Why the Mine Matters:

The landscape surrounding Vittangi in northern Sweden is known for naturally producing graphite and the Nunasvaara mine is being developed to extract 100,000 tonnes of this graphite each year. This will provide employment for 60 people and the graphite will be used to make lithium-ion battery anodes, a crucial component for renewable energy technologies like wind and solar power and electric vehicles. The project is advertised as a way to propel Europe towards greener energy. It appears to be environmentally conscious and Talga’s website makes sure to highlight its measures to reduce environmental impact and support biodiversity.

For the EU, projects like Nunasvaara are strategically important. The mine falls under the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA, 2024), a policy designed to reduce Europe’s reliance on imported minerals. This act was developed to shift to domestic production of such resources, reducing reliance on foreign imports. Currently China dominates the global supply of graphite and global tensions mean Europe is keen to begin supplying more of its own graphite. By listing Nunasvaara as a Strategic Project under the CRMA, the permitting process could be accelerated and graphite extraction can begin sooner.

This is a huge step in the right direction for domestic production of renewable energy in Europe. However, the mine has been met with strong opposition by those who feel it will ultimately harm the environment more.

Sámi Opposition:

The primary voice of opposition has been the Sámi community. The Sámi people are Europe’s only recognised indigenous group. Their traditional livelihoods are heavily oriented around reindeer husbandry and herding, which has more recently expanded to reindeer tourism. The Nunasvaara South graphite mine is located on reindeer habitat, specifically very important winter grazing habitat. Members of the local Sámi community have raised concerns that their livelihood could be destroyed once the mine opens. In response to this, as part of their plan to minimise impact, the mine will halt operations during the winter grazing period. However, there are concerns that pollution from mining activities will destroy the winter grazing habitat regardless of whether mining operations temporarily halt.

The Sámi community have appealed multiple times against the mine, all of which have been dismissed by the Swedish Supreme Court, who argue that the mine had a minimal impact assessment conducted and that developers engaged in discussions with Sámi communities. However, many feel there has been limited consultation with locals, and any conversation that has occurred has been unconstructive.

What questions are raised?:

The dilemmas presented here are reminiscent of many conservation issues today. On one hand, the need for materials for sustainable renewable energy is necessary for meeting net zero targets and reducing harmful emissions. However when it comes at the expense of crucial habitat for a threatened species, and for the livelihoods of Indigenous peoples, it highlights concerns over who is prioritised. Just because something is sustainable or renewable it does not mean it will not have negative impacts.

Sources:

Bhattacharyya, S., Roy, S., Lin, X., Campagnol, N., Vlad, A., & Ajayan, P. M. (2025). Graphite: the new critical mineral. Nature Reviews Materials. doi: 10.1038/s41578-025-00848-5

Gabay, A (2025), ‘Sámi reindeer herders protest EU-backed graphite mine, fearing lost grazing ground’, Mongabay, 22nd December, Available at: https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/sami-reindeer-herders-protest-eu-backed-graphite-mine-fearing-lost-grazing-ground/

Johnson, S (2026), ‘Vittangi graphite mine in Sweden gets zoning plan approval’, Mining.com, 23rd January, Available at: https://www.mining.com/web/vittangi-graphite-mine-in-sweden-gets-zoning-plan-approval/

Mathieson, A (2026), ‘Mining industry threatens livelihoods of Sweden’s Indigenous Sámi people’, National Indigenous Times, 19th March, Available at: https://nit.com.au/19-03-2026/23259/mining-industry-threatens-livelihoods-of-swedens-indigenous-sami-people

Monk seals’ current distribution is a fragment of its historic range. Previously found across the Mediterranean, Black Sea, northern Africa, and the Canary Islands, today Mediterranean monk seals are restricted to pockets of coastline along Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Madeira, and Cabo Blanco. Recently there have been occasional sightings in Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, and Italy which have sparked optimism about the recovery of the endangered species. However, they still remain extinct in over 18 countries within their historic range. The surviving individuals today are divided into three subpopulations, two in the Atlantic Ocean and one in the Mediterranean. Separated by great distances, these populations are genetically isolated.

