Pelecanus

Protected Areas

The U.S. gets a new national marine sanctuary, the first led by a tribe

https://www.npr.org/2024/10/13/nx-s1-5147914/the-u-s-gets-a-new-national-marine-sanctuary-the-first-led-by-a-tribe

Judgments

Judge Rejects Federal Project Threatening California's Desert Tortoises

https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/judge-rejects-federal-project-threatening-californias-desert-tortoises-2024-10-16/

Supreme Court allows a rule limiting pollution from coal-fired power plants to remain in effect

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/supreme-court-allows-a-rule-limiting-pollution-from-coal-fired-power-plants-to-remain-in-effect/ar-AA1socRn

Ancestral Land Returned

Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy Returns Ancestral Land to the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians

https://cvmc.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/CVMC-ACBCI-Press-Release-10-10-2024.pdf

Drawdown

Coal has now died in its birthplace: the UK closes its last coal power station

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y35qz73n8o

California sues ExxonMobil and says it lied about plastics recycling

https://apnews.com/article/california-exxonmobil-lawsuit-plastic-8c5830696ffb02031c53c3077457ebc5

Drawdown

CO2 turned into fuel with Japan's electrochemical cell breakthrough

https://interestingengineering.com/energy/co2-turned-into-fuel-japan

Biodiversity

Scientists edge closer to saving the Northern White Rhino from extinction

https://www.ippmedia.com/the-guardian/features/read/scientists-edge-closer-to-saving-the-northern-white-rhino-from-extinction-2024-09-23-181329

Pair of rare Amur tiger cubs debuting at Minnesota Zoo are raising hopes for the endangered species

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/pair-rare-amur-tiger-cubs-debuting-minnesota-zoo-113611789

In this episode of Conservation Conversations we continue our mini series Conservation on Fire!

We talk with the award winning and best-selling author and artist Obi Kaufmann. Obi Kaufmann has authored six books that present the magic that is the network of living systems in California in the most beautiful way. His latest work “The State of Fire - Why California Burns” confronts one of California’s most pressing social and ecological challenges while sharing a deepened love for the natural world and a refreshingly hopeful vision of California’s future.

Please enjoy our conversation with Obi!

Please do yourself a favor and follow him on social media @coyotethunder and purchase his new book The State of Fire - Why California Burns. But we also recommend looking into the rest of his work as they are all great.

https://coyoteandthunder.com

https://californiafieldatlas.com/shop/ols/products/the-state-of-fire-why-california-burns

Host and producer is Austin Parker and Taylor Parker

Music was provided by A Picture Book studio

Don't forget to like comment and subscribe if you want to help

We’ll talk to you next time!

This episode is brought to you by our sponsor Tidal Influence, a Californian ecological consulting firm who proudly supports environmental education and all of the diverse conservation efforts that Pelecanus works to highlight. Visit their website at www.tidalinfluence.com to learn more about what they do to conserve our coastal resources and how you can get involved

Biodiversity

California's endangered gray wolf population doubles with year's new pups

https://www.sfchronicle.com/california/article/gray-wolf-pups-endangered-19751323.php

Apache trout, Arizona's state fish, dropped from endangered species list after 50-year comeback

https://www.fws.gov/press-release/2024-09/removal-apache-trout-endangered-species-list

Drawdown

'Paper or plastic?' will no longer be a choice at California grocery stores

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/paper-or-plastic-will-no-longer-be-a-choice-at-california-grocery-stores/ar-AA1pJuIQ

South Australia ramps up net 100% renewables target

https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2024/02/28/south-australia-ramps-up-net-100-renewables-target/

Teens being awesome

Teens invent incredible device while searching for way to tackle one of the world's most challenging sources of pollution:

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/teens-invent-incredible-device-while-003000531.html

Zoos being awesome

Critically endangered pangolin pup born at Illinois zoo

https://www.bnd.com/news/state/illinois/article291118195.html

Oregon Zoo releases endangered frogs into the wild

https://www.oregonzoo.org/news/endangered-frogs-hop-zoo-back-wild

Discovery of endangered cats

Rare Footage Shows Elusive Endangered Species Spotted for First Time in More Than 50 Years

https://www.yahoo.com/news/rare-footage-shows-elusive-endangered-220910809.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZWNvc2lhLm9yZy8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAJ9vDCng51YwZcXjcpTcnXqTlRspKJmevErxGOdhj0OeF0LzjfAqCdf5rlehlNuCRdCeFghJ9cNnF6wEwO2XjTW0YcHdDGnQiSCu7sJ8dD4rKwXUFU5nZVmnLl3GVMwx53qu41GCSYAMTsV_zOYxEi0xyXmaMYtR_sblS6uhUAe6

Endangered lynx makes its first appearance in Vermont in years

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/endangered-lynx-makes-its-first-appearance-in-vermont-in-years/ar-AA1pkUrz

In this episode of Conservation Conversations we continue our mini series Conservation on Fire! We talked with Justin Britton, a Forester from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, more commonly known as CalFire. He talks all about his programs in forestry health and workforce development in the forests of California!

