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Rwanda’s Gorilla Tourism Under The Microscope

2008-07-25T12:45:05Z

Silverback gorillas in Uganda

With an ever increasing population density and need for agricultural land, the gorilla park in Rwanda has been under great threat from the expansion of neighbouring communities. As a result the park area has almost halved in size from 340km2 to only 160 km2.

Threats from neighbouring communities include encroachment in search for agricultural land, bush meat, and honey collection leading to forest fires; water collection; bamboo cutting and baby gorilla trafficking among others. Around the park there is a population density of approximately 500 people/km2, creating enormous pressure on park resources. If we do not provide an alternative source of income for these communities tourism may soon dry up as the gorilla park continues to shrink in size.

If we do not provide an alternative source of income for these communities tourism may soon dry up as the gorilla park continues to shrink in size

Mountain gorilla tourism in the Parc National des Volcans provides more than 80% of tourism income for the national economy, giving the government a great incentive to protect the park using policing methods. However if government efforts are to be sustained a few critical questions need to be answered: To what extent do communities threaten the park and its resources? Do community members have an incentive to protect the park? Do they have alternative sources of livelihood? How well can we involve them in conservation efforts and help them benefit from this natural resource?

There are a number of ways: Tourism to the park is currently monopolized by private domestic and international companies, if the local community were included in this industry then income levels in the surrounding villages could be increased. Involving and enabling communities to develop tourism based enterprises so that they can benefit from the mountain gorilla tourist market is one such strategy for sustaining local involvement with the park. Rwanda Eco-Tours is aiming to contribute to this effort by sharing its profits from tours and other tourism related businesses with local community projects that promote conservation of the park, and support a change in livelihood for the neighbouring population. We are doing this because we believe that as Rwandans, we should be the primary agents of conservation and encourage co-existence of wildlife and people.

Climate Change = Cultural Change

2008-07-26T09:26:02Z

Enjoy the simple life

You can’t help hearing about climate change these days… It’s everywhere. Live Earth, documentaries, politics. In fashion speech, climate change is the new black.

But what to do about it? We’ve been told we can become more environmentally friendly by making changes to our lifestyle by recycling, walking instead of taking the car, and holidaying locally instead of abroad. In a turn towards conscious consumerism, people are now also buying ‘green’: ‘green’ food with a low carbon footprint, ‘green’ cars with lower carbon emissions, ‘green’ clothing and bags which are made from sustainable materials. All commendable actions. However, I fear that the whole conversation about climate changes misses one fundamental and crucial point. That is, that the exponential change in the environment over recent years is due to increasing human consumption. We eat more, buy more, own more, travel more and do everything on an exponentially larger scale these days. Quite frankly, the solution is not to buy ‘green’, but simply not to buy unless necessary. Don’t buy a green car - get rid of the car. Don’t buy a green handbag - do not buy the handbag at all.

The real solution to climate change is in going back to basics and focussing on our needs instead of our wants. Does anyone really need a brand new, 5 litre engine BMW? Do anyone really need to fly all the way around the world on holiday in order to spend quality with their kids? Nice as these things are, unfortunately they are luxuries which put an extra burden on the earth’s resources. Modern-day Western society is a consumerist one. We are encouraged to buy as much as we possibly can. On a daily basis, we are fed messages through advertising and media that we are only as good as our latest possession or purchase.

As other parts of the world - China for example - become more developed, and inevitably latch on to the ‘all you can own’ mentality of the West, consuming will continue to increase and the effects of climate change will become even more destructive. In order to combat climate change, there needs to be an about-turn in our cultural and societal values. This will mean a turn towards simplicity, contentment with what we have, with getting the most out of the many things that we do currently own. However, this is the anthithesis of consumerism, which is at the heart of Western society, and is a powerful economic driving force. I personally do not see consumerism and a healthy environment as being compatible. Even ‘conscious’ consumerism is still consumerism and results in environmental damage. At present, schemes like ‘offsetting’ - which allow you to ‘compensate’ for your carbon emissions by doing things such as planting trees - are nothing more than ways in which people can continue to live the way that have always done and alleviate their guilt by buying their way out of it.

