Tag Archives: mangroves

Tanjung Manis mangroves reviving thanks to community buy-in

Tanjung Manis mangroves are reviving thanks to early community buy-in

Rehabilitating mangroves is slow and failure-prone, but in Tanjung Manis, Sarawak, indigenous communities make headway in close cooperation with an NGO. |  Photo: checking growth by Arieff Zafir

Writer: Liani MK  |  Photographer: Arieff Zafir
Editor: SL Wong
Cartographers: Louis Lugas and Irma Garnesia

Published: 23 September, 2026

This is a #BLUECARBON story, part of the Macaranga Project on Climate Disinformation and Indigenous People.

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How Pitas communities replant mangroves to reclaim their heritage

How Pitas communities replant mangroves to reclaim their heritage

Mangroves are haltingly returning to land devastated by a giant shrimp farm, but for locals, recovering the forest is about more than planting trees; it’s a matter of heritage. |  Photo: a hurt land by Arieff Zafir

Writer: Liani MK  | Photographer: Arieff Zafir
Editor: SL Wong
Cartographers: Louis Lugas and Irma Garnesia
File photos: Chen Yih Wen

Published: 23 September, 2026

This is a #BLUECARBON story, part of the Macaranga Project on Climate Disinformation and Indigenous People.

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Seletar aquaculture co-exists with, not harms mangroves

Seletar Aquaculture Co-exists with, not Harms Mangrove

Aquaculture is synonymous with mangrove destruction, but the Seletar Orang Asli not only need the mangroves for their mussel farming, they developed tech based on how mussels lived in the wetlands  |  Photo: harvesting mussels by Aidila Razak

Writer: Aidila Razak  |  Editor: SL Wong
Data visualisation & Cartographers: Irma Garnesia and Louis Lugas

Published: 21 September, 2026

This is a #BLUECARBON story, part of the Macaranga Project on Climate Disinformation and Indigenous People.

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RM71 million spent to replant mangroves; at least half have died

RM71 million spent on planting mangroves; at least half have died

Planting mangroves to save coasts and counter climate change is deeply flawed in practice, say scientists, though success increases when local communities are involved. | Photo of mangrove seedlings by Arieff Zafir

Writer: Aidila Razak  |  Editor: SL Wong
Cartographers: Irma Garnesia and Louis Lugas

Published: 21 September, 2026

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Read our #BLUECARBON Series

Mangroves are are much better at combatting the climate crisis than rainforests. Yet they are being cut down faster than rainforests. So we need to protect and restore mangroves. But funding is perpetually short.

Enter blue carbon credits, which allows polluters to pay to maintain these natural carbon sinks. For one, the funding can go towards restoring mangroves that have been degraded and destroyed. But before we get into carbon credits, are current restoration efforts working? 

Read our #BLUECARBON investigation in 4 parts. Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

(Image: Indigenous planters head to a planting site; success rates are higher when communities are involved. | Photo by Arieff Zafir)

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2024 Wrap-Up: Carbon, Climate, Sharks

16 Dec 2024: We looked back at Macaranga’s stories in 2024 in this Annual Wrap-Up on the Earth Matters segment on BFM89.9FM Radio. We went from the local to global, linking our stories on deforestation of peat swamp forests, social media wildlife pet trade, and dumpsites to global dynamics of rising carbon emissions, illegal wildlife trade, and the climate crisis.

There were encouraging stories too, such as wins on mapping important areas for conservation of conservation of sharks and rays, and Sabah’s 10-year mangrove action plan.

Produced by Juliet Jacobs for Earth Matters.

Listen to the Birds to Save Mangroves

Velvet-fronted Nuthatch (Amar Singh-HSS)

Listen to the Birds to Save Mangroves

When birds disappear from back mangroves, the mangrove forest’s very survival could be at stake.

Produced by: Ashley Yeong, Amar-Singh HSS & SL Wong
Edited by: YH Law

Co-published with the Malaysian Bird Report

Published: June 14, 2024

(The Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Sitta frontalis is absent in many mangroves in Selangor | Photo by Amar-Singh HSS)

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Strolling Through Magical Matang Mangroves

Strolling Through Magical Matang Mangroves

A  walk in a thriving , healthy mangrove forest is full of splendour, diversity and birdsong.

Produced by: Ashley Yeong, Amar Singh HSS & SL Wong; Edited by: YH Law

Co-published with the Malaysian Bird Report

Published: June 14, 2024

(Boardwalk in the Pusat Eko-Pelajaran Hutan Paya Laut Matang, Kuala Sepetang, Perak  | Video by Ashley Yeong)

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大自然的堡垒——抵御风暴的关键

珊瑚、红树林和海草共同构成了坚固的天然堡垒,抵御风暴潮和海平面上升等气候变化的影响。 这个生态系统应该共同保护。 本文于 2023 年 6 月首次以英文发表,是我们的 #SeaWorld 系列的一部分。