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Antarctica's west coast missing an area of sea ice the size of France
LONDON, UK, 12 June 2026 (Guardian) - Antarctica’s west coast is missing an area of winter sea ice the size of France, sparking concerns for threatened penguins other marine life and global sea levels. One expert said the loss of ice in the Bellingshausen Sea was “depressing” and the failure of ice to form could have intensified a heatwave over the continent's peninsula last week that saw daytime temperatures peak at 15.4C which is more than 20C above average. |
Bornean ferret badger only lives in Borneo
OXFORD, UK, 12 June 2026 (Mongabay) - The Bornean ferret badger is a small carnivore with the slinky body of a ferret and a face mask like a badger. A new study confirms that it lives only in the mountains of Sabah, a Malaysian state on the island of Borneo. |
Can Albania's flamingo revolution keep its wetlands free from Trumps?
LONDON, UK, 12 June 2026 (Guardian) - If the real estate dreams of a billionaire political family come true, an island in one of Europe’s poorest countries will become a luxury hotel complex, sweeping up stretches of the wildlife-rich nature reserve that sits across the water. |
PNG seeks to protect 700,000 hectares of critical highland ecosystems
SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan, 11 June 2026 (IPS) - The Global Environment Facility (GEF) has approved USD 6.4 million for a new conservation initiative in Papua New Guinea that seeks to protect 700,000 hectares of critical highland ecosystems by placing Indigenous Peoples and local communities at the centre of conserving and managing their ancestral lands. |
Trump reinstates commercial fishing in protected Pacific waters
WASHINGTON, US, 11 June 2026 (AFP) - Trump has signed a proclamation to reinstate commercial fishing at three US marine national monuments in the Pacific Ocean. The expansion applies to some half a million square miles around the Mariana Trench Marine National Monument, areas within the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument waters, and waters surrounding the Rose Atoll Marine National Monument. They are among the ocean areas scientists recognize as "some of the most effective tools for improving ocean ecosystems and threatened fish stocks," according to the National Parks Conservation Association. |
Windfarms on this Scottish isle are contentious
MANCHESTER, UK, 12 June 2026 (Conversation) - The Isle of Lewis at the northern end of the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, has one of the UK's highest levels of fuel poverty and a declining population of fewer than 20,000 people. Encircled by the Atlantic and exposed to powerful, persistent winds, it is an ideal location for wind energy. The Galson Estate, a group of 22 villages covering 56,000 acres in the north-west corner of the island, recognised this potential early on. It transitioned to community ownership in 2007 by forming a community land trust. Between 2013 and 2015, the trust installed three wind turbines. The revenue from renerwable energy generation could then be reinvested in the estate. |
El Niño conditions confirmed: SPREP urges coordinated response
APIA, Samoa, 12 June 2026 (SPREP) - El Niño conditions have now been established in the Pacific. Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) values have met the established thresholds required to formally declare El Niño conditions. El Niño is a natural climate pattern that occurs when sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean become warmer than usual. This changes rainfall and wind patterns across the region. El Niño events usually occur every two to seven years and can last from several months to over a year. |
New species discovered off Christmas and Cocos (Keeling) Islands
CARNARVON, Australia, 11 June 2026 (ABC) - More than 100 new species have been recorded and catalogued for the first time in some of Australia's most remote territorial waters. The often bizarre benthic creatures were found dwelling across 22 seamounts, or massive subsea mountains, near the Christmas and Cocos (Keeling) Islands, nearly 3,000 kilometres north-west of Perth. |
Four days of extreme rain killed 7% of world's rarest orangutans
LONDON, UK, 11 June 2026 (BBC) - Four days of extreme rain and landslides in the Indonesian island of Sumatra have pushed the world's most endangered great apes even closer to extinction, says a study. Research suggests that 58 of less than 800 critically endangered Tapanuli orangutans, or around 7% of the total species, were killed as a result of the extreme weather event last November. Those are conservative figures, and do not take into account rain-induced canopy damage or reduced food availability. |
Lombok fishers find food security tied to mangrove reforestation
EAST LOMBOK, Indonesia, 11 June 2026 (Mongabay) - On the east coast of Indonesia’s Lombok Island, local people who rely on the local crab fishery have initiated their own mangrove planting program in a bid to resuscitate failing crab habitats. The system is known as a silvofishery, which integrates mangrove forests with aquaculture cultivation to raise productivity. Instead of catching immature crabs from the coastline for quick sale, some local fishers have started to raise the crabs to adulthood alongside newly planted mangroves, garnering a higher price while overseeing a more sustainable population. |
Safeguarding Sri Lanka’s natural heritage
GLAND, Switzerland, 10 June 2026 (IUCN) - With support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), IUCN is working with the Government of Sri Lanka to strengthen the conservation of one of the island’s most important natural landscapes: the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Through science-based tools, inclusive partnerships and leveraging the IUCN Green List Standard to improve protected area management effectiveness, this collaboration is helping to safeguard biodiversity while improving livelihoods for the communities who depend on these ecosystems. |
RSPB buys Bass Rock after 300 years in private hands
GLASGOW, UK, 9 June 2026 (BBC) - Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth, home to the world's largest colony of northern gannets, has been bought by the conservation charity RSPB Scotland. The island, three miles off the coast of North Berwick, has been owned by the Hamilton-Dalrymple family for 320 years. A grant of £586,000 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund has helped pay for transfer of the rock's ownership along with neighbouring Craigleith Island, home to about 10,000 puffins. |
Bycatch has 'shocking' toll on British marine life
LONDON, UK, 10 June 2026 (Guardian) - Thousands of Britain’s most charismatic and protected marine wildlife, including whales, porpoises, dolphins, seals and seabirds are being killed as “collateral damage” by fishing vessels every year, according to the first-ever analysis of bycatch data. |
The Galapagos is a haven for rare scalloped hammerhead shark
PUERTO AYORA, Galapagos Islands, 9 June 2026 (Guardian) - The unmistakable fluted T-shape of a scalloped hammerhead shark slides by, followed by a diver holding his breath and a metal spear like an extra-long snooker cue. The spear hits the fish behind its dorsal fin and the 2-metre shark darts away, disgruntled but otherwise unharmed. |
Island project could ruin Albania's bid to join EU