There has been much talk about simplying lifestyles. That is precisely what needs to be done. But it involves a significant and profound change in our mindsets, which has to be led by those who actually want our money in the first place, since they also spend so much of their resources on convincing us that we are natural born shoppers . The question is - would they be willing to do this since they may experience a direct loss in business/trade over time? I’m not so sure. I’m no saint believe me. I clocked up over 100,000 airmiles last year and am pretty sure I have a huge carbon footprint. But I have been thinking about this more and more, and living from an ‘attitude of gratitude’ to me seems to be the way forward in doing my part towards saving the earth…

I’d love to see our society adopt an attitude of gratitude anyway, because I don’t think a consumerist mindset is a healthy one simply because it encourages you to feel dissatisfied with what you have, and to continually seek to fill internal needs with external wants. But until this cultural/societal mind-shift occurs, I doubt any significant progress in reducing the way the climate is changing will be made.

The Green Route: London To Dublin

2008-07-30T10:58:29Z

Dublin's only a train and a boat ride away

Apart from the obvious and important green credentials associated with ’sailing and railing’, how does a land and sea based journey from London to Dublin compare with travelling by air?

Once again The Man in Seat 61 delivered. A sail-rail ticket from any UK train station to Dublin port (10 minutes from Dublin city centre) is available for £52 return up until the day of travel - an extremely competitive offering for the last minute traveller - and considering the savings available on airport transfers at both ends, sail-rail can be a real financial alternative to Ryan Air.

I left London Euston Station aboard the 0900 service direct to Holyhead, North Wales. It was a few minutes late leaving due to the late arrival of the incoming train, but that gave me plenty of time to grab some breakfast. Seats can be reserved and as a result I immediately began to wallow in the stress free beginning to my journey. As with any ticket for a long train journey you also buy time for yourself. It isn’t often that we take time to sit without any distractions. Contemplating the distance ahead gave a real sense of value for money - so often train travel in the UK is such an expense.

First stop en route was Rugby, followed by a short delay in Crewe awaiting a diesel engine to take us on to Holyhead - A break welcomed by smokers given that Crewe is the last stop before the non-smoking platforms of North Wales. From Crewe we passed through Rhyl and Colwyn Bay enjoying sea views and the beginnings of the undulating North Wales countryside. Llandudo Junction marks the start of the North Wales craggy landscape that becomes characteristic of Snowdonia National Park further inland. After stopping in Bangor we were on the last stretch into Holyhead, arriving at 13:20 with just under an hour until the ferry departed. Transfering from train to ferry terminal involves little more than a walk of a few hundred metres. I checked-in straight away and stepped onto a bus that carried us right onto the ferry before offloading at the base of stairs to the upper decks.

Being onboard the ferry isn’t too disimilar from an airport departure lounge. However, comfy seats, the option of getting some fresh air out on deck and a lack of tannoy annoucements make it all the more appealing. Holidays for many of us are all about spending time away from the trappings of home in a new space, and this means of travel seems to enhance the opportunities for that whilst imparting a great deal of charm. For the solo traveller it also provides quiet time or the chance to meet and talk with others making the same journey as you.

The Ferry left Holyhead at 1410 and pulled into Dublin at 1730. The Bureau de Change at the port was closed and I had no Euros, but with the assistance of a cash machine just outside and some friendly staff at the Irish Ferries desk I was able to acquire enough change to pay the 2.50 Euro fare for the bus into town. I had checked-in to my Hostel and was drinking a Guiness by 1830 - 9.5 hours after leaving London.

Some bad weather on the return journey made for a rocky crossing, a slightly delayed arrival into Holyhead and consequently a missed train connection. Despite this, together with the added problem of having lost my train ticket to the fierce winds on the ferry deck I still managed to make it back to London without too much trouble.

6 Ways To Get Involved In Marine Conservation

2008-08-07T21:07:40Z

These “6 Ways To Get Involved in Marine Conservation” come courtesy of Blue Ventures who have partnered with Coral Cay Conservation (CCC) and the Project AWARE Foundation to hold public events and educational activities throughout International Year Of The Reef (IYOR) 2008, to promote reef conservation and motivate people to take action to protect them.

8th June – 30th September: Ocean in Focus Conservation Photography Contest: SeaWeb’s Marine Photobank and Project AWARE Foundation invite you to submit your compelling ocean-themed photos to the Ocean in Focus Conservation Photography Contest, which opened on World Ocean Day, June 8th, and runs until September 30th.