Thank you again to Justin for talking all about what he and so many great people do for CalFire. If you’re interested in the programs we discussed, please go to their website https://www.fire.ca.gov/ and see how you can get involved!

Host and producer is Austin Parker and Taylor Parker

Music was provided by A Picture Book studio

Don't forget to like comment and subscribe if you want to help

We’ll talk to you next time!

This episode is brought to you by our sponsor Tidal Influence, a Californian ecological consulting firm who proudly supports environmental education and all of the diverse conservation efforts that Pelecanus works to highlight. Visit their website at www.tidalinfluence.com to learn more about what they do to conserve our coastal resources and how you can get involved

Environmental Justice

In historic move, EPA bans pesticide; cites alarming setbacks for fetuses

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/in-historic-move-epa-bans-pesticide-cites-alarming-setbacks-for-fetuses/ar-AA1ol4HT

Water

World’s largest dam removal project nears completion

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/world-s-largest-dam-removal-project-nears-completion/ar-BB1qZmF8

Arrowhead water bottler ordered to stop operations in San Bernardino Mountains

https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/08/09/forest-service-orders-arrowhead-brand-water-bottler-to-cease-operating-in-san-bernardino-mountains/

Rewilding

Conservationists thrilled after species reintroduction yields first lion cub birth in over 150 years

https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/lion-cubs-babanango-game-reserve-south-africa/

Los Angeles Zoo sets record with 17 California condor chicks hatched in 2024 https://apnews.com/article/los-angeles-zoo-california-condors-record-69c1dbfbdd70b7634c44fc929905d084

State wildlife officials make big announcement about wolves in Colorado: 'This pup's arrival is a huge conservation milestone

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/state-wildlife-officials-make-big-announcement-about-wolves-in-colorado-this-pups-arrival-is-a-huge-conservation-milestone/ar-AA1om9YG

River Otters Were Once Nearly Extinct In Illinois — But Now They Roam Chicago Waterways

https://wgntv.com/morning-news/wgn-morning-news-9-at-9/river-otters-are-making-a-comeback-in-chicago-area/

Two Critically Endangered Chicks Hatch at Audubon Zoo

https://newsroom.audubonnatureinstitute.org/two-critically-endangered-chicks-hatch-at-audubon-zoo/

Welcome to a Bonus Pelecanus episode where we highlight the 2024 recipient of our Carrie Wilson Memorial Scholarship, Emily Summers, a graduate student with Project Dragonfly. Emily has done great work already and we're very proud to award her this scholarship.

Carrie R. Wilson was a staple of the community of San Diego for the last 50+ years. Carrie believed in community inspiration through direct and intentional action. Pelecanus would never have come to fruition without Carrie, and the same can be said for so many people throughout San Diego. As the Dean of Students of the University of San Diego Law School, she was able to make a lasting impact on thousands of students' lives. Carrie asked us to let anyone looking to honor her memory know that she hopes they would make a "heartfelt gift to make the world a better place." She simply hoped for her legacy to be one of paying it forward. We aim to award this scholarship to students who embody the Pelecanus mission of demonstrating optimism through science and align with Carrie R. Wilson’s passion for education, charity and service.

The Carrie Wilson Memorial Scholarship will be open for applications for project dragonfly students again in the Spring of 2025, check our Pelecanus.org scholarship page for more information. Pelecanus is a 501C3 non-profit organization that takes tax deductible donations. You will also find a link to the donate button on our website if you’d like to contribute to the Carrie Wilson memorial programs or to Pelecanus in general.

Host and producer: Austin Parker

Music: A Picture Book Studios

Anti-deforestation

Deforestation in Colombia falls to lowest level in 23 years

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/colombia-deforestation-fell-23-year-low-2023-2024-07-08/

Biodiversity

‘Cause for shellebration’: OKC Zoo announces birth of rare giant tortoises

https://kfor.com/news/local/okc-zoo-announces-birth-of-rare-giant-tortoises/

Decades of conservation efforts lead to 'landmark' hatching of 60 nearly extinct crocodiles

https://www.yahoo.com/news/decades-conservation-efforts-lead-landmark-000000063.html

Drawdown

California experiences its 100th day of renewable energy sources meeting 100% of electricity demand

https://environmentamerica.org/california/media-center/release-100-days-renewable/

Marathon Oil Agrees to Record Penalty for Alleged Clean Air Act Violations

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/marathon-oil-record-penalty-oil-and-gas-pollution/