NEW YORK, US, 9 June 2026 (Forbes) - Ongoing environmental concerns over Jared Kushner’s planned resort development in Albania could infringe on the Balkan country’s efforts to join the European Union, as European Commission officials in Brussels confirmed Tuesday they’ve warned the Albanian government the project could conflict with the EU’s environmental rules. |
Zoned tourist vessel routes across Galapagos Islands
PERTH, Australia, 9 June 2026 (Phys.org) - New research from Edith Cowan University has identified a smarter, more effective way to protect fragile marine ecosystems from invasive species - an approach with global relevance for island regions around the world. The study, led by Professor Marnie Campbell, draws on her long-standing research in the Galápagos Islands, where introduced marine pests pose a growing threat to one of the world's most iconic natural environments. |
European Commission presents first-ever EU strategy for islands
BRUSSELS, Belgium, 10 June 2026 (EC) - Today, the European Commission adopted two dedicated strategies, one for EU islands and one for EU coastal communities. The two initiatives introduce a targeted approach, dedicated to the specific needs and unique challenges of: 17 million people living on more than 4,000 islands across 16 EU Member States and 95 million people living along the 70,000 km of EU coastlines and in coastal areas across 22 EU Member States. |
Indonesia's native hornbills are being hammered
JAKARTA, Indonesia, 9 June 2026 (Mongabay) - Hundreds of live hornbills and their parts, including casques, heads and feathers, are illegally traded in Indonesia, some online, according to a new study. |
‘Severe’ stress on oceans as rate of sea level rise doubles in 10 years
LONDON, UK, 8 June 2026 (Guardian) - The world’s oceans are under “severe and accelerating” pressure from human activities, with the rate of sea-level rise double that of a decade ago, according to a damning assessment from the United Nations. The “intensifying” stressors, which include pollution and large-scale industrial fishing, are cumulative, said the report, resulting in widespread biodiversity loss and putting ocean systems under “severe strain”. |
Call to phase out guga hunt by working with Hebridean islanders
LONDON, UK, 8 June 2026 (Guardian) - Animal welfare campaigners have called for talks on phasing out the “inhumane” hunt for infant gannets known as guga, which are killed by hunters on a remote Scottish island once a year. OneKind and the League Against Cruel Sports said it should be slowly phased out in dialogue with the Hebridean islanders who see the hunt, which has been carried out for at least 400 years, as a cultural pursuit and as sustainable food harvesting. |
IAATO's new Geofenced Whale Area around South Orkney Islands
COLCHESTER, UK, 9 June 2026 (SCN) - On World Oceans Day the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the Southern Ocean by announcing the establishment of a new voluntary Geofenced Whale Area around the South Orkney Islands beginning in the 2026/27 Antarctic season. This new operational measure is designed to reduce the risk of whale strikes in an area increasingly recognised as an important habitat for recovering whale populations. |
Island Areas pursue policies that advance health outcomes
ARLINGTON, US, 8 June 2026 (ASTHO) - Whilst U.S. territories and freely associated states - collectively known as the island areas - do not fall under the category of a state or federal district, they do share many public health concerns with their state counterparts and often face unique challenges, too. Over the past year, island areas have introduced and enacted legislation that shape health outcomes - particularly in jurisdictions navigating geographic isolation, workforce shortages, limited specialty care availability, and unique regional health risks. |
Over 10,000 albatrosses reported on Japan island
TOKYO, Japan, 9 June 2026 (KN) - The population of endangered short-tailed albatrosses on a remote Japanese island has exceeded 10,000 for the first time since a small number of the seabirds were rediscovered there 75 years ago, according to a Japanese research institute. The Yamashina Institute for Ornithology said a breeding survey conducted in February and March found 11,067 of the birds, which were considered extinct until 1951, on the volcanic Torishima Island of the Izu island chain in the Pacific. |
French Polynesia to protect more ocean
PAPEETE, French Polynesia, 8 June 2026 (AFP) - French Polynesia has announced it will expand the size of its fully shielded natural reserves inside what is already the world's largest marine protected area in the far South Pacific. The overseas territory of France, since last year, has a vast area of almost five million square kilometres that is protected. It will now increase the area where any human activity is totally forbidden from 1.1 to 1.6 million square kilometres. |
Taiwan's tallest tree found with help of citizen science
TAIPAI, Taiwan, 8 June 2026 (Mongabay) - Researchers have confirmed Taiwan’s tallest known tree: an 84.1-meter (276-foot) Taiwania fir they named “the Heaven Sword of the Da’an River.” A team called the “Taiwan tree seekers” found it after a decade-long search using airborne laser scans of the island’s forests. A group of 372 citizen scientists helped sort through the data, producing a map of 941 giant trees across Taiwan. |
In Sumatra, social forestry links conservation with livelihoods
TANGGAMUS, Indonesia, 9 June 2026 (Mongabay) - Sri Atmiatun, a farmer in Indonesia’s Batutegi forest landscape, is among hundreds of community members participating in the country’s social forestry program, which grants legal access to state forest land while requiring sustainable management. |
US indictment of Raul Castro comes amid a long history of American aggression
AMHERST, US, 8 June 2026 (Conversation) - The Trump administration on May 20, 2026, indicted former Cuban President Raul Castro for murder, based on the downing of two planes near the Cuban coastline in 1996 that killed four people. As a historian of Latin America and U.S. foreign policy, I believe the indictment may be the prelude to direct U.S. military action against Cuba. |
Mining companies may soon bypass UN rules and mine the deep sea
VANCOUVER, Canada, 8 June 2026 (Conversation) - A Canadian deep-sea mining company may become the first to commercially mine the international seabed under a controversial U.S. executive order that bypasses United Nations regulations. A recent legal analysis suggests that this could place Canada in violation of international law. |
Deep-sea mining (DSM1) and deep-seated mischief (DSM2)
TAMUNING, Guam, 8 June 2026 (PIT) - In the past few years, Pacific island leaders and thinkers have organized future planning around the concept of the Blue Pacific Continent. In 2022, the Pacific Islands Forum launched the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent, which starts with the statement: “The Blue Pacific Continent is our home, ocean, lands and common heritage. The Blue Continent includes territories, freely associated states and independent countries." |
New research show Indonesia's coral reefs are heat-tolerant
BOGOR, Indonesia, 8 June 2026 (Conversation) - Indonesia is home to the world’s largest and most biodiverse coral reef system, spanning more than 32,000 square kilometres across the archipelago. Just like what is happening globally, these reefs are now bearing the brunt of a warming ocean. Our new study, however, found that despite rising sea temperatures, coral cover at most of our Indonesian study sites remained remarkably stable over the long term. |
What impact can Curacao and Cabo Verde make in the World Cup?
