West Papua revokes quarter of a million hectares of land from palm oil
The local government Indonesia’s West Papua province has revoked permits for 12 oil palm concessions that cover an area twice the size of Los Angeles.
Wildlife & land conservation
This archive tracks meaningful progress in protecting wildlife and preserving land — from habitat restoration and endangered species recoveries to new protected areas and conservation policy wins. These stories focus on what’s working, grounded in evidence and reported with care.
Biden suspends oil leases in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
The suspension includes 10-year leases that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued on Jan. 6, 2021, which span more than 430,000 acres of the refuge.
Leonardo DiCaprio and conservationists launch $43M plan to restore Galápagos Islands
The initiative involves more than 40 partners, ranging from local NGOs to governments to international organizations, leveraging decades of collective experience working across the archipelago.
GPS tracking is helping tigers and humans coexist in Nepal
Significant progress has been made in wild tiger conservation in Nepal with the population doubling from 2009 to 2018.
Groundbreaking treaty protects environmental activists in Latin America
In addition to improving public access to environmental information and encouraging public participation in environmental policymaking, the treaty also requires participating countries to protect environmental human rights defenders.
230,000 acres of tropical rainforest in Belize protected as biodiversity hotspot
This new protected area is contiguous with and nearly doubles the size of the adjacent Rio Bravo Conservation Management Area. Combined, it represents 9% of the landmass of Belize and secures a vital wildlife corridor.
Amazon, Unilever, and Nestlé join the U.K., U.S. and Norway in new $1 billion rainforest conservation initiative
During the international Climate Summit, three governments and nine giant corporations announced a groundbreaking coalition, called LEAF, which is mobilizing to raise at least $1 billion this year, alone, for large-scale forest protection and sustainable development.
Walmart commits to helping save pollinators by mandating change for supply chains
Walmart U.S. will source 100% of the fresh produce and floral items it sells in its in-store produce department from suppliers that adopt integrated pest management practices, as verified by a third party, by 2025.
Nepal’s rhino population is on the rise
In the 1960s, Nepal’s rhino population hit a frightening low of fewer than 100. But it seems the government’s conservation efforts have paid off.
Great Bear Rainforest agreement protects millions of acres under Indigenous leadership
The Great Bear Rainforest agreement, signed in February 2016, protected 85% of old-growth trees across 6.4 million hectares of British Columbia’s coast — a temperate rainforest roughly the size of Ireland. Reached after nearly 20 years of negotiation, it placed 26 First Nations at the center as co-managers, embedding Indigenous authority into conservation law.