Ecuador’s Yasuni rainforest is home to more species of animals, plants, and insects than anywhere else in the world. It also happens to be home to 846 million barrels of oil worth a whopping $7.2 It is also home to two isolated tribes; the Taromenane and Tagaeri. MORE

A visit to Auja, Palestine can open the world’s eyes to sustainable peace through water. Today, the locals are getting ready for the guest of honor: American Consul General to Palestine, Daniel Rubinstein, is set to arrive in the next hour. MORE

IPCC, the UN’s expert panel on climate change, released part three of their new global warming study yesterday. The new report says that the world’s current efforts to combat global warming are not sufficient if we want to avoid catastrophic climate change. MORE

The Swedish right-wing government has won the yearly greenwash award in Sweden ! The greenwash award is given to a company or a person who have done the best job to avoid real environmental action, and instead put effort into creating a fake green image. MORE

by Michael Smith (Veshengro) In response to the announcement the British Geological Survey on the quantity of shale gas underneath Lancashire on Thursday, June 27, 2013 Greenpeace said, and rightly so, that it could lead to a surge in exploration activity across the UK, bringing increased traffic, noise and flaring to communities, while threatening house prices. From the tune being played we can see only too well as to who is paying the piper. MORE

Limiting the amount of waste that households can throw out for nothing could be good news for council tax-payers and the environment, provided recycling schemes are improved, Friends of the Earth said today. A number of councils are reported to be exploring ways of preventing people throwing out unlimited quantities of rubbish - and charging those who throw away more. MORE

by Michael Smith (Veshengro) Commenting on the release on Thursday, June 27, 2013 on the first official statistics of take up of the Government''s flagship Green Deal scheme for energy efficiency, Friends of the Earth''s Warm Homes Campaigner Dave Timms said that the figures are a disaster but not unexpected. For the figures on the Green Deal visit DECC''s website. UK government Green Deal friends of the earth MORE

A voluntary approach to tackling climate change locally is failing, Friends of the Earth warns today with new research revealing less than a third [28 per cent] of councils have an effective plan for slashing carbon emissions this decade and beyond. Friends of the Earth is calling for the Government's Energy Bill, currently being debated in Parliament, to make sure tackling climate change is a core responsibility for every council. MORE

By Bob Lalasz, director of science communications for The Nature Conservancy . It’s wisdom that’s also increasingly being challenged these days — most recently during a lively debate last month in London sponsored by Intelligence Squared in partnership with The Nature Conservancy. MORE

We’ve been taught to be afraid of germs, and consumer products are full of promises of protection. One of the recent advances in antimicrobial technology is silver nanoparticles, aka nano-silver. Nano-silver is found in a variety of consumer products, from washing machines to dishwashers. Previous concerns have been raised about the [.] Beware of Silver Nanoparticles in Consumer Products. MORE

Marks and Spencer has on Thursday, June 27, 2013 called on the Government to create a Bee Action Plan. The retailer joins businesses such as Co-op and B&Q, key scientists, 200 MPs from all parties, and tens of thousands of the British public asking for action on the issue. Friends of the Earth has seen an early draft of the Government''s plans, and fears tomorrow''s announced proposals will be too weak. MORE

per cent rise in carbon emissions, Friends of the Earth's Executive Director Andy Atkins said: "Our economy is as dangerously hooked on fossil fuels as it was twenty years ago - so emissions are bound to rise as the economy picks up. "The Government has repeatedly promised to build a low-carbon economy to tackle climate change and insulate us all from yo-yoing fuel prices, but the Treasury refuses to lay the foundations or pay for the bricks. MORE

by Michael Smith (Veshengro) Copenhagen (COP15): Friends of the Earth representatives have been barred from the UN climate talks in the Bella Centre in Copenhagen on the morning of Wednesday, December 16, 2009. Every delegate from the international environmental campaign group arrived at the centre on that particular morning to find their badges were no longer valid. MORE

A new global agreement on climate change has been reached this past weekend at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Lima, Peru. The agreement, dubbed the Lima deal, is the first important step towards a climate change deal in Paris next year. MORE

January 2011: Major changes to the Localism Bill are needed to allow people have a meaningful voice in new Government planning proposals and to ensure the new system tackles climate change, says Friends of the Earth. The Bill was being debated by MPs in Parliament for the first time on January 17. "Planning reform is essential - but these proposals will not deliver the greener, fairer planning system we so urgently require." MORE

What are the Big Ideas that will change the world? Friends of the Earth is inviting your answers as part of its new project, which launches online on June 24, 2013 with a series of provocations, starting with the future of the city. MORE

As an innovator of solar energy, Israel has been involved in a number of pilot projects in its Negev desert regions; in particular, one with Arava Power which resulted in a solar energy plant being put in place in the Arava region near Kibbutz Ketura. MORE

The people of Yorkshire are known to say “where there’s muck there’s brass” and although it probably doesn’t translate directly into Norwegian, they definitely understand the concept. But in the world of commerce, Europe’s rubbish is fast becoming a sought-after commodity. MORE

First GMO apple slices to go on sale in Midwest by Michael Smith (Veshengro) The first genetically modified apples to be sold in the U.S. A small amount of Arctic brand sliced and packaged Golden Delicious, produced by Okanagan Specialty Fruits of Summerland, B.C., MORE

News that the French Parliament accused Israel of using water “apartheid” unleashed a fury of water war rhetoric that Friends of the Earth Middle East’s Director Gidon Bromberg is trying to calm. Calming the rhetoric. MORE

