LIA MAZZOLINI: Nobel Peace Prize winner and Kenyan environmentalist, Wangari Maathai has died. The Green Belt Movement founder passed away from cancer in Nairobi, Kenya, on Sunday, September 25.

The Green Belt Movement was established in 1977 as a grassroots non-governmental organization based in her native land. Still in operation, it focuses on environmental conservation, community development and capacity building. Since Maathai started the movement, over 40 million trees have been planted. It has also helped 30,000 women to work, while preserving their lands and resources.

Maathai has also been jailed and severely beaten for her outspokenness. Former Kenyan president Daniel arap Moi called her a “mad woman” and “a threat to the order and security of the country.” Later she won a high-profile case over a proposed skyscraper and statue of the leader in a Nairobi park.

Maathai’s causes drew international attention, which lead her to her winning a Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. The United Nations Environment Program called Maathai one of Africa’s foremost environmental heroes. She became the inspiration behind the 2006 Billion Tree Campaign. More than 11 billion trees have been planted.

Maathai leaves behind three children. She was 71. [ index ]

LIA MAZZOLINI: Global warming causes temperatures to fluctuate, but it may also cause animals to shrink. A journal in The American Naturalist suggests there is a phenomenon know as the ‘temperature-size rule.’  Queen Mary, University of London researcher, Dr Andrew Hirst and colleagues studied cold-blooded organisms. The researchers gathered data for more than 40 years to show the growth and development rate of species in warmer temperatures.

Dr Hirst explains there is a definite difference in the growth and development when there are changes in temperature. The warmer the temperature, the faster a species grows, but also the faster it matures. This results in smaller fully-grown species.

The study, suggests that considering the present state of global warming: it is crucial to conserve and manage fish stock to avoid a degrading fish population and marine ecosystem.

Researchers also say that it could have severe side effects on the entire food chain and the world’s ecosystems. [ index ]

LIA MAZZOLINI: There’s a new insight into global photosynthesis. The way ocean and land plants absorb and release carbon dioxide, have been revealed it can assist scientists to more accurately assess future climate change.

A team of US, Dutch and Australian scientists estimates that the global rate of photosynthesis occurs 25% faster than previously thought, in a report released on Thursday, September 29.

They analyzed more than 30 years of data. This includes air samples collected and analyzed by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization and the Bureau of Meteorology from the Cape Grim Air Pollution Monitoring Station.

The research looked at isotopes in the oxygen component of CO2, using a databank of atmospheric sampling.

They saw a link between isotopes and weather cycles. The researchers suggest that carbon dioxide is swiftly cycled through land ecosystems. From that assumption comes the far higher estimate of annual carbon uptake. [ index ]