MELBOURNE, Australia, 7 June 2026 (Conversation) - For the first time in history, soccer’s World Cup will expand to 48 teams in 2026, marking one of the most radical changes ever made to the tournament. Starting on June 11 in Mexico City, the tournament will be the longest and largest ever. Across 39 days, there will be 104 matches. The new format has allowed several so-called “minnow nations” to qualify for the first time. They include Uzbekistan and Jordan, while Haiti has returned after last appearing in 1974. But it is two small island nations, Curacao and Cabo Verde - that have rightly grabbed the most international attention. |
It's one of the world's most isolated islands. Here come the bulldozers
THE GREAT NICOBAR ISLAND, India, 7 June 2026 (NPR) - Fireflies illuminate the edge of a forest on the Great Nicobar Island as field biologist Sumit Kumar tries to find a particularly shy creature. A soft hoot wafts through the thicket. Kumar scans the trees with his flashlight: Sitting on a branch is a rare, wide-eyed, fat Nicobarese Scops owl. It narrows its eyes into what feels like a death-glare. Kumar smiles: "When you spot them, they look at you as if to say, 'You don't belong here.'" |
Vet says St Kilda's dying sheep left him feeling helpless
LONDON, UK, 5 June 2026 (BBC) - A vet campaigning for greater protection for St Kilda's rare sheep says the sight of dead and dying animals left him feeling helpless. Soay and Boreray, two breeds that roam wild on the archipelago, are descended from animals first brought to the group of small islands and rocky sea stacks thousands of years ago. David Buckland, who says a lack of winter grazing causes sheep to starve to death, visited St Kilda in April and was surprised to still find animals dying off even though more grass was available. |
Scotland's ancient human-made islands are dripping with secrets
NEW YORK, US, 5 June 2026 (PS) - Mysterious and ancient human-made islands of timber and stone have endured amidst Scotland’s more well-known standing stones, Roman forts, and 18th century battlefields. Called crannogs, archeologists were initially not so sure what purpose these islands served, but were relatively confident that most of them date back to between the Iron Age (800 BCE to 400 CE) and the post medieval period (1550 to 1800). That is, until local diver Chris Murray found pottery fragments that were much older than they should have been. |
Chagossians urge UK to complete islands’ handover to Mauritius
LONDON, UK, 5 June 2026 (Guardian) - A Chagossian delegation visiting the UK has urged parliamentarians to complete stalled legislation to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which they say has been “hijacked within the halls” of UK politics. The six-person contingent from the Chagos Refugees Group expressed their full support for the UK to conclude an agreement after the government was forced to shelve legislation when the US dropped support for the agreement. |
Larry Page's $23 million private island headache won't go away
NEW YORK, US, 4 June 2026 (BI) - After nearly 12 years of courtroom warfare, mounting legal bills, and family office intrigue, the world's second-richest person has hit another snag in his quest to own paradise. Google cofounder Larry Page and his wife, Lucinda Southworth, purchased two islands in the US Virgin Islands - Hans Lollik and the smaller neighboring Little Hans Lollik - for $23 million in 2014. A developer named James Eckel claimed he already had a contract to purchase the Caribbean islands, kicking off a fierce legal battle between Eckel, the seller, and Page's holding company. |
Picturesque Malta set to 'implode' as concrete jungle devours all
VALLETTA, Malta, 6 June 2026 (AFP) - Farmer Annalisa Schembri is battling to save a wheat field from developers in Malta, where a construction boom is engulfing lands and villages, with even historic UNESCO sites in jeopardy. The tiny Mediterranean island is the most densely populated country in Europe, and approvals for new buildings are soaring despite scandals dogging the development sector. Malta sparked outrage last month over its decision to demolish a 19th-century British barracks to build a five-star hotel and housing complex, and experts warn the prehistoric Santa Verna Temple is also under threat from encroaching, pool-side luxury units. |
Deep-sea mining firm TMC sues international regulator
NEW YORK, US, 5 June 2026 (AFP) - The Metals Company (TMC), a Canadian firm focused on deep-sea mining on the high seas, has taken its dispute with the global regulatory body overseeing the nascent and controversial industry to an international tribunal. |
Communities revive customary systems to protect the seas
JAKARTA, Indonesia, 5 June 2026 (Mongabay) - Across the small islands of eastern Indonesia that lie within the Wallacea region, one of the world’s richest marine biodiversity regions, coastal communities are reviving ancient customary systems to safeguard marine ecosystems from destructive fishing and habitat loss. This movement is the centerpiece of a recent documentary highlighting how local empowerment can succeed where top-down conservation often fails. |
Mangrove forests are healing after decades of human destruction
LONDON, UK, 5 June 2026 (BBC) - The world's coastal mangrove forests, which protect millions of people from storms - and soak up vast amounts of planet-warming gases - are staging an unexpected comeback, scientists find. For decades these swampy trees had been declining rapidly as they were cleared for fish farms and housing. In Indonesia, the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 seems to have played a role in changing people's minds about the importance of mangroves, and the removal of trees for fish farming has slowed. |
Nauru issues rare statement after whistleblower allegations
LONDON, UK, 4 June 2026 (Guardian) - The Nauruan government has issued a rare statement insisting it is a “friendly” and “welcoming” country after a whistleblower alleged “serious threats of physical violence” were made against a group of non-citizens removed there by the Albanese government. |
Why a planned island resort has provoked protests in Albania
DOHA, Qatar, 5 June 2026 (Al Jazeera) - To Ivanka Trump, Sazan was a “find”. Thousands of Albanians, however, fear that it could be their loss. In an interview with American podcaster David Senra this week, Ivanka – the eldest daughter of United States President Donald Trump – described the uninhabited island off Albania's west coast almost as a patch of land that she and her husband Jared Kushner were the first to discover. |
Climate finance for Mauritius needs good management
REDUIT, Mauritius, 4 June 2026 (Conversation) - Mauritius is a small African island where natural disasters like floods, cyclones and other extreme weather events have become frequent and intense. They are expected regularly. Rising sea levels, flash floods and tropical cyclones cause annual direct damage of US$113 million on average every year. Mauritius needs to adapt to climate change fast. It already has its own government-funded Climate and Sustainability Fund to pay for adaptation. |
Argentina warns Falklands over oil drilling plans
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, 5 June 2026 (MercoPress) - Argentina's government warned that it could “fully exercise all” available actions over plans to develop an oil field near the Falkland Islands, in a fresh escalation of the sovereignty dispute. The Foreign Ministry declared the plans of Britain's Rockhopper Exploration “unlawful” and described that company and its Israeli partner, Navitas Petroleum, as “clandestine,” after the Sea Lion project moved from exploration into development. |
Traditional knowledge strengthens climate resilience
SUVA, Fiji, 4 June 2026 (PINA) - Traditional knowledge, communal support systems and customary governance structures are helping coastal communities in Fiji adapt to the growing impacts of climate change on fisheries, according to new research conducted in Ra Province. The study found that indigenous knowledge and community-based practices continue to play a critical role in strengthening resilience as rising temperatures, stronger cyclones and changing marine ecosystems place increasing pressure on fisheries and food security. |
The new reality in the South China Sea
