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		<title>Conservation news</title>
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		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/malaysia/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:11:43 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<title>Malaysia environmental news</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/malaysia/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Old fire hoses become lifelines for Malaysia&#8217;s endangered langurs</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/old-fire-hoses-become-lifelines-for-malaysias-endangered-langurs/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/old-fire-hoses-become-lifelines-for-malaysias-endangered-langurs/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jun 2026 07:09:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/23070743/Two-dusky-langurs-e1782198544172-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=321635</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Cities, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Deforestation, Development, Endangered Species, Environment, Forestry, Forests, Human-wildlife Conflict, Innovation, Interviews, Interviews with conservation players, Mammals, Monkeys, Primates, Rainforests, Solutions, urban ecology, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On Malaysia’s Penang Island, conservationist Yap Jo Leen is turning old fire hoses into lifesaving bridges that help endangered monkeys cross busy roads in residential areas. The idea took root after she witnessed a female dusky langur and her infant get struck by a vehicle in 2016, Yap told Mongabay’s Phil Jacobson and AFP&#8217;s Isabelle [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On Malaysia’s Penang Island, conservationist Yap Jo Leen is turning old fire hoses into lifesaving bridges that help endangered monkeys cross busy roads in residential areas. The idea took root after she witnessed a female dusky langur and her infant get struck by a vehicle in 2016, Yap told Mongabay’s Phil Jacobson and AFP&#8217;s Isabelle Leong in a joint interview. Dusky langurs (Trachypithecus obscurus) are small primates with dark gray to blackish fur, distinct large white patches around their eyes, and white fur around their mouth. The species is considered endangered on the IUCN Red List, according to the latest assessment, done in 2015. Yap said that in 2016, as a postgraduate student, she started following a family of dusky langurs that included an individual she called Ah Lai. Over the next year, she recorded several instances of the langurs trying to cross a busy road. People living in the residential areas also reported that dusky langurs and macaques frequently made road crossings. Since 2019, Yap’s organization, the Langur Project Penang (LPP), has installed three artificial canopy bridges to help the langurs cross roads safely. The bridges are all made from repurposed fire hoses donated by local fire departments. The initiative has seen remarkable success, said Yap. The first bridge they installed, known as “Ah Lai’s Crossing,” has been credited with zero langur roadkill deaths on that stretch of road. Beyond langurs, the bridge is also used by nine other wildlife species, including macaques, squirrels, and slow lorises. Yap said&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/old-fire-hoses-become-lifelines-for-malaysias-endangered-langurs/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/old-fire-hoses-become-lifelines-for-malaysias-endangered-langurs/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321635</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Southeast Asian nations chart important new course toward environmental justice (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/southeast-asian-nations-chart-important-new-course-toward-environmental-justice-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/southeast-asian-nations-chart-important-new-course-toward-environmental-justice-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Jun 2026 22:57:53 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[John Knox]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/08/11081601/jambi_220653_2560px-768x512-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321042</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Thailand, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Commentary, Conservation, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Law, and Social Justice]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have made an important commitment to environmental justice for the 680 million people who call this region home. Now comes the hard part: putting it into practice. Last October, ASEAN member states — Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have made an important commitment to environmental justice for the 680 million people who call this region home. Now comes the hard part: putting it into practice. Last October, ASEAN member states — Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam — adopted a Declaration on the Right to a Safe, Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment. They are currently in the process of drafting a regional plan of action to give it life. The right to a healthy environment as it’s usually called is now globally accepted as a fundamental human right. ASEAN first recognized this right in 2012 in the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration. In 2022, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the right in a virtually unanimous vote: 161 governments voted in favor, none against, and only eight abstained. At the national level, more than 100 countries now include it in their constitutions. Southeast Asia enjoys a rich natural heritage, like this coral reef in the Philippines, that supports the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. Image courtesy of Jett Britnell/Coral Reef Image Bank. At the same time, international tribunals and domestic courts have made strides in clarifying what the right requires. In July 2025, the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, issued an opinion on climate change in which it said the human right to a healthy environment is inherent and essential for other human rights, including&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/southeast-asian-nations-chart-important-new-course-toward-environmental-justice-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/southeast-asian-nations-chart-important-new-course-toward-environmental-justice-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321042</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>A blueprint for effective activism 10 years after defeating a dam in Borneo (analysis)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-blueprint-for-effective-activism-10-years-after-defeating-a-dam-in-borneo-analysis/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-blueprint-for-effective-activism-10-years-after-defeating-a-dam-in-borneo-analysis/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Jun 2026 18:59:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Jessica MerrimanJoe Lamb]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/09193920/Baram-dam-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320891</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Analysis, Commentary, Community Development, Conservation, Dams, Development, Ecosystems, Energy, Environment, Forests, Freshwater, Governance, Human Rights, Hydroelectric Power, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Land Rights, Rivers, Tropical Forests, and Tropics]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In October 2015, Indigenous activists from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Cambodia, Brazil, the United States, and Honduras, together with delegates from longhouse communities throughout the Malaysian state of Sarawak, gathered at Tanjung Tepalit, an Indigenous Kenyah village on the Baram River on the island of Borneo. They called the gathering WISER: the World Indigenous Summit [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In October 2015, Indigenous activists from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Cambodia, Brazil, the United States, and Honduras, together with delegates from longhouse communities throughout the Malaysian state of Sarawak, gathered at Tanjung Tepalit, an Indigenous Kenyah village on the Baram River on the island of Borneo. They called the gathering WISER: the World Indigenous Summit on Environment and Rivers. Tanjung Tepalit hosted the gathering because the village, along with more than two dozen others along the river, was scheduled to be drowned. The Baram Dam, a 1,200-megawatt hydroelectric mega project backed by the Sarawak state government and aligned with a regional industrial development scheme called the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE), would have flooded an area of more than 400 square kilometers (more than 150 square miles) and displaced an estimated 20,000 Kenyah, Kayan, and Penan people. Muslims, Catholics, Evangelicals, Buddhists, agnostics, and people who followed traditional Indigenous religions were among the attendees. As we gathered, Peter Kallang, the Kenyah founder and chair of the local advocacy group SAVE Rivers, addressed the assembly: &#8220;We are people of many faiths,&#8221; he said, &#8220;but we are united in one mission. To protect our forest homes and our ways of life.&#8221; In one sense the WISER gathering was a strategy meeting to coordinate an international coalition against a state-corporate project. In another, and perhaps deeper sense, WISER was rooted in something older. It was an assertion that the values that hold communities to their land across generations — the sanctity of the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-blueprint-for-effective-activism-10-years-after-defeating-a-dam-in-borneo-analysis/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/a-blueprint-for-effective-activism-10-years-after-defeating-a-dam-in-borneo-analysis/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320891</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Loopholes undermine palm oil industry’s antideforestation pledges</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/loopholes-undermine-palm-oil-industrys-antideforestation-pledges/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/loopholes-undermine-palm-oil-industrys-antideforestation-pledges/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 May 2026 21:51:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Alexandra Popescu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/02173520/sabah_1209-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320195</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Indonesia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Certification, Commodity agriculture, Corporate Social Responsibility, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, EUDR, Forest Destruction, Forest Loss, Governance, International Trade, Monitoring, Palm Oil, Plantations, Rainforests, Satellite Imagery, and Supply Chain]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — More than a decade after the palm oil industry embraced a pledge to not deforest, clear tropical peatlands, or use exploitative practices, policies to that end now cover most of the global palm oil trade, as major traders, refiners and consumer brands have pledged to keep deforestation-linked palm oil out of their supply [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — More than a decade after the palm oil industry embraced a pledge to not deforest, clear tropical peatlands, or use exploitative practices, policies to that end now cover most of the global palm oil trade, as major traders, refiners and consumer brands have pledged to keep deforestation-linked palm oil out of their supply chains. However, deforestation linked to palm oil continues, particularly in Indonesia, the world’s largest producer of the commodity. Satellite analysis by forest-mapping initiative TheTreeMap shows 31,073 hectares (76,783 acres) of forest were cleared for palm oil in Indonesia in 2025, slightly higher than the 30,956 hectares (76,494 acres) recorded in 2024 — highlighting persistent gaps in how the industry enforces its zero-deforestation pledges. In some cases, palm oil from newly cleared land still enters supply chains that companies describe as