International Coastal Cleanup Day is a global event that has been running for more than 35 years. Volunteers all around the world engage and encourage their communities to take action by removing trash from beaches or oceans, identifying the sources of the litter, and inspiring change in beating marine debris pollution. Last year, Reef Check Malaysia had almost 10,000 volunteers and picked up an astounding 23,000 kg of trash! Julian Hyde, the General Manager of Reef Check Malaysia, joins us to s...
Sep 11, 2023•32 min
The IPS-MPS '23 - The Joint Meeting of the International Primatological Society (IPS) and the Malaysian Primatological Society (MPS), was recently held in Kuching, and the conference was themed "Primates and People: A New Horizon”. Malaysia is a highly primate diverse country with rich natural habitats but currently, most of the primates species in Malaysia are regarded as threatened. We discuss why this is the case, and also some of the major outcomes of this international conference that are s...
Sep 06, 2023•38 min
BFM turns 15 on the 4th of September 2023, and to commemorate, we're revisiting some of our best interviews from the years past, and playing you 15-minute snippets from three interviews (or thereabouts) featuring international guests we’ve featured on Earth Matters . In this collection, you will hear from Dame Jane Morris Goodall DBE, a Primatologist & Anthropologist, Richard Heinberg , a Journalist, Educator, and Senior Fellow at the Post Carbon Institute, and also climate activist Yeb Saño...
Sep 04, 2023•51 min
Youths United For Earth (YUFE) want to celebrate Malaysia's environmentalism, one youth at a time. The youth-led NGO aims to mobilise Malaysian youths for environmental action through environmental storytelling, grassroots community-building, and policy advocacy. The group recently received the Diana Award, set up in memory of the Princess of Wales, presented to 200 youths worldwide aged 9-25 to acknowledge their humanitarian work, and earlier this month, they were also recognised under the Nort...
Aug 30, 2023•48 min
As we close yet another month in 2023, we also look back at some of the top environmental news from August, with the help of the co-founders of environmental journalism portal, Macaranga . Today, we're tackling three topics in particular, first the Nature Conservation Agreement in Sabah, considered by many to be a controversial carbon project - we'll break down what it's about, and why there are questions surrounding it. Next we discuss what happened at the IPS-MPS '23 - The Joint Meeting of the...
Aug 28, 2023•20 min
Tak Kenal Maka Tak Cinta is our monthly tourism-themed series on Earth Matters, which aims to highlight lesser-known ecotourism spots right here in Malaysia. Done in collaboration with the Ecotourism & Conservation Society Malaysia (ECOMY), 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. For this episode, we're heading to Kinabatangan, in Sandakan, Sabah, specifically the Kinabatangan River. At 560 km long, t...
Aug 27, 2023•25 min
The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity ( TEEB ) is a global initiative focused on “making nature’s values visible”. Back in early July 2023, the United Nations Development Programme in Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei Darussalam (UNDP Malaysia) unveiled the results of site-level economic valuation exercises conducted in three protected areas in Malaysia. The study estimates that ecosystem services of Taman Negara National Park, Royal Belum State Park and Endau-Rompin National Park are respe...
Aug 23, 2023•44 min
The folks at Zero Waste Malaysia continue to work towards building a waste-free future for Malaysia, with a mission to drive social and systemic change for our country. The group has been keeping busy, and just last month - which was Plastic Free July- saw the team collaborating with Hara Makers where they launched a 10-metre-tall installation made with 3 tonnes of plastic bags at community space, Parc @Subang Ria. They are also busy working on The Trashpedia Outreach Programme, an immersive rec...
Aug 21, 2023•36 min
Though they registered officially in 2020, the Gibbon Conservation Society or GCS has been running since 2013, marking 10 years of hard work to rescue and rehabilitate gibbons in Malaysia. Gibbons are an endangered species and are threatened primarily by loss of their forest habitat, but also other factors like the illegal wildlife trade, the use of their body parts in Chinese medicines, and poaching. The group have had many exciting developments this past year, including the historic birth of A...
Aug 16, 2023•41 min
Earlier in May 2023, the UN's World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned us that we were leaving an "exceptionally long La Niña weather phenomenon that intensified drought and flooding" and that El Niño, its warming opposite in the cycle, would likely be on the cards for 2023. That indeed happened in July, and while these are natural phenomenons, it is also taking place against a background of human-induced climate change, which is increasing global temperatures, affecting seasonal rainfall ...
