American environmentalists are fighting for their right to hang out their washing in the garden. In many states the practice remains illegal, and for one man, it cost him his life. Read more...

Faraz Khan has something to be proud of. He drives around his home city of Karachi in one of Pakistan's few electric cars. And he built it with his own hands. Read more...

Every day, the people of Al Khosos, in Qalyubiyah province north-west of Cairo, are confronted by heaps of rubbish and noxious odours. The problem, our Observer tells us, is one of waste collection, which has got worse since Egypt culled its pig herd because of concern over the A (H1N1) virus – or swine flu. Read on...

Once one of the world's largest inland seas and home to thousands of species, in under 20 years the Aral Sea has shrunk to ten percent of its original size and is so salty that barely any life form remains. The Russians were taught to believe that the sea was an "error of nature" and therefore pointless, but as our Observer points out, the real catastrophe was man-made. Read more...

Taiwan has been hit hard by Typhoon Morakot. Fourteen are dead, 51 officially missing, and hundreds more unaccounted for. Bridges and even damns have been swept away by "unseen" amounts of rainfall, displacing over a million people. A meteorologist visiting the country filmed the following footage on his camera. Read his account...

The following video shows an oil depot in Lagos going up in flames on Sunday night after an attack by armed fighters from Nigeria's biggest militant group. Read more and see the footage...

These high quality images of China's Three Gorges Dam were captured by the International Space Station in April. It took 15 years to build the world's biggest and most powerful hydroelectric dam, and despite concerns over its human and environmental impact, it finally came into use last autumn. Read more...

Multinational oil giant Chevron Texaco is facing the most expensive environmental lawsuit in history. Accused by an Amazonian indigenous community of contaminating the land with toxic waste, the world's third biggest petrol supplier could face a fine of 27 billion dollars. Read more...

Rio de Janeiro authorities have begun building concrete walls around the city's shantytowns. Officially they're being erected to prevent environmental damage to the surrounding areas. But the residents of these favelas see it as a way of creating distance between themselves and the not-too-faraway, well-off neighbours. Read more...

Violent protests in Istanbul have resulted in clashes with riot police, arrests and deportations. The protesters are demonstrating against... a seven day forum that aims to address the world's fresh water crisis. Our Observers tell us why not everyone thinks the World Water Forum won't solve the looming global water crisis. Read more...