Elham Shabahat

Dec 19, 2024 | hakaimagazine.com | Elham Shabahat

When Arvid Pardo, a Maltese diplomat, took the floor at the United Nations General Assembly in New York in 1967 and began speaking at length on international law, the room was sparsely populated. Pardo was undeterred. The deep, dark ocean, he said, is the womb of life. “We still bear in our bodies—in our blood, in the salty bitterness of our tears—the marks of this remote past.” With technology fast progressing, “man, the present dominator of the emerged earth, is now returning to the ocean depths.

Dec 17, 2024 | hakaimagazine.com | Elham Shabahat

Earlier this year, Leticia Carvalho, a Brazilian oceanographer and environmental policy expert, took the helm of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) as secretary general. The ISA, an intergovernmental body that governs what happens on the seafloor in international waters, is responsible for an area that spans more than half the planet. One of the agency’s key roles is in deciding the future of deep-sea mining, a nascent industry targeting tennis ball–sized rocks called polymetallic nodules.

Feb 15, 2024 | hakaimagazine.com | Elham Shabahat

No longer the stuff of science fiction, the deep-sea mining industry is speeding up efforts to mine precious minerals in international waters. But some countries are looking to do so within their national boundaries. Norway, for example, became the first country to allow mining exploration in its own waters, and the United States may not be far behind. In early March, the Department of Defense will deliver a report on the emerging deep-sea mining industry and its potential in the United States.

Nov 9, 2023 | civicstory.org | Elham Shabahat

This story was published by Sierra Magazine and produced as part of CivicStory’s New Jersey Sustainability Reporting Project. These colorful insects are moving across the Northeast and will likely be near you soonBy Elham ShabahatTo be confronted with a spotted lanternfly—or swarms of them—is to experience some level of cognitive dissonance.

Nov 4, 2023 | sierraclub.org | Elham Shabahat

To be confronted with a spotted lanternfly—or swarms of them—is to experience some level of cognitive dissonance. On its own, an adult lanternfly is almost an artistic creation—a butterfly-like insect with scarlet, yellow, and grey hues fluttering away upon the slightest touch. If you’re out for a walk, one might softly land on your back for a short ride to their next destination.