An Assessment of Forest Diversity: Challenges and Management

Forests have played a critical role in enriching human life's social, economic, and religious facets in several ways, both materialistic and psychological. India is one of the world's most diverse woodland habitats. Forests are valued at 20% (i.e., 3.28 million sq. km of the total land in India). Forests should be handled for the advantage of the highest number in the long term. The existence of canopies explains how forests accumulate nitrogen from the atmosphere and survive without much fertilization, unlike the agricultural fields. And organisms like insects, birds, mammals, etc. add to the biodiversity of trees and forests. India's woodland cover rose from 640, 319 sq. km (i.e., 11.2%) in 1987 to 712, 249 sq. km in 2019. In this paper, a detailed assessment of forest diversity is provided by dividing it into three segments: mangroves' significant role in affecting the woodland diversity considering it as one of the most important sources of biodiversity on the planet;wildfire is the oldest and most widespread threat in forests since it claims to threaten not just the forest resources but also the fauna and flora of the whole regime, severely disrupting biodiversity;and finally, how trees boost the environment and hence the effect of climate change on the overall destruction of forests. Due to this around 90% of the large stocks of predatory fish are gone. India is home to approximately 300 amphibian species, and about 60% of these species in India is endemic. Around 20-25% of global greenhouse gas emissions are liable for deforestation and 30% of topographical zone is influenced through land debasement. The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Forum on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services has (IPBES) reported that 1, 000, 000 species are at present risk of elimination. Biodiversity's misfortune is attributable to a few reasons, but the methods by far the most guilty parties are natural decimation as well as over-exploitation of biodiversity, powered by our detonating numbers and undefended usage. Plastic has gotten irreplaceable during the COVID-19 pandemic, driving atmosphere champions. India creates 9.4 million tons of plastic waste each year (approx 26, 000 tons for every day). Only 5.6 million is reused, even as about 3.8 million tons are gone uncollected. Sea life biologists have cautioned that by 2050 there will be extra plastic in the Earth's oceans than fish. The four types of marine turtles that happen in India's beachfront alongside marine climate are completely jeopardized. The World Conservation Union (IUCN) states that the effects of outsider intrusive species are tremendous, unpretentious, and typically irreversible. They might be as harmful toward local species alongside biological systems on a worldwide scale of the misfortune and corruption of environments. The world is currently losing a concerning rate of ten billion trees each year. Because of these consolidated impacts of environmental change and anthropogenic activities, about 42% of the 260, 553 km2 of elephant natural surroundings is eradicated. Lately, rhino numbers have dropped drastically because of poaching for their horn which is valued inside Asian nations. And about 50% of all mammalian and bird species could go extinct in the next 200-300 years. Air defilement is one of the most distinguishably loathsome scourges to have biased India. Hence, this chapter primarily focuses on most ecosystems are under threat from several factors, and each new consequence adds to the stress already felt by ecosystems and their wildlife. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022.

The Impact of Human Activities on Zoonotic Infection Transmissions.

As humans expand their territories across more and more regions of the planet, activities such as deforestation, urbanization, tourism, wildlife exploitation, and climate change can have drastic consequences for animal movements and animal-human interactions. These events, especially climate change, can also affect the arthropod vectors that are associated with the animals in these scenarios. As the COVID-19 pandemic and other various significant outbreaks throughout the centuries have demonstrated, when animal patterns and human interactions change, so does the exposure of humans to zoonotic pathogens potentially carried by wildlife. With approximately 60% of emerging human pathogens and around 75% of all emerging infectious diseases being categorized as zoonotic, it is of great importance to examine the impact of human activities on the prevalence and transmission of these infectious agents. A better understanding of the impact of human-related factors on zoonotic disease transmission and prevalence can help drive the preventative measures and containment policies necessary to improve public health.

