Articles by Erik Meijaard

Fire set for peatland clearing in Riau Province, Indonesia in July 2015. Photo by Rhett A. Butler

No more fires in Indonesia?

In late 2015, Indonesia featured heavily in the global headlines. Parts of the country were burning so badly that the fires were coined “the greatest environmental disaster of the 21st…
Fire set for peatland clearing in Riau Province, Indonesia in July 2015. Photo by Rhett A. Butler
Sumatran orangutan. Photo by Rhett A. Butler

Hype and secrecy in wildlife conservation

All organizations love media attention, and wildlife conservation groups are no different. Both the positive and negative stories promote conservation work. The more eye-catching the headline and the cuddlier the…
Sumatran orangutan. Photo by Rhett A. Butler

Another year of fires, another year of inaction

This natural-color satellite image was collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer aboard the Terra satellite on Feb. 28, 2014. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS's thermal bands, are outlined…