Progress? Whose good news counts?

Habitat and species loss continues, as reported in an article in the current issue of Science, Despite Progress, Biodiversity Declines. Of course this is a matter of grave importance and should serve as a clarion call to conservationists everywhere, especially in the lead up to the forthcoming CBD meeting in Japan, and god knows we do need examples and cases of progress. But Science might want to take time and ask a few of the expelled Chagos Islanders whether the fact that "in May, the United Kingdom designated the Chagos Archipelago as the largest marine reserve in the world, setting aside 544,000 square kilometers" is actually the good news it purports to be. I am sure a few will beg to differ on the fact they now have the world's largest marine reserve to go with the world's largest military base.