1st July – 31st August: Reef Check Underwater Photo Contest: In celebration of IYOR 2008, Reef Check is running an International “What do reefs mean to you?” Photo Contest. The contest will highlight the numerous ways in which people value their local reefs through activities such as diving, snorkeling, surfing and fishing, as well as indigenous cultural activities and commercial ventures such as tourism. The goal is to persuade people, through appreciation of these images, to take actions that benefit these ecosystems.

13th and 14th September: Thames Festival: CCC will be promoting IYOR 2008 and talking about coral reef conservation at this end-of-summer festival in London. The event is free and always popular so take this opportunity to visit the stand and get your face painted in the name of reef conservation!

20th September: International Coastal Cleanup: Project AWARE Foundation will spearhead global underwater cleanups during International Coastal Cleanup 2008.

11th – 19th October: European Shark Week: The second annual European Shark Week is a unique opportunity for people across Europe to demonstrate their support for shark conservation in a way that can really effect change.

25th October – 2nd November: Surf Week: Surf on down to the Bournemouth Oceanarium during October half term for a quiz trail, craft activity and much, much more! IYOR will be holding special talks focusing on coral conservation.

Revolution: Two Irishmen To Cycle The World

2008-09-24T15:21:44Z

Fearghal and Simon

Long time friends Simon Evans and Fearghal O’Nuallain are setting off on 2nd November to be the first Irish men to circumnavigate the globe by bicycle. Last year we saw Tom Allen and Andy Welch leave the UK around this time to ‘Ride Earth‘ - their planned adventure has recently resumed, albeit on separate paths following an extended stay in Armenia. Tom is now on his way through Iran.

The journey for revolution is planned to cover 30,000km and cross 30 countries in 16 months. Their route will take them south through France and Spain before heading westwards across the Atlantic to South America. It’s taken three years of planning and training to get here and now the trip is about to commence. Simon and Feargal will be raising money for mental health charity Aware over the course of their journey.

You can join them on their first leg from Blackrock College, Dublin to Greystones, County Wicklow at 10am on 2nd November; or wish them well at their big send off dinner on 25th October - 8pm, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire.

Blue Ventures: Still Winning Awards

2008-10-29T11:03:33Z

Photo: Mr. Samba receives the Getty award with his family / Photo Blue Ventures

Blue Ventures is one marine conservation organisation finding it hard to keep a low profile. Their work in Madagascar has been recognised by the Responsible Travel Awards three times - “Best in a Marine Environment” (2004), “Best Volunteering Organisation” (2006), “Best in a Marine Environment” (2007) - and they are up again this year. They won the “General Countryside” category in the 2006 Skål International Eco-tourism Awards, a United Nations SEED Award (UNDP, UNEP, IUCN) in 2005 and the prestigious Equator Prize (United Nations Development Programme) in 2007. Enterprising Young Brits recognised their work in 2005 and 2006.

Most recently their work was acknowledged by the Ashoka and National Geographic Geotourism Challenge in which they were Finalists and the prestigious Getty Award “The Nobel Prize for Conservation” was awarded to Mr. Roger Samba this month, President of the Velondriake Committee. Roger Samba is president of the remote village of Andavadoaka in southwest Madagascar where Blue Ventures are based, and with no background in conservation organized the world’s first community run no-take zone for octopus, a local species of critical economic importance to the community, drove legislation on this and other laws to benefit the environment. Over the last three years the pilot conservation project for octopus has evolved into an 800 square kilometre community-managed protected area known as Velondriake. It now encompasses 24 villages around Andavadoaka and is one of the most ambitious locally-managed coastal conservation initiatives in the Indian Ocean, incorporating coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds along 50km of coastline.

Alasdair Harris, director of scientific research at Blue Ventures said:

“Under Samba’s leadership the Andavadoaka project proved so successful that eight neighbouring villages instituted their own protected areas for octopus in order to reap similar benefits. The national government of Madagascar in 2005 also used the project as a model to create similar seasonal closures across the country. The project is a proven example of how economic development can both inspire and benefit from the conservation of natural resources.”

Video: Alasdair Harris talks about Blue Ventures

Samba will use his award to establish fellowships for students pursuing masters, doctoral, and post-doctoral degrees in conservation-related fields at a university of his choice in Madagascar.

