How Mushrooms That Eat Plastic Can Help Fight Pollution

The fate of the Southeast's longleaf pine forests, and the endangered woodpeckers that depend on them, is in jeopardy. Fort Bragg, a station of the US military, is trying to save their local environment.

13 years ago, Brazil didn't have satellite data or heat mapping to track illegal logging. Neither did they have weapon wielding agents working to stop ecological crime. These tools, in addition to the help of indigenous Brazilians is making the goal of ending Amazon deforestation by 2030 seem more and more likely.

After once again being granted rights to their native land, the Martu people are bringing back the bioregenerative technique of small-scale land burning. In the past century, wildfires have ravaged the areas these people call home and has lead to the loss of over 18 species of animal. They hope that imparting this traditional method of ecological maintenance will decrease the number of wildfires and in many cases, the resulting extinction of other animal species.

Threatened wildlife co-exists with poverty stricken communities who inhabit the Arizona-Mexico border region. Borderlands Restoration's conservation scientists are hoping to alleviate poverty while repairing the local environment by providing jobs that help preserve and renew the environment.

In a randomized experiment in western Uganda, scientists demonstrated the effectiveness of paying rural farmers not to chop down trees since deforestation contributes to CO2 emissions worldwide. They studied for two years the declines in forest cover between a control group (no payment) and the participant group (paid). Building on a United Nations project in which wealthy nations pay poorer ones in an attempt to equalize the costs of responding to climate change, the outcome of the project proves the existence of a low-cost environmental policy solution to stemming rising global temperatures.

More golf courses are closing than are opening, allowing the rare opportunity to have open space in an urban environment. Restorations are becoming popular to allow wildlife and humans to make use of the natural space through the encouragement of different animals and plants to inhabit the same area as well as the development of parks and bike paths to foster human use.

There's a mezcal boom happening around the world, but it originates in Oaxaca, Mexico. There some of the biggest players in the game are actively working to influence and stabilize the agave industry through sustainable practices.

Agroforestry, is the practice of planting trees around crops, which can yield many benefits to farmers and the environment. In India, agroforestry is helping tigers stay alive.

Despite the Yucatan Peninsula being known as a hotspot for deforestation, the Tres Garantías cooperative has found a way to source sap from the forest's trees that doesn’t permanently damage the tree. The sap is used to create organic gum – the only of its kind – and is then shipped out around the world. This practice is not only sustainable for the rainforest, but it also sustains the livelihoods of the indigenous communities that are doing the work.

As climate change continues to threaten the survival of native plants species and the health of the eco-systems they support, the North Carolina Arboretum’s Germplasm Repository is taking a clever new approach to the preservation of native plant seeds: pushing to capitalize on their commercial value. Plant physiologists like Joe-Ann McCoy know that the best method for saving many species may also create jobs and boost local economies, when businesses start leveraging the medicinal uses of native plants for products like herbal supplements.