Historically it was a common sight to see monk seals hauled out on open beaches, but this behaviour has changed due to severe threats from human activities. They now avoid beaches and instead haul out in marine caves to avoid disturbance and persecution. However, these caves require certain characteristics such as an entrance with a corridor and a raised platform above the water for seals to rest on. This drastically reduces the available habitat for the species and further confines them spatially, limiting their ability to disperse and expand their limited range.

Mediterranean monk seals have been threatened and persecuted by humans for hundreds of years. They used to be exploited for fur and meat but were also killed by fishermen for damaging equipment or competing for fish. Their modern decline is primarily caused by habitat destruction and fragmentation, although the fisheries industry is also known to cause significant harm to the species when they are caught as accidental by-catch in nets. Monk seals today are still targeted and killed by fishermen. Tourism is also a major threat to the species through significant disturbance which affects the raising and survival of seal pups.

Recent improvements to Atlantic populations like in Cabo Blanco mean the Mediterranean monk seal’s global status is currently listed as Vulnerable under the IUCN. However the local Mediterranean population is classified as Critically Endangered due to extreme anthropogenic pressures like killing by fishers, coastal development, tourism disturbance, and habitat loss and destruction. Cyprus is a prime example of this, with a small breeding population of around 40 individuals confined to just a few caves. Populations like these across the eastern Mediterranean are severely threatened and lacking in adequate protection on a national and international scale. Development, disturbance, and conflict with fishers continue to threaten extinction of these small monk seal populations.

Sazan Island has recently seen the return of its monk seal population. Located off the coast of Albania between the Adriatic and Ionian Sea, the island and its seals are currently threatened by the development of a 45ha luxury holiday resort. This controversial scheme was approved in 2025 under new rules introduced by the Albanian government, designed to bolster tourism and economic growth in the country. This ‘Strategic Investment with Special Procedure’ enables approval to be given to high value projects, even if they are ecologically damaging. The luxury development threatens the island’s coastal caves — critical monk seal habitat — alongside 36 threatened marine species living on and around Sazan Island. Seagrass, Posidonia oceanica, which is vital for the Mediterranean ecosystem is also likely to be damaged. The recent return of monk seals to Albania has been a major conservation success for the species yet the boat traffic, sewage systems, roads, pollution, and increased human disturbance from this project are highly likely to reverse this victory.

The project is being led by Affinity Global Development, a company owned by Jared Kushner, the husband of Ivanka Trump. The Albanian government is supportive of his plans as the resort will boost luxury tourism in the area, which is a fast-growing industry in Albania. Although currently uninhabited, Sazan Island is not untouched, having had a prominent military history. But this development project threatens new and significant disturbance to the island.

The Mediterranean monk seal is a highly protected species, listed on and protected by major international laws and treaties such as the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES), Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), the Bern Convention, and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The development project on Sazan Island directly violates these conventions. Not only that, but Sazan Island is protected under Albanian law as part of the Karaburun-Sazan Marine National Park, meaning development should be prohibited. The waters around the island are a Specifically Protected Area of Mediterranean Importance (SPAMI). Albania is currently in the process of applying to join the European Union. To do this it must commit to several fundamental environmental policies: the Sazan Island project violates these commitments.

Bledi Hoxha, a member of the Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA) and a Mammal Conservation Europe board member, has sent a letter signed by 40 other environmental organisations from 28 countries to the prime minister of Albania urging an immediate end to this project. You can see Bledi discussing this issue here.

With plans likely to go ahead, Mammal Conservation Europe is in support of PPNEA’s efforts to stop the development. We are raising the issue with IUCN and the EU, are also urging the Albanian Government to stop the development, uphold international conventions, and protect endangered Mediterranean monk seals.

Beton D, Broderick AC, Godley BJ, Kolaç E, Ok M, Snape RTE. New monitoring confirms regular breeding of the Mediterranean monk seal in Northern Cyprus. Oryx. 2021;55(4):522-525.