deforestation-free. “No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation” (NDPE) policies aim to eliminate three major sources of harm in palm oil production: clearing natural forests, developing plantations on carbon-rich peatlands, and exploiting workers or local communities. By 2020, these commitments covered roughly 83% of palm oil refinery capacity in Indonesia and Malaysia, the world’s main producing region. In recent years, companies have also built systems to enforce these pledges. Many now publish grievance mechanisms where violations can be reported, while third-party monitoring groups use satellite imagery to track forest loss and flag suspicious activity. Large-scale corporate deforestation in Indonesia has fallen compared to the mid-2010s, when some plantation companies were clearing vast areas of rainforest. Deforestation for&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/loopholes-undermine-palm-oil-industrys-antideforestation-pledges/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320195</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Building bridges for human-wildlife coexistence: Interview with Yap Jo Leen</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/building-bridges-for-human-wildlife-coexistence-interview-with-yap-jo-leen/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/building-bridges-for-human-wildlife-coexistence-interview-with-yap-jo-leen/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 May 2026 00:54:06 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Isabelle LeongPhilip Jacobson]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/26092551/Yap-conducts-canopy-bridge-education-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320118</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Cities, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Deforestation, Development, Endangered Species, Environment, Forestry, Forests, Human-wildlife Conflict, Innovation, Interviews, Interviews with conservation players, Mammals, Monkeys, Primates, Rainforests, Solutions, urban ecology, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[TANJUNG BUNGAH, Malaysia — When Yap Jo Leen was tracking dusky langurs in the forests of Penang for her master’s degree in 2016, she watched a langur they called Towkay Soh — Hokkien for “lady boss” — get hit by a car while trying to cross a busy coastal road. Dazed, the langur managed to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[TANJUNG BUNGAH, Malaysia — When Yap Jo Leen was tracking dusky langurs in the forests of Penang for her master’s degree in 2016, she watched a langur they called Towkay Soh — Hokkien for “lady boss” — get hit by a car while trying to cross a busy coastal road. Dazed, the langur managed to get back on its feet and retreat into a tree while Yap and her colleagues blocked traffic. As Towkay Soh recuperated over the next few days, the langur group’s empathy for each other was on full display, Yap says. “Female individuals, they would approach her and groom her and even try to make her feel better,” Yap says. “I always believe that the primates, humans and monkeys, we all share a similarity, which is connection.” Two dusky langurs called &#8220;Kim&#8221; (left) and &#8220;Sunny&#8221; (right) named by the Langur Project Penang at a playground near a residential area in the Tanjung Bungah area of George Town on Malaysia&#8217;s Penang Island. For Malaysia&#8217;s endangered dusky langurs, recognizable by the characteristic white &#8220;eye masks&#8221; that stand out against their black fur, survival increasingly depends on manmade crossings across urban landscapes and the work of &#8220;citizen scientists&#8221;. Image by Mohd Rasfan / AFP. Other langurs weren’t so lucky. From 2016 to 2018, Yap recorded eight langur roadkill deaths in the same area. So, in 2019, Yap and her collaborators built an artificial canopy bridge over the road, made from old fire hoses. Since then, they’ve recorded zero langur roadkill&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/building-bridges-for-human-wildlife-coexistence-interview-with-yap-jo-leen/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320118</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>What drives the trafficking of gibbons? Conservationists shed light on demand</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/what-drives-the-trafficking-of-gibbons-conservationists-shed-light-on-demand/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/what-drives-the-trafficking-of-gibbons-conservationists-shed-light-on-demand/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>22 May 2026 05:48:09 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/17092446/hoolock-gibbons-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=319964</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Forests, Green, Illegal Trade, Pet Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[As gibbon seizures reached a record high in 2025, conservationists warn that dismantling the illegal trade requires a deep understanding of the diverse motivations driving consumer demand, contributor Ana Norman Bermúdez reports for Mongabay. In 2025, authorities confiscated 336 gibbons between January and August alone, representing approximately 20% of all recorded seizures since 2016, according [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[As gibbon seizures reached a record high in 2025, conservationists warn that dismantling the illegal trade requires a deep understanding of the diverse motivations driving consumer demand, contributor Ana Norman Bermúdez reports for Mongabay. In 2025, authorities confiscated 336 gibbons between January and August alone, representing approximately 20% of all recorded seizures since 2016, according to an analysis by the wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC. Experts say that because motivations for buying a gibbon vary widely across different buyer communities, solutions must be tailored accordingly. “Primates have always fascinated people,” said Elizabeth John of TRAFFIC, adding that gibbons are particularly appealing “because of their uniqueness and rarity.” While Indonesia and Vietnam have historically dominated the gibbon trade, India and Malaysia have emerged as key countries in the illegal chain in recent years. In Malaysia, demand is often driven by a misplaced &#8220;love&#8221; for animals. Mariani “Bam” Ramli, founder of the Gibbon Conservation Society, said most owners acquire gibbons through informal networks or online, usually to keep as pets, and surrender their animals voluntarily. “Most of them say they love animals, or they want their children to have an animal to play with,” Ramli said. The market in India has two kinds of demand: local trade in rural areas and wealthy urban buyers willing to buy gibbons for social standing. Florian Magne, director of the HURO Foundation, said that gibbons are often perceived as &#8220;prestigious pets, attracting attention and conferring social status.&#8221; Magne also points to a growing demand from private zoos and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/05/what-drives-the-trafficking-of-gibbons-conservationists-shed-light-on-demand/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319964</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Malaysia, a bridge helps endangered langurs and humans coexist</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/05/in-malaysia-a-bridge-helps-endangered-langurs-and-humans-coexist/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/05/in-malaysia-a-bridge-helps-endangered-langurs-and-humans-coexist/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 May 2026 03:46:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Isabelle LeongPhilip Jacobson]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/19093450/A7KH3XT-langur-crosses-bridge-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=custom-story&#038;p=319692</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Cities, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Deforestation, Development, Endangered Species, Environment, Forestry, Forests, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Human-wildlife Conflict, Innovation, Mammals, Monkeys, Primates, Rainforests, Solutions, urban ecology, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In Malaysia’s Penang state, conservationists and residents are collaborating to reduce conflict between humans and endangered dusky langurs displaced by urban development and habitat loss. The Langur Project Penang built a canopy bridge to help langurs safely cross a busy road and access more habitat, reducing time spent in residential areas and lowering complaints from [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In Malaysia’s Penang state, conservationists and residents are collaborating to reduce conflict between humans and endangered dusky langurs displaced by urban development and habitat loss. The Langur Project Penang built a canopy bridge to help langurs safely cross a busy road and access more habitat, reducing time spent in residential areas and lowering complaints from residents. Malaysia’s wildlife agency receives thousands of wildlife complaints annually, and often responds with trapping, relocation or culling; but conservationists argue education and coexistence measures can be more sustainable responses to increasing human-wildlife encounters. The project’s success has depended heavily on local support and citizen scientists, with some residents gradually shifting from frustration toward compassion and acceptance of living alongside wildlife. TANJUNG BUNGAH, Malaysia — The 50-year-old mango tree growing through Tan Soo Siah’s second-story terrace is a favorite stopping place for the family of endangered monkeys that has taken up residence in a small park near his home in Malaysia’s Penang state. “Since everybody chases them away, I try to let them have a rest here,” says Tan, 64, who likes to watch the dusky langurs (Trachypithecus obscurus) from his bedroom window, peeking up at them playing in the foliage. Not everyone in Taman Concord, a residential community home mostly to retirees like Tan, is as taken with the langurs&nbsp;as he is. Around three years ago, the monkeys were inciting complaints from seniors who were fed up with langurs leaping across their houses, damaging their rooftops and denuding their gardens. Tan Soo Siah, a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/05/in-malaysia-a-bridge-helps-endangered-langurs-and-humans-coexist/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319692</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Borneo&#8217;s GIGANTIC bat caves</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/borneos-gigantic-bat-caves/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/borneos-gigantic-bat-caves/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Apr 2026 08:23:13 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Izzy Sasada]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sam Lee]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/30082208/Entrance_to_Deer_Cave-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=318465</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, and Malaysia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Bats, Caves, Exploration, Indigenous Peoples, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Borneo is home to some of the largest cave systems in the world… and they’re filled with bats. But HOW did these caves get so massive? They were first mapped by Western scientists in the 1970s, during a Royal Geographical Society and Sarawak Forestry Mulu Expedition. But they’ve long been known about by local Indigenous [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Borneo is home to some of the largest cave systems in the world… and they’re filled with bats. But HOW did these caves get so massive? They were first mapped by Western scientists in the 1970s, during a Royal Geographical Society and Sarawak Forestry Mulu Expedition. But they’ve long been known about by local Indigenous communities, as hunting took place in the cave entrances. Join Conservation Entangled host, Izzy Sasada, on her trip to Sarawak, where she explores  these caves and learns about their role in the history of conservation science.This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/borneos-gigantic-bat-caves/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/borneos-gigantic-bat-caves/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-318465</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>On World Tapir Day, data gaps cloud future of Malaysia’s tapirs</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/on-world-tapir-day-data-gaps-cloud-future-of-malaysias-tapirs/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/on-world-tapir-day-data-gaps-cloud-future-of-malaysias-tapirs/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Apr 2026 05:48:09 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Naina Rao]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/28054350/f.