Species extinction rates accelerate, CO2 increases affect oceans as well as the atmosphere, and a "green hero" in Mexico.

October 9, 2007

Earth Trends: Environmental Information

• More than 16,000 Species are at Risk of Extinction. The United Nations' Millennium Assessment estimates that the current rate of species extinction is 1,000 times greater than it would be without human-induced habitat change, introduction of invasive species, and overexploitation. October 5, 2007.

• September 2007 Monthly Update: Ocean Acidification, the Other Threat of Rising CO2 Emissions. Global warming is not the only threat from increased atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2). Ocean acidification, which occurs when CO2 in the atmosphere reacts with water to create carbonic acid, has already increased ocean acidity by 30 percent. October 2, 2007.

New Ventures

• Expansion Magazine Names New Ventures Mexico's Rodrigo Villar a "Green Hero". The publication is targeted at Mexico's business professionals and shows that sustainability issues have become mainstream in the country's private sector. October 4, 2007.

• New Ventures Entrepreneur Tiago Aguiar Wins Brazilian Version of "The Apprentice". Aguiar will work with Brazil's largest marketing company to to launch DryWash Wipes, a new addition to the company's waterless car wash system, on the international market. October 4, 2007.

 

Environmental News

Climate & Energy

• Vancouver Sun. October 1, 2007. Global Warming Not Biggest Threat: Expert. The biggest immediate threat to the vast majority of endangered species in Canada is not global warming, but issues such as habitat loss, pollution and overexploitation.

• Industry Week. October 5, 2007. Sun Offers Free Green Benchmarking Tools. Sun Microsystems recently launched a free online service, called OpenEco.org, designed to help companies benchmark their environmental and carbon emissions-tracking practices.

• ClimateChangeCorp.com. October 3, 2007. Climate Change Consultancies: Who Will Survive the Boom? The broadening of stakeholders’ concerns to include managing greenhouse gas emissions should support further growth for an already big environmental consultancy sector.

Markets and Enterprise

• Media Ambiente Online. October 5, 2007. Who Reads the Thousands of Sustainability Reports That Corporations Release Each Year? The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and its partners have unveiled a pioneering attempt to capture and share readers' thoughts on the value of corporate sustainability reports.

• AllAfrica.com. October 5, 2007. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala Now World Bank MD. The World Bank appointed Nigeria's former finance and foreign affairs minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, as a Managing Director in charge of Africa, South Asia, Europe and Central Asia Regions.