Eco Hvar's aims for protecting animals and improving animal welfare, plus related articles
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The site contains articles and information on topics related to health, the environment and animal welfare.
While the focus is on Hvar Island in Dalmatia, much of the information is relevant to the rest of Croatia, and some to Europe, the United States and the rest of the world.
The main language of the site is English, but articles in Croatian are being added as quickly as possible. Some of the Croatian articles are translations, some original. Book reviews are in the language of the publication being reviewed.
To see all the articles archived in each category, click on the category name which is given below the title of each article (Environment, Highlights, Notices etc).
For further relevant news items and bits of interesting information, please refer to our Facebook page.
We are very grateful to Željka Horvat Kozulić for kindly and expertly designing the ECO HVAR logo, also to Jelena Bunčuga, Petra Mimica, Bartul Mimica, Ivana Župan, Dinka Barbić and Josip Vlainić for their generous help in translating articles into Croatian.
Special thanks are also owed to Mihael Magdić of Orion Informatika i Trgovina, Varaždin, for his excellent and patient efforts in designing the website.
Report from group of MPs calls for broader access to rivers, woodlands and fields to improve connection with nature
Swimming and wild camping should be a right for all people to enjoy in the English countryside, Labour MPs have said.
They are calling for access to nature to be increased and legal rights to enjoy the countryside in a report from the all-party parliamentary group for outdoor recreation and access to nature.
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Exclusive: Planning documents show impact of Thurrock ‘hyperscale’ unit as UK attempts to ramp up AI capacity
A new Google datacentre in Essex is expected to emit more than half a million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year , equivalent to about 500 short-haul flights a week, planning documents show.
Spread across 52 hectares (128 acres), the Thurrock “hyperscale datacentre” will be part of a wave of mammoth computer and AI power houses if it secures planning consent.
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Campaigners crowdfund £26,000 to seek judicial review of move to construct pitches in wildlife-rich area
Campaigners are mounting another legal challenge to the building of a women’s football academy by Tottenham Hotspur on wildlife-rich parkland in north London.
The Guardians of Whitewebbs group has successfully crowdfunded £26,000 to seek a judicial review of Enfield council’s granting of planning permission for the Spurs academy, which will include all-weather pitches, floodlights and a turf academy built on 53 hectares (130 acres) of Whitewebbs Park. Enfield council’s planning committee approved the proposals in February, despite local protests, on greenbelt parkland rich in bats, newts and mature trees.
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Viral videos have shifted public opinion about water monitors, long held in contempt in Thai culture, even as rising numbers of the reptiles pose problems for residents
Shortly after dawn, Lumphini Park comes alive. Bangkok residents descend on the sprawling green oasis in the middle of the city, eager to squeeze in a workout before the heat of the day takes hold. Joggers trot along curving paths. Old men struggle under barbells at the outdoor gym. Spandex-clad women stretch into yoga poses on the grass.
Just metres away, one of the park’s more infamous occupants strikes its own lizard pose. About 400 Asian water monitor lizards call Lumphini Park home, and this morning they are out in full force – scrambling up palm trees, swimming through the waterways and wrestling on the road.
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Agreements include plan to build 12 reactors in Hartlepool with Centrica, creating 2,500 jobs, and fast-tracking UK and US safety checks
Labour’s plans for a massive expansion of nuclear power have been given a boost with a string of transatlantic deals for new modular reactors announced before Donald Trump’s visit.
The UK and US governments have promised to fast track safety checks, and announced several new private sector investment deals, with Labour emphasising the potential benefits for jobs and growth.
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Owenkillew River, County Tyrone: Vital populations of freshwater pearl mussels survive here, cleaning the water, encouraging the return of their ‘host’
I am holding the empty bivalve shell of a freshwater pearl mussel. A mussel of this size – almost the length of my hand – lived for about 100 years before its flesh dissolved, most likely in the stomach of an otter or mink. The shell was abandoned on the riverbank.
I turn it over. In contrast to the black-as-bogwater exterior, the interior is a shimmering nacreous-white. Formerly common enough to be harvested by local pearl hunters, this species is now globally endangered. Nevertheless, among the rolling hills of the Sperrins mountain range, vital populations survive in the Owenkillew and Owenreagh rivers. Mussels feed by filtering particles out of the current, cleaning the water, thereby providing an important service to the river’s ecosystem.