BANGKOK, Thailand, 3 June 2026 (BBC) - Antelope Reef is a small, teardrop-shaped island in the north-western corner of the South China Sea and, until recently, almost entirely underwater. But this year it has undergone a dramatic transformation. Millions of tonnes of sand have been dredged from the sea bed to create solid land. From being only a turquoise speck on the map, Antelope Reef now appears as a 6-sq-km (2.3-sq-mile) crescent of gleaming white sand, with a scattering of buildings in one corner. All in just six months. |
Academics set out sweeping vision for planetary survival
LONDON, UK, 4 June 2026 (Guardian) - Humanity can raise living standards, reduce inequality and keep global heating within a 2C rise, according to a sweeping vision for planetary survival. The report by the World Inequality Lab (WIL) aims to be the most comprehensive attempt yet to navigate the polycrisis that is pushing the world toward climate breakdown, political extremism and ever greater economic and social tension. |
Survivors sue government over response to Sumatra floods
JAKARTA, Indonesia, 2 June 2026 (Mongabay) - Survivors of the deadly late-2025 Sumatra floods and landslides have sued the Indonesian government, arguing the disaster was not solely a natural event but an “ecological disaster” worsened by decades of deforestation, watershed degradation, weak environmental enforcement, and inadequate disaster preparedness. The plaintiffs say authorities failed to act on repeated warnings from Indonesia’s meteorological agency before Cyclone Senyar struck, and criticize the government for not declaring a national emergency, which they argue hindered disaster response and recovery efforts. |
How regional cooperation transformed the world's largest tuna fishery
SUVA, Fiji, 3 June 2026 (PINA) - The Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) has released a major report documenting two decades of transformative work in tuna fisheries management – a story of unprecedented collaboration between scientists, government officials, fisheries workers, NGOs, and international development partners. The achievements are remarkable: all four economically important tuna stocks – skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye, and South Pacific albacore – remain healthy and sustainably fished, making the Pacific the only ocean basin tuna fishery to achieve this milestone. |
Why this island might be one of Europe's best-kept secrets
EL HIERRO, Spain, 4 June 2026 (CNN) - This tiny island was once believed to be the westernmost edge of the known world and was the last piece of land that Christopher Columbus saw after leaving Europe to encounter the Americas in 1492. Today, El Hierro - the most remote of Spain’s Canary Islands - is a destination for modern travelers looking to rekindle their own sense of discovery. |
Bermuda, the small island nation with huge crypto ambitions
LONDON, UK, 26 May 2026 (CoinDesk) - Bermuda is working with the Stellar Development Foundation to build what it hopes will be the world’s first fully onchain economy, including a sovereign Bermuda digital dollar. The Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) has overseen real-world ecosystem testing by licensed firms, including an event where 100 pounds in stablecoins were airdropped to residents, enabling payments at a pop-up marketplace. |
This Italian island is home to an active volcano and wild goats
BRISTOL, UK, 26 May 2026 (DW) - Stromboli, an Aeolian island north of Sicily, is known for having one of the most active volcanoes in the world. Moderate explosions occur every 10-20 minutes, throwing lava and ash up into the air. But islanders in the village of Ginostra, in the southwest of the island, are facing another problem: goats. The goats used to live higher up in the mountainous regions feeding on vegetation, but lots of it was destroyed in a fire which broke out in 2022. In 2024, flooding further damaged vegetation. The goats have since descended the slopes to find more food – putting them in closer proximity to Stromboli’s residents. |
Dutch island to use drones to round up and remove stray cats
AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands, 27 May 2026 (DN) - Schiermonnikoog is to deploy drones to catch and remove its population of 70 stray cats, which pose a threat to wildlife on the Wadden island. The drones will be equipped with heat-seeking cameras to hunt the cats, while AI technology will be used to distinguish the them from other creatures such as rabbits, hares and rats. |
Nasa images show wildfire damage to Santa Rosa Island
LONDON, UK, 27 May 2026 (Guardian) - Images from a Nasa satellite showcased the devastating scars left behind by a wildfire that consumed roughly a third of Santa Rosa Island, one of the five islands that make up Channel Islands national park off the southern California coast. While the fire is mostly contained, the images drive home the potential lasting impact on the unique ecosystems across the rugged and remote island dubbed ‘Galapagos of California’. |
Study clarifies conditions for amphibian species richness on islands
SAO PAULO, Brazil, 27 May 2026 (Phys.org) - A Brazilian study indicates that the biodiversity of anuran amphibians (toads and frogs) on islands is determined by factors encompassed in two previously opposing theories. Biodiversity models that consider island size, distance from the mainland, and productivity [of organic matter per area] have been confirmed with relative success for plants, birds, and mammals, but they hadn't yet been tested with anuran amphibians, which can't tolerate salinity and therefore face an insurmountable barrier in the sea. |
What is killing Sumatra's elephants?
LONDON, UK, 28 May 2026 (Guardian) - The population of Sumatran elephants around the Seblat district of Bengkulu once thrived, but poaching and deforestation of the animal’s habitat, driven by farming and palm oil plantations, pushed it on to the IUCN’s critically endangered list in 2011. According to wildlife conservationists in Bengkulu, the population has since plummeted even further. |
Loopholes undermine palm oil industry’s antideforestation pledges
JAKARTA, Indonesia, 27 May 2026 (Mongabay) - More than a decade after the palm oil industry embraced a pledge to not deforest, clear tropical peatlands, or use exploitative practices, policies to that end now cover most of the global palm oil trade, as major traders, refiners and consumer brands have pledged to keep deforestation-linked palm oil out of their supply chains. However, deforestation linked to palm oil continues, particularly in Indonesia, the world’s largest producer of the commodity. |
Scientists set to return discoveries to Marshall Islands
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, 28 May 2026 (PMN) - Under sunny skies in the northern Marshall Islands, the Enewetak community is preparing for a rare exchange. The locals will receive the first results of a two-week ocean expedition exploring their surrounding waters. Visiting researchers from National Geographic Pristine Seas (NGPS) have spent a week studying Ailinginae Atoll and a second week working at Enewetak, studying reefs from shallow waters to the deep sea. |
Fund for climate-exposed Pacific nation invests in fossil fuels
SYDNEY, Australia, 28 May 2026 (AFP) - A trust fund set up to help a South Pacific nation gravely threatened by climate change has invested in coal mining, gas exploration and the world's largest crude oil refinery, an AFP investigation has revealed. Low-lying Pacific island nation Tuvalu said it was reviewing the "fossil fuel exposure" of the $200 million fund after it was presented with AFP's findings. |
New Caledonia's kava bars fear price surge could hurt industry
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, 28 May 2026 (RNZ) - New Caledonia's kava industry stakeholders are concerned at the increase of the price of the precious imported root, mainly from neighbouring Vanuatu. Since the beginning of 2026, they claim the price of one kilo of dried kava chips has risen from 4500 French Pacific Francs (CFP, around US$44) at the beginning of the year to currently about 7000 CFP (around US$68), an estimated 40 percent increase. |
How art is reshaping South Greenland
ODENSE, Denmark, 28 May 2026 (Conversation) - I am in Greenland to study the Sanasa Art Route Project at the social services and training centre for young people in Narsaq. The project brings together teenagers, artists and community workers to create large-scale murals across South Greenland. Art has long held an important place in the communities of South Greenland, with various artists and musicians from this region helping shape modern culture and identity. |
The race for oil: will Jamaica be the next country to drill?
