Author: Sofia Lopez

Proposal To Protect Antarctic Waters Scrapped

A plan to convert Antarctica’s Weddell Sea into the world’s largest Marine Protected Area (MPA)  was rejected during the annual summit of the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Hobart, Australia. The plan, originally proposed by Germany and backed by the EU, required a unanimous vote from all

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Unprecedented Poaching In Botswana Leaves 90 Elephants Dead

In northern Botswana, near Okavango Delta (a protected elephant sanctuary, of all places), 87 elephant carcasses were found during an aerial survey of the region. Each of these 87 elephants was killed for their ivory with their skulls smashed to retrieve the tusks. Director and founder of Elephants Without Borders

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Cameroonian Military Accused Of Extralegal Executions

The world was disturbed when a video was leaked showing Cameroonian soldiers abusing and murdering women and children. The soldiers are seen slapping a woman walking with a young girl, then leading the two of them along with another woman with a baby on her back, to a side road

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Gay Couple Publicly Caned In Indonesia

Capital punishment, in various forms, is controversial for promoting violence instead of rehabilitation. On 13 July, 15 people, five of which are women, were caned outside of Baiturrahim Mosque in Banda Aceh, the capital of Indonesia’s conservative Aceh province. The detainees were accused of crimes ranging from extra-marital affairs, same-sex

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Spain Protests As “La Manada” Resurfaces

Protests littered Spain’s streets following the decision of a regional court to grant bail to five men convicted of sexually abusing a teenage girl. The panel of judges ruled two to one that there is no risk of the men fleeing or being repeat offenders. The bail is set to

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India’s Water Crisis Worst In Its History

Picture a circumstance in which a natural resource, that should be available to everyone not just because it is a right or a necessity for living but because it’s all around us, is suddenly becoming infrequent and increasingly privatized. No, this is not a summary of Dr. Seuss’s “The Lorax;”

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Territorial Disputes Over South China Sea Intensifies

During a flag-raising ceremony at the Department of Foreign Affairs on May 28th, Philippines’ Foreign Minister Peter Cayetano relayed to the public President Duterte’s assertion that “if anyone gets the natural resources in the Western Philippines Sea, South China Sea (SCS), [Duterte] will go to war.” The threat comes as

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