Aug 14, 2023•46 min
State elections are just around the corner, and #UndIklim-Selangor 2023 is a campaign to present to voters the direct stand of each candidate on matters pertaining to climate action, conservation of natural resources, good governance and more. A joint effort between Gabungan Darurat Iklim Malaysia (GDIMY) and Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM), it is part of a citizen education series to encourage Malaysians towards mature democratic action and thinking. We speak to Kennedy Michael, the Co-Founde...
Aug 09, 2023•41 min
With state elections just around the corner, we catch up with Adam Farhan, the co-founder and director of environmental watchdog RimbaWatch , to suss out how the six states that are heading to the polls have been doing on the environment-front - with a special focus on deforestation - and what voters should consider when choosing their state representatives. Adam also sheds light on a recent report RimbaWatch released that highlighted gaps in PETRONAS's Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050 (NZCE 20...
Aug 07, 2023•31 min
TRAFFIC - the wildlife trade monitoring network - have been working with Pos Malaysia for the past four years to help the postal service better detect wildlife in the mail, which is a massive problem worldwide, with people and businesses using mail and courier services to send live wild animals and their parts and products to customers. We speak to Renee Yee, a Training and Capacity Building Officer with TRAFFIC, to find out more about this illicit trade, and some of the crazy smuggling methods ...
Aug 02, 2023•30 min
For our monthly roundup of environmental news from the month of July, we tackle Ecological Fiscal Transfers, ship-source pollution and its impacts on our maritime environments, and the illegal trade of wildlife, with the co-founders of environmental journalism portal Macaranga , Law Yao Hua and Wong Siew Lyn. Image Credit: Afrianto Silalahi / Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Jul 31, 2023•18 min
Tak Kenal Maka Tak Cinta is our monthly tourism-themed series on Earth Matters, which aims to highlight lesser-known ecotourism spots right here in Malaysia. Done in collaboration with the Ecotourism & Conservation Society Malaysia (ECOMY), 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. This month, we're heading to Kedah, to visit places like Taman Eko Rimba Bukit Wang, Air Terjun Bukit Perangin, Pedu Lake, ...
Jul 30, 2023•21 min
It's International Tiger Day on the 29th of July, celebrated annually to raise awareness for tiger conservation. In Malaysia, we are still fighting tooth and nail to protect the critically endangered Malayan Tiger, our symbol of national pride, and the apex predator in our forests. With stats putting their numbers at less than 150 left in the wild, what more can we do to keep them in the wild, for generations to come? We discuss this and more with Christopher Wong, the Tiger Lead for WWF-Malaysi...
Jul 26, 2023•37 min
Rising more than 1000m above sea level on the Titiwangsa Range, and straddling the Pahang-Selangor border, Fraser’s Hill is a highland rainforest area that is a popular ecotourism getaway for many, and affectionately known as the little England of Malaysia. There are rumblings that Fraser's Hill might be turned into a state park - though the idea is very early in the development stage - and to brand around 83,000 hectares of land as the Fraser's Hill Forest Complex. What are the pro's and con's ...
Jul 24, 2023•44 min
The Life and Times of Jenah is a series of three interconnected animated marine educational videos, which aims to spread awareness on the threats facing the marine environment. Written, directed, produced, illustrated, animated and voiced by an all-local team led by Reef Stakes , the series puts the viewer in the fins of Jenah, a black-spotted snapper, that spends portions of her life cycle in three marine ecosystems - mangroves, seagrass beds, and coral reefs. We catch up with animator Maxine C...
Jul 17, 2023•24 min
‘Mummy, Where's My Dorsal Fin?’ follows the adventures of a little Indo-Pacific finless porpoise calf named Aluna and her mother Cheriya, as they explore their beautiful habitat around the Langkawi Archipelago. Described as a story of discovery, learning, and hope in a changing world, the book was also inspired by the natural beauty of Langkawi. We catch up with marine biologist Dr Louisa Ponnampalam, the Chairperson of the MareCet Research Organisation and author of the book, to find out more a...
Jul 12, 2023•40 min
The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) recently held its 59th Meeting , with the aim to explore and illustrate the options and opportunities for balancing science, conservation and society around the world of tropical biodiversity. Environment writer and co-founder of environmental journalism portal Macaranga , Law Yao Hua, was in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, for the meetings, and joins us to share more about what went down last week, some exciting advances in tropical biology...
