As soon as you think you know it all you’re bound to find out something new. One of the biggest problems with understanding and debating environmental issues is that people often don’t have their facts straight when they go into a discussion. New facts and ways of understanding them can jar the complacent mind into reevaluating what they assume to be true, and these are no exceptions. Here are just a few interesting ones to start with.

We are experiencing warmer years than ever, our actions cause irreversible damage to the environment. Each year tens of thousands of species go extinct, deserts are advancing and taking over the land. But there are certain shocking facts on the environment far more serious but not known to many. Without further ado, here are GreenExpander’s 20 Shocking Facts on the Environment. Scared enough? Good! Here are some great facts about recycling to follow up with.

Captured just before midnight on November 13 by fishers in Cambodia, this Mekong giant catfish is 8 feet long (2.4 meters long) ands weighs 450 pounds (204 kilograms).

Kinky Apes Get Protection: The bonobo ape has rather prolific mating habits. The kinky apes are one of human beings’ two closest relatives and officials in the Congo have announced the creation of a massive rainforest preserve intended to protect them.

Can Chocolate Save the Environment? A rather unique solution to rainforest preservation through the introduction of Cocoa trees that shows that many Latin Americans are taking tropical deforestation seriously… and doing something about it! Excellent article.

Cleaning Up Oil Spills with Hair and Mushrooms? The recent Cosco Busan oil spill in the San Francisco Bay may have just met its match in an eco-cleaning solution that uses human hair and mushrooms! A group of intrepid volunteers has embarked on a project to clean up oil at San Francisco’s beaches using an unusual, yet totally organic, method of waste removal:

A report just issued is taking on a daunting task: simplifying and clarifying the nature of climate change in order to make it more comprehensible and viral as an idea. Skeptical on the issue? Well, this is for die-hards and skeptics alike - a simple report designed for everyone.

A new document has been released that is generating a lot of envirobuzz. It is so important because it provides one concise, easily-readable but comprehensive text of facts, figures and diagrams – in short all the information you need to understand and act on the threat of global warming, be you a politician, a businessman, an activist or a citizen (or for that matter, a doubter). Download it here.

More basic info on global warming and climate change can be found at the National Resources Defense Council or via the Pew Research Center. If you’d like to add more resources please do so below.