Blue Ventures is currently expanding its work in southern Madagascar with an ambitious African Development Bank-funded project that aims to develop over 50 locally-managed marine reserves along more than 300km of coast over five years.

For information on volunteer opportunities with Blue Ventures please visit their expeditions section.

Blue Ventures Press Releases:

You might be interested in: ‘Sorting The Wheat From The Chaff‘, ‘Blue Ventures: Good Ecology Is Good Business‘, ‘6 Ways To Get Involved In Marine Conservation‘.

Travellers’ Animal Alert: 6 Issues Of Concern

2008-11-13T12:09:48Z

The Born Free Foundation is a wildlife charity working to protect wild animals in the wild and prevent the suffering of captive animals. Their Zoo Check program was first launched in 1984 and was followed by a series of campaigns. The Foundation was established later in 1991. Husband and wife actors Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers Founded the organisation following their roles in the 1966 film ‘Born Free’, based on the true story of George and Joy Adamson returning an orphaned Lioness into the wilds of Africa.

Born Free have prepared a comprehensive list of some issues of concern that exist in captive animal attractions and that may be detrimental to the wellbeing and conservation of species. There is also a list of travellers tips detailing what to look out for both at home and abroad in captive facilities and in the wild.

Zoos - Many countries comply with minimum standards in animal care and inappropriate conditions persist due to limited resources and a lack of knowledge or negligence. All animals, regardless of their circumstance, are entitled to regular feeding, access to clean water and a clean environment that allows them to move and exercise freely. They should also be afforded facilities that protect them from adverse weather conditions and direct contact with humans, allowing the animal privacy and refuge as well as constant opportunities to express natural behaviour.
Elephant treks - Elephants used in ‘treks’, or those that partake in ‘performances’ at elephant facilities and camps across India, Thailand & Sri Lanka are domesticated, they are not domestic animals and still pose a real threat to human safety. Training regimes for these animals, which have been taken from the wild, can be harsh and control is inflicted using the ankus, or bull-hook. Elephants should not be chained but instead maintained in herds.
Animals as photographic props - This is particularly common in popular tourist resorts including Spain, Mexico and Thailand where visitors are targeted to pay to have their photograph taken holding one of these, or similar animals. In the majority of cases the animals suffer cramped and inadequate living conditions; are drugged, ‘de-clawed’ and ‘de-fanged’; and once they become too large to handle, face an uncertain future in a ‘slum’ zoo, circus, or worse.
Dolphins and Whales in captivity and in the wild - Direct contact between wild animals and humans should be discouraged on welfare and health grounds. Italy and Brazil have banned the touching and public feeding of, as well as swimming with, dolphins and whales on welfare grounds. Training wild animals for shows requires them to perform unnatural behaviour and ‘stunts’ that may sometimes be dangerous. The captive dolphin industry is currently unsustainable and due to high mortalities and low breeding success, as well as high demand for new dolphinaria, wild animals are regularly captured from the wild.
Wildlife viewing - Despite the availability of some good practice guidance, the viewing of wildlife in the wild is often abused: safari jeeps veering off road; whale-watching boats chasing dolphins; interference and encroachment; and in some cases encouraging tourists to have direct contact with the wild animals. These are examples of bad practice.
Captive animals used for Chinese Medicine - Tiger farms are known to exist throughout China to actively breed and stockpile animals should the current ban on the use of tiger body parts in Traditional Chinese Medicine be relaxed. Bears are often caught from the wild using leg-hold traps, moon bears are kept in tiny cages and, via a catheter surgically attached to their bile duct, continually milked for their bile. The bile is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Bears endure a life of pain, are often emaciated and have incurred terrible wounds. These farms are found in China and Vietnam. Work is underway by the charity Animals Asia to rescue and rehabilitate hundreds of bears from Bear Bile Farms.

If you’ve seen something that you’re not happy with then Born Free want to hear from you. Photographs or video footage is the best way to back up your claims. Collect as much information as you can. Every report submitted to Born Free is reviewed and logged to help identify ‘hot spots’ and campaign areas.

