Hydropower

The freshwater opportunity: preserving the waters which connect us

What do rivers mean to you? For Hugo Costa, deep in the Amazon, the seasons of the Juruá River can define the food you eat, the journeys you travel, and the people you meet. For Yolarnie Amepou, looking over a vast river delta in Papua New Guinea, ten different cultures have been shaped by [...]

By |2024-04-17T10:59:43+00:00June 12th, 2023|Conservation Optimism, Freshwater, Hydropower, Rivers|Comments Off on The freshwater opportunity: preserving the waters which connect us

Inland waters: it is time to prioritise the waters of life

In the United Nations biodiversity agreement, freshwater ecosystems were finally included as ‘inland waters’ in the commitment to safeguard and restore at least 30 per cent of the world’s lands, inland waters, coastal areas and oceans by 2030. So, what is the freshwater biodiversity crisis, and why should we be concerned for people and [...]

By |2024-04-12T14:51:57+00:00March 23rd, 2023|Conservation Optimism, Freshwater, Hydropower, Rivers|Comments Off on Inland waters: it is time to prioritise the waters of life

The myth of green hydropower

Large dams are disastrous for freshwater ecosystems. From preventing salmon migrations, to flooding niche river ecosystems, to blocking nutrient-rich sediment from getting downstream, hydropower is a catastrophe for wildlife. Yet currently, hydropower supplies more than half of our renewable energy. Isn’t cutting our dependence on fossil fuels worth the biodiversity cost of new dams? [...]

By |2024-04-12T14:14:15+00:00March 13th, 2023|Dams, Freshwater, Hydropower, Threats|Comments Off on The myth of green hydropower

Five success stories from 2022

With the UN  Convention on Biological Diversity’s new agreement dominating conservation headlines, it can be easy to lose sight of the people working every day to protect our planet’s biodiversity on the ground. However, throughout 2022, our partners restored ecosystems, protected endangered species, and collaborated with Indigenous Peoples and local communities to build a [...]

By |2024-04-09T10:13:20+00:00December 21st, 2022|Ailan Awareness, and Inclusion, Biocultural Diversity, Congo Basin, Conservation Optimism, CORAP, Hydropower, Instituto Biotrópicos, MUPAN, Rivers|Comments Off on Five success stories from 2022

Rivers – overlooked and undervalued allies in the age of the climate crisis

What role do rivers play in your life? For billions of people around the world, they are – literally – their source of life and survival. Although rivers cover less than one percent of the Earth’s surface, they are the most biodiverse and productive ecosystems in the world. In this post, Félix Feider looks [...]

By |2023-06-12T09:47:30+00:00October 25th, 2022|Dams, Freshwater, Hydropower, Rivers|Comments Off on Rivers – overlooked and undervalued allies in the age of the climate crisis