Maine island fishermen have recycled thousands of old lobster traps
| | BOSTON, US, 24 April 2026 (WBUR) - A common scene up and down Maine's coast are battered wire fishing traps piled high in a front yard, tucked back in the woods, or strewn along the shore after a storm. Wire pots wrapped with polyvinyl plastic replaced wooden, biodegradable traps in the 1980s, and they've been piling up since, shedding microplastics and creating hazards for birds and other creatures. |
Why the global oil shock is hitting NZ's small Pacific neighbours hard
| | AUCKLAND, New Zealand, 24 April 2026 (Conversation) - When Tuvalu recently moved to declare a state of emergency, it laid bare a major vulnerability long faced by New Zealand’s small and far-flung Pacific neighbours. That is their heavy reliance on imported fuel - delivered through long and often fragile supply chains - to power electricity, transport and other essential services. With a population of just over 10,600, Tuvalu spends roughly one quarter of its GDP on imported petroleum. With limited storage capacity and few alternatives, it requires regular diesel shipments to keep the lights on and services running. |
A shark meat processing village and market in Lombok
| | EAST LOMBOK, Indonesia, 24 April 2026 (Mongabay) - Indonesia consistently ranks as the top shark-catching nation in the world. The fish market in Tanjung Luar village on the island of Lombok is often called the country’s biggest for sharks and nearby Rumbuk village, an important shark meat processing center. Shark meat has quietly surpassed shark fins in international trade volume and value. In East Lombok it sells for as little as 29 cents a skewer. |
Jakarta port authorities seize 3 tons of pangolin scales
| | JAKARTA, Indonesia, 24 April 2026 (Mongabay) - Customs and excise investigators in Jakarta continue to trace the origin of more than 3 metric tons of pangolin scales found in late February inside a shipping container at Indonesia’s largest port. |
No 10 says Falklands sovereignty rests with UK
| | LONDON, UK, 24 April 2026 (BBC) - Sovereignty of the Falkland Islands "rests with the UK", Downing Street has said, following a report the US could review its position on Britain's claim to the territory. An internal Pentagon email reported by Reuters suggested the US was considering options to punish Nato allies it believed failed to support its war on Iran. |
Divers use underwater speakers to help dying coral reefs
| | LONDON, UK, 24 April 2026 (Guardian) - The northern coast of Jamaica once served as the backdrop for scenes in the James Bond thriller No Time to Die. But today, beneath those same turquoise waves, a real-life mission is unfolding: the race to pull a dying coral reef back from the brink. However, the tools a team of divers are carrying to the seafloor are not what you would expect to find in a marine biologist’s kit. They are installing waterproof speakers at the bottom of the ocean, and the man leading the team is not a scientist. |
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IWRA |
 | | 1st Islands Water Congress 4-6 Sept, 2024, Torshavn, Faroe Islands |
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ANATOMY OF ISLANDS |
| | 12th Anatomy of Islands symposium 26-28 Sept, 2024, Jelsa, Hvar Island, Croatia |
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CIS |
| | Critical Island Studies 4th international conference 3-4 Oct, 2024, Manila, Philippines |
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CBD |
| | COP16 21 Oct-1 Nov, 2024, Cali, Colombia |
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UNFCCC |
| | COP29 11-22 November, 2024, Baku, Azerbaijan |
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ISLAND DYNAMICS |
| | DARKNESS II conference, 20-23 January 2025, Nuuk, Greenland |
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JICAS |
| | Islands And Island Studies conference 3-7 June, 2025, Jersey, Channel Islands |
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UNITED NATIONS |
| | UN Ocean Conference 9-13 June, 2025, Nice, France |
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UPEI |
| | 3rd international conference on SIS and SNIJs 16-20 June, 2025, Charlottetown, PEI |
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GSIS |
| | Global Sustainable Islands Summit 20-22 April, 2026, Gran Canaria, Spain |
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SICRI |
| | Island Studies International Conference 25-28 June, 2026, Tacloban City, Leyte Islands, Philippines |
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ISISA |
| | 20th Islands of the World Conference 7-11 July 2026, Shinan County, Jeollanam-do, South Korea |
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SPREP |
| | 11th Pacific Islands Conference for Nature Conservation and Protected Areas, 7–11 September 2026, Noumea, New Caledonia |
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