Electricity Consumers. Meet The Enawene Nawe Tribe

2008-11-18T17:35:58Z

Construction in progress / Photo by Survival

The Enawene Nawe are a small Amazonian tribe in an area of savannah and tropical rainforest in Mato Grosso state, western Brazil. They are a relatively isolated people first contacted in 1974 by Jesuit missionaries. Today they number around 500 and live in large communal houses or malocas that radiate out from a central square where ritual and communal activities are performed. They chose for many years to have very little interaction with the outside world, but threats to their land have led them to campaign vigorously for their rights. The Enawene Nawe say the 77 hydroelectric dams to be built on the River Juruena will pollute the water and stop fish reaching their spawning grounds.

During the fishing season the men build dams across rivers in this area and spend several months camped in the forest, catching and smoking the fish which is then transported by canoe to their village. Fish is an essential part of the Enawene Nawe diet and plays a vital part in rituals such as Yãkwa, a four-month exchange of food between humans and spirits. The Enawene Nawe also grow manioc and corn in gardens and gather forest products. Honey gathering is celebrated in keteoko (the honey feast) when men collect large amounts of wild honey in the forest and hide it on their return to the village, only revealing it when the women start to dance. Unusually for an Amazonian tribe, they do not hunt or eat red meat. Most of their land was officially recognised in 1996, but this crucial area called the Rio Preto where they gather to fish was left out.

Land invasion is destroying the forest and polluting the land and rivers

For decades the Enawene Nawe have faced invasion of their lands by rubber tappers, diamond prospectors, cattle ranchers and more recently soya planters, all destroying the forest and polluting the land and rivers. Maggi, the largest soya company in Brazil illegally built a road on their land in 1997. This was subsequently closed by a federal prosecutor. Blairo Maggi who owns the soya company is also the governor of Mato Grosso state who are now building this vast complex of hydroelectric dams upriver from the Rio Preto.

“They are at a critical point in their history. Either the deforestation of the Rio Preto area and the dams are stopped or the Enawene Nawe will no longer be able to fish, which is crucial to their survival, their beliefs and their relationship with the spirit world.”

- Survival

You can read more about the plight of the Enawene Nawe on the Survival website. Survival supports a land protection project run by the Enawene Nawe and the Brazilian non-governmental organisation OPAN. A short film on their Tribal Channel, shows how the Enawene Nawe rely on the forest and the rivers, and tells how their ancestral spirits will respond to the destruction of their land.

Tribewanted: Sustainable Development Report

2008-12-05T11:32:42Z

Snorkeling around Vorovoro / Photo by Ben Keene

Our vision of the future is dependent upon our understanding of the past. We have to this point largely ignored the fact that we will never be able to separate ourselves from our environment and that any destruction we cause to it is a senseless act of self destruction. As we come together to turn our vison of a sustainable tomorrow into a reality we must remember that this means more than exchanging coal power plants for wind turbines.

So, how have we been doing this on the island of Vorovoro recently???

Community & Consciousness

Physical resources are only one part of what we as humans beings need. The greatest challenge of our time will be to protect and adapt the wisdom of the ethnosphere to our modern way of life. To live in harmony and in balance with our environment we must first come to know our place within it. We must know where we have come from to know where we are, and where we are going. If we are to reclaim our place as stewards of the planet and gain the knowledge necessary to start the regeneration of the crumbling ecosphere we must never stop asking ourselves, what does it mean to be human and what is our responsibility to those with whom we share this planet?

Water

Safety has come up a few times during our exploration of the land above the waterfall. Safety for the plants - are we destroying a unique habitat? Safety for the land - could our activities contribute to erosion and destroy the waterfall? Safety to people and animals - could the reservoir prove dangerous and how high can we build this thing without risking the stone breaking under the pressure?

As we have gone about answering these questions it has reminded me that we are guests here. Not just in the sense that we are leasing this land, but rather in the sense that our time here is short. This project if done properly could be here for hundreds of years. It can always be taken down, but if left alone, the new habitat that we are creating will last far beyond all of our lives. The Fijians know this. They live this realization everyday and it is a great comfort to be working on this project with them, and with their blessings. How can you plan for a future that you can???t see? Can we ever really know what the consequences of our actions will be? The best we can do is act upon the knowledge and information that we have at the time and never stop asking why? or what if? Thanks to everyone for raising your concerns and questions. It has made this project more complete, better defined and surely has a better chance of success because of you. If this new resevior can store enough water to keep the gardens growing year round, and If nobody gets hurt in the process, I will consider it a success.

