Racheal Pakrwoth

Burundi's eucalyptus is drying water sources, degrading soil & threatening biodiversity.

Communities are pioneering mixed-species reforestation.

This story was co-produced by journalist Bizimana Arthur and scientist André Nduwimana.

#TopStories2025
🔗 shorturl.at/8GaPo

Illegal, unregulated fishing is devastating East Africa's lakes from Tanzania to DRC. Weak enforcement & corruption cripple communities on Lake Victoria.

The story series exposes the crisis & demands action.

#CaughtInCrisis
Read now: 👇
url-shortener.me/6VAW

🌍 Does your NGO want to contribute to a more resilient environmental journalism ecosystem? We can support you: apply for a grant to finance training and fellowship programmes aimed at strengthening environmental investigative reporting in Europe. t.ly/NjkFz
Next deadline: 22 January 2026, 13:00 CET.

Why Illegal DRC-Uganda Timber Trade Continues to Thrive - InfoNile Corruption is a major problem. Some loggers would rather pay bribes than follow the rules. As a result, illegal timber moves freely.

In DRC's Ituri, villages like Makoko II lose forests that fed & sheltered them. "Trees are gone," says farmer Jean-Marie.

Tenywa Gerald & Tali Joel, supported by Global Forest Watch
explore how illegal timber moves from DRC to Kampala.

#TopStories2025 #DRCTimberTrade

url-shortener.me/6K64

From DRC’s forests to Nairobi’s high-end furniture shops. At the Kasindi border, trucks face unofficial fees/bribes before loading.

Experts warn that porous borders & language barriers complicate efforts to verify documents.

Read more 👇
bit.ly/3MBaIy9

Tea vs Trees: Burundi is Trading a National Park for a Cash Crop - InfoNile When Kibira was elevated to protected area status by a ministerial order establishing its boundaries on 12 December 1933, its area was 90,000 hectares, but the expansion of tea plantations has reduced...

Burundi’s 🇧🇮 Kibira forest, once a lush National Park, is being cleared for tea☕️.

As plantations spread, #biodiversity fades & climate resilience weakens.

Is the price of tea worth the loss of a forest🌲? - Arthur Bizimana

@pulitzercenter.org
Read more 👉 shorturl.at/UliDe

From DRC’s endangered forests to S. Sudan’s furniture markets, a thriving but shadowy timber trade is quietly unfolding.

Despite border controls, hardwood like mahogany & teak slip through, fueling workshops while stripping rainforests bare.

Read 👉 bit.ly/3SP5wXf

In Eastern DRC’s Nyiragongo camp, displaced by M23 rebels, residents face a severe water shortage. Many are forced to drink contaminated water, raising the risk of cholera and other diseases, while the overwhelmed healthcare system.

➡️full story: bit.ly/4fI9vhR
#EverydayNile #WaterCrisis

Despite logging bans in DRC, illegal timber from its protected forests is quietly powering Rwanda’s booming wood market.

Fueled by corruption & conflict, this trade threatens Congo’s rainforests, and the future for climate, wildlife & communities.

bit.ly/447W1J3

Of the 24,787 water sources available in Burundi in 2019, 10% have already dried up, and 6% are in the process of disappearing. Only 72% water sources are in good condition, according to Jérémie Nkinahatemba, former Director General of Environment and Sanitation.

#NoWater

No Water, No Peace: The Human Cost of Kibira's Vanishing Water Sources - InfoNile Deforestation in Kibira and drought are accelerating the drying up of water resources. The population in the park's two watersheds is paying the price. Scientists fear the worst. This fourth story is ...

As Kibira's water sources disappear, locals in Burundi are left stranded - walking miles for water, facing failed harvests & losing hope.

Deforestation & poor land use are turning a once-lush forest into a water-scarce crisis. - Bizimana Arthur

@pulitzercenter.org
infonile.org/en/2025/11/n...

“In a series of studies conducted at our institute, we observed elevated levels of pollutants and heavy metals in these organs. The greater the accumulation of pollutants, the more dangerous it becomes for both the fish and those who consume them,” says Dr Sally.
#SciWednesdays

Government data indicate the removal of 5,223 cases of encroachment on Lake Manzala and the dredging of 1,500 acres in the Baltim area of Lake Borollos with the installation of a gravel filter and four air exchangers to improve the properties of the water in Lake Qaroun

Fish farming helps meet demand and keep tilapia affordable, but farmed systems have their own environmental and water-quality issues (drainage water use, closed systems).
#SciWednesday #NileWell

"Additionally, fish may migrate from one polluted location to another in search of cleaner environments, which results in certain lakes becoming devoid of specific species that cannot tolerate pollution like others." - Dr. Sally Salah El-Din
#SciWednesdays #NileWell

Egypt ranks first in tilapia production in Africa and third globally. In 2021, it achieved a total fish production of 2.3 million tons across various species, with tilapia alone accounting for more than half of this output.

