News

In November 2018, a new coral reef communication effort involving inter-governmental organizations, international conservation organizations, and private foundations was announced at the Convention on Biological Diversity in Egypt to send a message about the need for bold leadership to save coral reefs f

While there is no silver-bullet solution to the toxic tide of plastic surging into our oceans, recycling must form part of the answer. The problem, many experts say, is that current processes are not fit for purpose.

Every year, UN Environment publishes a myriad of content hoping to give you, our readers, a glimpse of what we do.

We cover a wide range of environmental issues such as climate change, threats to ecosystems, biodiversity, energy, water, oceans, pollution, transport, air quality, wildlife, chemicals and waste, sustainable living and more.

We’ve all been there. Slumped on the sofa, regretting those extra chocolates, feeling slightly sick and very full. But hey, we’ve worked hard all year and we deserve our festive overindulgence, don’t we? By January, we’ll be back in the gym, back on the diet, back on the straight-and-narrow. No harm done.

After her break-up with toxic plastic Sandra is celebrating Christmas with her family. But new relationships come with new challenges.

In August, around 300 endangered sea turtles were found dead off the southern coast of Mexico, trapped in what was believed to be an abandoned fishing net. The deaths of the olive ridley turtles dramatically underscored the dangers posed by lost or discarded fishing equipment or so-called ghost gear.

Waves break furiously against the coast and cliffs of Rapa Nui, better known as Easter Island, the most remote inhabited island on the planet.

Camilo Rapu, Director of the Rapa Nui National Park, points to some ancient petroglyphs perched on the edge of an eroding cliff. “We have already lost invaluable pieces carved in rocks here. They simply collapsed into the sea because of the power of the waves,” he says.

After four weeks in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the first results are in for Dutch inventor Boyan Slat’s hugely ambitious attempt to clean up the enormous marine dump with a giant U-shaped floater nicknamed Wilson. It’s a mixed picture.

Nairobi, 29 November 2018 – Aiming for a better planet and a sustainable economy, UN Environment, together with over 100 delegations, presented various commitments at the first global conference on the sustainable blue economy that took place in Nairobi, Kenya this week.

In a bid to promote ocean health and sustainability, and encourage stronger female representation in Australian sailing, the first all-female professional crew to enter the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race has announced its campaign to win the coveted Tattersall Cup in Hobart.

When Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland invented Bakelite in 1907, it was hailed as “the material of a thousand uses”. The production of synthetic plastics took off over the coming decades but now that the environmental cost of these miracle materials is becoming ever clearer, the hunt is on for more sustainable alternatives.  

21 November 2018: PADI, the world’s largest diving association has joined forces with the Reef World Foundation, supported by UN Environment, to promote sustainable diving practices for the protection of the marine environment.

How community action is helping vulnerable marine mammals stage a comeback in Madagascar.

Life is slow in Andranomavo. Here, surrounded by mudflats and mangroves, time is governed by the tides and the seasons. When to go fishing, when to plant and harvest the rice—these are the markers that matter.

Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, 12 November 2018 –A new coalition of inter-governmental organizations, international conservation organizations, and private foundations is converging in Egypt this week to send a message about the need for bold leadership to save coral reefs from near-extinction by mid-century.

Lyon, France, 13 November 2018 – An international law enforcement operation against maritime pollution has revealed hundreds of violations and exposed serious cases of contamination worldwide.

A new, upgraded, online platform was launched on 8 November 2018 to support joint action under the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea, also known as the Tehran Convention.

Investing in coral reefs to prevent their current rate of decline could net $37b for Indonesia, $35b for Mesoamerican Reef by 2030, case studies show Without urgent intervention, the world is on track to lose up to 90 per cent of its coral reefs within the next 30 years Private sector investment is urgently needed to close the funding gaps in one of the world’s vital ecosystems

06 November 2018

Australia becomes the latest country to join the movement to turn the tide on plastic, as Melissa Price, the country’s minister of the Environment, announces that the country is joining the Clean Seas campaign.

Could fungi help us deal with our plastic addiction? Scientists at London’s Kew Botanical Gardens think so. The first ever State of the World’s Fungi, produced by Kew Gardens and a team of around 100 scientists from 18 countries, reports that fungi successfully degrades polyurethane in a matter of weeks.

Bali, 29 October 2018 – The world’s first global framework to finance a sustainable ocean economy was launched at the Our Ocean conference today.

Bali, 29 October 2018 - A Global Commitment to eradicate plastic waste and pollution at the source has been signed by 250 organisations including many of the world’s largest packaging producers, brands, retailers and recyclers, as well as governments and NGOs.

Interview with Merijn Tinga – better known as the Plastic Soup Surfer – who paddles and windsurfs against the tide to draw attention to the problem of plastic pollution and bring about real solutions.

From the remote Galápagos Islands to the humid depths of the Amazon forest, governments are cutting back on plastic, citizens are cleaning beaches, and innovators are seeking alternative products as part of a region-wide movement to turn the tide on plastic pollution.

16 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have signed up to the United Nations-led campaign to drastically reduce plastic pollution in the oceans. Guatemala pledged to increase the collection of waste in rivers through innovative plastic-catching bio-fences around the country. The announcement was made on the sidelines of the XXI Meeting of the Forum of Ministers of the Environment of Latin America and the Caribbean

It’s already billed as one of the world’s most challenging competitions, but this year the organizers of the Volvo Ocean Race added an extra dimension to the gruelling 45,000-nautical mile journey—they pledged to host the most sustainable race ever, drastically reduce their use of plastics and change mindsets around the world.