American writer and businessman From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rhett Ayers Butler (born 1978)[1] is an American journalist, author and entrepreneur who founded Mongabay, a conservation and environmental science news platform, in 1999.[2]
 | A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject. (January 2025) |
Rhett Ayers Butler | |
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Rhett Ayers Butler in Nov 2023 | |
| Born | 1978 (age 46–47) United States |
| Alma mater | University of California, San Diego (BSc) |
| Organisation | Mongabay |
| Known for | Conservation science, Environmental journalism |
| Awards | Parker-Gentry Award, Heinz Award |
Butler founded Mongabay out of his interest in nature and wildlife.[3] The name "mongabay" originated from an anglicized spelling and pronunciation of Nosy Mangabe, an island off the coast of Madagascar.[4]
Butler has received multiple conservation, environmental, and journalism awards including the Parker-Gentry Award from the Field Museum of Natural History[5] in 2014, the SEAL Environmental Journalism Award in 2021,[6] and the Heinz Award for the Environment in 2022.[7]
Butler studied Management Science and Economics University of California, San Diego, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree.[8]
In 2012 Butler founded Mongabayorg Corporation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization headquartered in Menlo Park, California that raises awareness about social and environmental issues relating to forests and other ecosystems.[9] Mongabay.org was established in 2012 as the non-profit arm of Mongabay[10] and its first project with Mongabay-Indonesia, an Indonesian-language environmental news service.[11] Butler has served as CEO since inception.[12]
Butler's reporting has focused on environmental issues in the tropics, especially topics related to forests, like biodiversity, conservation, and deforestation. He's done extensive reporting in Indonesia,[13] Malaysia, Borneo, the Amazon rainforest, and Madagascar.
In 2011 Butler published Rainforests, a book geared toward kids.[14]
Butler has co-authored more than 20 academic papers in publications ranging from Science[15] to Trends in Ecology & Evolution.[16] These papers have usually focused on trends in deforestation and tropical forest conservation,[17] public interest in conservation,[18] conservation practice,[19] palm oil,[20] and conservation technology.[21]
Butler played a prominent role in the effort to free American journalist Philip Jacobson after his detention on 17 December 2019 on an alleged visa violation.[22] Jacobson was released without charge on 31 January 2020.[23]
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