Earth Matters

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...

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 c...

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 unc...

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 stron...

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...

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 lif...

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 recoverin...

It's hazy again - the air is smoky, visibility is down, and in some parts of the country, the air quality has reached dangerous levels. Fires across Indonesia, particularly in Sumatra and Kalimantan, are sending smoke across Southeast Asia once again. What's doubly worrying is that they are burning through one of the world's largest tropical peatland ecosystems. We've been living through and talki...

A plan to protect one of Sarawak’s remaining rainforest landscapes has instead ended with a major timber concession over the same forests, according to a new report about the Upper Baram. For years, Penan and other Indigenous communities in the region have pushed for their forests to be protected through what began as the Penan Peace Park and later became the Baram Peace Park. The idea eventually...

For August 2026's episode of Nature Reads, we speak to wildlife photographer, author, conservationist and Head of Outreach at Roots & Shoots Malaysia, Peter Ong . Together with co-host Surin Suksuwan, co-founder of Sunda Shelves, we explore the books and people that shaped Peter's interest in nature and conservation, including the influence of renowned primatologist and conservationist Dr. Jan...

The haze is back. For the past few days, many of us have been waking up to that familiar smell, hazier skies and air that we're really not supposed to be breathing. While the immediate question is where the smoke is coming from, there's a bigger question here: why, after decades of haze crises, are we still dealing with this? We look at what's driving this latest haze episode, revisit some of Mala...

Across Southeast Asia, there's a familiar tension between economic development and environmental protection. Governments talk about growth, companies talk about investment, while communities often find themselves fighting to protect the forests, rivers and land they've depended on for generations. A new Human Rights Watch report, Grabbed Land, Silenced Justice , looks at what happens when those co...

Rice is a staple food for millions of Malaysians, but a proposed field trial in Perak is raising questions about how we grow it, and who bears the risks when new technologies are introduced. The trial involves genetically modified MR219 rice that has been engineered to tolerate glyphosate, as well as resist certain bacterial and fungal diseases. But 61 organisations representing farmers, consumers...

We marked International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples on the 9th of August, a day to recognise Indigenous cultures, communities and their ongoing struggles for rights and recognition. In Sarawak, few issues are more fundamental to those struggles than land. The documentary Long Moh takes us to the Kenyah Lepu Tau community in Ulu Baram, where people are defending their ancestral forest fro...

Eight years ago, two neglected riverside dumpsites along the Klang River became the starting point for an ambitious experiment. The idea was simple: if people came together consistently to care for these places, could nature recover? Today, those spaces have become thriving community parks teeming with biodiversity, and what started as a grassroots restoration effort has grown into GREduAction!, a...

It's easy to imagine that the climate crisis is still years away, but for many young Malaysians, it's already shaping everyday life, from getting to school safely and dealing with extreme heat, to worrying about floods, their wellbeing and what the future might hold. A new National Youth Climate Change Survey by UNICEF Malaysia and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability...

Every year, Global Tiger Day reminds us of the urgent need to protect one of Malaysia's most iconic and critically endangered animals, the Malayan tiger. But protecting tigers isn't just about saving a single species, it's about protecting entire forests that are home to countless other plants and animals, many of which we still know surprisingly little about. That's exactly what researchers have...

On this episode of Nature Reads, we speak to Malaysian children's author and scuba diver Gloria Chieng, together with co-host Jennifer Neoh Tan, Bookshop Manager at Sunda Shelves. We explore the books and experiences that inspired Gloria's love of nature, how her time beneath the waves led to her debut picture book, Paco the Hermit Crab , and why stories can help children connect with the ocean an...

Sustainable finance has become a major part of the global push towards tackling climate change and protecting nature. By helping direct investment towards projects that deliver environmental and social benefits, it has the potential to reshape how development happens. Here in Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia and Securities Commission Malaysia are developing a Sustainable Finance Taxonomy to help cla...

Land reclamation is often promoted as a driver of economic growth, but it's also one of the most controversial forms of development, with lasting impacts on the environment, coastal communities, and traditional livelihoods. Now, a recent Court of Appeal judgment involving the Penang South Islands reclamation project has sparked a new debate, not just about the environmental impacts of reclamation,...

Birds are often described as indicators of the health of our environment. When bird populations change, they're often telling us something about the ecosystems we all depend on. That's one reason projects like MY Garden Birdwatch matter. Returning this July after a four-year break, the nationwide survey invites Malaysians to spend just 30 minutes observing birds in their local area and contribute...

Ever so often, we hear about another patch of forest being cleared, excised or reclassified. But if you've ever tried to find out exactly what happened, when it happened, or whether it was even legal, you'll know just how difficult that information can be to access. That's exactly the problem journalist Law Yao Hua set out to solve. Drawing on years of reporting, hundreds of official gazettes and...

Climate action doesn't only happen at the annual UN Climate Conference, or COP. Throughout the year, negotiators, policymakers and civil society organisations meet to tackle the complex work of turning global climate commitments into practical action. Last month saw a packed calendar of major international gatherings, including the Global Solutions Summit in Berlin, the UNFCCC's mid-year negotiati...

The transfer of three Malaysian elephants to Japan has sparked widespread debate over the past few months. While the move was described as a conservation partnership between two zoos, campaigners have questioned whether the transfer complied with Malaysian law, raised concerns about the elephants' welfare, and called for greater transparency over how the decision was made. In this conversation, we...

The more successful a tourist island becomes, the more waste it often has to manage. That's one of the central ideas behind a new report titled Pathways Towards Circularity: The Zero Waste Islands Framework , from GAIA Asia Pacific, which argues that many island destinations are trapped in an extractive cycle. Products are imported, consumed, and discarded, while local communities are left to deal...