LONDON, UK, 28 May 2026 (Guardian) - Jamaica is closer than ever to drilling for oil. Tests on samples from the seabed off the Caribbean island’s south coast earlier this year identified hydrocarbons, which suggest the presence of crude oil below ground. Jamaica imports all its fuel, which costs about $1.5-2bn annually, depending on global oil prices. It is a persistent drag on an economy that generated $4.3bn from tourism, its biggest earner, in 2024. |
Shetland undersea tunnel cost estimated at £402m
GLASGOW, UK 28 May 2026 (BBC) - The development and construction of an undersea tunnel between mainland Shetland and the island of Yell would cost £402m and take eight years to complete, it has been estimated. The projections have been published by the engineering consultancy firm COWI which has been working alongside Shetland Islands Council (SIC) and fellow consultants Stantec. Yell is the test case in a project comparing the cost of future ferry upgrades and investment in fixed links, due to concern over ageing infrastructure. |
Wrens may be evolving into new species through island gigantism
BIRMINGHAM, UK, 28 May 2026 (SN) - Tiny birds on remote Scottish islands are undergoing a dramatic evolutionary transformation. Scientists studying four isolated populations of British Wrens discovered that some island birds have grown astonishingly large - with the biggest St Kilda Wrens weighing more than twice as much as the smallest mainland birds. The research suggests these wrens are evolving independently, developing unique songs, appearances, and genetics that may eventually turn them into entirely new species. |
Greek Islands could benefit from floating nuclear power by 2035
VERO BEACH, US, 27 May 2026 (ME) - Greece's utility sector has invested heavily in renewables in recent years, and now generates so much solar power that it faces a high rate of curtailment on sunny days. Its mainland grid has been a net exporter of electricity since 2024, benefiting its neighbors. But non-interconnected Greek islands - like many in the Cyclades and Dodecanese - retain a dependence upon diesel-fired generating stations, which require imported fuels. One option for "greening" their power grids could be miniature nuclear power plants, built on barges and towed into position, according to a new study by the Deon Policy Institute, ABS, Core Power and Athlos Energy. |
More than 700 dolphins killed in a single day of Faroe Islands hunts
LONDON, UK, 28 May 2026 (Oceanographic) - In one of the most significant single-day killing events in the history of the Faroe Islands’ dolphin hunts, more than 700 Atlantic white-sided dolphins were driven ashore and killed on Wednesday across three separate drives – surpassing two-thirds of the approximately 1,000 marine mammals killed across the entirety of last year. |
Catalina Island Conservancy defends controversial plan
LOS ANGELES, US, 29 May 2026 (CBS) - California officials and the Catalina Island Conservancy are executing a highly controversial, multi-year plan to eradicate the island's 2,000 non-native mule deer to restore native habitats. Critics argue the deer are part of the island's century-old identity, question the Conservancy's population counts, and worry that removing the grazing animals could actually increase fire-prone brush. Local leaders have actively called for alternative solutions like fertility control or relocation. |
Is Great Nicobar Island India's Hormuz like-chokepoint against China
NEW DELHI, India, 3 June 2026 (Al Jazeera) - The southernmost point of India, the Great Nicobar Island, is closer to the coasts of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia than it is to the Indian mainland. No Indian prime minister has visited the island, which is the size of Hong Kong, since Indira Gandhi in 1984. India does not even conduct a full census on the island, relying on estimates of its population; the latest guess is that fewer than 10,000 people live there. Yet the island is now in the eye of a political storm over an $11bn project planned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to turn Great Nicobar into a major strategic and economic outpost in the Indian Ocean. |
Sri Lanka flamingo deaths raise concerns
MANNAR, Sri Lanka, 29 May 2026 (Mongabay) - Three flamingos were recently killed following a collision with overhead power lines in Mannar, in northern Sri Lanka, highlighting the threat posed by wind power structures to migratory birds. Flamingos also disappeared from Bundala, a popular Ramsar wetland in the island’s south, after irrigation-driven freshwater changes reduced salinity and eliminated their food base. |
Conservationists alarmed by drastic cuts to Darwin Initiative
LONDON, UK, 29 May 2026 (Guardian) - One of the UK’s longest-standing funds for global nature protection is being drastically cut back. At least 89 countries will lose eligibility for funding for biodiversity projects under the Darwin Initiative, in a round of cuts that conservationists warned would put species and habitats in jeopardy, and set back global efforts to halt the precipitous decline in nature. |
Caribbean hot sauce producers warn of shortages and higher prices
ST. JOHN'S, Antigua, 1 June 2026 (BBC) - Hot pepper sauce in Caribbean cuisine is as pervasive as ketchup in the US. The fiery flavouring is a staple of dining tables regionwide, the obligatory accompaniment for everything from rice and peas, to curries and stews. But a shortage of the particular chilli pepper used to create the quintessential Caribbean condiment is threatening to stifle supply, while sending costs for the region's producers soaring. |
Dismay as Trump officials to dismantle key ocean monitoring system
LONDON, UK, 2 June 2026 (Guardian) - The Trump administration plans to dismantle a $368m deep-sea observation system that has for more than a decade provided crucial data on ocean systems and climate change. In a notice, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced that it had “initiated descoping of the Ocean Observatories Initiative” (OOI), a vast ocean observation network comprising more than 900 instruments that collect data on ocean health, including current patterns, climate variability and marine biodiversity. |
Evidence of real pirates of the Caribbean found in Bahamas
LONDON, UK, 2 June 2026 (Guardian) - The first shipwrecks linked to the real pirates of the Caribbean in the Bahamas have been discovered by an international team co-directed by a British marine archaeologist. Blackbeard and Calico Jack Rackham were among pirates who, between the 1690s and 1720s, turned Nassau on the island of New Providence into a hideout where they plotted their next heists on the high seas and divided up their plunder. Now, following the first-ever official permission to dive in the closed zone of Nassau harbour, an expedition has found six wrecks, three of which can be traced to the “golden age of piracy”. |
How did Fair Isle become awash with forever chemicals?
