News & Stories – Page 9 – Oxford Nature Network

Selected News and Stories

How to save the Amazon

In honour of journalist Dom Philips and indigenista Bruno Pereira, a gathering of Indigenous leaders, human rights and environmental defenders, researchers, and practitioners came together on Earth Day to celebrate their lives and build hope for ‘How to Save the Amazon.’ The newly launched paperback version of the book ‘How to Save the Amazon’ uncovers […]

wildflower meadow with fields and trees in distance — Wildflower meadow in Oxfordshire. Photo Yadvinder Malhi

The great significance of observing nature in your back garden

Yadvinder Malhi shares his rediscovery of nature at the local level Like many, I have found solace and refuge in local nature over this year of pandemic and lockdown. When able to escape from Zoom calls and cabin fever, I’ve wandered and exercised in my local floodplain meadow of the Thames. I’ve used books and […]

For plants facing climate change, staying alive beats reproducing

Oxford researchers have found that plant resilience depends more on year-to-year survival than on growth or reproduction, with fluctuations in water availability emerging as the strongest environmental driver. A University of Oxford study has answered a deceptively simple question: what makes some plant populations more resilient than others to year-to-year environmental change? The answer surprised […]

Inspired by Nature. Powered by People

Celebrating a Remarkable Nature Festival 2026. On Saturday 27 June, as Oxfordshire experienced one of the hottest days of the year, hundreds of people came together for something worth celebrating: a festival that connected people with nature, with each other and with the inspiring work taking place to protect our environment. Despite the heatwave, The […]

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screencapture of blog posts, featuring a seal in marien waste, and lilly pad and flower and a reptile — The Conservation Optimism blog

Conservation Optimism; Being Positive About the Future

An interview with Julia Migné by Michaela Rychetská The significance of climate change has brought a new light on the importance of conservation. Droughts, wildfires, floods, storms, and other extreme events are occurring more rapidly than ever and sow the seeds of fear in our lives – into mine for sure. While this negative news […]

Art, Biodiversity, and Climate Collaboration

We’re pleased to announce that The Biodiversity Network is a member of an exciting network: The Art, Biodiversity, and Climate Network (ABC Network), which brings together members of the Oxford ONE network, the Biodiversity Network, the Oxford Climate Research Network and The Flute & Bowl: Oxford Art and Science to bridge the gap that separates […]

Yadvinder in the rainforest with a note book and pen — Yadvinder in the rainforest

Where the wild things should be: Yadvinder Malhi and why...

Rainforests are amazing places – great biodiverse ecosystems and carbon sinks. But, as a million nature programmes have shown, they are also full of things that could kill you: insects as big as your fist, some of the deadliest snakes alive, even the frogs can be nasty. Not unreasonably, this might well deter many people […]

head and shoulders of a Sumatran Rhino in jungle — Sumatran Rhino photo by Barney Long

IUCN’s New “Green Status of Species” Measures Impact of Conservation...

From California condors to East Asian mangroves, IUCN’s New “Green Status of Species” Measures Impact of Conservation Action New research led by the Department of Zoology’s Dr Molly Grace, published today in Conservation Biology, applies the IUCN Green Status of Species for the first time. This is a new Global Standard to measure how close a species is to being fully […]

Landscape of trees at dusk — A ‘Treescape Opportunity Map’ has been created for the county of Oxfordshire showing where tree cover might be increased.

Environmental Change Institute (ECI) Administrator to support the Oxfordshire Treescapes...

Contractual details: 40{4136d53bac2007e4117f1d8828c187063ea0a85f13bd7ca9434591c56c4e6ea2} FTE Term: 12 weeks in first instance, possibility of extension Salary: £12 – £15 an hour Location: Oxfordshire (other locations can be considered) Background Healthy Ecosystem Restoration Oxfordshire (HERO) is a network initiative supported by the Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford, and coordinated by the Environmental Change Institute. The initiative explores […]

city skyline reflected in water — Photo: Hollie Booth

On COVID-19, and rebalancing our relationship with nature: what have...

Story by Hollie Booth The Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science (ICCS), based at Oxford’s Department of Zoology, have spent the past 15 months looking at how post-pandemic recovery plans can help (or hinder) conservation efforts. This includes the launch of Pledge for our Earth, where individuals commit to doing their part in resetting our relationship with […]

Photograph of Melissa carrying out fieldwork in Bolivia with jaguar plet behind her — llegal trade and human‐wildlife conflict are two key drivers of biodiversity loss and are recognized as leading threats to large carnivores. Photo by Melissa Arias.

What are the drivers of the illegal wildlife trade in...

I was a stranger who looked and sounded foreign, yet before even asking who I was or what I wanted, she welcomed me into her home with a smile and hurriedly dragged a chair so that I could sit. When I told her that I was researching jaguars and their interactions with people in the […]

Blacktip reef shark swimming in the shallows — Swimming with sharks. Photos by Hollie Booth (Insta: @the_hollitype)

Lessons from Misool: a nature-positive approach to the tourism sector...

Most business models of the 21st century have a net negative impact on nature. They fundamentally rely on using natural resources – oil for fuel, land for infrastructure, cotton for textiles – with few incentives to replace or regenerate what is lost. As of 2020, human-made materials outweigh all living things on earth, and the destruction […]

Skyline view of Ho Chi Minh City — Credit: Alegria Olmedo

Characterising wild meat consumers in Vietnam

In early 2019, I travelled to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam to conduct research on the consumption of meat from wild animals in local restaurants. I had shortlisted a few restaurants where this consumption took place and had the opportunity to visit some of them. The restaurant we walked into was rather empty for a […]

A beaver about to enter a river — Beavers help build our biodiversity

Beaver ecosystems

Annie Welden takes us to the wonderful world of beavers, the remarkable ecosystems engineers that work with humans to increase ecosystem biodiversity. Ever heard the phrase, ‘busy as a beaver?’ These large rodents found in North America and Eurasia are busy literally building biodiversity. By constructing their dams out of the materials around them, from […]

Close up of ocean waves — The Oxygen we breathe comes from our Oceans

Rainforests are not the lungs of our planet

The statement that Amazon is the lungs of our planet is a misconception. Our tropical forests are undoubtedly one of the most precious resources of our planet, for a multitude of reasons including being a hotspot for biodiversity and life on earth, storing carbon, climate regulation, water regulation, social and economic resilience, and much more. […]

Close of burning leaf — As we are approaching wildfire season in the Amazon, it is worth remembering that records of active fires in the Amazon Rainforest peaked in August 2019.

Amazon fires

As we approach the Amazonian wildfire season, Drs. Erika Berengue and Aoife Bennett from the Ecosystems Lab provide their insights on the drivers of wildfires and what this means in desperate times of COVID-19 pandemic.  Amazonians face devastating times: the rapid spread of COVID-19 across Amazonia, the lack of monitoring, infrastructure, and access to medical […]