ENVIRONMENT AND CORPORATIONS
The Heat of Meat
Brazil’s beef industry and global warming.
Why the world’s production and consumption of beef and dairy products are at the core of the fight over climate change.
13 Apr 2023
Romania: Rape of the Forest
It is getting dangerous in Romania’s vast ancient forests. The figures are stark: Six rangers killed (two in 2019 alone) and a further 650 attacked with axes, knives and guns.
So what is at stake?
For the criminals this is easy: Many hundred millions of euros a year; but for others it is incalculable – put simply, this is Europe’s most important ecosystem.
26 Nov 2020
Armenia: Mining Out the Leopard
In 2018 a new government came to power in Armenia, amid widespread optimism that its leader Nikol Pashinyan would end decades of corruption and economic and industrial mismanagement.
But now his administration faces a major dilemma – whether to proceed with a hugely divisive, multi-billion dollar mining project at Amulsar in the mountainous south of the country.
31 Jan 2019
Defiance of the Mapuche
The Mapuche of Argentina and Chile have been pushed to the brink of insurrection in defence of their ancient lands. Increasingly forceful Mapuche activists, determined to establish their rights through direct action, have clashed with correspondingly belligerent security forces – the latter egged on, say protesters, by right-wing, pro-business governments in both countries. After occupations, demonstrations, security raids, a rash of arson attacks on timber estates, the murder of activists by police, matters are beginning to spiral out of control.
11 Jan 2018
Under Northern Lights
In northern Scandinavia, locals are taking on mining giants in a bid to save an ancient environment and way of life.
Europe’s far north is a place of spectacular beauty, of mountains and forests, lakes and rivers, illuminated in winter by the ethereal glow of the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights.
It is also home to an astonishing array of plants and animals which have survived largely thanks to the indigenous people of the area – the Sami.
28 Nov 2013
Argentina’s Bad Seeds
The country’s soya industry is booming, but what is the impact on Argentinians and their land?
For much of the past decade Argentina has seen a commodities-driven export boom, built largely on genetically-modified soy bean crops and the aggressive use of pesticides.
Argentina’s leaders say it has turned the country’s economy around, while others say the consequences are a dramatic surge in cancer rates, birth defects and land theft.
14 Mar 2013
Panama: Village of the damned
Away from its busy capital city and famous canal, Panama is one of the world’s most ecologically diverse nations.
Yet huge new hydroelectric dam projects now underway are seeing pristine rivers damned and virgin rainforest flooded.
The government says it is vital for economic growth, big business is cashing in and even the UN has awarded carbon credits on the basis that the resultant energy will be ‘sustainably’ produced.
14 Apr 2012
Latvia’s pulp fiction
The Baltic nation of Latvia is blessed with some of the most beautiful forests in the world, millions of square kilometres of pristine woodland that support a complex biodiversity of rare species of animals and plants.
But with the Latvian economy in difficulties and the need for money pressing, those trees are being cut down at an alarming rate. Overseas demand for the timber is high, particularly in the UK, which takes almost two-thirds of Latvia’s exports.
3 Feb 2011
Delta Force
This is the story of the Ogoni people’s courageous campaign against a military government and international oil interests. When the Ogoni began protesting the pollution and exploitation inflicted by the oil industry on their lands, they were met with swift and brutal repression. Nigeria’s military government faced global condemnation for its ruthless oppression of these Niger Delta communities. Villages were razed, inhabitants indiscriminately killed, and Ogoni leader and writer Ken Saro-Wiwa was imprisoned for over a year on dubious murder charges before being executed—all in the name of oil.
5 Nov 1995
Hell in the Pacific
The relationship between multinational mining corporations and the people of Papua New Guinea has been fraught with tension. Critics argue that pollution and human rights abuses have sparked open conflict with remote communities, as these corporations prioritize profit over environmental and social responsibility.
24 Nov 1994
The Maroons
In the South American nation of Suriname, the Maroons—descendants of escaped slaves—continue to live in distinctive African communities deep within the jungle. Maroon presenter and human rights activist Stanley Rensch embarks on a fact-finding mission to French Guiana and Guyana, as part of his people's ongoing struggle against the encroachment of mining and logging companies.
11 Aug 1996
Pandora's Lunchbox
British agribusinesses are among the most profitable in the world. However, in the pursuit of profit, some food corporations have been known to pollute the environment and endanger consumer health. Additionally, the treatment of animals in these industries often raises serious ethical concerns.
2 Oct 1993