FAIR ISLE, UK, 2 June 2026 (Guardian) - When the wind picks up on Fair Isle, Britain’s most remote inhabited island, puffs of seafoam start to drift across fields like tumbleweed. The pale yellow blobs are ubiquitous enough to hold their own place in the island’s mythology: known as the butter churned by a local troll, Lukki Minni. As well as a familiar feature of rough weather, scientists now think seafoam and seaspray might hold the answer to a Fair Isle mystery. In 2024, utility data revealed that the wild outpost known for knitting and rare birds has higher levels of toxic Pfas - "forever chemicals" - than any other public drinking water in Scotland, despite there being no obvious industrial sources on the island. |
Rodent eradication sparks insect boom on Lord Howe Island
SYDNEY, Australia, 25 May 2026 (Phys.org) - The removal of invasive rodents from Lord Howe Island has triggered a rebound of invertebrate life, with researchers from the University of Sydney and collaborators documenting sharp increases in the abundance of insects and other small animals that underpin the island's ecosystem. |
Canary Islands are experiencing a tourism crisis
LONDON, UK, 26 May 2026 (DM) - The Canary Islands have witnessed mounting demonstrations in recent years. Frustration has been building amongst residents, who argue the surge in tourism to the sun-soaked Spanish archipelago is unmanageable. They point to outdated regulations that allow property speculators to purchase land for hotels and holiday flats, while paying only minimal tax. Consequently, Canarians claim they receive the lowest average salaries in Spain and face difficulties securing affordable accommodation. Yet now they have a further complaint against holidaymakers. The islands are suffering coastal erosion at an alarming pace and campaigners say the coastline is on the brink of disaster. |
The fight against foreign developers buying Caribbean beaches
LONDON, UK, 21 May 2026 (BBC) - Land ownership in Barbuda is collective, meaning that individual citizens have the right to occupy a plot of land by applying for a lease, but technically, they do not privately own it. Instead, all land is owned communally, and citizens share the collective right to be consulted and to have the final say on major developments. The ownership system was established after slavery ended in Barbuda in 1834 and was officially recognised by the government of Antigua and Barbuda in 2007, when the Barbuda Land Act was passed. |
How Pacific islands are uniquely vulnerable to the oil crisis
SUVA, Fiji, 22 May 2026 (Guardian) - The Pacific region is already at the forefront of the climate crisis thanks to rising sea lewvels and increasing natural disasters. But the fuel crisis caused by the US-Israel war on Iran is revealing another fossil-fuel based vulnerability. The reliance of countries and territories in the Pacific on imported oil is expected to hit economic growth and increase inflation. The shortages are already showing up in the price of cassava, the cost of the school run, and in businesses’ bottom lines. |
Jersey and Guernsey included in UK-Gulf trade deal
LONDON, UK, 22 May 2026 (BBC) - Jersey and Guernsey have been included in a new trade deal between the UK and Middle Eastern nations. Both government's said they had been included in the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), giving businesses "preferential access" to overseas markets and making it easier and cheaper to trade with the islands. Jersey's government said the GCC had become an "increasingly significant market" for its financial and related professional services sector while leaders in Guernsey said the deal would be a "valuable platform". |
There is 'absolutely' an appetite for fixed links, says OIC leader
KIRKWALL, Orkney, 21 May 2026 (Orcadian) - There is “absolutely” support for fixed links in Orkney, council leader Heather Woodbridge has said. But funding from government is needed before such projects can even be explored, as Orkney Islands Council does not have “budgets to speculate,” she added. Councillor Woodbridge was giving evidence to a Scottish Affairs Committee hearing on fixed links, held on Wednesday. |
€50 million e-ferry to service Estonia's islands from late 2028
TALLINN, Estonia, 21 May 2026 (ERR) - The deal to build a fifth ferry to service Estonia's larger islands has been signed. The design and construction contract is worth just under €50 million and the vessel will enter service late in 2028. The as-yet-unnamed vessel will be largely financed via the EU's Modernization Fund, whose conditions require it to be 64 percent more energy-efficient than the current backup vessel, the 55-year-old Regula. |
Abrolhos Islands coral reef shows resistance to climate bleaching
GERALDTON, Australia, 20 May 2026 (ABC) - Scientists have discovered that a coral reef off Western Australia remained shockingly unscathed by a record marine heatwave that turned much of the Ningaloo reef white last year. The reef at the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, 60 kilometres off the coast of Geraldton, was found to have withstood the 2025 warming event that affected half of the state's coastline. |
Why plastic puffins are a hit on a tiny island in the Irish sea
LONDON, UK, 21 May 2026 (BBC) - Conservationists have been working for the past 10 years to bring back puffins to the little uninhabited island, Calf of Man, in the Irish sea. Fake plastic puffins have been put in place on the island to trick real puffins into thinking the island is already a safe nesting place. The Manx Wildlife Trust, which runs the project, says the plan seems to be working. |
This US island is home to flora found nowhere else
LONDON, UK, 23 May 2026 (Guardian) - On the south-eastern corner of Santa Rosa Island lies a grove of a few thousand Torrey pine trees, some of them more than 250 years old. The only other place on earth where these gnarled pines exist is in San Diego county, but biologists classify the two groves as different subspecies. So when a rare wildfire broke out on Santa Rosa Island late last week, firefighters raced to keep it from spreading into the grove, where it threatened to consign the island’s Torrey pines to extinction. |
Small island, big stakes: Cyprus votes amid regional uncertainty
BAKU, Azerbaijan, 23 May 2026 (NEWS.AZ) - Cyprus is holding elections to the House of Representatives, the country’s parliament. At first glance, this may appear to be a domestic political event in a relatively small island state. Yet under current geopolitical conditions, the Cypriot vote goes far beyond national politics. |
Fixed link expert says Shetland tunnels are 'deliverable'
LERWICK, Shetland, 20 May 2026 (ST) - Tunnels in Shetland “can be reality” – with the engineering feasibility “without question”. That is the view of Andy Sloan, the executive vice president of consultancy firm COWI, which has been working with Shetland Islands Council (SIC) on the prospect of tunnels. |
An industry on the edge of a looming crisis
STORNOWAY, Western Isles, 21 May 2026 (SG) - ?It’s a little over 50 years since I started taking a significant interest in the Harris Tweed industry. At that time it was far bigger than it is today but was considered to be facing an “existential threat”. The market, it was said, no longer wanted the single width fabric which 550 weavers produced on Hattersley looms. For the previous 50 years, these had been the backbone of the industry. Instead, it was demanding double-width fabric. To survive, Harris Tweed had to adapt. |
Greenlanders protest against Trump outside new US consulate
NUUK, Greenland, 22 May 2026 (BBC) - Hundreds of Greenlanders gathered outside a new American consulate in the capital Nuuk on Friday to protest against Donald Trump's ambition for greater influence over the island. The protest capped a week in which the US president's special envoy to Greenland, Jeff Landry, made his first trip to the territory, a semi-autonomous part of Denmark. |
Ferry firm pledges to improve island deliveries
LONDON, UK, 25 May 2026 (BBC) - The chief executive of Isles of Scilly Steamship Group has promised to improve freight services to island residents after complaints about deliveries being unreliable and going missing. |
Why Hainan holds the key to survival for China's aircraft carriers
BEIJING, China, 24 May 2026 (SCMP) - The People's Liberation Army Navy’s aircraft carrier base in Hainan could prove vital to the fleet’s survivability and crucial in countering US containment along the first island chain in wartime, according to a prominent mainland Chinese magazine. Such a posture could also support efforts to impose a maritime blockade around Taiwan in the event of a conflict, Defence Review reported this month. |