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Greatest damage from heat, drought and flooding done in Cyprus, Greece, Malta and Bulgaria
The violent weather that battered Europe this summer caused short-term economic losses of at least €43bn, according to an EU-wide estimate, with costs expected to rise to €126bn by 2029.
The immediate hit to the economy from a single brutal summer of heat, drought and flooding amounted to 0.26% of the EU’s economic output in 2024, according to the rapid analysis, which has not been submitted for peer review but is based on relationships between weather and economic data that were published in an academic study this month.
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Download one or many of our beautiful colouring sheets from artist Pete Cromer
Pete Cromer’s signature artwork provides the distinctive look of the Guardian/Birdlife Australia 2025 bird of the year poll.
You can create your own bird of the year masterpiece by downloading and printing these colouring PDFs featuring previous winners and runners-up in the bird of the year vote. There are individual ones for specific birds, or for those wanting more of a challenge, one sheet with several birds.
Mindfulness colouring page with all birds on one page
Multipage PDF with all the abovebirds
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In the remote state of Meghalaya, foraged foods are helping to diversify state-provided menus – and tackle chronic malnutrition
Excited chatter and the clattering of steel plates drown out the din of the monsoon rains: it is lunchtime in Laitsohpliah government school in the north-east Indian state of Meghalaya. The food has been cooked on-site and is free for everyone, part of India’s ambitious “midday meal” – PM Poshan – programme to incentivise school enrolment.
The scheme covers more than 1m state-run schools across the country, but the menu at Laitsohpliah is hyperlocal, thanks to a recent charity initiative in the state.
A lunch of rice, dal, potatoes with east Himalayan chives, cured dry fish and sohryngkham, a wild berry pickle
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Heroic firefighting and a lucky turn in weather helped avert disaster once, but ‘a perfect storm of conditions’ remains
During a 2024 wildfire season described as “unprecedented”, the tiny central Idaho town of Stanley and nearby Redfish Lake Lodge narrowly missed incineration by two fires: the Bench Lake and then the Wapiti blazes.
It took heroic firefighting efforts and favorable turns in weather conditions for the town – a mountain mecca for tourists from around the world – to survive without the loss of a single life or home.
Continue reading...Families impacted have criticised the review, calling it "not fit for purpose".
Which? advised families to buy approved seats with a clear orange label indicating they are safe.
Children describe positive memories of family time, as well as the darker side of pandemic life online.
The quest for brick-like abs has become serious business - even if you're only in Year 8.
It's common to become forgetful or mentally sluggish but there are easy ways to cut through the haze.
Huge sums spent on children's residential care in England do not represent value for money, says spending watchdog.
Denmark's survival rates record for certain cancers were poor compared to some other wealthy countries. Then it came up with a bold plan
Scientists leading the trial at University College London believe the blood test could improve the accuracy of diagnosis of the disease to more than 90%.
The draft guidance advises against many popular but unproven fertility add-ons offered by clinics.
Critics question the usability of new league tables meant to inform the public and let them exercise choice.
The Amazon rainforest, known for lush green canopies and an abundance of freshwater, is drying out — and deforestation is largely to blame.
The ocean is engine of all life on Earth, but human-driven climate change is pushing it past its limits. Here are five ways the ocean keeps our climate in check — and what can be done to help.
In a grueling and delicate dance, a team led by Conservation International removes a massive undersea killer.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. These pictures might be worth even more. An initiative featuring the work of some of the world’s best nature photographers raises money for environmental conservation.
In a fishing community in Peru, a small group of fishermen carry on a tradition that dates back to the Incas. But an environmental disaster and modern fishing practices threaten this way of life.
A project from Conservation International and a Mexican university offers a glimmer of hope for the critically endangered axolotl.
As global temperatures rise, wildlife around the world are on the move, a new protected corridor in one of the planet’s most biodiverse countries aims to help.
The world’s appetite for shrimp has surged — and environmental destruction has followed in its wake. A new program from Conservation International has a solution.
A new Conservation International study is shedding light on an unsung group and their relationship with nature.
Despite risks, AI has ‘enormous potential’ for good, a Conservation International expert says.
