A Christmas gift from the EU to elephants

Four years after asking the public whether ivory trade should be banned in the European Union, the European Commission in December announced new legislation and guidance to restrict ivory trade to, from and within the bloc. The announcement has a few exceptions in place for antiques and certain musical instruments. The closure international and domestic ivory markets has been a key component of EIA's Elephant Campaign – in 2018, we successfully lobbied the UK Government to introduce an ivory ban.

Europe's Methane Regulation lacks ambition

Methane emissions from the petrochemical industry's production of fossil fuels are responsible for 25 per cent of overall global warming, but a new EU Methane Regulation unveiled last month is a half-hearted step back from the bloc's climate goals.