Earth Matters

It's that time of the month where we speak to Law Yao Hua and Wong Siew Lyn, the co-founders of environmental journalism portal Macaranga, for a round-up of top environmental news from August 2024. Today on our list, we look at Sabah's Tawai Forest Reserve, described as "a unique ecological treasure" but which is facing threats from the construction of the Pan Borneo highway.  We then turn our attention to orangutan conservation ideas, and plans to pivot from orangutan diplomacy to allocating funds to conservation NGOs already working on orangutan conservation. Finally, we discuss why the Malaysian Bar has rejected a proposal to place Orang Asli matters under the constitution’s Concurrent List.

Image credits: Shutterstock

Map taken from Forever Sabah and Land Empowerment Animals People via Macaranga.org

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Celebrating its 50th anniversary, Rimba Ilmu Botanic Garden, the University of Malaya's 80-hectare botanical garden, is an important conservation site and educational resource in Malaysia. Since its inception in 1974, the garden has evolved from an abandoned rubber estate into a flourishing haven for around 1,700 plant species, offering a unique rainforest experience in an urban setting. Originally a teaching facility for biology students, it opened to the public in 1997 and now features core collections of medicinal plants, palms, and rare orchids. We discuss how Rimba Ilmu is fostering environmental awareness and promoting the conservation of Malaysia's rich biodiversity, and we also chat about Belukar Dah Jadi Rimba, Rimba Ilmu 50th anniversary exhibition with Benjamin Ong, a PhD researcher with the University of St Andrews and the producer of the exhibition, and also Huda Nejim Al-Asedi, a teaching artist, and the Art Director of Belukar dah jadi Rimba.

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A new analysis by global energy think tank Ember reveals that solar power generation in Peninsular Malaysia was 53% cheaper than fossil fuels in 2023, offering significant cost savings and energy security benefits. The report highlights the untapped potential of Malaysia's solar resources, particularly in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Sarawak, and advocates for accelerated solar growth and grid integration to meet the country's renewable energy targets. We discuss the report with Shabrina Nadhila, the Electricity Policy Analyst for Southeast Asia at Ember, and how Malaysia needs enhanced policies to integrate solar and battery storage, emphasizing the need for a holistic, system-wide approach to ensure a secure and resilient energy future.

Image Credit: Embers

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Asian elephants are the largest land mammals on the Asian continent and play a crucial role as keystone species and ecosystem engineers. Distinguished by their smaller ears and domed heads compared to their African counterparts, these gentle giants once roamed across diverse habitats from grasslands to rainforests throughout Asia. However, their population has sharply declined due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and human-elephant conflicts. It's conjunction with World Elephant Day, celebrated annually on the 12th of August, we want to discuss why ensuring their survival is crucial to both people and planet, with Associate Professor Dr Wong Ee Phin, an elephant ecologist and the Principle Investigator from the Management and Ecology of Malaysian Elephants or MEME, which is a research organisation working on developing evidence-based approach to the conservation of Asian elephants in Peninsular Malaysia. 

Image Credit: Shutterstock

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The International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species is globally recognised as a barometer of the world’s biodiversity. This year, the Red list includes over 163,000 species of animals, fungi, and plants, with 28% of them threatened with extinction. One notable mention: our very own Bornean pygmy elephant. Scientists believe there are only about 1,000 animals remaining in the wild, with their population declining over the past 75 years due primarily to extensive logging in Borneo, and subsequent habitat loss.  Ahead of World Elephant Day on the 12th of August, we catch up with elephant ecologist Dr. Nurzhafarina Othman, a Senior Lecturer at Universiti Malaysia Sabah, and the Director of Seratu Aatai, an NGO working on fostering peaceful human-elephant coexistence in Sabah, to discuss the troubling new status of the Borneo pygmy elephant, but also how it may help shed more light on these minute pachyderms, and ensure their survival for the future.

Image credit: Shutterstock

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In a significant victory for wildlife protection, authorities in Malaysia seized over 1,000 parts from endangered species like Malayan tigers and leopards near Taman Negara National Park not too long ago. Four individuals were arrested, and this massive operation highlights the critical role of increased enforcement in protecting our biodiversity hotspots. We discuss the impact of this seizure, the ongoing fight against wildlife poaching and trafficking, and also the importance of continued investment in wildlife protection efforts with Kanitha Krishnasamy, the Director for TRAFFIC in Southeast Asia.

Image credit: Afrianto Silalahi / Shutterstock.com

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With the simple motto to “Recycle, Reduce, Reuse” KakiDIY have been doing just that, through their movement of DIY enthusiasts. Together, they have greatly reduced waste by reusing broken items around them, either by repairing them or making it into something new.  Celebrating their 7th anniversary this July, we catch up with Johnson Lam, the Founder of KakiDIY and KakiRepair, to discuss the growth and impact of this grassroots fixer-upper group.

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As July wraps up, we too want to bring you a roundup of the top environmental news from the month past, with the co-founders of environmental journalism portal, Macaranga. Wong Siew Lyn and Law Yao Hua join us once again, first to discuss Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage efforts in Malaysia, which have been ramping up significantly, and why it's being championed as a climate solution. In conjunction with Global Tiger Day celebrated on the 29th of July, we also take a look at how our Malayan tigers are doing, and discuss the sad cases of tiger deaths which have increased significantly in the last 12 months. Finally, we look at the historic floods that happened in Penampang in Sabah, and whether there are solutions to this long-standing crisis.

Image credits:

• - Photo of Floods in Penampang on October 12, 2021 taken by Adrian Banie Lasimbang

• - Photo of Mangrove Boardwalk taken by A. Aldrie Amir

• - Photo of Malayan Tiger taken by joelblazewicz via Shutterstock

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Tak Kenal Maka Tak Cinta is our ongoing tourism-themed series on Earth Matters, which aims to highlight lesser-known ecotourism spots right here in Malaysia. Through the series, we want to take you back to the great outdoors, and experience the many off-the-beaten-track nature spots our country has to offer. In light of the International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem that was on the 26th of July, we speak to Dr. Ahmad Aldrie Amir, an Associate Professor at the Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI) at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, and the coordinator of the Malaysian Mangrove Research Alliance and Network (MyMangrove), to discuss the ecotourism opportunities at the many mangrove forests here in Malaysia! 

Photo Credit: The Malaysian Mangrove Research Alliance and Network (MyMangrove)

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Anak Rimba Books has a clear goal: to inspire a generation of children to cherish the planet. Founded by Abyan Junus-Nishizawa and Farah Landemaine, this publishing house is dedicated to creating beautifully illustrated children's books, to educate young readers about nature and endangered Asian species. To date, they have released six delightful and impactful stories, and have expanded into other forms of storytelling too, including film. We catch up with them to discuss their ongoing mission to inspire young (and not-so-young) Malaysians to cherish and protect our incredible biodiversity. 

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