-%C2%A9Shariff-Mohamad-Malayan-tapir-Tapirus-indicus-DSC_0022-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=318247</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Camera Trapping, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Forests, Green, Hunting, Mammals, Protected Areas, Research, Snares, Tapirs, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Asia’s only tapir species still remains understudied in Malaysia, researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society say. Recent findings from Thailand suggest that some forest complexes there may hold more Malay, or Asian tapirs (Tapirus indicus) than previously estimated. However, across the border in Malaysia, experts warn that the endangered species faces an uncertain future, complicated [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Asia’s only tapir species still remains understudied in Malaysia, researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society say. Recent findings from Thailand suggest that some forest complexes there may hold more Malay, or Asian tapirs (Tapirus indicus) than previously estimated. However, across the border in Malaysia, experts warn that the endangered species faces an uncertain future, complicated by a lack of robust national population data and a persistent snaring crisis. On World Tapir Day, April 27, Mongabay asked WCS Malaysia researchers why this is the case. There have been very few reliable estimates of tapir numbers in Malaysia; one was published in 2012 and another in 2024. “It is always challenging to provide meaningful and realistic national figures for a large mammal species that is difficult to count, and the tapir is one that fits the bill,” Mark Darmaraj, WCS Malaysia country director, told Mongabay by email. Tapirs are notoriously difficult to count because, unlike a tiger with its distinct stripes, these black-and-white animals lack unique natural markings. Previously, researchers were able to use “bycatch” data from camera traps — images of tapirs captured on cameras originally set up for another species. They’ve identified unique individuals through a combination of scars, neck wrinkles and ear damage, said Shariff Mohamad, science and strategic communications manager for WCS Malaysia. Mohamad told Mongabay that while statistical models today are capable of estimating the population density of species without any distinguishing markings, these are difficult to implement because they require resource-intensive survey designs. Consequently, Malaysia still&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/on-world-tapir-day-data-gaps-cloud-future-of-malaysias-tapirs/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-318247</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Elephants adjust what they eat in altered habitats, signaling growing pressure</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/elephants-adjust-what-they-eat-in-altered-habitats-signaling-growing-pressure/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/elephants-adjust-what-they-eat-in-altered-habitats-signaling-growing-pressure/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Apr 2026 04:20:45 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Brown]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/22104443/219824726_edc94cf45a_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=317932</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environment, Forests, Green, Logging, Mammals, Palm Oil, and Research]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Asian elephants are adapting to rapidly changing landscapes by diversifying their diets — a sign of resilience, but also a warning about the pressures reshaping their habitats, according to a recent study from Malaysia. Researchers collected feces from wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) across two distinct landscapes in Peninsular Malaysia: one with primary and secondary [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Asian elephants are adapting to rapidly changing landscapes by diversifying their diets — a sign of resilience, but also a warning about the pressures reshaping their habitats, according to a recent study from Malaysia. Researchers collected feces from wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) across two distinct landscapes in Peninsular Malaysia: one with primary and secondary forests fragmented by recent large-scale logging and a hydropower dam development, and a second landscape transformed into oil palm plantations between the 1980s and 2000s, with a narrow remaining strip of forest. Elephant dung contains remnants of the plants the animals have consumed, so the researchers used DNA sequencing to reconstruct the elephants’ diets in the two landscapes. The analysis revealed that elephants in the logging-dominated landscape eat a wide variety of available plant resources across diverse habitats like grasslands, secondary forests and regenerating vegetation. According to the researchers, the findings suggest that when disturbances in forests reduce the availability of their preferred plants, elephants could be meeting their nutritional requirements by expanding their diets to include a broader selection of plants available across diverse habitats beyond formal reserve boundaries.   By contrast, elephants in the oil palm-dominated landscape ate a much more predictable, narrower range of plant groups, dominated by the cultivated oil palm crops. The researchers say it’s likely that elephants in palm oil habitats have adapted to the predictable availability of crops like African oil palm (Elaeis guineensis). This might expose them to conflict with people. “Our findings highlight that elephants are&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/04/elephants-adjust-what-they-eat-in-altered-habitats-signaling-growing-pressure/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-317932</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>To tackle trafficking in gibbons, experts probe what drives demand</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/to-tackle-trafficking-in-gibbons-experts-probe-what-drives-demand/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/to-tackle-trafficking-in-gibbons-experts-probe-what-drives-demand/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Apr 2026 18:37:43 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ana Norman Bermúdez]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/17085412/gibbon-in-a-cage-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=317705</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Apes, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Gibbons, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Tropical Forests, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[“When we first got Joy, we thought she was a monkey,” says Esther. A hunter had come to her village in the Malaysian state of Sabah, on the island of Borneo, to sell wild meat. He showed Esther (not her real name) and her husband a weeks-old primate with long arms, dark skin and large, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[“When we first got Joy, we thought she was a monkey,” says Esther. A hunter had come to her village in the Malaysian state of Sabah, on the island of Borneo, to sell wild meat. He showed Esther (not her real name) and her husband a weeks-old primate with long arms, dark skin and large, round eyes. Worried the animal might otherwise be killed for food, she decided to take her home. It was only later that she realized Joy was not a monkey, but a gibbon. Gibbons are small apes, more closely related to chimpanzees and humans than to monkeys. Across their range in South and Southeast Asia, they are increasingly threatened by the exotic pet trade. Despite laws that prohibit their capture, sale and ownership, demand for pet gibbons continues to drive illegal trade in wild-caught animals, much of which now plays out online. In 2025, gibbon trafficking seizures reached an all-time high, with confiscations of 336 individual gibbons recorded between January and August alone, accounting for around 20% of all records since 2016, according to an analysis by wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC. Because gibbons are highly social animals and will defend their young to the death, the capture of an infant gibbon often represents the annihilation of an entire family group. Between 2016 and August 2025, more than 200 seizures were recorded, but “in reality, the trade is likely much bigger,” says Elizabeth John of TRAFFIC. While Indonesia and Vietnam have historically dominated the trade, India&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/to-tackle-trafficking-in-gibbons-experts-probe-what-drives-demand/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-317705</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Forest advocates accuse EU energy firm of Dutch biomass certification fraud</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Mar 2026 16:21:42 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Justin Catanoso]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/05/25141443/wood-pellets-burning-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315699</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, European Union, Global, Malaysia, and Netherlands]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Bioenergy, carbon, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change, Controversial, Deforestation, Energy, Environment, Environmental Law, Forests, Governance, Industry, Politics, Renewable Energy, Sustainability, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For years, a battle has raged between EU nations that claim their forest biomass certification policies safeguard against deforestation, promote sustainability and enable carbon-emissions reductions, even as forest advocates have argued that those policies fail to combat climate change, are badly flawed or outright fraudulent. EU policymakers remain entrenched today, defending their certification schemes as [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For years, a battle has raged between EU nations that claim their forest biomass certification policies safeguard against deforestation, promote sustainability and enable carbon-emissions reductions, even as forest advocates have argued that those policies fail to combat climate change, are badly flawed or outright fraudulent. EU policymakers remain entrenched today, defending their certification schemes as a means of complying with laws to stop burning coal and for achieving national net-zero goals, despite evidence that burning wood pellets to make energy is dirtier than coal. But now forest advocates are turning up the pressure in the Netherlands in an unprecedented way. In a possible first-of-its-kind action, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service is considering a criminal investigation against RWE, one of the Netherlands’ largest energy providers. RWE faces allegations made by two forest advocacy groups that the company, which has collected billions of euros in Dutch biomass subsidies, misrepresented itself by claiming that hundreds of thousands of tons of wood pellets imported from Malaysia came entirely from sawmill waste. The two advocacy groups, Comite Schone Lucht and Biofuelwatch, say their research establishes that those pellets come mostly from whole trees, contributing to Malaysian deforestation. The Public Prosecution Service, the sole authority responsible for investigating and prosecuting Dutch criminal offenses, is expected to decide how to proceed by the end of March. Research shows that “biomass burning power plants emit 150% the CO2 of coal, and 300-400% the CO2 of natural gas, per unit energy produced.” Image by GIZ Bush Control and