Topic description and stories

Life on Earth is at risk from an unprecedented rate of environmental change that threatens the natural resources on which we depend.

COP15: UN and Cambridge sign agreement to bolster conservation

09 Dec 2022

The UN Convention on Biological Diversity secretariat and the University of Cambridge signed a Memorandum of Understanding on day two of COP15, which...

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Conservation: it’s time to look at the evidence

29 Jun 2022

Professor Bill Sutherland is leading a conservation revolution to reverse the dramatic loss of global biodiversity

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Protected areas saw dramatic spikes in fires during COVID lockdowns, study finds

05 May 2022

Scientists suggest that some staffing of protected areas should be considered “essential services” in future crises.

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Frog

Lack of transparency over cost of conservation projects hampers ability to prioritise funds for nature protection

23 Mar 2022

A new study has found that costs of conservation projects are rarely reported, making it difficult for others to make decisions on the most cost-...

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A butterfly behind glass

Butterflies through time: a new exhibition

22 Mar 2022

Butterflies through time at Cambridge’s Museum of Zoology illuminates the beautiful, turbulent history of butterflies across the UK.

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Planting a young tree

Forest restoration: trade-offs between environmental and wood production goals

17 Mar 2022

Forest restoration schemes should prioritise restoring native forests for greatest climate and environmental benefits, but these benefits incur a...

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Birds of prey populations suppressed by lead poisoning from gun ammo

16 Mar 2022

New study uses data on lead levels in the livers of thousands of dead raptors to calculate the impact of lead poisoning on population size.

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Puffins

Climate change threat to seabirds must be properly considered for their conservation to be effective

09 Mar 2022

A new study shows how knowledge of climate change threats could be better connected with conservation efforts to help protect seabirds and other at-...

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A wild horse on Wicken Fen, UK

Cambridge researchers to tackle major threats to 'UK’s vegetable garden'

15 Feb 2022

Cambridge researchers will tackle environmental threats that could affect a third of England’s home-grown vegetables and more than a quarter of the...

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The Lost Words: a ‘spell book’ that closes the gap between childhood and nature

01 Jan 2022

The Lost Words is a book by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris that summons the magic of nature to help children find, love and protect the natural...

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Pangolin trafficking: Iceberg tip of Nigeria's illegal trade revealed

04 Nov 2021

New findings on Nigerian-linked pangolin seizures suggest that current global estimates for trafficking of the animal are far too small, say...

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Map showing global areas of importance for terrestrial biodiversity, carbon and water

Integrated conservation strategies could simultaneously meet biodiversity, climate and water objectives

23 Aug 2021

Managing a strategically chosen 30% of land for conservation could safeguard 70% of all terrestrial plant and vertebrate animal species, while...

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