Karamanlidis, A.A., Dendrinos, P., Fernandez de Larrinoa, P., Kıraç, C.O., Nicolaou, H. & Pires, R. 2023. Monachus monachus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2023: e.T13653A238637039. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T13653A238637039.en

Lian Gilliver, 27th January 2026, ‘Deep concern’: Over 40 environmental groups urge luxury resort on Albanian island to be suspended, EuroNews, Available at: https://www.euronews.com/green/2026/01/27/deep-concern-over-40-environmental-groups-urge-luxury-resort-on-albanian-island-to-be-susp

Marzio Mian, 24th June 2025, Sold to the Trump family: one of the last undeveloped islands in the Mediterranean, The Guardian, Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/24/trump-family-kushner-undeveloped-island-mediterranean-sazan-albania

Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) capture the awe and imagination of children across Europe on Christmas Eve as they wait to catch a glimpse of that iconic sleigh being pulled across the sky. But sled-pulling reindeer are not exclusive to Santa Claus and in fact are deeply rooted in cultural history across Northern Europe. The Sámi people, Europe’s only recognized Indigenous group, live across northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. For thousands of years they have herded reindeer and used them for clothing, food, and transport across snow. Their relationship with reindeer is one of mutual respect, care, and sustainable use, far from Europe’s modern-day overconsumption and exploitation of wildlife.

Within Europe, reindeer have historically been distributed across the north in habitats of tundra, mountains, and forest. They feed on new growth trees in the summer but in the winter months rely on lichen for food. Unfortunately, a combination of habitat loss, human disturbance, and climate change have caused reindeer to decline, and currently the species is classed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Domesticated reindeer vastly outnumber wild reindeer in Europe, with 3 million of the former and only 1 million of the latter. They are an important species in the European Arctic, affecting vegetation through grazing and trampling which maintains open areas of tundra. Climate change threatens the future of reindeer in Europe. As the tundra warms, available habitat is decreasing and migration patterns are changing. Food sources are less available as both plants and reindeer become asynchronous with each other and the seasons. The Arctic is warming faster than the rest of Europe, making this an especially concerning situation.

Today, the Sámi have developed a new sustainable use for their reindeer: tourism. People pay to visit reindeer farms or herds and learn about traditional Sámi ways of life. This is especially popular in the winter, with places like Lapland and Tromsø becoming famous for their Christmas-related tourism activities which generates significant local income. This allows for traditional Sámi ways of life to persist and provides a source of income via the sustainable use of wildlife. Indigenous tourism and stewardship is not a well-known issue in Europe, but places like Canada are seeing huge growth in this industry, for example the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia. It is important not only for education in the environment and Indigenous cultures, but also for supporting Indigenous management and stewardship and restoring land rights and sovereignty to many communities.

The decline of reindeer threatens both the health of the tundra habitat and the cultural heritage of the Sámi people. Reindeer tourism, especially at Christmas, offers a multi-beneficial solution to this problem where both people and wildlife can support each other (much like Santa and his reindeer). However, climate change threatens this way of life and reindeer are likely to continue to decline and lose more habitat if drastic action is not taken. The Sámi have lived sustainably alongside reindeer and their habitat for thousands of years, but the warming Arctic makes the future uncertain.

Author’s note:

I had a personal investment in writing this piece, as my family come from Norway and I am descended from the Sámi people through my grandmother. I am currently researching Indigenous governance in Canada and South Africa for my MSc, and discussions of Indigenous land rights and stewardship are much more prominent in these parts of the world. I never made the link back to the Sámi people in Europe until now, but the underlying themes seem to be consistent with Indigenous groups across the world.

One of Europe’s rarest mammals, the blind mole rat, is threatened by the loss of its grassland habitat. These animals are incredibly elusive and difficult to study, spending their whole lives underground. In particular, the Vojvodina blind mole rat, Nannospalax leucodon (or lesser blind mole rat) is severely threatened, with only 5 populations and less than 1000 individuals remaining. One population has recently been discovered in Croatia but development, agriculture, and poison means their current habitat is no longer suitable and they are set to become extinct.

Mammal Conservation Europe is helping to move this population to a new area of suitable habitat. We have worked hard with our partners to apply for translocation permits from the Croatian government and are aiming to begin capture of the animals in Spring 2026. However, this process is costly and we additionally need to buy the land we wish to move these animals to. MCE are therefore launching a fundraiser to help move this project along urgently.

Follow this link to head to our GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/save-some-of-europes-most-threatened-animals

Limited taxonomic knowledge means we don’t know exact species classifications and therefore the Vojvodina blind mole rat could be one single species or could encompass a whole group of species. We therefore don’t even know how many species of blind mole rat we are at risk of losing. The IUCN has categorised them as ‘data deficient’ but their rarity and isolation from other populations makes them an urgent conservation concern.

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