#SciWednesdays #NileWell

"Stronger enforcement of water-pollution laws, regular monitoring of water bodies, and improvement of lake/pond environments are essential to safeguard fish stocks and human health." - Rahma Diaa

A study published in 2022 Shows there is a direct relationship between human activities & pollution of water bodies, confirming the physiological & histopathological impact of heavy metals such as (iron manganese, zinc, copper, cadmium, and lead) on various organs of Nile tilapia

Tilapia have a high tolerance for various pollutants, which allows them to accumulate these harmful substances in their bodies. As these pollutants build up, they can damage vital organs such as the liver, gills, and kidneys.

#SciWednesdays #NileWell

Tilapia is the most abundant fish in Egypt, and it is known for its resilience and unique characteristics that enable it to survive various challenging conditions.

#SciWednesdays #NileWell

We’re going to hear lots of stories about which people, policies and rhetoric are to blame for the Democrats’ defeat.

Some of those stories may even be true!

But an underrated factor is that 2024 was an absolutely horrendous year for incumbents around the world 👇 

East Africa, has numerous lakes that support very important fisheries providing a livelihood to millions of people, and contributing significantly to the food supply.

In many of these lakes, however, fisheries are reaching a state of maturity and unsustainability.

📸 Fredrick Mugira

Don’t miss our #SciWednesdays next week!

Topic: Egypt's Tilapia: Cheap, Plentiful, but Polluted

Time: 4pm - 5:30pm EAT

Register Now; shorturl.at/pEnpJ
#SciWednesdays #NileWell

Just doing something I love most, “Data visualisation” for a Pulizter & InfoNile project 🤗

Still cooking though🥳

The Aswa catchment area reveals a compelling gender distribution within the mining sector.

83.3% of miners are women while men account for 24.3%. This data underscores the vital role of women in mining activities along the Aswa River.

Read 👉 bit.ly/4pESUB2

For millions of Egyptians, tilapia is the essential, affordable protein. But its abundance is tied to a health risk due to pollution accumulation.

Join us for our next #SciWednesdays on Oct 29th, 2025, to dive deeper into this topic.

Register: shorturl.at/pEnpJ

Prep Your COP Coverage: COPs 101 | What Every Journalist Should Know About Climate Diplomacy Upcoming event: November 3, 2025 at 11am ET What is a COP? What do all those acronyms mean? How did we get here? And why does it matter for you as a journalist? This session is a crash course on the UN climate negotiations, from how COPs work and their history to how decisions are made, who’s in the room and what makes the process so complex, interesting and, at times, frustrating. We’ll break down key terms, explain the roles of different countries and negotiating groups and offer historical context to help you feel confident covering climate diplomacy, whether you’re new to it or just need a refresher.

Prep Your COP Coverage: What’s at Stake at COP30? Upcoming event: November 4, 2025 at 11am ET Why is COP30 so important, and what should journalists be watching for? This session focuses on the global and regional context surrounding COP30. We’ll look at the current state of climate progress, what issues are likely to dominate the agenda and how Brazil, the COP host, is shaping the narrative. From fossil fuel phaseout and climate finance to the future of the Amazon and the role of Indigenous peoples, we’ll highlight the topics you need to follow to be on top of the negotiations.

Prep Your COP Coverage: A COP Journalist’s Toolbox Upcoming event: November 5, 2025 at 11am ET What do you need to make your COP30 coverage impactful, whether you’re in Belém or working remotely? In the final session of the series, we’ll share practical tips and examples on how to follow the negotiations, find fresh angles, find expert sources, and bring the story to the ground so it resonates with your audience. You’ll leave with an array of useful tools, ideas, tips and leads to guide your reporting, plus lessons journalists on what works, and what doesn’t, when covering COP.

📣 Journalists! Join us for three webinars about how to cover the upcoming UN climate summit, COP30

1️⃣ COPs 101 | What Every Journalist Should Know, 11/3 RSVP: buff.ly/uJq4ubP
2️⃣ What’s at Stake at COP30? 11/4 RSVP: buff.ly/mLHFVz3
3️⃣ A COP Journalist’s Toolbox, 11/5 RSVP: buff.ly/iB7De76

Tomorrow is #GivingDayForApes! While many give to sanctuaries, let's support the journalists at the Apes Reporting Project.

Their investigative stories create awareness and drive action to protect African Great Apes and their habitats.

You can reach us at waterjournalistsafrica@gmail.com

Oregon to lose an additional $400 million in federal climate grants Oregon and 15 other Democratic states are losing nearly $8 billion toward climate projects, after the Trump administration terminated multiple federal grants.

“This action by the federal government hurts our state’s ability to modernize our outdated electric grid and meet today’s rising energy demands with affordable clean energy," said Climate Solutions' Nora Apter. "OR families and businesses will be stuck with paying the tab.”