Last week we started by clearing a trail up to the basin. We learned an interesting story from the Fijians. There is a lava tube on the ridge above the basin and according to local legend, the spirit gaurd of Vanua Levu lives there. The story goes that disguised as a shark, he swam out of the sea, turned into a man, walked down the beach, turned into a dog, ran up the hill and now lives on Vorovoro. I am still trying to learn his name as I think it would be appropriate to name the reservior after him.

Food

The seasons here are changing and we are clearing more land and expanding the gardens. Yesterday, Leavi, Sophie and I planted corn. The Native Americans planted what they called The Three Sisters: Beans to grow up the corn stalks and squash to cover the ground, keeping down the weeds.

It has also become apparent that our food statistics are way off the mark. Twenty-five percent food sustainability as we have reported in the past is well under the actual number. Much of the food that is gathered on the island goes straight into our bellies without being recorded. We are taking steps to change this including initiating weekly meetings with the kitchens and supplying all the kitchens with the neccessary tools to weigh and record their food but it will take time to change habits.

Energy

The partnership we are forming with True Offsets could prove to be a monumental leap forward for our energy production capabilities and allow us to really think big. Nothing has been finalized yet so I can???t reveal too many details but if you can picture scuba diving facilities and a radio broadcasting station then you aren???t too far off the mark.

We are also looking at installing new energy monitoring hardware from theenergydetective.com that will help us to show how much power we are generating, how much we are using and how much excess we have that we can utilize.

Waste

Vanua Levu and Fiji in general for that matter are terrible as far as recycling goes. We are continuously looking for new ways to divert our waste from the landfill by finding creative uses for it. We are also in the process of restructuring our waste collection system to make it easier for tribemembers and for the kitchen to properly dispose of their waste. Unfortunately this has had to take a back seat as we press to get the spillway finished before the rainy season makes work above the waterfall too difficult.

Waiting For The Coral To Spawn

2008-12-10T14:40:30Z

Coral spawning / Photo by Blue Ventures

Just as the Greeks sat silently until nightfall in the belly of a horse-faced statue, we too wait. Coral spawning has been talked of in hushed tones and excited squeaks since our arrival in Madagascar???s south west corner. The season is perfect, as the Austral spring turns to summer and the waters warm. The carefully selected sprigs of coral removed from the reef for inspection have borne fruit in the form of orange speck-like eggs. What we await is a single night where all the different corals will simultaneously decide to reproduce.

Amazingly, it is still unknown exactly what triggers the commencement of the reef???s busiest night of the year. Water temperature, chemical signals and the phases of the moon are all thought to play their part; the exact combination of these that prompts the coral to release a snowstorm of eggs and sperm is still a cryptic riddle. What is sure is that this benthic orgy also serves as an all-you-can-eat buffet for the other inhabitants of the African reef - the smaller fish eating the eggs but falling prey themselves to the larger species attracted by the flurry of the feeding frenzy. All the divers here, from kid to grandpa, want to be in the water to view the spectacle.

Our hopes remained unfulfilled on my first ever night dive: nonetheless, it was a fascinating if eerie experience. As we descended into the briny blackness I was aware of the near shadows of crepuscular sea-dwellers all around. Only my high-powered dive torch was able to illuminate the familiar, and less familiar reef animals. The night-time makes these sightings seem more dream-like, with the spotlights of each diver highlighting the contrast between light and dark. The colours and creatures appear hyper-realistic as though they were characters from a Disney cartoon. Our 3am start to the day was well rewarded; we encountered a green turtle slumbering under a convenient coral outcrop; a fully inflated pufferfish and a quickly retiring octopus ??? maybe embarrassed that we had caught him in the midst of his nightly ablutions.

As we headed back to base in the pre-light of the early dawn we all felt the thrill of a successful dive but the lingering awareness that it might be the next crew of night-divers, rather than us, who would be the first spectators of the big event.?? So we go on waiting until the next time we are chosen for a twilight sortie. Meanwhile the dark clouds gather in the distance and threatening rumbles of thunder emanate from further inland. We hope that the rains act in kind and wait a little longer before coming to Andavadoaka.

Goodbye cheap flights, welcome back real travel...

2008-05-28T15:57:02Z

Rising fuel costs may soon put an end to the cheap flights boom, but there is still reason to be cheerful, says Mark Smith, the Man in Seat Sixty-One

Update from our Expedition Manager: The Joy of Fish!

