selling the coffee. This is how tariffs harm coffee producing nations, who very much need this money. It contributes to/exacerbates human exploitation

One thing about coffee that quite a few people may not know is that the tariffs imposed on coffee producing nations are extremely harsh when the coffee is roasted or processed, but not harvested. (1/2)

Yep. True verbatim statement. I recommend people listen to the full conversation.

She points out that coffee supply chain is relatively uncomplex compared to other commodities. EUDR delays based on compliance concerns are unjustified as she explains.