Earth Matters

Our forests are full of stories, but it takes a certain kind of storyteller to bring them to life. For independent filmmaker Myles Storey, that means looking beyond the animals themselves, to the landscapes they live in, the people who share those spaces, and the connections between them. Since we last spoke in 2023, Myles has been exploring some wonderfully different ways of telling nature stories. He’s followed endangered species, wild gibbons and even imagined what it might be like to see the world through the eyes of a sticky frog. He has also turned his camera towards the Nakawan Range in Perlis, and his latest documentary, NAKAWAN: The Living Soul of Perlis, explores the biodiversity, culture and communities of this remarkable landscape. We catch up with Myles about his life as a filmmaker, the stories he’s been telling, and what spending so much time in the natural world has taught him along the way. 

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Malaysia’s Budget 2027 includes funding for biodiversity conservation, community rangers and green initiatives, alongside measures to address issues such as flooding and water security. The government has also increased the allocation for the Ecological Fiscal Transfer, which provides funding to state governments to support conservation efforts. But WWF-Malaysia had called for a much bigger investment in nature ahead of the budget, including RM1 billion for the Ecological Fiscal Transfer, dedicated funding for nature-based solutions, and a commitment to spend at least 1% of the national budget on nature and biodiversity. So, how do the measures announced compare with what’s needed to protect Malaysia’s natural environment? Are we investing enough in conservation, and what more could be done to ensure nature is properly accounted for in the country’s development plans? To help us unpack this, we speak to Dr Jason Hon, Director of Conservation at WWF-Malaysia.

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Image Credit: Shutterstock

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Climate change is often described as a gradual process, but there are points where a system can change much more rapidly, and potentially in ways that are difficult or impossible to reverse. These are what scientists call tipping points. They can happen in the climate and natural world, but they can also affect food systems, economies and, ultimately, human health. While we often hear about the risks of crossing these thresholds, there is another side to the idea: positive tipping points, where changes in technology, policy or behaviour can gather momentum and accelerate. So what exactly is a tipping point, how close are we to some of them, and what can we actually do to influence the direction we're heading in? To explore these questions, we speak to Professor Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood, Executive Director of the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University, and Co-Chair of the Global Tipping Points Conference 2026.

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As Budget 2027 approaches, what should Malaysia be investing in to address pollution, climate impacts and the protection of our natural resources? Meenakshi Raman, President of Sahabat Alam Malaysia, discusses environmental funding and enforcement, the rapid growth of data centres and their demand for water and energy, and the need to make polluters more responsible for the damage they cause. We also look at the transboundary haze, corporate responsibility across borders, the protection of Malaysia’s forests, and how federal funding could encourage states to strengthen environmental protection.

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Every year, hundreds of young Southern River Terrapins are returned to the Kemaman River, but releasing hatchlings is just one part of the work needed to bring an endangered species back. We catch up with Dr. Chen Pelf Nyok, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia, on what the latest research is telling us, the threats facing terrapins, the role of local communities, and what’s in store for this year’s Annual Terrapin Release.

Image Credit: Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia

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What does a conservationist read when they’re not out in the field? Environmental researcher and conservationist Dr Teckwyn Lim shares some of the books that have shaped his thinking, from In Malay Forests and The Song of the Dodo, to Moby Dick, Incerto and more. Together with Surin Suksuwan, co-founder of Sunda Shelves, we explore how books about forests, history, science, literature and even uncertainty can change the way we see the natural world.

Nature Reads on Earth Matters is a monthly show where we explore the stories behind books that bring us closer to nature and the world around us, done in collaboration with independent bookstore Sunda Shelves.

Works discussed during this episode:

1. Incerto by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

2. The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward Tufte

3. In Malay Forests by George Maxwell

4. Nathaniel's Nutmeg by Giles Milton 

5. The Song of the Dodo by David Quammen

6. Pagan Races of the Malay Peninsula by Walter William Skeat and Charles Otto Blagden

7. Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula by Isaac Henry Burkill

8. Foresters' Manual of Dipterocarps by Colin Fraser Symington

9. Moby Dick by Herman Melville

10. Thucydides's writings

11. The Further Side of Silence by Hugh Clifford

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The Klang River is one of the defining waterways of Kuala Lumpur, but for many of us, it's something we pass by without really noticing. The Klang River Festival is trying to change that, by bringing people closer to the river, its history, its communities and the habitat along its banks. Now in its fifth year, the festival has grown beyond a weekend event into a year-round effort to build a stronger relationship between people and the river. This year's theme, “Act!vating Habitat”, puts the focus on the biodiversity of the riverbank, and on what it means to care for an urban river as a living environment. We speak to Faith Foo, Programme Coordinator, and Nurul Qistina, Community Architect, both with KongsiKL, which organises the Klang River Festival, about its origins, its environmental mission, and the role communities can play in reconnecting with the river and protecting its future.

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In the second episode of this two-part From The Frontline special, we turn to the voices of young Orang Asli and what they want for the future of their communities. Diana a/p Tan Beng Hui, Eliana a/p Tan Beng Hui, and Rosdila Ngah Roslan, all Programme Coordinators from Apa Kata Wanita Orang Asli reflect on July’s Indigenous Youth Camp and Regional Panel, before we look at the proposed amendments to the Aboriginal Peoples Act 1954, the debate around customary land rights, and what meaningful recognition and consultation could look like.

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In the first of this two-part “From The Frontline” special, we hear from three Orang Asli women about the land disputes affecting communities across Peninsular Malaysia. Diana a/p Tan Beng Hui, Eliana a/p Tan Beng Hui, and Rosdila Ngah Roslan, all Programme Coordinators with the collective Apa Kata Wanita Orang Asli, share their perspectives on what losing access to land can mean for everyday life, livelihoods, culture and community, and why Orang Asli women are often at the forefront of these struggles.

From The Frontline is an ongoing series within Earth Matters, where we hear directly from communities whose lives and livelihoods are being shaped by decisions about the land around them.

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When we talk about Malaysia’s endangered wildlife, the Malayan tiger usually gets the most attention. But there’s another large mammal in serious trouble, and there may be fewer than 200 of them left in the wild. The seladang, or Malayan gaur, once ranged across much of Peninsular Malaysia, but today, only a few small breeding herds remain. Even in protected forests, their numbers aren’t recovering. So why are seladang struggling to survive? What do they actually need, and what can we do before we lose them? We speak to Datuk Dr John Payne from Bringing Back Our Rare Animals (BORA), and Dr Ahmad Zafir, a wildlife ecologist from The Habitat Foundation, who have been researching solutions to help bring seladang numbers back up.

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