On this page
Buzzfeed's Katie Baker details their explosive investigation of WWF
About this Episode
Katie Baker is a reporter for the Buzzfeed News team investigating human rights violations committed against local & indigenous people by park rangers paid by the major environmental NGO WWF to protect creatures like rhinos from poachers.
"No one is saying that [WWF's rangers] don't have really difficult jobs...but just because they have a difficult job doesn't mean they can rape and kill and torture with impunity or arrest people without evidence," she tells host Mike G, and adds that the pushback from the NGO has been rather meek: "I have not received any hate mail from [WWF employees] telling me I got it wrong."
Baker discusses the explosive findings of her team's investigative reports, what it took to chase these stories down, and the impacts she’s seen from her reporting.
Here’s this episode’s top news:
- Violence against indigenous peoples explodes in Brazil
- Study finds massive reorganization of life across Earth’s ecosystems
- $85 million initiative to scale up agroforestry in Africa announced
- Once close to extinction, western South Atlantic humpback population close to full recovery
Mongabay reported on the effects on local communities as revealed by Baker's reporting here, and here's Mongabay's investigation of harassment, bullying, and retaliation against whistleblowers at another major environmental NGO, Conservation International.
If you enjoy this show, please invite your friends to subscribe via Android, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Spotify, Pandora, or wherever they get podcasts.
Visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep this show growing, Mongabay is a nonproft media outlet and all support helps!
See our latest news from nature's frontlines at Mongabay's homepage: news.mongabay.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram by searching for @mongabay.
Feedback is always welcome: submissions@mongabay.com.
Recent Episodes from Mongabay Newscast
Restoring an Irish rainforest by simply leaving nature alone
Exploring a jewel of the Coral Triangle
Is media objectivity possible during our environmental crisis?
Podcast guest Emily Atkin argues that an uncritical adherence to objectivity (over trust) has led to gaslighting readers about the real-world causes and urgency of the climate crisis.
Subscribe to or follow the Mongabay Newscast wherever you get podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, and you can also listen to all episodes here on the Mongabay website, or download our free app for Apple and Android devices to gain instant access to our latest episodes and all our previous ones.
Image: An abstract AI-generated photo of a wildfire in the forest. Image from CharlVera via Pixabay.
---
Timecodes:
(00:00) - Introduction
(02:48) - The Birth of Heated: A Climate Journalism Venture
(05:19) - The Challenges of Mainstream Media
(14:17) - The Role of Objectivity in Journalism
(32:34) - The Role of a Journalist and Power Dynamics
(35:49) - The Relationship Between Press and Government
(38:48) - The Role of Independent Journalism
(47:33) - Journalism Ethics
(50:41) - The Roots of Objectivity
(01:00:35) - Conclusion
The many social and ecological benefits of a 'degrowth' world
- (00:00:00) Introduction
- (00:02:35) What is degrowth exactly?
- (00:07:46) Is 'decoupling' the answer?
- (00:12:52) Will 'limitless growth' improve quality of life?
- (00:18:23) Wasted GDP in the USA
- (00:25:28) Pushing the 'GDP button'
- (00:35:20) Implementing degrowth
- (00:47:57) A degrowth future
- (00:56:44) Rachel & Mike post-chat
- (01:12:45) Rachel asks Mike to imagine a day in a post-growth world
- (01:16:42) Credits
Is "Not the End of the World" author's 'techno-realism' enough to solve our ecological problems?
- (00:00:00) - Introduction
- (00:03:57) - Renewable Energy and Political Will
- (00:07:06) - Realism of Tech Solutions
- (00:09:03) - Degrowth & Decoupling
- (00:17:33) - Doomerism, Inequality & Politics
- (00:28:45) - How does a transition happen?
- (00:36:51) - Hannah defends terminology used in the book
- (00:44:58) - Deforestation
- (00:53:11) - Our World In Data & Bias
- (01:06:19) - Mike & Rachel post-chat
- (01:26:19) - Credits
When independent journalism exposes crimes against people and planet
In 2015, independent journalist Clare Rewcastle Brown and Sarawak Report uncovered the beginnings of what is now considered the world’s biggest money-laundering scandal. The crime resulted in billions stolen from the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) fund.
While former prime minister Najib Razak is now facing a 12-year prison sentence for his role in the crime, Rewcastle Brown herself has also faced legal actions against her, including an arrest warrant and an attempt to place her on Interpol’s Red Notice list of wanted fugitives.
Mongabay podcast co-host Rachel Donald speaks with Rewcastle Brown, the founder of the Sarawak Report, about what led her to investigate this scandal, as well as environmental destruction in Borneo.
Related reading:
Amid corruption scandal, Malaysia switches track on future of rail network
INTERPOL rejects Malaysia’s request to place journalist on Red Notice list
Wildlife trafficking should be covered as a crime story
Reversing biodiversity loss requires ecological restoration
The idea that nature is something outside of society hampers practical solutions to restoring it, says Laura Martin, associate professor of environmental studies at Williams College.
On this episode of the Mongabay Newscast, co-host Rachel Donald speaks with Martin about the restoration vs. preservation debate, and why Martin says a focus on the former is the way to address the biodiversity crisis. Martin defines restoration as “an attempt to design nature with non-human collaborators,” which she details in her book Wild by Design: The Rise of Ecological Restoration.
See related content:
Podcast: Is ecosystem restoration our last/best hope for a sustainable future?
Japanese butterfly conservation takes flight when integrated with human communities
Please invite your friends to subscribe to the Mongabay Newscast wherever they get podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, or download our free app in the Apple App Store or in the Google Store to get access to our latest episodes at your fingertips.
If you enjoy the Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing, Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage: news.mongabay.com or find and follow Mongabay on all the social media platforms.
Image Caption: Project participants planting native species seedlings in the Itapu Restoration Trail, as part of Brazil’s effort to help meet the world’s ambitious restoration commitments made under the Bonn Challenge. The ongoing management of such projects requires long-term financing. Image by Raquel Maia Arvelos/CIFOR via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).
How the Junglekeepers protect 55,000 acres of the Peruvian Amazon
Conservationist Paul Rosolie co-leads a non-profit deep in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon. Conserving forests beyond where law enforcement is willing to travel can be dangerous work, but his team successfully recruits former loggers to use their forest knowledge to become conservation rangers: this provides alternative income streams for communities and has attracted millions of dollars in funding.
Today, this Indigenous-co-led nonprofit is responsible for protecting 55,000 acres of rainforest.
In this episode, Rosolie shares his recipe for conservation success and what he thinks other conservation organizations can focus on to boost their effectiveness.
Related reading:
Mother of God: meet the 26 year old Indiana Jones of the Amazon, Paul Rosolie
Please invite your friends to subscribe to the Mongabay Newscast wherever they get podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, or download our free app in the Apple App Store or in the Google Store to get access to our latest episodes at your fingertips.
If you enjoy the Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing, Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet and all support helps!
See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage: news.mongabay.com or find and follow Mongabay on all the social media platforms.
Image Caption: Image of Paul Rosolie. Courtesy of Paul Rosolie.