Biomass&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/forest-advocates-accuse-eu-energy-firm-of-dutch-biomass-certification-fraud/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-315699</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>David Chivers, student of the singing apes</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/david-chivers-student-of-the-singing-apes/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/david-chivers-student-of-the-singing-apes/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Mar 2026 14:26:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/08163951/David-Chivers-Selwyn-College-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315401</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Indonesia, Kalimantan, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, Sumatra, and Thailand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Apes, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Mammals, Obituary, Primates, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[&#160; Field primatology expanded rapidly in the late 20th century as biologists began to study apes and monkeys where they lived rather than only in museums or laboratories. Southeast Asia’s rainforests became an important setting for that shift. Among the researchers who helped shape the discipline there was David Chivers, a British primatologist whose work [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[&nbsp; Field primatology expanded rapidly in the late 20th century as biologists began to study apes and monkeys where they lived rather than only in museums or laboratories. Southeast Asia’s rainforests became an important setting for that shift. Among the researchers who helped shape the discipline there was David Chivers, a British primatologist whose work on gibbons and other forest apes combined long stretches of field observation with a commitment to conservation. He died on March 5th, aged 81. Chivers arrived at the University of Cambridge in 1963 and, in practice, remained there for the rest of his career. After studying medical sciences and physical anthropology, he turned away from clinical veterinary training to pursue research on primates. His doctoral work, completed in 1972, was based on field studies of siamangs in Peninsular Malaysia. At the time such projects demanded patience: weeks spent tracking animals through dense forest and learning their habits by steady observation. That work produced The Siamang in Malaya, a monograph published in 1974 that became a reference point for later studies of primate ecology. Chivers was interested both in behavior and in how primates fit into forest systems. Feeding patterns, fruit availability, and the role of animals in dispersing seeds all became part of the picture. David Chivers in 1970. His later research extended across Southeast Asia and beyond. In the mid-1980s he helped establish Project Barito Ulu in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, examining how fruit-eating wildlife contributed to forest regeneration. The project brought together international researchers&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/david-chivers-student-of-the-singing-apes/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-315401</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malaysia renews Lynas Rare Earths&#8217; license for 10 years, orders end to radioactive waste by 2031</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/malaysia-renews-lynas-rare-earths-license-for-10-years-orders-end-to-radioactive-waste-by-2031/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/malaysia-renews-lynas-rare-earths-license-for-10-years-orders-end-to-radioactive-waste-by-2031/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Mar 2026 19:52:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/03195059/AP26061383737428-scaled-e1772567546796-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=315153</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Chemicals, Critical Minerals, Mining, Pollution, and Waste]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia’s government renewed Australian miner Lynas Rare Earths&#8217; operating license for 10 years but will require it to stop producing radioactive waste by 2031. The Lynas refinery in Malaysia, its first outside China producing minerals that are crucial for high-tech manufacturing, has been operating in central Pahang state since 2012. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia’s government renewed Australian miner Lynas Rare Earths&#8217; operating license for 10 years but will require it to stop producing radioactive waste by 2031. The Lynas refinery in Malaysia, its first outside China producing minerals that are crucial for high-tech manufacturing, has been operating in central Pahang state since 2012. The company has been e mbroiled in a dispute over radiation from waste that has accumulated at the plant. Science Minister Chang Lih Kang said Monday that any radioactive waste generated within the next five years must be treated and neutralized by extracting thorium or other methods. No new permanent disposal facility will be allowed, he said. The license runs until March 3, 2036, and will be reviewed after five years. It can be revoked if Lynas violates its conditions, Chang said. Environmental groups have long campaigned against the Lynas refinery, demanding that the company export its radioactive waste. They contend that the radioactive elements, which include thorium and uranium among others, were more hazardous after going through mechanical and chemical processes. Lynas was allowed five years to retrofit its facilities and ramp up operations under Chang described as a firm but accelerated timeline. He said lab tests have shown promising results in neutralizing radiation in waste through thorium extraction but scaling the technology to industrial levels typically takes seven to 10 years. “We have not gone against our promise to prevent the accumulation of radioactive waste in Malaysia. We remain committed to that position, and through&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/03/malaysia-renews-lynas-rare-earths-license-for-10-years-orders-end-to-radioactive-waste-by-2031/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-315153</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malaysia bans e-waste imports, vows to end illegal dumping</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-bans-e-waste-imports-vows-to-end-illegal-dumping/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-bans-e-waste-imports-vows-to-end-illegal-dumping/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Feb 2026 15:48:29 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/02/05154642/AP24123771797512-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=313788</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[E-waste, Plastic, Pollution, and Waste]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia has announced an immediate and full ban on the importation of electronic waste, as the government vowed the country would not be a “dumping ground” for the world&#8217;s waste. The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said in a statement late Wednesday that all electronic waste, commonly known as e-waste, would be reclassified under the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia has announced an immediate and full ban on the importation of electronic waste, as the government vowed the country would not be a “dumping ground” for the world&#8217;s waste. The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said in a statement late Wednesday that all electronic waste, commonly known as e-waste, would be reclassified under the “absolute prohibition” category effective immediately. This removes the discretionary power previously given to the Department of Environment to grant exemptions for importation of certain e-waste. Environmental advocates have long urged stronger action. E-waste — discarded electronic products such as computers, phones and appliances — can contain toxic substances and heavy metals including lead, mercury and cadmium that pollute soil and water resources if improperly processed or dumped. “E-waste is no longer permitted,” MACC chief Azam Baki said in the statement, vowing “firm and integrated enforcement action” to prevent illegal imports. Malaysia has previously grappled with large volumes of imported e-waste, much of it suspected to be illegal and hazardous to human health and the environment. Authorities have seized hundreds of containers of suspected e-waste at ports in recent years and issued notices for return to exporters. The ban comes as authorities widen a corruption inquiry tied to e-waste management. Last week, the MACC detained and remanded the director-general of the environment department and his deputy over alleged abuse of power and corruption involving e-waste oversight. The probe has also seen authorities freeze bank accounts and seize cash linked to the case. The Home Ministry in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-bans-e-waste-imports-vows-to-end-illegal-dumping/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-bans-e-waste-imports-vows-to-end-illegal-dumping/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-313788</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malaysia lost 20% of its coral reefs in three years</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-lost-20-of-its-coral-reefs-in-three-years/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-lost-20-of-its-coral-reefs-in-three-years/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Feb 2026 13:51:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/07/21013322/healthy-reef_Tioman_RCM-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=313752</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Coral Triangle, Malaysia, Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Conservation, Coral Bleaching, Coral Reefs, Environment, Fish, Green, Oceans, Pollution, Tourism, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia’s coral reefs are shrinking at a pace that is hard to ignore. According to the latest national survey by Reef Check Malaysia, about one-fifth of the country’s coral cover has been lost since 2022, a decline compressed into just three years. What had been gradual erosion now looks more like a slide. The 2025 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia’s coral reefs are shrinking at a pace that is hard to ignore. According to the latest national survey by Reef Check Malaysia, about one-fifth of the country’s coral cover has been lost since 2022, a decline compressed into just three years. What had been gradual erosion now looks more like a slide. The 2025 survey assessed 297 reef sites across Malaysia, from the tourist-heavy islands off the peninsula to the more remote waters of Sabah. Average live coral cover fell to just under 40%, down from nearly 45% a year earlier. In 2022, it stood close to 50%. Put another way, the loss since 2022 would be equivalent, on a percentage basis, to Malaysia losing around 4 million hectares of forest over the same period. The causes are familiar, but their overlap is proving especially damaging. The global coral bleaching event of 2024 exposed reefs already weakened by pollution, coastal development, and heavy tourism. Physical damage is widespread. More than four-fifths of surveyed sites showed signs of trash or abandoned fishing gear, while over half had been scarred by anchors. Bleaching was recorded at two-thirds of locations. In parts of Sabah, damage linked to dynamite fishing, long outlawed, was recorded at a third of sites. Map showing the reef health composition of each survey location in Sabah based on Live Coral Cover. Graphic courtesy of Reef Check Malaysia Map showing the reef health composition of each survey location in Peninsular Malaysia based on LiveCoral Cover. Reef Health in Malaysia&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-lost-20-of-its-coral-reefs-in-three-years/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/02/malaysia-lost-20-of-its-coral-reefs-in-three-years/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-313752</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Seagrass restoration in Malaysia finds multi-species approach boosts recovery</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/seagrass-restoration-in-malaysia-finds-multi-species-approach-boosts-recovery/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/seagrass-restoration-in-malaysia-finds-multi-species-approach-boosts-recovery/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Feb 