Tanjung Aru’s beloved rare parrots must not be relocated, say birdwatchers Amar-Singh HSS and Ron Pudin.
TANJUNG ARU Beach in Sabah is an idyllic beach with tall old Casuarina trees, lovely sand and some of the most magnificent sunsets in the world. Located on the outskirts of Kota Kinabalu its proximity to the city makes Tanjung Aru Beach a great place to bring the family and have a peaceful day out. Many tourists visit the site daily.
Equally important is that Tanjung Aru Beach is home to an endangered parrot, the Blue-naped Parrot (Tanygnathus lucionensis). Blue-naped Parrots are medium sized parrots with green plumage, blue on the nape and mid-crown, broad orange-buff edging on wings and yellow on the undersurface of the tail.
(Feature image: Little is known about the global population of the Blue-naped Parrot but the number of locations it is found is declining | Photo: Amar-Singh HSS)
Left: WIth BFM producer Juliet Jacobs (top left): Liani MK, SL Wong and Charles Bong; RIght: DID officers and consultants inspecting a drain to be widened under a flood mitigation project (Pic: Arieff Zafir)
12 November 2024: In this Earth Matters segment on BFM89.9FM Radio, we focus on how floods have been worsening in Kuching due to woefully outdated drainage.
But there are technological and funding solutions, say Assoc Prof Dr Charles Bong (urban drainage management researcher, UNIMAS), Liani MK (journalist), and Macaranga’s Wong Siew Lyn. Produced by Juliet Jacobs on ‘Earth Matters’, 89.9FM Radio.
29 Oct 2024: October’s environmental news includes what civil society are doing to encourage folks to feed back on Malaysia’s long-awaited Climate Change Bill.
We also cover how it it is important to monitor poaching when mining operations are carried out within or close to protected areas, which is where Perhilitan and Op Bersepadu Khazanah (OBK) come in.
17 October 2024: Malaysia has new 10 Important Shark and Ray Areas, (ISRAs), critical habitats identified as critical for the conservation of shark and ray species based on scientific criteria.
To dissect the meaning of this new list are scientists Serena Adam (Marine Conservation Officer, WWF-Malaysia, member of the IUCN), Assoc. Prof. Dr Amy Then (Senior Lecturer, Institute of Biological Sciences, University of Malaya), and Macarang’s Wong Siew Lyn (right to left in photo above). Produced by Juliet Jacobs on ‘Earth Matters’, 89.9FM Radio.
17 October 2024: The Mak Jintan peat swamp forest in Terengganu is the last known virgin peat swamp in Peninsular Malaysia. When plans emerged to convert it into an oil palm plantation, it sparked significant concern among scientists, conservationists, and even an industry regulator.
Macaranga journalist Law Yao Hua speaks to Juliet Jacobs about the impact of this on biodiversity, carbon storage and water regulation on ‘Earth Matters’, 89.9FM Radio.
Knowing where different sharks and rays reproduce, feed, hang out, and rest, is important for conservation. But it is hard to do – unless everyone joins in. Now, thanks to scientific evidence, collaboration with divers and fishers, and the mining of public data, a new atlas of these areas is sparking optimism for the threatened fishes.
1 Oct 2024: In this wrap-up of environmental news in Malaysia, we look at why environmental and rights groups are calling on the EU to classify Sarawak as “high risk” under new EUDR anti-deforestation regulations.
We also covered how the trial of the first perpetrators accused of rhino horn smuggling in Malaysia heard of a car chase by PERHILITAN to apprehend them.
In another court case, the Semai of Ulu Geruntum, Perak savoured victory against hydropower companies constructing a dam on their customary land.
Veteran jouranlist Shaila Koshy (right) brings journalists through the intricacies of covering court. (SL Wong)
9 September 2024: Ouch, the law! Covering court can be daunting for journalists with no law background – and even for those with legal training. We addressed that head-on in our workshop, ‘Covering Wildlife in Court’, held from 4–6 Sept.
And it worked! Before the workshop, 9 out of 12 participants said their confidence level was 5/10 or below when it came to covering trials. After two-and-a-half days of media training and writing, that flipped: 8 out of 10 participants rated their confidence levels above 5!
Specifically, though, the skills training is to better tackle stories on wildlife crime. The over-exploitation of nature is one of the five leading causes of biodiversity loss in Malaysia and globally.
As such, the Macaranga Mentorship on Covering Wildlife Trade and Crime in Malaysia project over the next year seeks to explore issues as drivers of over-exploitation, right up to how courts are sentencing wildlife crimes.
The project involves this workshop and a months-long mentorship by Macaranga to produce long-form stories. It also involves a youth component, whereby we continue our collaboration with YUFE to produce social media content on this topic.
This court-focussed workshop was organised by Macaranga and hosted by TRAFFIC Southeast Asia. The workshop lead was Macaranga‘s Siew Lyn, the wildlife trade and crime component was delivered by TRAFFIC’s Elizabeth John and court reporting veteran Shaila Koshy patiently went through the steps on how to cover court. Thanks also to Justice for Wildlife Malaysia for your participation.
Participants and trainers in Macaranga’s Wildlife in Court Workshop (SL Wong)
Opening slides of draft posts and reels produced by ‘Ariff Amir Ali, Chok Jia Xuan and Dhivya Nair of YUFE
27 August 2024: Fierce is the word for the young people who participated in the on-boarding workshop for the next phase of our #YUFExMacaranga collaboration starting this month.
The gang is ready to take on wildlife trade and crime in conjunction with Macaranga‘s year-long multi-newroom project on the same theme.
Their objective is to use social media to amplify efforts in combating wildlife crime and promote conservation awareness in Malaysia.
Keep your eye out for these posts!
This project is supported by Internews Earth Journalism Network. With thanks to Elizabeth John from TRAFFIC Southeast Asia for giving an overview of wildlife trade and crime.
[The above image comprises slides from 3 draft posts created in a blistering 15 minutes. Below are some of the #YUFExMacaranga collab posts from the last year, which were based on Macaranga stories.]