2008-05-19T11:54:00Z

From Ruth:

I have now been in Andavadoaka working for Blue Ventures for 7 months. I've been 'fish enabled' for about 5 of those months, and am out there doing fish point outs and tests with volunteers during their training period, and collecting data towards the end of the expedition.

In order to be science enabled I had to get 98% on my in-water and computer fish ID tests. With 150 fish to learn, it was quite daunting initially and took me quite a while before I was confident in the water to know what I was seeing. The most amazing thing about this is that 5 months on, I still get a thrill when I'm diving and I can identify the majority of the fish that I'm seeing on a dive. I love it when one of our 150 fish shows up on a dive if I haven't seen it for a while. I saw a scythe triggerfish today and greeted it like an old friend because it's been months since I saw one. I felt so happy that I saw it, and instantly knew what it was. I have Tristan (one of our field scientists) to thank for this, as his training was rigorous and, at times, relentless. But it was all worth it.

But being able to identify fish on site is not the most amazing thing about diving here. It's the fact that there's more fish out there that I don't know. Last week, I had a fantastic dive on one of our near shore sites and was so excited by the new fish that I'd never seen before, that I had to rush back, go to our fish ID books, and work out what they were. It was a great feeling to identify them, and know that in over 400 dives (not just here!), it's possible that I've never positively identified those fish before - possibly never even seen at least one of them before. Just in case you're interested, they were: a yellowsaddle goatfish, a blackedge thicklip wrasse and a sunset wrasse. I'm sure that no matter how many fish I learn, I'll never lose the thrill of coming back from a dive with a new fish to identify, look up and write into my log book.

Airlines stage fightback on environmental criticism

2008-06-03T10:50:04Z

Airlines have signalled the start of a fightback against green criticism of the industry, blaming the media for negative publicity over their contribution to climate change

Green Honeymoon Ideas

2008-05-16T16:54:34Z

With increased awareness of environmental issues, many people are putting more of an effort into choosing green lifestyle options; this includes where to go and what to do on honeymoon. It’s no longer popular to lie basking in the sun being waited on hand and foot, although plenty still class that as the ultimate luxury. [...]

In Myanmar, Mangroves Out, Flooding In

2008-05-15T21:27:40Z

Mangrove destruction worsened flooding destruction in Myanmar.

The Food and Energy Research Gaps

2008-05-18T04:42:38Z

A "gathering storm" from lagging research in food and energy?

The Departed

2008-06-10T04:21:57Z

The departed: a seal makes the growing extinction list.

Emptied Mediterranean - Sharks Nearly Gone

2008-06-11T18:08:15Z

Mediterranean sharks are nearly a memory.

A bus too far?

2008-03-08T00:00:27Z

Today tickets go on sale for an express coach service from London to China. Is BuddhaBus the future for low-impact long-haul travel or the journey from hell?

Lao Forests Plundered At Increasing Rate

2008-03-22T21:33:00Z

Trucks with logs lined up at the border to Vietnam

In my wanderings across cyberspace I stumbled upon this photo a few weeks ago with the caption, "Trucks carrying logs from Khammouane Province in Laos to Ha Tinh Province in Vietnam".

At the time I assumed a fellow tourist had spotted the trucks and logs and taken a photo. The rest of the photos on the flikr account were also good and from out of the way places.

Then this week I ran across an article in Business Week .

Vietnam destroying Lao forests By DENIS D. GRAY BANGKOK, Thailand

Vietnam is acquiring huge quantities of illegally logged timber from neighboring Laos and turning it into furniture for consumers in the United States and Europe, an environmental group said Wednesday.

"Vietnam's booming economy and demand for cheap furniture in the West is driving rapid deforestation" in Laos, Julian Newman of the Britain-based Environmental Investigation Agency said at a news conference.

The group showed a video of fleets of trucks laden with logs crossing the border into Vietnam from Laos, which has banned the export of logs and sawn timber.

Every year, an estimated 17.6 million cubic feet of logs are smuggled across the border after false documents are produced and bribes paid, the group said.

The video included Vietnamese businessmen admitting that logs at their factories came from Laos in violation of the country's laws and were processed into furniture for export.