Tourism entrepreneurship in rural destinations: measuring the effects of capital configurations using the fsQCA approach

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate the causal configuration effect of the determinants of tourism entrepreneurship in rural tourism destinations based on the capital framework.Design/methodology/approachThe data for this research were collected from a sample comprising 140 rural enterprise owners in China and analyzed via fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis.FindingsAll the investigated capital factors were relevant to tourism entrepreneurship, although they only facilitated tourism entrepreneurship when combined. It was observed here that four capital configurations promoted tourism entrepreneurship in rural destinations, highlighting the multiple paths toward rural tourism entrepreneurship. The human and physical capitals of entrepreneurs were key to tourism entrepreneurship.Practical implicationsIt is relevant for entrepreneurs and managers to realize that there are multiple strategies for promoting tourism entrepreneurship in rural destinations. The four capital configurations revealed here offer guidelines for evaluating the potential and possibility of rural tourism entrepreneurship. Local managers and governments must prioritize human and physical capitals when the venture capital and resources are limited.Originality/valueFirst, the findings of this study deepened the understanding of the factors influencing tourism entrepreneurship using the capital framework. Second, it revealed that capital configurations determined tourism entrepreneurship and that existence and interactions of the various forms of capital affect rural entrepreneurship. Third, this study revealed that the success of tourism entrepreneurship depends on the entrepreneur's ability to combine the various forms of capital and resources.

Smart Device for CO2 Measuring and Supplementing with O2 Using IOT

Globally, atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration is rising due to rising carbon-based fuel consumption and ongoing deforestation. As carbon dioxide levels grow due to the warming trend, the atmosphere's temperature is predicted to climb. Increased fatigue, headaches, and tinnitus are just a few health issues that high CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere can cause. The electrical activities of the brain, the heart, and the lungs have all been demonstrated to change significantly after a brief exposure to 0.1 percent CO2. Continuous measurements of the atmospheric CO2 content have recently been shown to help evaluate the ventilation conditions in buildings or rooms. Additionally, it prevents the development of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (Severe acute respiratory). The coronavirus, known as a powerful acute respiratory, can make people ill. This has grown to be a significant concern in emergency medicine. © 2022 IEEE.

Applying the World-System theory in the conservation sciences to understand COVID-19 pandemic as a socio-environmental synergy

The pandemic of COVID-19 caused a global epidemiological, economic and social crisis. In the con-servation sciences, several studies have focused efforts on understanding the effects of declining human activities on biodiversity, understanding the pandemic as an anthropogenic "pause"of global scale. But the impact of the pandemic was not the same for everyone. Different impacts are consequences of politi-cal and ethical questions about who and what can pause or be paused, according to what authority and under what conditions. Therefore, the historical asymmetrical relations of power in the World System are crucial to understanding environmental impacts and thinking about solutions in the post-pandemic world. This article discusses why historical local-global inequalities should be an indispensable reference variable for examining the different experiences caused by the pandemic in biodiversity, aiming at ad-vancing the discussion about the society-nature relationship that the pandemic has spurred. To do so, we use the World-System Theory, initially proposed by Wallerstein, whose analytical categories allow us to situate nature conservation within broader economic, historical, and contemporary contexts. We argue for the understanding of biodiversity conservation in the context of the historical-sociological and global-local relations of the World-System. Finally, we discuss that the COVID-19 pandemic should be understood as an emergent phenomenon of the society-nature dynamic of the world-system.

Afforestation intentions for mitigating carbon emissions in the post-COVID-19 perspective: the case of green hotel visitors in Bangladesh

PurposeThis study aims to explore green hotel visitors' afforestation intentions by extending the theory of planned behavior, including post-COVID-19 personal norms (PCPN) and post-COVID-19 environmental concerns (PCECs). Moreover, this study examines the mediating effect of PCECs from the post-COVID-19 perspective.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on existing literatures and collection of 384 usable responses using the convenience sampling technique. The partial least square structural equation modeling is used to analyze data using Smart PLS3.3.3.FindingsThe findings reveal that post-COVID-19 afforestation attitudes, subjective norms (SN), perceived behavioral control (PBC) and PCPN significantly influence post-COVID-19 afforestation intentions (PCAI) and PCECs. Further, PCEC partially mediates the between post-COVID-19 afforestation attitudes, SN, PBC and PCPN and PCAI.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study may be useful to green hotel operators in formulating business strategies enhancing visitors' positive perceptions toward green hotels and afforestation intentions coping with new normal environment and hospitality industry.Originality/valueThis research presents a distinguished case highlighting how the green hotel guests' perceptions toward afforestation for mitigating carbon emissions are changing because of COVID-19 pandemic. This study provides crucial insights for green hotel practitioners by integrating post-COVID-19 afforestation attitudes, SN, PBC, PCPN and PCEC of green hotel visitors in examining PCAI.

