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We can’t fight climate change if we keep lying to ourselves

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Nation of Change - Chris Hedges The inability to see what is in front of our eyes replicates the blindness of all past civilizations that celebrated their eternal glory at moments of precipitous decline. Details here. Recent wildfires in Portugal have incinerated more than 60 people in their homes and cars.  Nsandre  photo.

UN urges 'reboot' of drought responses to focus more on preparedness

UN News Centre Investing in preparedness and building the resilience of farmers is fundamental to cope with extreme drought, because responding to such situations when they hit might be too late, the head of the United Nations agricultural agency said today. Story here.

Wildfires used to be rare in the U.S. Great Plains. They’ve more than tripled in 30 years

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                                                        The Washington Post     West Texas - 2011.  Staff Sgt. Eric Harris The grasslands of Great Plains have seen one of the sharpest increases in large and dangerous wildfires in the past three decades, with their numbers more than tripling between 1985 and 2014, according to new research.  Story here .

Chip in to help us save the bees.

+SumOfUs Fighting for people over profits The battle is on: A historic ban on bee-killing pesticides is on the table. But we’ve just learned that politicians in the European Parliament will try to stop it -- before member states even get the chance to vote! PLEASE DONATE HERE.

It’s high time for a global ban on bee-killing pesticides

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+SumOfUs The European Commission is poised to propose a game-changing law to protect bees and other pollinators. The new ban on bee-killing pesticides would go far beyond current protections, banning three deadly neonics from fields all across Europe. PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION. PinP photo.

62 dead in central Portugal forest fires

CBCnews Heat from fires so intense, crews having trouble approaching flames. Details here.

Help preserve land – our 'home and future' – UN urges on World Day to Combat Desertification

The UN News Centre With hundreds of millions of people around the globe directly affected by desertification – the degradation of land ecosystems due to unsustainable farming or mining practices, or climate change – United Nations agencies have called for better management of land so that it can provide a place where individuals and communities “can build a future.” Story here.

Female elk can learn to avoid hunters with age

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EurekAlert Strategies include moving less, and favouring safer areas when near roads. Story here. Elk in Jasper Nat'l. Park, Canada.  PinP photo.

Catastrophe of Aral Sea shows 'men can destroy the planet,' warns UN chief Guterres

UN News Centre United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres paid a recent visit the Aral Sea – once the world's fourth largest inland sea, that has now shrunk to about a quarter of its original size due to human mismanagement  Story here.

Changes for Manitoba's hog industry would lower standards (LETTER)

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(Brandon Sun,13 June) It's a funny thing how industries that are in trouble invariably take out full-page ads in the newspapers to proclaim their virtue in search of public approval. Such is the case with Saturday's ad by the Manitoba Pork Council featuring chairman George Mathison. Chairman Mathison, referring to the "red tape reductions" proposed by the province, emphatically proclaims that "None of the proposed changes will lower environmental standards." Come now, George - that really is a bit of a stretch.

Churchill residents fear skyrocketing costs as flooded rail line closed indefinitely

Winnipeg Free Press First, the grain shipments shut down, shuttering the Port of Churchill. Then the blizzards hit, dumping 60 centimetres of snow in just three days last winter and forcing town authorities to call a state of emergency.  Story here.