Fishing traditions under threat in Tunisia's Kerkennah Islands
ROME, Italy, 26 May 2026 (The New Arab) - At 11 am in the port of Kraten, on the north-eastern edge of the Kerkennah archipelago in south-eastern Tunisia, fishermen are untangling heaps of fishing nets piled along the waterfront as they prepare for the next trip out to sea. Head lowered, Salah, 35, uses a knife to loosen the tightest knots. Without looking up, he says, “Many people are forced to consider irregular migration because life in this country has become suffocating.” |
UArctic Congress Conference opens today in the Faroe Islands
AKUREYRI, Iceland, 26 May 2026 (Arctic Portal) - An international conference focused on the future of the Arctic Ocean opens today in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, bringing together scientists, Indigenous representatives, policymakers, and Arctic stakeholders to discuss the rapidly changing Arctic marine environment. Over the next three days, participants will explore some of the most pressing challenges facing Arctic waters and coastal communities through sessions focused on ocean dynamics and observation systems, marine pollution and ecosystem impacts, safe and resilient Arctic shipping, marine biodiversity and conservation, Indigenous-led stewardship, and the sustainable future of Arctic oceans amid increasing environmental and economic pressures. |
PNG warns against fishing in New Ireland
PORT MORESBY, PNG, 21 May 2026 (Guardian) - Papua New Guinea’s government has warned communities not to fish from parts of the New Ireland coastline as preliminary tests show evidence of metals in some water samples, after months of residents reporting dead marine life in the area. |
UN backs historic climate crisis ruling, despite US opposing it
LONDON, UK, 21 May 2026 (Guardian) - The UN has voted 141-8 to adopt a resolution backing a world court opinion that countries have a legal obligation to address climate change, with the US – which is the world’s biggest historical emitter – among the small group opposing it. The resolution, brought by the Pacific island Vanuatu, affirms a July 2025 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that states are obligated to reduce fossil fuel use and tackle global warming. |
Thai island community rallies to protect beloved dugongs
KOH LIBONG, Thailand, 21 May 2026 (Mongabay) - Seagrass beds around the island of Koh Libong in Thailand’s Andaman Sea have died off in recent years, part of wider nationwide declines scientists say have multiple, complex causes. The seagrass shortage has devastated the island’s once famed dugong population, jeopardizing tourism businesses and impacting the island community who have long protected them. Locals frustrated by slow government seagrass recovery plans are working with researchers and conservation groups to build citizen science skills and trial seagrass restoration techniques. |
Better survey methods uncover new insights into biodiversity
ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar, 21 May 2026 (Mongabay) - Conservation biologist Dimby Raharinjanahary, now director of monitoring at the Madagascar Biodiversity Center, is part of a global initiative called LIFEPLAN that is working to expand biodiversity monitoring beyond a few target species to include a much wider range of organisms, including hyper-diverse and still poorly known groups such as arthropods and fungi. |
Safeguarding Fiji's elusive seabirds
CAMBRIDGE, UK, 20 May 2026 (BirdLife) - The fifth-largest island in Fiji, Gau (pronounced “Nau”) is part of the Lomaiviti archipelago, east of the country’s main island Viti Levu. With no fewer than 16 villages, it is where spiritual links are strongest to the Critically Endangered and little-known Fiji Petrel. This elusive seabird is thought to reside underground high in the mountains. |
Why has the US indicted former Cuban President Raul Castro?
SYDNEY, Australia, 21 May 2026 (Conversation) - After a week of speculation, the US Department of Justice has officially indicted Raul Castro, the 94-year-old ex-president of Cuba. The charges relate to a 1996 incident in which the Cuban military allegedly shot down two unarmed civilian planes operated by Brothers to the Rescue. The news comes amid mounting US pressure on the ailing Cuban Republic to change its system of government after 67 years of revolutionary rule. So why did the United States act now, and what will happen next? |
SPREP applauds commitment to safeguarding the Pacific Ocean
PORT MORESBY, PNG, 21 May 2026 (SPREP) - An interconnected MPA spanning at least 6 million skm2 has been committed by Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu through the Melanesian Ocean Corridor of Reserves (MOCOR) Declaration and Framework 2026 - 2030. Signed this month between the three Pacific Island countries, this newly established ambitious network of national and jointly managed protected areas will be the largest transboundary MPA in the world. |
Greenland's oil and minerals will be dangerous to extract
BURLINGTON, US, 19 May 2026 (Conversation) - When the Trump administration discuss Greenland’s importance to the U.S., they tend to focus on the island’s strategic value and its natural resources: critical minerals, fossil fuels and hydropower. They rarely mention the hazards, many of them exacerbated by human-induced climate change, that those longing to possess and develop the island will inevitably encounter. That’s imprudent, because the Arctic's climate is changing more rapidly than anywhere on Earth. Such rapid warming further increases the already substantial economic and personal risk for those living, working and extracting resources on Greenland, and for the rest of the planet. |
Pacific civil society cautions ISA of ‘bluewashing’ deep-sea mining
SUVA, Fiji, 20 May 2026 (PINA) - Pacific civil society groups are calling for transparency and inclusion in regional deep-sea mining talks, as environmental stewardship concerns and poor economic prospects accompany the corporate push. This cautionary call comes on the first day of the International Seabed Authority (ISA)’s Pacific Small Island Developing States regional workshop, the so-called ‘Deep Seabed Sustainable Blue Growth Initiative’ in Suva, Fiji. |
The battle over how to save orangutans from the curse of palm oil
LONDON, UK, 19 May 2026 (Guardian) - Since the 1970s, hundreds of hectares of forest in Borneo have been cleared to grow rice and pineapples and, more recently, oil palms. The large spiky palms with their red, bulbous, oil-rich fruit have become the main cash crop in this once densely forested area. Since the transmigration scheme opened up this area to new settlers in 2016, the orangutans’ forest habitat has been disappearing, and the settlers have found their crops and gardens invaded by unwelcome visitors. |
Greenlanders are not ‘experimental subjects’
LONDON, UK, 18 May 2026 (Guardian) - Greenland’s government has criticised the arrival of a US doctor in Nuuk alongside Donald Trump’s special envoy, Jeff Landry, saying that Greenlanders are not “experimental subjects”. Joseph Griffin said he had joined the delegation as a volunteer to “assess the medical needs” of the Arctic island, which the US president has repeatedly threatened to invade. Greenland’s health minister, Anna Wangenheim, immediately condemned his presence, describing it as “deeply problematic”. |
WMO warns of escalating climate extremes across Caribbean
CASTRIES, Saint Lucia, 19 May 2026 (IPS) - Faster-than-average sea level rise, intensifying hurricanes, extreme heat and worsening swings between drought and flooding are increasing pressure on Latin America and the Caribbean, according to a new report released by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The report warns that rising land and ocean temperatures, increasingly erratic rainfall patterns and rapidly intensifying tropical cyclones are hurting food systems, water security, public health and coastal communities across the region. |
Seabird habitats shrink as ocean heats up
PARIS, France, 19 May 2026 (AFP) - Climate change could push seabirds into smaller habitats and force them to fly farther to survive. While warmer oceans have historically caused fish and other marine species to shrink in size, seabirds such as albatrosses, shearwaters and petrels have seen their geographic range contract. In a worst-case warming scenario, 70 percent of species will reduce their range by 2100, with four of them most at risk of extinction - the Galapagos petrel, the Jouanin petrel, the Newell's shearwater and the white-vented storm petrel. |