2026 11:43:11 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/02/04113337/1-Merambong-shoal_MHZakaria-scaled-e1770205099453-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=313704</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Development, Dredging, Ecosystems, Environment, Habitat Loss, Marine, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Research, Restoration, Seagrass, and Solutions]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In the shallow waters off Johor Bahru’s rapidly urbanizing shoreline in Peninsular Malaysia, a busy assemblage of crabs, marine worms and mollusks are a sign of recovery. Just over a decade ago, the wafting seagrass meadow they now inhabit had been laid waste by development. In 2014, dredgers working on a massive land reclamation project [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In the shallow waters off Johor Bahru’s rapidly urbanizing shoreline in Peninsular Malaysia, a busy assemblage of crabs, marine worms and mollusks are a sign of recovery. Just over a decade ago, the wafting seagrass meadow they now inhabit had been laid waste by development. In 2014, dredgers working on a massive land reclamation project to build a “Forest City” at the tip of the peninsula had dispersed plumes of sediment across the Merambong Shoal, one of Malaysia’s most extensive seagrass beds. Seagrasses, distinct from seaweeds, are flowering plants that form vibrant underwater meadows. Filtering pollutants, cycling nutrients, sequestering carbon and providing habitat for a rich diversity of marine life, they help maintain the health of coastal seas. While the Department of Environment recognized the harm and issued a stop-work order later that year, the damage was done: Roughly 10 hectares (25 acres) of seagrass meadow had been destroyed. To try to rectify the situation, the developer, Country Garden Pacificview Sdn. Bhd., ramped up mitigation measures and enlisted the help of marine scientists at the University of Putra Malaysia (UPM) to attempt recovering the seagrass. In a new study, the UPM researchers document the results of their decade-long (2015-25) seagrass restoration and monitoring program at the Merambong Shoal. Their approach, which focused on transplanting seedlings of a combination of fast-growing seagrass species, achieved relatively high survival rates — 66% in some recovery plots. What’s more, as the meadow stabilized, they recorded the natural return of many other types of seagrasses&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/seagrass-restoration-in-malaysia-finds-multi-species-approach-boosts-recovery/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/seagrass-restoration-in-malaysia-finds-multi-species-approach-boosts-recovery/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-313704</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>What the forest reveals from above</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/02/from-above-aerial-borneo/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/02/from-above-aerial-borneo/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Feb 2026 19:53:44 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Nandithachandraprakash]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/02/02182850/brunei_251115221947_0687z-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=custom-story&#038;p=313631</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Borneo, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Environment, Forests, Photos, Rainforests, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Aerial photography invites a level of uncertainty. The ground offers clues but rarely the full picture. Once the view lifts, certain patterns begin to register: peat-dark water cutting through forest, the abrupt change from canopy to cleared land, the geometry of river bends, or mountains rising in the distance. At times, the colors can be [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Aerial photography invites a level of uncertainty. The ground offers clues but rarely the full picture. Once the view lifts, certain patterns begin to register: peat-dark water cutting through forest, the abrupt change from canopy to cleared land, the geometry of river bends, or mountains rising in the distance. At times, the colors can be startling. On the ground, the air was thick and hot in the way the lowland tropics often are. The humidity meant I had to be careful with the gear, since lenses can fog quickly when moving from indoors to outdoors. Leaving the drone out, rather than tucked away in a bag, helps. Much of the process is waiting for light or finding the right angle. Clouds on the horizon can flatten everything, or they can break just enough. Weather in the distance may help a shot or force me to pack up early. I spend that time making adjustments, trying to catch a view I didn’t expect when I launched. I often encounter the most interesting views at dawn and dusk. There are boundaries too. Flying a drone does not grant permission to intrude. I keep clear of people, buildings, flight paths, and wildlife. The aim is straightforward: notice what’s there, and leave nothing changed. That approach shaped how I worked in Brunei last month, during a brief trip that allowed me a couple of days in the field. The images here were captured in the Temburong District, a quiet, forested corner of northern Borneo,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/02/from-above-aerial-borneo/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/custom-story/2026/02/from-above-aerial-borneo/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-313631</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Ditches on peatland oil palm plantations are an overlooked source of methane: Study</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/ditches-on-peatland-oil-palm-plantations-are-an-overlooked-source-of-methane-study/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/ditches-on-peatland-oil-palm-plantations-are-an-overlooked-source-of-methane-study/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Dec 2025 14:18:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[John Cannon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/12/30075343/Tropical-peatland-clearance-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=312273</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and Tropics]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, carbon, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Emissions, Climate Change, Conservation, Environment, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Methane, Peatlands, Politics, Research, Soil Carbon, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The water-filled ditches that laced through the oil palm plantation in Sarawak, a Malaysian state on the island of Borneo, nagged at Kuno Kasak when he saw them in 2022. He knew that these canals, used to draw water out of spongy peatlands to make them suitable for agriculture, had been shown to be sources [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The water-filled ditches that laced through the oil palm plantation in Sarawak, a Malaysian state on the island of Borneo, nagged at Kuno Kasak when he saw them in 2022. He knew that these canals, used to draw water out of spongy peatlands to make them suitable for agriculture, had been shown to be sources of methane. But just how much remains an open question, with too few data points to make estimates with certainty. Though methane dissipates more quickly in the atmosphere than CO2, it’s more than 20 times more effective at trapping heat. It’s also responsible for nearly a third of the global temperature rise since the industrial revolution, making accurate methane accounting imperative for addressing climate change. Kasak, a professor of environmental technology at Estonia’s University of Tartu, is the lead author of a recent study in which he and his colleagues report that methane from these drainage canals accounted for as much as 10% of the total greenhouse gases from a given hectare of the oil palm plantations they studied. At the same time, the ditches covered no more than 4% of the plantations’ total area. “This is significant because it means that previous estimates of emissions from drained peatlands likely underestimate the contribution from ditches, which are often ignored in global carbon accounting,” Kasak told Mongabay in an email. They also found that the ditches were sources of CO2. One of the oil palm plantations where Kasak and his colleagues sampled emissions from drainage ditches.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/ditches-on-peatland-oil-palm-plantations-are-an-overlooked-source-of-methane-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-312273</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>A new ‘fairy lantern’ species is found at a Malaysian picnic site</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/a-new-fairy-lantern-species-is-found-at-a-malaysian-picnic-site/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/a-new-fairy-lantern-species-is-found-at-a-malaysian-picnic-site/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Dec 2025 05:38:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Shreya Dasgupta]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/12/09053039/Untitled-3-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=310829</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Green, Plants, Species Discovery, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In November 2023, naturalist Gim Siew Tan chanced upon an unusual plant with whitish-peach flowers growing near the buttress of a tree at a popular picnic site in Hulu Langat Forest Reserve in Selangor, Malaysia. Researchers subsequently collected and analyzed specimens of the plant and found that it was a new-to-science species of “fairy lantern” [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In November 2023, naturalist Gim Siew Tan chanced upon an unusual plant with whitish-peach flowers growing near the buttress of a tree at a popular picnic site in Hulu Langat Forest Reserve in Selangor, Malaysia. Researchers subsequently collected and analyzed specimens of the plant and found that it was a new-to-science species of “fairy lantern” — a group of plants that lack chlorophyll and spend most of their lives underground, hidden from view. The research team, including Tan, have formally described the species in a recent study, naming it Thismia selangorensis. Its species name refers to Selangor, the state where it was found. “This discovery shows that significant scientific finds are not limited to remote jungles; they can also be made in ordinary environments where constant human activity leaves little room for expectation,” Siti-Munirah Mat Yunoh, study lead author from the Forest Research Institute Malaysia, said in a statement. The newly described Thismia selangorensis. Image courtesy of Gim Siew Tan. Fairy lanterns in the genus Thismia live a cryptic life: They’re mostly found underground in leaf-litter-rich forest soils, emerging above ground only to briefly flower. Their lack of chlorophyll means that Thismia plants can’t make their own food; instead, they’re mycoheterotrophic, that is, they parasitize fungi for their nutrient supply. The newly described Thismia selangorensis only blooms between October and February, the researchers note. “Its flowers are often small, inconspicuous, and hidden beneath leaf litter or root buttresses,” they add. T. selangorensis appears to be rare. Since it was first spotted&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/a-new-fairy-lantern-species-is-found-at-a-malaysian-picnic-site/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-310829</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Rescue teams racing after last week&#8217;s flooding in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/rescue-teams-racing-after-last-weeks-flooding-in-indonesia-sri-lanka-and-thailand/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/rescue-teams-racing-after-last-weeks-flooding-in-indonesia-sri-lanka-and-thailand/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Dec 2025 16:47:30 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/12/03164103/AP25336560226768-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=310545</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Indonesia, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Deforestation, Extreme Weather, and Flooding]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BATANG TORU, Indonesia (AP) — Rescue teams raced Wednesday to reach communities isolated by last week&#8217;s catastrophic floods and landslides in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand as over 800 people remained missing and economic damage became more clear. Over 1,400 were killed: at least 770 in Indonesia, 465 in Sri Lanka and 185 in Thailand, with three [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BATANG TORU, Indonesia (AP) — Rescue teams raced Wednesday to reach communities isolated by last week&#8217;s catastrophic floods and landslides in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand as over 800 people remained missing and economic damage became more clear. Over 1,400 were killed: at least 770 in Indonesia, 465 in Sri Lanka and 185 in Thailand, with three in Malaysia. Many villages remained buried under mud and debris, with power and telecommunications out. Indonesia and Thailand, both middle-income economies, have been able to mobilize extensive rescue operations, deploy military assets and channel emergency funds. Sri Lanka is responding under far more strained conditions. Still recovering from a severe economic crisis, it faces limited resources, foreign exchange shortages and weakened public services. Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya met with diplomats last week to urge them to support the government’s relief and reconstruction efforts. Countries such as India, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates have already launched relief efforts. Illegal logging in Indonesia may have worsened the disaster In Indonesia, the worst-hit country, washed-out roads and collapsed bridges have left rescuers struggling to reach some of the hardest-hit areas in North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Aceh provinces, said the National Disaster Management Agency. There was concern that deforestation may have contributed to the disaster. Residents and emergency workers in Padang, the capital of West Sumatra, said large piles of neatly cut timber were found among the debris. “From their shape, it was clear these were not just trees torn out naturally by the flood, but timber that&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/rescue-teams-racing-after-last-weeks-flooding-in-indonesia-sri-lanka-and-thailand/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/12/rescue-teams-racing-after-last-weeks-flooding-in-indonesia-sri-lanka-and-thailand/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-310545</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Endangered knowledge and endangered plants: Threats to Indigenous medicinal traditions in Borneo</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/endangered-knowledge-and-endangered-plants-threats-to-indigenous-medicinal-traditions-in-borneo/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/endangered-knowledge-and-endangered-plants-threats-to-indigenous-medicinal-traditions-in-borneo/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Dec 2025 00:42:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Cassidy Beach]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/29162522/beach_indigenous_medicine_1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=310375</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Malaysia, Sarawak, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Botany, Environment, Indigenous Peoples, Medicinal Plants, Medicine, Plants, and Traditional Knowledge]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In Borneo’s dense rainforest, some communities of Punan people still find their medicine among the trees. For generations the forest has been their living pharmacy, with each medicinal plant tied to tradition. But as modern pressures grow, both the forest and the knowledge it shelters are slipping away. To understand what’s at stake, researchers from [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In Borneo’s dense rainforest, some communities of Punan people still find their medicine among the trees. For generations the forest has been their living pharmacy, with each medicinal plant tied to tradition. But as modern pressures grow, both the forest and the knowledge it shelters are slipping away. To understand what’s at stake, researchers from Universiti Putra Malaysia traveled to Punan communities in the Malaysian state of Sarawak to document traditional medicinal practices and identify the plants behind them. The results were recently published in the journal Tropical Conservation Science. Tribes in Sarawak, Borneo live in stilted longhouses often along rivers. Historically housing one kin group, today a longhouse is typically home to multiple extended families of mixed heritage. Photo by Beatrice Anak Kayok Thirteen Indigenous Punan people guided ecologist Keeren Sundara Rajoo and his colleagues through the forest, locating plants and sharing a “spider web” of stories and knowledge. “When a plant species disappears, it’s not only a biological loss,” Sundara Rajoo said. “It also erases part of a community’s heritage and traditional knowledge system.” Indigenous communities in Sarawak live in stilted longhouses, home to multiple families in private bilik rooms that open onto a shared ruai, the center of communal life. Another tribe’s longhouse may stand only 40 kilometers (25 miles) away, Sundara Rajoo said, yet each group preserves its own system of beliefs, unique language, and festivals. Among these communities, the Punan are struggling to hold onto some of these cultural traditions. They believe their medicine draws&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/endangered-knowledge-and-endangered-plants-threats-to-indigenous-medicinal-traditions-in-borneo/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-310375</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Global tiger trafficking crisis worsens with nine big cats seized monthly</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/global-tiger-trafficking-crisis-worsens-with-nine-big-cats-seized-monthly/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/global-tiger-trafficking-crisis-worsens-with-nine-big-cats-seized-monthly/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Nov 2025 17:20:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Associated Press]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/08/15082624/india_165187-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=310152</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Trade, Poaching, Tigers, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysa (AP) — Authorities have seized an average of nine tigers each month over the past five years, highlighting a worsening trafficking crisis. A report by TRAFFIC warns that criminal networks are evolving faster than conservation efforts can respond. The global wild tiger population has plummeted to an estimated 3,700-5,500. Despite international protection, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysa (AP) — Authorities have seized an average of nine tigers each month over the past five years, highlighting a worsening trafficking crisis. A report by TRAFFIC warns that criminal networks are evolving faster than conservation efforts can respond. The global wild tiger population has plummeted to an estimated 3,700-5,500. Despite international protection, tiger trafficking is accelerating and increasingly targeting whole animals. Experts link this to captive-breeding operations and rising demand for exotic pets and taxidermy. Most seizures occur in countries with wild tiger populations, but incidents are also reported in places like Mexico and the U.S. The report emphasizes the need for strong international cooperation to combat this crisis. By Eileen Ng, Associated Press Banner image: of a tiger in India. Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay. &nbsp;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/global-tiger-trafficking-crisis-worsens-with-nine-big-cats-seized-monthly/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/11/global-tiger-trafficking-crisis-worsens-with-nine-big-cats-seized-monthly/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-310152</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Gibbon trafficking pushes rehabilitation centers to the max in North Sumatra</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/gibbon-trafficking-pushes-rehabilitation-centers-to-the-max-in-north-sumatra/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/gibbon-trafficking-pushes-rehabilitation-centers-to-the-max-in-north-sumatra/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Nov 2025 00:30:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/11190508/Trafficked-infant-gibbons-confiscated-in-North-Sumatra-in-March-2025.-Image-courtesy-of-Jason-Savage-Photography-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=309282</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and Thailand]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Apes, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Forests, Gibbons, Illegal Trade, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Pet Trade, Poaching, Primates, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[MEDAN, Indonesia — Two infant siamang gibbons cling to each other. Barely 6 months old, their lanky limbs entwine their tiny bodies as they stare out of the triage cage, their wide eyes shining. Each is an orphaned victim of the illegal pet trade. Like most trafficked gibbons, their mothers were likely shot and killed [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[MEDAN, Indonesia — Two infant siamang gibbons cling to each other. Barely 6 months old, their lanky limbs entwine their tiny bodies as they stare out of the triage cage, their wide eyes shining. Each is an orphaned victim of the illegal pet trade. Like most trafficked gibbons, their mothers were likely shot and killed by poachers before they were wrested from her body and shipped into the trade. Deprived of maternal body heat and milk, the youngsters now instinctively grip each other as if for comfort. At the back of the rescue enclosure, a smaller body hunkers in a corner, shrouded in solitude and silence. A tiny Javan gibbon, it glances up from time to time, but is wary. “The Javan gibbon is still shy,” says Sinan Serhadli, support officer at the gibbon rehabilitation and release program run by the Orangutan Information Centre (OIC) as part of the Sumatran Rescue Alliance (SRA) in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province. “He will eat, but he doesn’t want any contact with humans.” Sinan Serhadli inspects the health of two siamang gibbons that were confiscated from traffickers in March 2025. Image by Carolyn Cowan / Mongabay. The infant siamangs (Symphalangus syndactylus) and Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch) were brought to the SRA rehabilitation center on the outskirts of Gunung Leuser National Park in March 2025 after an Indonesian naval patrol confiscated them from a boat intercepted in the Strait of Malacca. The vessel, believed to be destined for Peninsular Malaysia or southern Thailand, was smuggling&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/gibbon-trafficking-pushes-rehabilitation-centers-to-the-max-in-north-sumatra/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-309282</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Cautious win for Indigenous groups in Malaysia as palm oil firm pauses forest clearing</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/cautious-win-for-indigenous-groups-in-malaysia-as-palm-oil-firm-pauses-forest-clearing/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/cautious-win-for-indigenous-groups-in-malaysia-as-palm-oil-firm-pauses-forest-clearing/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Nov 2025 22:48:58 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Danielle Keeton-Olsen]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/11175004/Community-Blockade_borneoproject-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=309126</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Malaysia, Sarawak, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Land Rights, Palm Oil, Plantations, Rainforests, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Indigenous activists in central Sarawak state in Malaysian Borneo have declared victory, at least temporarily, after