COVID-19, living income differential and decline in income of cocoa producers in C..te d'Ivoire. (Agriculture et syst..mes alimentaires face .. la Covid-19.) [French]

Cocoa farmers in C..te d'Ivoire are mostly below the poverty line. In September 2019, the Ivorian and Ghanaian governments imposed the Living Income Differential (LID) on private companies, an additional $ 400 per ton compared to the international market price, passed on to the producer price (farm gate price). At the beginning of 2020, the Covid-19 arose. In this dual context, how did prices change? Has the hope of increased income been achieved? Three approaches are used: (a) monitoring of the selling price of cocoa beans and monitoring of the price of purchased cocoa farming inputs and basic necessities for households;(b) monthly monitoring of farm gate cocoa price in 2020-2021;(c) an analysis of national production data from C..te d'Ivoire and Ghana, the world price, variations in the demand for beans by the grinding industry, and the price paid to producers, over 20 years. The first result is a very temporary and limited rise in the farm gate price of cocoa at the end of 2020, then its fall in 2021 as the price of inputs and basic necessities soar. The 2021-2022 campaign is even more harmful with a tightening of the price scissor. It is therefore the failure of the LID, but the role of Covid-19 in this failure is very nuanced with regard to the declarations of the State and the multinationals. The drop in prices and the loss of income for cocoa farmers in 2020-2022 rather fits into the economic theory of games. Without control of their supply, an agreement between two companies or countries cannot work. The failure is part of a largely endogenous structural change: demographic growth, policies to encourage migration and deforestation, opacity of the sector and finally continued growth of the supply of cocoa from C..te d'Ivoire on the international market.

Has global deforestation accelerated due to the COVID-19 pandemic?

As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, questions arose as to whether the pandemic would amplify or pacify tropical deforestation. Early reports warned of increased deforestation rates; however, these studies were limited to a few months in 2020 or to selected regions. To better understand how the pandemic influenced tropical deforestation globally, this study used historical deforestation data (2004-2019) from the Terra-i pantropical land cover change monitoring system to project expected deforestation trends for 2020, which were used to determine whether observed deforestation deviated from expected trajectories after the first COVID-19 cases were reported. Time series analyses were conducted at the regional level for the Americas, Africa and Asia and at the country level for Brazil, Colombia, Peru, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia. Our results suggest that the pandemic did not alter the course of deforestation trends in some countries (e.g., Brazil, Indonesia), while it did in others (e.g., Peru). We posit the importance of monitoring the long-term effects of the pandemic on deforestation trends as countries prioritize economic recovery in the aftermath of the pandemic. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11676-022-01561-7.

Economic pressures of Covid-19 lockdowns result in increased timber extraction within a critically endangered region: A case study from the Pacific Forest of Ecuador.

Although the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 had some environmental benefits, the pandemic's impact on the global economy has also had conservation repercussions, especially in biodiverse nations. Ecuador, which is heavily reliant on petroleum, agricultural exports, and ecotourism, experienced a rise in poverty in response to pandemic shutdowns. In this study, we sought to quantify levels of illegal timber extraction and poaching before and after the start of COVID-19 lockdowns throughout two protected areas (Reserva Jama Coaque [JCR] and Bosque Seco Lalo Loor [BSLL]) in the endangered Pacific Forest of Ecuador. We analyzed chainsaw and gunshot acoustic data recorded from devices installed in the forest canopy from December 2019 to March 2020 and October 2020 to March 2021. Results from generalized linear mixed effects models indicated less chainsaw activity before lockdowns (ßpost.lockdown = 0.568 ± 0.266 SE, p-value = .030), although increased average rainfall also seemed to negatively affect chainsaw activity (ßavg.rainfall = -0.002 ± 0.0006 SE, p-value = .003). Gunshots were too infrequent to conduct statistical models; however, 87% of gunshots were detected during the 'lockdown' period. Observational data collected by rangers from these protected areas also noted an increase in poaching activities beginning mid to late 2020 and persisting into 2021. These results add to the steadily growing literature indicating an increase in environmental crime, particularly in biodiverse nations, catalyzed by COVID-19-related economic hardships. Identifying areas where environmental crime increased during pandemic lockdowns is vital to address both socioeconomic drivers and enforcement deficiencies to prevent further biodiversity loss and disease outbreaks and to promote ecosystem resilience. Our study also demonstrates the utility of passive acoustic monitoring to detect illegal resource extraction patterns, which can inform strategies such as game theory modeling for ranger patrol circuits and placement of real-time acoustic detection technologies to monitor and mitigate environmental crimes.

Indicators of Environmental Recovery during the First Lockdown of COVID-19 Pandemic: Is this a Permanent or a Temporary?