A huge pile of logs from Laos was shown in the Vietnamese port of Vinh, ready for sale.

Newman said businesses in Thailand are also buying illegally cut timber from Laos, which has some of the last great forests in mainland Southeast Asia.

"The cost of such unfettered greed is borne by poor rural communities in Laos who are dependent on the forests for their traditional livelihoods," Newman said.

Vietnamese and Thai officials were not immediately available for comment. The governments of both countries have in the past acknowledged the illegal trafficking of timber from Laos, although the scope of the trade has not previously been clear.

"The ultimate responsibility for this dire state of affairs rests with the consumer markets which import wood products made from stolen timber," Newman said.

Faith Doherty, another EIA staffer, said draft laws now before the U.S. Congress would curb such imports. She said the European Union was taking steps to certify furniture and other forest products as having come from legally procured timber.

An EIA report also released Wednesday noted that Vietnam has taken steps since the 1990s to conserve its own forests while at the same time expanding wooden furniture production, much of it with illegal timber.

Furniture exports from Vietnam totaled $2.4 billion last year, a tenfold increase since 2000. According to the Vietnamese government, 39 percent of the exports in 2006 went to the United States, 14 percent to Japan, 7 percent to Britain and 4 percent each to France and Germany.

"The plundering of Laos' forests involves high-level corruption and bribery and it is not just Vietnam which is exploiting its neighbor.

Thai and Singapore traders are also cashing in," the report said. Posing as investors, EIA staffers met one Thai businessman who bragged of paying bribes to senior Lao military officials to secure timber potentially worth $500 million, the group said.

Press Release: 19 March 2008

VIETNAM: HOW THE COUNTRY HAS BECOME A HUB FOR THE REGION'S ILLEGAL TIMBER TRADE.

EIA Web Site

Vietnam is operating as a centre for processing huge quantities of unlawfully-logged timber from across Indochina, threatening some of the last intact forests in the region, a major new report reveals.

Undercover investigations by the UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and Indonesian NGO Telapak have revealed how Vietnam’s booming economy and demand for cheap furniture in the West is driving rapid deforestation throughout the Mekong river region.

Field investigations in Vietnam and neighbouring Laos, including secret filming and undercover visits to furniture factories, have demonstrated that although some countries like Indonesia have cracked down on the illegal timber trade, criminal networks have now shifted their attention to looting the vanishing forests of Laos.

Urgent Action

This illicit trade is in direct contraventionof laws in Laos banning the export of logs and sawn timber and EIA/Telapak are calling for urgent international action.

Investigators visited numerous Vietnamese furniture factories and found the majority to be using logs from Laos. In the Vietnamese port of Vinh, they witnessed piles of huge logs from Laos awaiting sale.

At one border crossing on one occasion alone, 45 trucks laden with logs were filmed lining up to cross the Laos border into Vietnam. The report estimates at least 500,000 cubic metres of logs are moved in this way every year.

Plundering

Since the 1990s, Vietnam has taken steps to protect to conserve its remaining forests while at the same time, massively expanding its wooden furniture production.

Vietnam has an unenviable track record in using stolen timber. Past investigations have revealed it laundering illegal timber from both Cambodia and Indonesia

The plundering of Laos’ forests involves high-level corruption and bribery and it is not just Vietnam which is exploiting its neighbour; Thai and Singapore traders are also cashing in.

Posing as investors, EIA/Telapak investigators met one Thai businessman who bragged of paying bribes to senior Laos military officials to secure timber worth potentially half a billion dollars.

“The cost of such unfettered greed is borne by poor rural communities in Laos who are dependent on the forests for their traditional livelihoods,” said EIA's head of Forests Campaign, Julian Newman.

He said the local people gain virtually nothing from this trade, with corrupt Laos officials and businesses in Vietnam and Thailand, the profiteers.

The report concludes that to some extent the dynamic growth of Vietnam’s furniture industry is driven by the demand of end markets like Europe and the US.

Dire

“The ultimate responsibility for this dire state of affairs rests with the consumer markets with import wood products made from stolen timber,” said Julian.

“Until these states clean up their act and shut their markets to illegal wood products, the loss of precious tropical forests will continue unabated.”

EIA/Telapak are calling for: better enforcement by the timber-producing and processing countries and new laws banning the import of products and timber derived from illegal logging in the EU and US.