palm oil firm Urun Plantations agreed to a moratorium on clearing land in a disputed area. Penan and Kenyah residents of the Long Urun region alleged that the plantation, which is certified as sustainable, was clearing natural forest that [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Indigenous activists in central Sarawak state in Malaysian Borneo have declared victory, at least temporarily, after palm oil firm Urun Plantations agreed to a moratorium on clearing land in a disputed area. Penan and Kenyah residents of the Long Urun region alleged that the plantation, which is certified as sustainable, was clearing natural forest that should remain standing — even as the plantation company maintains any land clearing was within legal guidelines. This Sept. 24, 2025 image shows land clearing in the Long Urun area. Image courtesy of The Borneo Project. According to a press release from Indigenous rights and environmental protection NGO SAVE Rivers, community leaders reported that the Glenealy/Samling Belaga Mill, the last remaining mill within 50 kilometers (30 miles) still buying palm fruit from Urun Plantations, has suspended sourcing from the plantation. The moratorium agreement also follows a recent media campaign by SAVE Rivers and environmental advocacy group The Borneo Project, which called on international palm oil producer SD Guthrie (formerly known as Sime Darby Plantation and one of the world’s largest producers of certified sustainable palm oil), to suspend purchases from the Glenealy/Samling Belaga Mill. Satellite imagery shows deforestation within Urun Plantations’ concession. Image by Emilie Languedoc / Mongabay. Eileen Clare Ipa, a resident of Long Urun’s Uma Pawa village, told Mongabay she was glad the company had stopped cutting trees, but she saw them still planting oil palm and doing maintenance on the cleared area. Ipa said she wants the company to leave that area&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/cautious-win-for-indigenous-groups-in-malaysia-as-palm-oil-firm-pauses-forest-clearing/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-309126</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Asian golden cat range expands, but declines continue amid rising threats</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/asian-golden-cat-range-expands-but-declines-continue-amid-rising-threats/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/asian-golden-cat-range-expands-but-declines-continue-amid-rising-threats/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Nov 2025 15:45:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sean Mowbray]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/07124346/Image_2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=309032</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Animals]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animals, Camera Trapping, Cats, Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Forest Fragmentation, Habitat Loss, Human-wildlife Conflict, Mammals, Predators, Research, Small Cats, Snares, Species, Tropical Deforestation, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A single camera trap image of an Asian golden cat, photographed in Nepal&#8217;s Jajarkot district, has expanded this felid species’ range westward by nearly 400 kilometers (248 miles). Out of nearly 60,000 camera trap images snapped in 2024 in the district, this elusive cat showed itself just once. It’s likely, says Badri Baral, program coordinator [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A single camera trap image of an Asian golden cat, photographed in Nepal&#8217;s Jajarkot district, has expanded this felid species’ range westward by nearly 400 kilometers (248 miles). Out of nearly 60,000 camera trap images snapped in 2024 in the district, this elusive cat showed itself just once. It’s likely, says Badri Baral, program coordinator with Nature Conservation Initiative Nepal, that more Asian golden cats could be found between Jajarkot and the Gaurishankar Conservation Area, an area until recently believed to mark the felid’s farthest westward distribution. This positive news about the elusive wildcat, which dwells in forests across South and Southeast Asia, comes at nearly the same time as bad news, as its IUCN status went from near threatened to vulnerable. A single camera trap image of an Asian golden cat from Jajarkot, has extended its range by nearly 400 kilometers westward in Nepal. Image courtesy of Badri Baral/NCI-Nepal. Researchers say the Asian golden cat (Catopuma temminckii) was likely once abundant across its range. That’s not the case today, with numbers thinned and populations lost due to an excess of threats including deforestation, snaring, and retaliatory killings. Those risks, along with more accurate occurrence and population data featured in IUCN’s 2023 species assessment, are behind the revised threat status. The shift to vulnerable “represents a genuine concern,” says Thomas Gray, Tiger Landscape and Recovery Lead with the WWF Tigers Alive Initiative, who was part of the assessment team. The new IUCN listing also highlights the challenges of assigning a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/asian-golden-cat-range-expands-but-declines-continue-amid-rising-threats/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-309032</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Strong ethics set journalists apart in a changing information landscape (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/ethics-are-what-set-journalists-apart-in-a-changing-information-landscape-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/ethics-are-what-set-journalists-apart-in-a-changing-information-landscape-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Nov 2025 14:18:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Lee Kwai Han]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/07140208/Adobe-Express-file-28-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=309065</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Letters to the Future]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia and Malaysia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, Journalism, and Media]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[&#160; “What‘s wrong with the media?” I texted a friend on WhatsApp in July 2021. That was during the COVID-19 pandemic, when we were constantly flooded with information about infection cases around us, changes in movement restriction rules and vaccination plans. However, we were both getting frustrated with the false information and sensational headlines that [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In this series, Our Letters to the Future, the sixth cohort of Mongabay’s Y. Eva Tan Conservation Reporting Fellows share their views on environmental journalism, conservation and the future for their generation, amid multiple planetary crises. Each commentary is a personal reflection, based on individual fellows’ experiences in their home communities and the insights gained through the past six months of the fellowship. The series spans the Global South — Malaysia, India, Colombia, Brazil, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo — showcasing a broad diversity of ideas and the common ground these young environmental journalists share as they embark on their careers. &nbsp; “What‘s wrong with the media?” I texted a friend on WhatsApp in July 2021. That was during the COVID-19 pandemic, when we were constantly flooded with information about infection cases around us, changes in movement restriction rules and vaccination plans. However, we were both getting frustrated with the false information and sensational headlines that we encountered frequently. At that time, I was not a journalist and never had I thought of becoming one. But now, I strive to be the journalist that I once longed for to help me make sense of the confusing world. Yet, who are journalists? The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a journalist as “a person employed by a newspaper, magazine, or radio or television station to gather, write, or report news.” Searching on other online dictionaries yields similar results. But in the digital age, anyone can gather and publish information online, in text,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/ethics-are-what-set-journalists-apart-in-a-changing-information-landscape-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-309065</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>UNESCO biosphere listing raises hope, questions for Malaysia’s Kinabatangan floodplain</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/unesco-biosphere-listing-raises-hope-questions-for-malaysias-kinabatangan-floodplain/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/unesco-biosphere-listing-raises-hope-questions-for-malaysias-kinabatangan-floodplain/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Nov 2025 21:57:32 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/03105023/20170410-132702-1-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=308711</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia and Malaysia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Environment, Palm Oil, Protected Areas, Rainforests, Threats To Rainforests, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia’s Kinabatangan floodplain, home to orangutans, pygmy elephants and proboscis monkeys, has officially joined UNESCO’s global network of biosphere reserves, protected areas of high biological and cultural diversity. Covering 413,866 hectares (1.02 million acres) of forests, wetlands, and villages in eastern Sabah, the newly declared Kinabatangan Biosphere Reserve (KBR) connects the Heart of Borneo, a [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Malaysia’s Kinabatangan floodplain, home to orangutans, pygmy elephants and proboscis monkeys, has officially joined UNESCO’s global network of biosphere reserves, protected areas of high biological and cultural diversity. Covering 413,866 hectares (1.02 million acres) of forests, wetlands, and villages in eastern Sabah, the newly declared Kinabatangan Biosphere Reserve (KBR) connects the Heart of Borneo, a transboundary rainforest conservation area, with the Lower Kinabatangan–Segama Wetlands. The latter is itself a Ramsar site, or a wetland of global importance, and connects to the new reserve’s diverse wetland ecosystem, together forming one of Southeast Asia’s last remaining lowland forest corridors that ensures ecological connectivity between inland forests and the coast. UNESCO made the announcement on Sept. 27, following the 5th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves in China.Under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme, the site joins more than 700 biosphere reserves worldwide intended as “living laboratories” where biodiversity protection coexists with sustainable livelihoods. The designation followed years of consultation among government agencies, researchers and local communities, led by the Sabah Biodiversity Centre (SaBC) and endorsed by the Malaysian National Commission for UNESCO (MNCU). Officials say they hope it will strengthen coordination between conservation, agriculture and tourism actors in one of Malaysia’s most intensively used landscapes. But while the UNESCO listing brings international prestige, Kinabatangan’s past and present reveal a landscape heavily fragmented by plantations and uneven land governance. Conservationists warn that unless long-standing structural issues are addressed, the new status may fall short of its promise. An isolated fragment of forest sites&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/unesco-biosphere-listing-raises-hope-questions-for-malaysias-kinabatangan-floodplain/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-308711</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malaysian farmers demand transparency over proposed seed quality bill</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/malaysian-farmers-demand-transparency-over-proposed-seed-quality-bill/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/malaysian-farmers-demand-transparency-over-proposed-seed-quality-bill/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Oct 2025 15:28:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Lee Kwai Han]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/10/10061025/imgonline-com-ua-FrameBlurred-gIlUnSoAPiJT-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=307342</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroecology, Conflict, Conservation, Environment, Environmental