Upon the outbreak and spreading of COVID-19, several reduction measures have been implemented throughout the world to avert the COVID-19 pandemic risks such as entire lockdowns, social distancing, extensive travel bans, mass quarantines, etc. Many positive and negative indicators of this pandemic on the whole environmental compartments have been reported worldwide. These indicators may include promoting the air quality through a reduction in anthropogenic-based emissions (e.g., CO2 and N2O) and increase ozone concentration in addition to energy, water and wastewater, deforestation, and natural resources. This is the difficult equation concerningthe COVID-19 pandemic outbreak and its health, societal, economic, and environmental risks and how is the recovery of the environment? Is this recovery will be permanent or temporary? The answer to this question may be emphasized during the outcoming days or months. What will increase this global pandemic aggravation if the COVID-19 has appeared in many types, which enforce us to re-think again concerning the task?

Aligning conservation and public health goals to tackle unsustainable trade of mammals

Unsustainable wildlife trade is a major driver of biodiversity loss and an important public health threat. Yet, effective wildlife trade regulation is currently at odds with food security and economic incentives provided by this global, multibillion-dollar industry. Given such limitations, public health and conservation resources can be aligned to target species for which trade both increases risk of extinction and threatens public health. Here, we developed a simple conservation and health trade risk (CHT) index (range: 2-50) using a case study of traded mammals based on species' extinction and zoonotic risks, weighed by the extent of their trade. We applied this index to 1161 International Union for the Conservation of Nature-listed terrestrial mammals involved in the wildlife trade to identify 284 high-priority species that scored high in the CHT index (CHT >= 18). Species ranking high for conservation, public health, and trade risks include those belonging to the orders Primates, Cetartiodactyla (even-toed ungulates), Rodentia (rodents), Chiroptera (bats), and Carnivora (carnivores). Of the high-priority species, 33% (n = 95) are country-endemics and may be good candidates for trade regulations and enforcement at national scales. Our study provides a preliminary step in prioritizing species, taxonomic groups, and countries for focused wildlife trade regulation to meet both conservation and public health goals.

Exploring Environmental and Geographical Factors Influencing the Spread of Infectious Diseases with Interactive Maps

Environmental problems due to human activities such as deforestation, urbanisation, and large scale intensive farming are some of the major factors behind the rapid spread of many infectious diseases. This in turn poses significant challenges not only in as regards providing adequate healthcare, but also in supporting healthcare workers, medical researchers, policy makers, and others involved in managing infectious diseases. These challenges include surveillance, tracking of infections, communication of public health knowledge and promotion of behavioural change. Behind these challenges lies a complex set of factors which include not only biomedical and population health determinants but also environmental, climatic, geographic, and socioeconomic variables. While there is broad agreement that these factors are best understood when considered in conjunction, aggregating and presenting diverse information sources requires effective information systems, software tools, and data visualisation. In this article, we argue that interactive maps, which couple geographical information systems and advanced information visualisation techniques, provide a suitable unifying framework for coordinating these tasks. Therefore, we examine how interactive maps can support spatial epidemiological visualisation and modelling involving distributed and dynamic data sources and incorporating temporal aspects of disease spread. Combining spatial and temporal aspects can be crucial in such applications. We discuss these issues in the context of support for disease surveillance in remote regions, utilising tools that facilitate distributed data collection and enable multidisciplinary collaboration, while also providing support for simulation and data analysis. We show that interactive maps deployed on a combination of mobile devices and large screens can provide effective means for collection, sharing, and analysis of health data.

Only ecology-based economies can avoid future catastrophe

Speed read Time to spur a clean industrial revolution, says UN environment and faith advisor Need to transition to resilient, local, urban agro-ecological farming, producing food with less energy and water Post-COVID19 economic shift requires incentivising rapid growth of sustainable production Much has been made of the brief respite in carbon emissions that coronavirus has given the world. Fossil fuels, agriculture and deforestation The first priority must shift trillion-dollar fossil fuel subsidies into the renewable energy sector. Agriculture is also one of the biggest carbon emitters, with huge inputs of fossil fuels involved in manufacturing pesticides and fertiliser, plus processing, packaging and distribution.