Philippine fishing communities wary of clean energy boom
PASUQUIN, Philippines, 18 May 2026 (Mongabay) - The Philippines is currently highly dependent on fossil fuels for energy generation, but the government has committed to reaching 50% renewables by 2050. The resulting energy boom - especially in Ilocos North, the president’s home province - has seen an influx of foreign investment, but also raised questions about who will bear the costs of the country’s energy transition. Fishers in Ilocos Norte say they worry that wind energy projects in their traditional fishing grounds will disrupt marine life and fishing routes. |
Island fire on California National Park
SAN FRANCISCO, US, 17 May 2026 (SFGATE) - A wildfire on Santa Rosa, the second-largest island in California’s Channel Islands National Park, had burned over 10,000 acres Sunday night, destroying two historic structures and threatening rare plant species, with zero containment. |
Indonesia says its giant sea wall will stop flooding
BRISBANE, Australia, 17 May 2026 (Conversation) - Indonesia plans to build a “giant sea wall", more than 500 kilometres long, to defend Java’s north coast from rising sea levels. The proposal includes a large lagoon behind the colossal concrete wall, raising significant questions about the feasibility and cost of such a giant project. Indonesian civil society groups say the sea wall could prompt more sand mining, degrade mangroves and affect livelihoods of fishing communities. There are fears the project will worsen existing ecological destruction caused by industrialisation. While desperate to avoid flooding, these groups don’t see a wall as the solution. |
The Middle East is setting Pacific tuna fishing dynamics
SUVA, Fiji, 18 May 2026 (PINA) - When analysts discuss threats to global tuna supply chains, the usual suspects appear: overfishing, IUU fishing, climate change, labor standards, traceability gaps, and so on. These are real concerns, but the single biggest disruptor on the desk of every Pacific tuna vessel operator is none of them. It is a fuel invoice. Here is the number that matters: Singapore bunker fuel – the benchmark for Pacific fishing fleet operations – was trading at USD$709 per ton at the end of February. By 10 April, it had reached USD$1,630. Fuel prices doubled in six weeks. |
Solomon Islands has reinstated a ban on dolphin exports
WELLINGTON, New Zealand, 18 May 2026 (RNZ) - The Solomon Islands has reinstated a ban on dolphin exports - two days after it was quietly lifted. Amid the drama in parliament as MPs selected a new prime minister, care-taker Fisheries Minister Bradley Tovosia repealed the ban on his way out the door. The ban had encompassed live dolphin exports - mostly for zoos and aquariums - but also covered the export of dolphin meat. Incoming Prime Minister Matthew Wale, shortly before announcing his new Cabinet, announced that the ban would be reinstated, effective Saturday, 16 May. |
Hawaii's worst flooding in 20 years leaves farmers struggling
HONOLULU, Hawaii, 17 May 2026 (AP) - Across Oahu's North Shore, an area famed for its big-wave surfing, the small farms that help supply the island's food are struggling after back-to-back storms in March brought the state's worst flooding in two decades. Officials are pleading with farmers not to give up, stressing that local agriculture is crucial for the isolated archipelago. |
Weather Ready Pacific brings life saving connectivity to Pacific islands
'EUA, Tonga, 17 May 2026 (SPREP) - The Tonga Meteorological Service is installing Starlink satellite internet systems at strategic community centres and the Meteorology Office on the island of 'Eua, as part of the Weather Ready Pacific (WRP) Programme’s support to Pacific National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs). The installations, happening in May, are designed to strengthen weather forecasting and early warning services for village communities, ensuring that life-saving information reaches the people who need it most. |
Vietnam's US$5 billion Apec island is running out of time
HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, 17 May 2026 (SCMP) - Ahead of next year’s Apec summit, Vietnam has a grand plan to transform Phu Quoc, its largest island, into Southeast Asia’s leading conference and exhibition hub. The 137 trillion dong (US$5.2 billion) blueprint includes an airport overhaul, a light-rail line, clusters of luxury hotels and a brand-new sewerage system – much of it paid for by one of the country’s largest conglomerates, in return for tracts of land, operating concessions and the cachet of building national landmarks. But problems are stacking up 18 months before world leaders are set to descend on Phu Quoc for the November 2027 summit. Construction sites are short of workers, building materials and diesel. The 18km boulevard meant to connect the airport to the summit complex is unfinished. And not a single new hotel room has been built. |
Scientists catalog the fractal dimensions of more than 130,000 islands
NEW YORK, US, 16 May 2026 (SA) - In 1967 mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot observed that the coastline of Great Britain is impossible to measure - its perimeter gets longer the more closely you measure it. At that point he was eight years away from coining the term "fractal": a shape containing smaller parts similar in shape to the larger whole that become apparent as you zoom in, creating an infinite, and infinitely complex, repeated pattern. New research, stitches together geographic data for more than 130,000 of Earth’s islands to show that although the landmasses behave like fractals in certain respects, the extent to which they do differs depending on what geometric feature of the island you’re looking at. |
China critic Matthew Wale elected Solomon Islands prime minister
HONIARA, Solomon Islands, 15 May 2026 (Guardian) - Solomon Islands parliament has elected opposition leader Matthew Wale as PM, after incumbent Jeremiah Manele was ousted from power last week in a no-confidence vote, ushering in a change that analysts say will be closely watched by Australia and the US. |
A Baltic island as Russia's next test of NATO?
WARSAW, Poland, 15 May 2026 (Defence 24) - Russia may seek to test NATO’s resolve not through a full-scale conflict, but via limited provocations in the Baltic Sea region. According to Swedish reports, one of the scenarios under consideration involves the temporary seizure of one of the Baltic islands in order to test the speed, cohesion, and determination of the Alliance’s response. |
Digital inclusion for Rathlin Island
ALVA, UK, 15 May 2026 (HT) - Remote diagnostics and future digital services have been given a boost on Rathlin Island, Northern Ireland’s only inhabited offshore island, six miles off the Antrim coast. It is home to around 170 residents and accessible only by ferry, and has long faced the challenges typical of remote island communities: weather-dependent transport, limited terrestrial infrastructure, and chronic digital exclusion. |
These endangered birds survive by stealing from one another
NEW YORK, US, 15 May 2026 (NYT) - Brightly colored Hawaiian honeycreepers have evolved to survive in one of the most challenging environments on Earth. Now, researchers have identified an unexpected behavior helping them get by: stealing nest materials from one another. |
The Southern Ocean is key to our planet's future
LONDON, UK, 13 May 2026 (Mongabay) - The wildlife-rich Southern Ocean is not simply another stretch of water in need of protection: just one part of it - the Antarctic Peninsula - is home to roughly a third of the global krill population, which sustains large populations of whales, penguins, seals, seabirds, fish and more. The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) is responsible for governing these waters, and the U.K. is set to chair its pivotal 45th annual meeting this year. |
Invasive stoats spread to Orkney's outer isles
KIRKWALL, UK, 14 May 2026 (BBC) - Stoats have spread from mainland Orkney to the outer isles, experts have confirmed. The creature, which is not native to the islands and considered invasive, was spotted in Rousay last week. It was photographed on a camera set up by the Orkney Native Wildlife Project (ONWP), a £15m stoat eradication scheme set up in 2019. For the team at ONWP, who have trapped around 8,000 stoats so far, this is an unsettling development - though not necessarily a surprising one. |
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