Conservation Issues

The Euphrates River is one of the most important water systems in recorded history.

By Mitch Ryan

After 2035 it will be extremely unlikely we can stop Earth's temperature from rising enough to kick off a dangerous medley of global disasters.

By Laurie L. Dove

With the world's population expanding and its arable land shrinking, how in the world are we going to have enough food to feed everyone? Here are five ways.

By Becky Striepe

Insects and biodiversity go hand in hand. Without insects our planet would not survive as they are essential to biodiversity. Check out this gallery on the relationship between insects and biodiversity.

Biodiversity means rainforests and reefs teeming with species right? There's more to it than that though. Genetic diversity has a big role to play, too. Just ask that cheetah cub.

By William Harris & Austin Henderson

Critics warn that cryptocurrency networks, whose computers use enormous amounts of electricity to verify transactions, could be a factor in warming the planet. The industry is working to change that.

By Patrick J. Kiger

A new project aims to document the possible demise of Planet Earth due to climate change. It's called Earth's Black Box and the creators hope this will be a warning to all Earth-dwellers to take global warming seriously.

By Joanna Thompson

A new report released by Beyond Plastics suggests that plastics will release more greenhouse gas emissions than coal plants in the U.S. by 2030.

By Elizabeth Claire Alberts

In the lead-up to U.N. Climate Change Conference, the Swedish activist talked about Biden's climate plan, the media's responsibility and what gives her hope.

By Mark Hertsgaard

This alien-looking archipelago off the coast of Yemen is teeming with plants and animals. Many species here are threatened or endangered. Can they be saved?

By Stephanie Parker

As the world becomes more urbanized, the demand for sand, a key ingredient of concrete, keeps growing. But there's only so much sand to go around.

By Dave Roos

New findings about ancient, extinct Australasian bandicoot and bilby species underscore how dire things are today when even survivors like these are struggling.

By Jesslyn Shields

The OneLessStraw campaign encourages people to kick their straw habit to keep plastic from harming the environment.

By Kate Kershner

The Sierra Club lobbies for environmental preservation and engages members in fun wilderness excursions.

By Sarah Dowdey

Men have been hunting and killing whales for centuries. Early whalers hunted for survival, but their motivation may have changed once there was money to be made. Whaling for profit has been banned since 1986, but whaling for scientific research is still allowed in certain areas, causing much debate.

By Alison Kim Perry

Without its keystone, a Roman aqueduct collapses. Does the same travesty befall an ecosystem when a keystone species goes missing from the ecological equation?

By William Harris

Ever wondered where all that rain goes after a storm? Most of it is absorbed by soil and plants, while watersheds carry the rest into nearby lakes and rivers.

By Tiffany Connors

The Salton Sea, California's largest inland lake, and the area that surrounds it — once hotspots for tourism and wildlife — have essentially become ghost towns. The lake's evaporation has now become a ticking ecological time bomb with real world consequences.

By Stephanie Parker & Austin Henderson

Ice stupas are artificial glaciers that store frozen water to be used for hydrating crops in the driest stretches of the year in the high desert of Himalaya.

By Mark Mancini

A growing network of global activists is taking an alternative approach to saving the environment: Pushing to recognize natural ecosystems as having legal rights like humans.

By Stephanie Vermillion

It's been 51 years since the first Earth Day, and while progress has been made in some areas, humanity still has had a major impact on the planet.

By Andrea Thompson

China has joined the more than 120 countries outlawing certain types of single-use plastics, those convenient but controversial plastics we've all become so used to. What exactly are they, though, and is banning them really necessary?

By Stephanie Vermillion

It may seem cool to stack rocks for fun or artistic purposes but moving rocks may inadvertently threaten small mammals and insects and contribute to soil erosion.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus

The rusty patched bumblebee (Bombus affinis) is on the verge of extinction and the state of Minnesota is doing something about it.

By Tara Yarlagadda

Everyone loves foraging for seashells at the beach, but the true jackpot is finding a perfect unbroken sand dollar. However, taking one home may not be such a good idea.

By Alia Hoyt