Latest news with #Lavers
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Researchers make disturbing discovery inside seabirds' stomachs after coastal survey: 'What's been seen can't be unseen'
A researcher has offered up her harrowing experience while studying the impacts of plastic pollution on birds in Australia — perhaps to some political effect. Lord Howe Island, off the East coast of the Australian mainland, offers a world-renowned sanctuary known for its unique ecosystem and its rich biodiversity. The region boasts the planet's southernmost coral reef and a range of flora and fauna, including endemic and threatened species. The island is also home to a variety of bird species, including shearwaters — the focus of a mid-May report from Australia's ABC News. Shearwaters, or mutton birds, are known for undertaking extensive migrations, with some traveling thousands of miles between breeding grounds and other areas. Conservation biologist Jennifer Provencher told Radio Free Asia in April that due to their wide-ranging travels, the birds "have an incredible exposure to plastics for their entire lifecycle." Researcher Jen Lavers has studied mutton birds for some time and has uncovered a related and alarming trend. In recent years, she told ABC, shearwaters and other sea birds appear to be consuming exorbitant amounts of plastic. Not only is this detrimental to the species' overall health, but it is also a clear indicator of a global problem. Talking with ABC News, Lavers detailed the volume of plastic waste that is ending up inside the stomachs of birds — and the disturbing noises it can make. "To witness it firsthand, it is incredibly visceral," she explained. "There is now so much plastic inside the birds you can feel it on the outside of the animal when it is still alive. As you press on its belly … you hear the pieces grinding against each other." Upon her first visit to Lord Howe Island in 2008, Lavers told ABC, she estimated that around 75% of birds carried around five to 10 pieces of plastic in their stomachs. That figure then ballooned to each bird on the island holding 50-plus pieces. In 2024, a bird with 403 pieces of internal plastic was discovered. Now, Lavers has recently reported that they've found an "80-day-old seabird chick" with 778 plastic pieces inside. Previously, Lavers was a co-author on a paper describing "plasticosis" — a brand-new and damaging disease of plastic-caused scar tissue present in seabirds' bodies. It points to a problem that goes beyond Australian waters. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, the "equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic are dumped into the world's oceans, rivers, and lakes" every day. Do you think America has a plastic waste problem? Definitely Only in some areas Not really I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Plastic pollution is not only ingested by wildlife, but it can also lead to animal entanglements and the leaching of harmful chemicals into soil and water systems, which can jeopardize habitats and, ultimately, human health. Peter Whish-Wilson — an Australian Greens senator and a friend of Lavers — partnered with the researcher in an attempt to spotlight the importance of reducing our reliance on plastics. A member of the country's left-wing eco-focused party, Whish-Wilson spoke with ABC News about his experience witnessing plastic waste's impacts on the local bird population up close. "What's been seen can't be unseen," Whish-Wilson said. "I wish every politician and every decision maker in parliaments around the world … could all experience what I experienced … then they'll get it," he added. Around the globe, governments have begun to take action against plastic waste. Many bills have been enacted to reduce single-use plastics and promote recycling or reuse. Plastic bag taxes and the establishment of manufacturer responsibilities have also been put in place in an effort to phase out plastic usage. But Whish-Wilson told ABC that not enough policies have taken the start of the supply chain seriously: "What we need to do is focus on the front of the pipe, the producers of this plastic. Packaging is the biggest cause of plastic pollution on the planet, and in the ocean, and I saw it in the stomach of all these poor seabirds." In addition to supporting pro-environment policies that really work, individuals can make choices to reduce their own use of plastic at home. Reducing purchases that come wrapped in plastic, bringing a reusable mug to cafés, and using your own glass or stainless steel containers to tote away takeout can make a difference — especially when friends, families, and whole communities get together to inspire mass adoption of these practices. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Irish Examiner
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
'There's so much creativity': Cork has a cut off its first Fringe Festival
Does Cork need a fringe festival? With the inaugural Cork Fringe Festival taking place a month before the Cork Midsummer Festival (CMF), its directors, Daniel Cremin and Ineke Lavers believe there is a gap in the festival market for emerging developmental work that may not be ready for something like the CMF. 'It's an opportunity for artists to workshop new projects in a low risk environment and potentially, to maybe bring it to the CMF,' says Cremin. He describes himself as a magician, a performer and producer, having started playing with magic at the age of four. He now does 'psychological magic' in theatre-based shows. Lavers is an arts producer working from Cork and Abu Dhabi. Locally, she has worked with the likes of CMF, the Cork Opera House and the Cork Theatre Collective. The two directors met while they were doing a masters in arts management and creative producing at UCC, in collaboration with Cork Opera House. 'There is so much creativity in Cork; so many groups of artists but they're all quite isolated from each other. The theatre people stay with each other, the music people stay with musicians. We feel there is huge potential for cross collaboration within the arts,' says Lavers. Cremin adds that some Cork artists bring their performances to the Dublin Fringe Festival. 'They should be able to perform in Cork.' When the call went out for acts to apply to the Cork Fringe Festival, Cremin and Lavers received 120 applications when they were only expecting about 40 expressions of interest. They have whittled down the applicants and over the three days of the festival, there will be 20 events across ten venues. Fourteen of the events are produced by Cremin and Lavers. The other six events are produced by people that already stage events in the city and wish to do something specifically for the festival. The Cork Fringe Festival is funded through ticket sales, private donations and sponsors. 'The Everyman [one of the venues for the festival] is a partner, helping us in terms of putting together budgets and making sure we have all our contracts in place. Also, last August we went to the World Fringe Congress in Stockholm. There are over 300 fringe festivals around the world and every two years, people from them meet up in a different city for a week. We got to make really good connections and learned a lot about how to put together a fringe festival. We have a really good relationship with the Reykjavik Fringe Festival.' Cremin admits that developing a fringe festival can be overwhelming when it hasn't been done before. 'The main challenge is that there are only two of us. I guess the biggest challenge we faced at the beginning was having to say 'no' to artists,' he says. The artists will be paid from ticket sales with a 70/30 split. 'The 30% goes on organising the tech and marketing for the shows. Ineke and myself are working voluntarily this year. The hope is that next year through our Arts Council application, there will be a producers' fee included in that budget. We're operating on a minimal budget. This year, it's really about getting the festival on its feet and having a proof of concept. The festival has a capability for about 1,700 people but we don't need to reach that audience figure to be able to sustain it.' The festival is using both traditional spaces such as the Everyman, the Granary Theatre and the TDC (Theatre Development Centre) at the Triskel. Unconventional spaces include the Marina Market as well as art galleries, the Laneway and the Lavit, which will be the site of unusual events. At the Laneway Gallery on Shandon Street, there will be an interactive game of 'trace the dot'. When a canvas is initially installed, it will be blank. As visitors trace a dot, an underlying image will slowly reveal itself. There will be a double bill at the Everyman, as well as another show in the Everyman bar. At the Granary Theatre, a story about identity and road kill takes place, in a show entitled A Xerox of a Deer. There's traditional fare at Forde's Bar near South Gate Bridge in an event called The 3 B's. Beamish, bodice and ballads will be on offer. 'By the end of the night, you'll feel like a true Corkonian,' they promise. The Cork Fringe Festival takes place from May 9-11. See