Disturb forests, trigger new pandemics — study

“Halting and reversing forest loss is increasingly recognised as a means to mitigate the effects of climate change and address biodiversity collapses” Johan Oldekop, University of Manchester FAO’s State of the World’s Forests Report 2020 says that the majority of new infectious diseases are zoonotic and their emergence may be linked to changes in forest areas, as well as the expansion of human populations into forest areas. According to the study, the unprecedented exodus of forest communities to urban areas is shaping the future of forests. According to the study, during 2001—2015, 27 per cent of forest disturbance was attributed to commodity-driven deforestation.

Afforestation intentions for mitigating carbon emissions in the post-COVID-19 perspective: the case of green hotel visitors in Bangladesh

Purpose This study aims to explore green hotel visitors' afforestation intentions by extending the theory of planned behavior, including post-COVID-19 personal norms (PCPN) and post-COVID-19 environmental concerns (PCECs). Moreover, this study examines the mediating effect of PCECs from the post-COVID-19 perspective. Design/methodology/approach This study is based on existing literatures and collection of 384 usable responses using the convenience sampling technique. The partial least square structural equation modeling is used to analyze data using Smart PLS3.3.3. Findings The findings reveal that post-COVID-19 afforestation attitudes, subjective norms (SN), perceived behavioral control (PBC) and PCPN significantly influence post-COVID-19 afforestation intentions (PCAI) and PCECs. Further, PCEC partially mediates the between post-COVID-19 afforestation attitudes, SN, PBC and PCPN and PCAI. Practical implications The findings of this study may be useful to green hotel operators in formulating business strategies enhancing visitors' positive perceptions toward green hotels and afforestation intentions coping with new normal environment and hospitality industry. Originality/value This research presents a distinguished case highlighting how the green hotel guests' perceptions toward afforestation for mitigating carbon emissions are changing because of COVID-19 pandemic. This study provides crucial insights for green hotel practitioners by integrating post-COVID-19 afforestation attitudes, SN, PBC, PCPN and PCEC of green hotel visitors in examining PCAI.

MUDANÇAS CLIMÁTICAS E COVID-19 NA REGIÃO DA BIOSFERA KRUGER-CANYONS, ÁFRICA DO SUL E NO AMAZONAS, BRASIL

Prevê-se que a mudança climática exerça mais pressão sobre as ecologias e sistemas de saúde já explorados. Além disso, o coronavírus SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) representou um estímulo para revolucionar os modelos existentes de desenvolvimento sustentável em cadeias de suprimentos amplas e sustentáveis no setor da saúde em particular. A Região da Biosfera Kruger-Canyons na África do Sul e o estado do Amazonas no Brasil servem como estudos de caso geográficos para este artigo. O impacto da globalização econômica, catástrofes naturais como secas, tensões econômicas e geopolíticas, desmatamento, desigualdades econômicas e de acesso à saúde nesses dois biomas convergem com questões de mudança climática e reduzem os mecanismos de enfrentamento que costumam ser usados ​​para supervisionar eventos extremos, como pandemias . A pandemia Covid-19 agravou muitas das dificuldades econômicas e sociais que a África do Sul e o Brasil já enfrentam. Em comparação com o Brasil, a resposta geral da África do Sul à pandemia pode ser considerada um destaque. Ao tomar emprestado das melhores práticas de respostas anteriores de saúde pública a emergências de saúde na África do Sul, como a tuberculose e a crise de HIV/AIDS, a África do Sul demonstrou seus meios comparativamente bem-sucedidos de lidar com a Covid-19.Alternate : Climate change is predicted to exert further stress on already exploited ecologies and healthcare systems, added to this, the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) has signified a stimulus to revolutionize existing models of sustainable development in broad, and sustainable supply chains in the healthcare sector in particular. The Kruger to Canyons Biosphere Region in South Africa and the Amazonas state in Brazil serve as geographic case studies for this paper. The impact of economic globalization, natural catastrophes such as droughts, economic and geopolitical stresses, deforestation, economic and healthcare access inequalities in these two biomes converge with issues of climate change, and undercut coping mechanisms that are customarily used to oversee extreme events such as pandemics. The Covid-19 pandemic has deepened many of the economic and social difficulties which South Africa and Brazil are already facing. In comparison to Brazil, South Africa’s overall response to the pandemic can be regarded as a standout. By borrowing from best practices from prior public health responses to heath emergencies in South Africa, such as the tuberculosis and the HIV/AIDS crisis, South Africa has demonstrated its comparatively successful means of dealing with Covid-19.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND COVID-19 IN THE KRUGER TO CANYONS BIOSPHERE REGION, SOUTH AFRICA AND AMAZONAS, BRAZIL

