CONSERVATION NEWS

News, views and features from the front lines of conservation

© Kyle Obermann

After nearly 50 years, water back on the global agenda

By Mary Kate McCoy

March 22, 2023
This week, the United Nations holds its first global freshwater conference in nearly 50 years. In the years since, the global population has doubled — yet the challenges facing the health of, and access to, freshwater resources have been largely overshadowed by the climate and biodiversity crises.
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It's 2023 — is this the year fresh water has its moment?

By Mary Kate McCoy

January 17, 2023
From roaring rivers to seasonal springs, freshwater is essential to life on Earth. Yet these ecosystems — and the species within them — tend to be overlooked, receiving only a fraction of the attention and funding dedicated to nature conservation.
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News spotlight: Cities turn to nature to revive their rivers

By Mary Kate McCoy

December 12, 2022
In case you missed it: Around the world, rivers have been treated like repositories of trash and toxic runoff — some so heavily polluted that they caught on fire. Now, cities from Australia to Europe to North America are turning to nature to restore their waterways.
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Notes from the field: Protecting an African oasis

By Mary Kate McCoy

November 17, 2022
Three countries — Angola, Botswana and Namibia — share the precious freshwater resources of the Cubango-Okavango River Basin, an oasis in the heart of the Kalahari Desert.
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The constructed wetlands were created by the people in Xiadong Village.
© Conservation International

In China, engineered wetlands remove waste from fresh water

By Kiley Price

August 24, 2022
In China, “engineered wetlands” are helping villages decontaminate their water by moving it through traditional infrastructure — such as shallow septic tanks — and into natural ecosystems such as marshes, plants and soil that absorb pollutants.
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