Jul 10, 2023•45 min
The RM5 billion Nenggiri Hydroelectric Project located in Kelantan is expected to supplement renewable energy for Malaysia, and also potentially generate 2,000 new jobs, on top of mitigating flood issues in the state. But for the Orang Asli in Gua Musang who call the area home, the project will submerge up to 5,834 hectares of forest that are their cultural lands, and force them to leave their homeland. They also believe the mega dam project will erase the historical trace of Orang Asli Temiar i...
Jul 05, 2023•36 min
Myles Storey is a wildlife filmmaker, who has worked on productions with the BBC, World Animal Protection, and Roots & Shoots Malaysia, among others. Keen to tell stories that can impact our relationship with nature, Myles produced and directed Finding Solo , a documentary about the last white-handed gibbon in Bukit Serdang, and he was also the wildlife videographer and director of the documentary Wang Kelian - The Forgotten Valley . Myles joins us to share more about his work in filming unt...
Jul 03, 2023•41 min
An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report for a new international airport on Pulau Tioman has been made public and is now open for review and comments from the public - plans include 141.6ha of reclamation, moving corals, and quarrying. Pulau Tioman is known for its beautiful beaches, and the island hosts three related marine ecosystems: coral reefs, seagrass beds and mangroves. Visitors head to Tioman in search of nature-related adventures, and tourism on islands has a huge economic impac...
Jun 28, 2023•38 min
As June draws to an end, we speak to Law Yao Hua, co-founder of environmental journalism portal Macaranga , to discuss the top environmental news of the month past. We discuss how it has been estimated that there are RM809bil worth of rare earths in Malaysia, making it a hot commodity for state governments to pursue - can this industry be developed sustainably and responsibly? We also discuss the EIA report of a proposed new Tioman Island International Airport which is now up for review, looking...
Jun 26, 2023•22 min
Tak Kenal Maka Tak Cinta is our monthly tourism-themed series on Earth Matters, which aims to highlight lesser-known ecotourism spots right here in Malaysia. Done in collaboration with the Ecotourism & Conservation Society Malaysia (ECOMY), 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. For this episode, we're heading to Merapoh, a small town in Lipis, Pahang, which is located next to the Pahang-Kelant...
Jun 25, 2023•23 min
In the 1950's, it was estimated that Malaysia had as many as 3000 tigers in the wild. In 2022, that number had dwindled to an estimated 150. Is there still a chance to save our Malayan tiger? The answer is yes, and the Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers ( MYCAT ) are spearheading several grassroots efforts which involve individuals playing their part in the conservation of our amazing tigers, including the Rewilding Yu programme, and the CAT Walk and CSR CAT Walk. We speak to Muna ...
Jun 21, 2023•40 min
In 2018, China’s National Sword Policy came into effect, banning 24 (later 32) types of solid waste imports to the country, including plastic and paper waste. This, we know, caused a global disruption in the recyclable material market and redirected plastic waste to new destination countries, primarily in Southeast Asia. From January to July 2018, Malaysia became the world's top destination for plastic waste exports. This influx led to a sharp rise in illegal recycling facilities and illegal dum...
Jun 14, 2023•28 min
Plastics only started to be made in large quantities after World War 2, but since then, the pollution from all the plastic we manufacture and use has become one of the most serious threats humanity faces. According to the IUCN, by 2015, 60% of all plastic ever produced had become plastic waste, and is practically everywhere - it’s in the air, in the soil, in freshwater, and in the sea. In 2019, only 9% of plastic waste was recycled globally, while 22% was mismanaged - the UN calls in a planetary...
Jun 12, 2023•28 min
Humanity is facing a plastic pollution crisis. It's said that plastic production has risen exponentially in the last decades, and now amounts to some 400 million tons per year– a figure set to double by 2040. In 2022, UN Member States agreed to start negotiating a historic new global treaty to end plastic pollution. The framework is now being negotiated throughout a series of meetings across the globe, and the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) are working on developing this internati...
Jun 07, 2023•32 min
It's World Reef Awareness Day on the 1st of June, celebrated annually to reflect on our ocean's delicate coral reefs, and to bring together communities and leaders around the world to conserve these incredible marine ecosystems. Beyond their ecological services, coral reefs are valuable to communities for food security, storm protection, cultural value, and more. But with human activity and a warming planet rapidly degrading these precious and fragile ecosystems, a range of interventions are nee...
May 31, 2023•43 min
