Indonesia's most dangerous fires are burning underground
| | WASHINGTON, US, 6 September 2026 (NASA) - Indonesia’s dangerous peat fires are surging early in the 2026 fire season as a strengthening El Niño and severe drought dry out wetlands that can burn underground for months. These slow smoldering fires are especially destructive because they release far more fine particles and several pollutants than typical tropical forest fires, while thick smoke can make them difficult for satellites to detect. |
Water quality challenges to low-income communities in Colombo
| | COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, 5 September 2026 (Mongabay) - Most urban poor living in Colombo, Sri Lanka’s commercial capital, rely on pipe-borne water for their daily needs. Many fresh water sources have become contaminated over a period of 20-25 years due to human interventions and environmental factors. As extreme heat impacts the island, water scarcity may force city people to use alternative or less protected water sources. |
Marine conservation collides with mining in Sulawesi
| | SOUTH KONAWE, Indonesia, 4 September 2026 (Mongabay) - A marine protected area in Indonesia’s Southeast Sulawesi province is home to a critically depleted population of humphead wrasse. The species presence helped the area gain its protected status, but mining permits overlap parts of the conservation zone and line its coast. |
Illegal gold mining continues in Indonesia's Aceh
| | NAGAN RAYA, Indonesia, 4 September 2026 (Mongabay) - Residents in different districts across the Indonesian province of Aceh say gold mining activity in the interior of forest areas continues despite the province’s leaders agreeing a crackdown on illegal mining. Fuel shortages have been reported at local gas stations, which some attribute to demand from excavators working to unearth gold ore from inside forest areas. |
Contestants gather on island for world stone skimming championships
| | GLASGOW, UK, 4 September 2026 (BBC) - Contenders from around the world are converging on a tiny Scottish island for one of the country's most unlikely international sporting events - the world stone skimming championships. The annual contest on the isle of Easdale, in the Inner Hebrides, has attracted a record number of international entries, representing more than 30 nations, with some flying in from New Zealand and Canada. |
US hits Cuba with new sanctions as island's crises multiply
| | HAVANA, Cuba, 4 September 2026 (ABC) - The U.S. government on Thursday slapped new sanctions on Cuba in a fresh push to strangle the island’s economy and deepen its multiple crises. Among those hit with sanctions are Fidel Ernesto Castro, grandson of former President Raúl Castro, and Cuba’s Oil Industry Supply Import Company, known as Abapet. The company is responsible for importing special equipment and spare parts needed to sustain Cuba’s crumbling power grid. |
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CBD |
 | | COP16 21 Oct-1 Nov, 2024, Cali, Colombia |
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UNFCCC |
| | COP29 11-22 November, 2024, Baku, Azerbaijan |
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ISLAND DYNAMICS |
| | DARKNESS II conference, 20-23 January 2025, Nuuk, Greenland |
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JICAS |
| | Islands And Island Studies conference 3-7 June, 2025, Jersey, Channel Islands |
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UNITED NATIONS |
| | UN Ocean Conference 9-13 June, 2025, Nice, France |
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UPEI |
| | 3rd international conference on SIS and SNIJs 16-20 June, 2025, Charlottetown, PEI |
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ARCTIC COUNCIL |
| | UArctic Congress 26-29 May 2026, Torshavn, Faroe Islands |
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SICRI |
| | Island Studies International Conference 25-28 June, 2026, Tacloban City, Leyte Islands, Philippines |
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WORLD ISLANDS FAIR |
| | The world’s first international event themed around islands 5 Sept-4 Nov, 2026, Yeosu, South Korea |
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SPREP |
| | 11th Pacific Islands Conference for Nature Conservation and Protected Areas, 7–11 September 2026, Noumea, New Caledonia |
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ANATOMY OF ISLANDS |
| | 14th Anatomy of Islands symposium 15-17 Oct, 2026, Jelsa, Hvar Island, Croatia |
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SOCIETY OF ISLAND BIOLOGY |
| | 5th Island Biology conference 2-6 November, 2026, Atami City, Japan |
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IWRA |
| | 2nd Islands Water Congress 27-29 Jan, 2027, Montego Bay, Jamaica |
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ISISA |
| | 21st Islands of the Word Conference 6-10 June, 2027, Willemstad, Curacao |
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