Environment

On 19 July 2025, the Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi was arrested under suspicion of “facilitation of terrorist activities during the June 25, 2025, protests.” He was released on 21 July on a KSh 1m personal bond ($7,723). He was charged not for terrorism, but for possession of two tear gas canisters and a single blank 7.62 bullet. This is not the first time Mwangi was arrested by Kenyan authorities, nor the first time a Kenyan journalist or human rights activist was arrested by federal authorities for similar reasons.

Coal is not going away anytime soon; it remains the dominant source of the world’s electricity. 15% of U.S. electricity is fueled by coal. Globally, it is forecasted that carbon in the form of coal will still contribute 22% of power generation by 2040. In China and India, the reliance upon coal is significantly higher, almost double that of the U.S. and Europe. And for good reasons: it is the most economical, stable, and reliable power source.

Through an Executive Order issued March 1, 2025, there is to be an expansion of American timber production that meets goals to achieve “sound forest management, reduce time to deliver timber, and decrease timber supply uncertainty.” Approximately 100 million acres, the equivalent of 60% of our national forests, are to be within earshot of a chainsaw. In so doing, the Trump administration declares this a “new era” in national forest management. Legally protected forest land and parts of old growth forest are slated be part of the expanded production.