Articles by Jonathan Watts

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Human society under urgent threat from loss of Earth’s natural life

Jonathan Watts May 6, 2019 Jonathan Watts

Source: The Guardian

Scientists reveal 1 million species at risk of extinction in damning UN report

Human society is in jeopardy from the accelerating decline of the Earth’s natural life-support systems, the world’s leading scientists have warned, as they announced the results of the most thorough planetary health check ever undertaken.

From coral reefs flickering out beneath the oceans to rainforests desiccatinginto savannahs, nature is being destroyed at a rate tens to hundreds of times higher than the average over the past 10m years, according to the UN global assessment report. read more

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“I thank god I am alive”: standing firm against mineral extraction in South Africa

Jonathan Watts July 23, 2018 Jonathan Watts

Source: The Guardian

Nonhle Mbuthuma is battling for her community’s right to say no to the exploitation of their territory in a hangover of the apartheid era

As a child, Nonhle Mbuthuma would wake up in her family’s thatched hut listening to the waves crashing on South Africa’s Wild Coast , then go and play on the sand dunes, head off to school or help her parents cultivate sweet potatoes and bananas on the family plot.

Today, she can rarely stay in the same place for any length of time and is more likely to be keeping her ears alert to signs of danger. At times she needs bodyguards or goes into hiding. read more