Our VIP list of 11 environment heroes for the Middle East 2011. If you don’t know these people already, now is the time to start. The year 2011 has been a year like no other in the Middle East. The top 3 winners will receive a small cash prize. MORE

Residents, represented by Friends of the Earth's Rights and Justice Centre, took the council to court in November last year after it decided to allow a 50 per cent increase in flights. The community representatives argued that Newham Council failed to consider changes to Government policy on climate change and did not properly consult boroughs and residents in the surrounding area. MORE

The 15th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen, which many have said was our last chance to take action against “ the greatest threat the world has ever faced ”, ended in a failure. The North on the other hand interpreted the phrase a bit differently. MORE

Members of the UK Parliament group, the Environmental Audit Committee, have in a report released last Monday called for a moratorium on the controversial shale gas extraction technology; fracking. MORE

Environmentalists condemn Israeli plans to build an artificial island off the coast of Gaza to house a port, an airport and to encourage tourism. It seems that it is not only Dubai that harbours ridiculous dreams of artificial islands - Israel does too. MORE

After six years of hard work, Friends of the Earth Middle East have opened an eco-park in Jordan dedicated to preserving biodiversity. The eco-park in Jordan also comes equipped with ten eco-lodges so you enjoy the full beauty of the park over a couple of days stay. MORE

by Michael Smith (Veshengro) Reacting to March 8, 2013's High Court ruling against plans to build a wind farm on farmland at Barnwell Manor in Sudborough, Northamptonshire, Friends of the Earth's Head of Campaigns Andrew Pendleton said: "It's understandable that changes to our much-loved green and pleasant land will often cause controversy, but the biggest threat by far - to people and nature - is climate change. MORE

January 2011: Natasha Khan of Bat for Lashes has spoken out about living in a cold, slug-infested student house as part of Friends of the Earth's new Warm Homes campaign, launched today. The musician is urging people to email their MP their own stories about living in a cold home at www.coldtimes.co.uk It comes the week before parliamentary discussion of legislation to help insulate the nation's homes begins. MORE

Apple is still refusing to admit to customers that its products contain tin that''s destroying tropical forests, killing coral and wrecking the lives of communities in Indonesia, Friends of the Earth revealed on June 6, 2013. MORE

It was about a decade in the making: without much fanfare the World Bank has released a report stating that the Dead Sea – Red Sea Canal project (also called the Red Dead Conduit) will work. This was a wasted 10 years for the Dead Sea. MORE

Some good news out of the Middle East region for a change: It was announced at the Israel Business Forum that Israel has signed an historic water-sharing agreement with Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. Image of water question from Shutterstock. MORE

The UK uses over one and a half times its land size to provide the nation with products such as food, clothing and biofuels, a new report by Friends of the Earth has revealed on Thursday, March 7, 2013. The environment charity is calling on the Government to reduce the UK's resource use to cut our impacts on other countries, slash waste and save money. times the UK's surface area. MORE

Commenting on news that former Friends of the Earth campaigner Bryony Worthington has been made a Labour peer, Friends of the Earth's Policy and Campaigns Director, Craig Bennett said on Friday, November 19, 2010: "We're delighted that Bryony has been made a peer. MORE

We’ve seen naked people bare all for the Dead Sea , and a pledge by the Israel Chemicals Corp to pay billions in damage to save the hotels there. But this is not enough: The Dead Sea is dying and governments aren’t doing anything to protect it for future generations. MORE

by Michael Smith (Veshengro) More than a quarter of a million Europeans could be producing their own energy by the middle of the century if certain policies are pursued, a new report has found. Enter the coal, oil and gas lobby and the rest is history, as they say. MORE

UK, June 2013 : The Government is being urged to take urgent action on pesticides after laboratory tests, published on Thursday June 13, 2013 by Friends of the Earth and GM Freeze found traces of the weed killer glyphosate in the bodies of people across numerous European countries, including Britain. MORE

Following the Israeli Minister’s green light for the Red-Dead Canal project, Friends of the Earth Middle East are calling for alternatives to the project to be fully explored. Since the very start, the Red-Dead Canal project has been fraught with controversy. The project which aims to revive the Dead Sea, which is shrinking one metre a year, by tunnelling water from the Red Sea has faced serious criticism. MORE

The lower Jordan River, the baptismal river of Jesus, has been dead at its source for some time. For the first time in ages, Israel is releasing native waters via a pump back to the historic waterway. The story is really sad. MORE

Do you love bees as much as I do? MORE

It’s a revolting image and annual reality: those pools are fantasy, but the waste is not. A team of pollution-weary Palestinians and Israelis are injecting environmental education into East Jerusalem schools, teaching young Palestinians new “green” habits. MORE

This looks like they are sending up the benefit/cost bat signal: Four Nigerian farmers and the environmental group Friends of the Earth took oil giant Shell to court Thursday in the Netherlands to demand a proper cleanup and compensation for pollution in the Niger Delta. Based on "years of oil. pollution in three villages in the Niger Delta," it could have "major. The three villages. to Friends of the Earth. MORE

BONN, GERMANY – As week-long UN climate talks closed, observers urged the process to take aim at climate polluting energy production. "Red alert alarm bells are ringing in every corner of the globe - more droughts, more storms, more devastation because of climate change. This is a planetary emergency that is impacting the world''s poorest first. " Asad Rehman, Head of International Climate, of Friends of the Earth EWNI said. MORE

In this ongoing series , I talk with thought leaders about ideas and trends in the environmental movement. I recently spoke with Tony Juniper, author of What Has Nature Ever Done for Us? What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in the field? MORE