Climate change is predicted to exert further stress on already exploited ecologies and healthcare systems, added to this, the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) has signified a stimulus to revolutionize existing models of sustainable development in broad, and sustainable supply chains in the healthcare sector in particular. The Kruger to Canyons Biosphere Region in South Africa and the Amazonas state in Brazil serve as geographic case studies for this paper. The impact of economic globalization, natural catastrophes such as droughts, economic and geopolitical stresses, deforestation, economic and healthcare access inequalities in these two biomes converge with issues of climate change, and undercut coping mechanisms that are customarily used to oversee extreme events such as pandemics. The Covid-19 pandemic has deepened many of the economic and social difficulties which South Africa and Brazil are already facing. In comparison to Brazil, South Africa’s overall response to the pandemic can be regarded as a standout. By borrowing from best practices from prior public health responses to heath emergencies in South Africa, such as the tuberculosis and the HIV/AIDS crisis, South Africa has demonstrated its comparatively successful means of dealing with Covid-19.Alternate : Prevê-se que a mudança climática exerça mais pressão sobre as ecologias e sistemas de saúde já explorados. Além disso, o coronavírus SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) representou um estímulo para revolucionar os modelos existentes de desenvolvimento sustentável em cadeias de suprimentos amplas e sustentáveis no setor da saúde em particular. A Região da Biosfera Kruger-Canyons na África do Sul e o estado do Amazonas no Brasil servem como estudos de caso geográficos para este artigo. O impacto da globalização econômica, catástrofes naturais como secas, tensões econômicas e geopolíticas, desmatamento, desigualdades econômicas e de acesso à saúde nesses dois biomas convergem com questões de mudança climática e reduzem os mecanismos de enfrentamento que costumam ser usados ​​para supervisionar eventos extremos, como pandemias . A pandemia Covid-19 agravou muitas das dificuldades econômicas e sociais que a África do Sul e o Brasil já enfrentam. Em comparação com o Brasil, a resposta geral da África do Sul à pandemia pode ser considerada um destaque. Ao tomar emprestado das melhores práticas de respostas anteriores de saúde pública a emergências de saúde na África do Sul, como a tuberculose e a crise de HIV/AIDS, a África do Sul demonstrou seus meios comparativamente bem-sucedidos de lidar com a Covid-19.

Interconnected disasters ‘the tip of the iceberg’

Speed read UN report shows clear links between global disasters Lack of risk management and climate change among common causes Tackling root causes across disciplines is essential, report says Extreme events are increasingly compounding each other, even if they initially seem wide apart and unconnected, making it more crucial to tackle their root causes, says a report. In turn, deforestation is linked to Western demand for meat, and has a knock-on effect on climate change, exacerbating extreme events elsewhere in the world, says the report. Need to strengthen Strengthening networks for sharing prevention and response experiences between countries, and mechanisms for international cooperation and allocation of funds, is critical says Tran Si Pha, head of the disaster management department at the Vietnam Red Cross Society.

Pandemic covers up setbacks in Brazilian environmental laws

Speed read Legislative changes in Brazil have ‘weakened environmental regulations’ Legal deregulation peaked at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, study found Brazilian society, scientists and media may have mitigated the damage Environmental progress in Brazil looks set to be one of the casualties of COVID-19, with harmful changes to the law being pushed through while attention is diverted by the global pandemic, a study warns. Since January 2019, the Brazilian government approved 57 pieces of legislation that effectively weaken national environmental laws, the study published in Biological Conservation found. Researchers also analysed monthly deforestation rates provided by the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) of Brazil, and fines associated with illegal deforestation, issued by the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA). According to INPE, deforestation in the Amazon was 9.5 per cent higher between August 2019 and July 2020 than between August 2018 and July 2019 – making it the highest level of annual deforestation since 2008.

We must better protect wildlife to prevent future pandemics

Speed read Wuhan investigation points to wildlife as likely source of COVID-19 Climate change and illegal trade are increasing risk of zoonotic disease transmission Wildlife protection, surveillance of zoonosis are key to early detection of ‘spillover events’ Understanding animal disease is essential if we want to prevent future pandemics, writes Keith Hamilton. [...]deforestation and climate change result in natural habitat loss and push animals, in their search for food or a new home, into human settlements. The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the standard-setting organisation for animal health and welfare, champions this approach and is developing guidelines and standards for wildlife trade which support animal welfare and biodiversity conservation.