Law, Farming, Food, Food Industry, Food Prices, food security, Industrial Agriculture, Resource Conflict, and Social Justice]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 2 of a two-part series on proposed changes to Malaysia’s seed laws. Part 1 published Sept. 29 here. In a farmland surrounded by oil palm and rubber plantations in Perak, in northwestern Malaysia, a coconut sapling lies on the ground. Its young leaves stand upright and are still fused. Farmer Mohd Naim [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[This is Part 2 of a two-part series on proposed changes to Malaysia’s seed laws. Part 1 published Sept. 29 here. In a farmland surrounded by oil palm and rubber plantations in Perak, in northwestern Malaysia, a coconut sapling lies on the ground. Its young leaves stand upright and are still fused. Farmer Mohd Naim Razak kneels beside it and checks the leaves. “It’s not stable yet,” he says. A healthy sapling should be spreading its fronds, like the others in his farm. It is a pandan coconut sapling. If it adapts well to his farm, it will start bearing fruit in three years. The juice from a pandan coconut (Cocos nucifera) is known for its sweet fragrance, resembling that of pandan, a fragrant plant commonly used in Southeast Asian cuisine. Mohd Naim also plans to sell coconut seeds in the future. He says farmers can’t work without seeds. “Seeds are farmers’ important assets.” So, for him, farmers have to appreciate, conserve, save and take care of seeds. “We must also know that we have to control [seeds] ourselves,” he says. But while Mohd Naim works on his farm, a new challenge looms: Malaysia is set to propose a new law that could contradict his belief in farmers’ responsibility and rights over seeds. This is one of two proposed changes to Malaysian seed laws that have small-scale farmers concerned about their rights. In 2026, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security is expected to propose a crop seed quality bill&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/malaysian-farmers-demand-transparency-over-proposed-seed-quality-bill/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-307342</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Malaysian small-scale farmers worry about rights under proposed seed law changes</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/malaysian-small-scale-farmers-worry-about-rights-under-proposed-seed-law-changes/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/malaysian-small-scale-farmers-worry-about-rights-under-proposed-seed-law-changes/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Sep 2025 17:32:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Lee Kwai Han]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Food systems]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/09/29055933/Mohd-Naim-Razak-explaining-different-coconut-varieties-have-different-shape-of-trunk-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=306664</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroecology, Community Development, Conflict, Conservation, Environment, Environmental Law, Farming, Fellows, Food, Food Industry, Food Prices, food security, Industrial Agriculture, Resource Conflict, and Social Justice]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 1 of a two-part series on proposed changes to Malaysia’s seed laws. Part 2 reports more on Malaysia’s seed quality bill. On an August Sunday morning, a rice mill roars in a public park in the busy Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. Paddy farmer Azhar Hashim has brought it from his house in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[This is Part 1 of a two-part series on proposed changes to Malaysia’s seed laws. Part 2 reports more on Malaysia’s seed quality bill. On an August Sunday morning, a rice mill roars in a public park in the busy Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. Paddy farmer Azhar Hashim has brought it from his house in Perak state, 280 kilometers (175 miles) away, for the farmers’ carnival. Golden paddy turns into white rice as the machine grinds. At the carnival, farmers and NGOs give out free seeds and plant cuttings, sell saplings and food made from their harvest. Visitors guess plant names from seeds. Many leave with freshly milled rice. The carnival is part of the Malaysian Food Sovereignty Forum (FKMM) initiative to bring farmers and public members together to talk about seeds — something that’s been in the public eye recently. FKMM, a coalition of farmers, fishers, breeders, academics and professionals, is opposing a proposed law amendment to Malaysia’s Protection of New Plant Varieties (PNPV) Act, which, if implemented, critics say could hurt the rights of small farmers. The PNPV Act came into force in 2007. Under this act, a plant breeder can apply to the government for exclusive rights over a new plant variety. If the variety meets the criteria, the breeder is granted 15- to 25-year breeder’s rights. The granted rights are gazetted and added to a public list. While the act protects breeders’ rights, it exempts small farmers who farm less than 0.2 hectares of land (0.5&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/malaysian-small-scale-farmers-worry-about-rights-under-proposed-seed-law-changes/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-306664</doi>				</item>
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					<title>World Orangutan Day: Ongoing threats &#038; habitat loss haunt these great apes</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/08/world-orangutan-day-ongoing-threats-habitat-loss-haunt-these-great-apes/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/08/world-orangutan-day-ongoing-threats-habitat-loss-haunt-these-great-apes/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>19 Aug 2025 04:20:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kristine Sabillo]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Bobbybascomb]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/08/19041759/1280px-Orangutan_Pongo_pygmeus_pygmeus-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?post_type=short-article&#038;p=304486</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Borneo, Indonesia, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and Sumatra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Animals, Apes, Biodiversity, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Deforestation, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Forestry, Forests, Governance, Great Apes, Green, Logging, Mammals, Mining, Orangutans, Palm Oil, Plantations, Protected Areas, Rainforest Destruction, Rainforests, Threats To Rainforests, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
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											<description>
							<![CDATA[Despite years of research into their complex behavior and intelligence, orangutans remain critically endangered on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, where they’re endemic. Mongabay has extensively covered the threats they face from habitat degradation and what studies say about how human activities affect them. This World Orangutan Day, on Aug. 19, we take a [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
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							<![CDATA[Despite years of research into their complex behavior and intelligence, orangutans remain critically endangered on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, where they’re endemic. Mongabay has extensively covered the threats they face from habitat degradation and what studies say about how human activities affect them. This World Orangutan Day, on Aug. 19, we take a look at how this intelligent great ape is faring in a world quickly changing due to human activity. Most endangered In June, Mongabay founder Rhett Butler wrote about the new report “Primates in Peril: The World’s 25 Most Endangered Primates.” The list, which includes the Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis), aims to highlight the primate species most in need of conservation intervention. Before the Tapanuli orangutan was formally described in 2017, there were only two distinct species of orangutans: the Sumatran (Pongo abelii) and Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus). The report says that “high levels of habitat conversion and fragmentation, along with illegal hunting and poaching” caused an “extensive population decline” in Tapanuli orangutans over the last 150 years, leaving just 700 or so individuals in Indonesia’s Batang Toru Forest. Habitat loss Mongabay’s Hans Nicholas Jong reported in March of possible mining expansion in Batang Toru, the only known habitat of Tapanuli orangutans. Almost 200,000 people signed a petition opposing the planned development of hundreds of hectares of this forest habitat. In January, Jong wrote that illegal deforestation for oil plantations is rising to record levels in Sumatra, according to U.S.-based NGO Rainforest Action Network. Of concern&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2025/08/world-orangutan-day-ongoing-threats-habitat-loss-haunt-these-great-apes/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-304486</doi>				</item>
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					<title>A critical stopover for shorebirds awaits protection in Malaysia</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/a-critical-stopover-for-shorebirds-awaits-protection-in-malaysia/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/a-critical-stopover-for-shorebirds-awaits-protection-in-malaysia/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Aug 2025 16:04:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Lee Kwai Han]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/08/13143956/Spoon-billed-sandpiper-in-Tiaozini-China_Photo-by-Dongming-Li_202210151005153-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=304221</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Fellows, Habitat, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Loss, Mangroves, Migration, Protected Areas, Research, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[TELUK AIR TAWAR, Malaysia — The tide is rising. On the Teluk Air Tawar-Kuala Muda coast (TAT-KM) of Penang state in Peninsular Malaysia, fishers are boating out to the sea for their morning catch. From afar, small brownish birds walk on the mudflat outside the mangrove-lined coast. When a boat gets closer, a flock of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[TELUK AIR TAWAR, Malaysia — The tide is rising. On the Teluk Air Tawar-Kuala Muda coast (TAT-KM) of Penang state in Peninsular Malaysia, fishers are boating out to the sea for their morning catch. From afar, small brownish birds walk on the mudflat outside the mangrove-lined coast. When a boat gets closer, a flock of about 100 birds soars at once, swirls in unison, and lands farther away. It’s early July when Mongabay visits, the quieter time of the year in the TAT-KM mudflat. Come December, this mudflat will turn into a crowded pit stop for the birds. More than 12,000 migratory shorebirds — common redshanks (Tringa totanus), bar-tailed godwits (Limosa lapponica), Asian dowitchers (Limnodromus semipalmatus) — from Siberia and Alaska, about 10,000 kilometers (6,200 miles) away, will rest and feed here. Some birds will winter in TAT-KM, while others will stay long enough to refuel and continue their 20,000-km (12,400-mi) flight to Australia and New Zealand. Along this route, or flyway, they rely on a network of coastal wetlands like TAT-KM to support their journey. Among the birds that once stopped here is the critically endangered spoon-billed sandpiper (Calidris pygmaea), a small shorebird with a unique spatula-shaped bill. Of all eight global flyways, it flies only on the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF), a migration route spanning 22 countries in Siberia, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Spoon-billed sandpipers in Tiaozini, China. Image courtesy of Dongming Li. However, this sandpiper has been so severely impacted by habitat loss,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/a-critical-stopover-for-shorebirds-awaits-protection-in-malaysia/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-304221</doi>				</item>
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