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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
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		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/singapore/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 14:31:28 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<url>https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/05/16160320/cropped-mongabay_icon-32x32.png</url>
	<title>Singapore environmental news</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/singapore/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Singapore spending billions to adapt to climate change, but deforestation continues</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/singapore-spending-billions-to-adapt-to-climate-change-but-deforestation-continues/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/singapore-spending-billions-to-adapt-to-climate-change-but-deforestation-continues/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Aug 2026 16:49:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Robin Hicks]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/27151420/Save-our-forests-banner-Maju-protest-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=327585</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, Southeast Asia, and Tropics]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities, Climate, Climate Change, Conservation, Deforestation, Development, Environment, Extreme Weather, Global Environmental Crisis, and Impact Of Climate Change]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — At a rare public demonstration against a state development plan, 22-year-old environmental studies student Saw Yun Ya called on the Singaporean government to redo an environmental impact assessment (EIA) for Maju Forest, arguing that it had overlooked the climate and health effects of clearing the site. The EIA for Maju, a 23-hectare (57-acre) [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — At a rare public demonstration against a state development plan, 22-year-old environmental studies student Saw Yun Ya called on the Singaporean government to redo an environmental impact assessment (EIA) for Maju Forest, arguing that it had overlooked the climate and health effects of clearing the site. The EIA for Maju, a 23-hectare (57-acre) patch of regenerating forest bordered by housing in central Singapore, was announced in July, prompting an unusually impassioned public backlash in the conservative city-state. Maju is one of several secondary forests facing development as the 744-square-kilometer (287-square-mile) city looks to address an acute housing crunch amid a growing population. Forests at Sembawang, Woodlands, Tengah and Gillman Barracks are also on the chopping block. Secondary forests cover about 16% of Singapore’s land area, having regrown over abandoned villages and plantations after much of the population was moved into high-rise housing from the 1960s. The island lost almost all of its primary forests in the British colonial era. Singapore’s EIAs assess the pollution, waste and biodiversity impacts of developing an area, and have identified critically endangered species such as the Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica) and straw-headed bulbul (Pycnonotus zeylanicus) at sites including Maju and Gillman Barracks. But residents and environmental groups say EIAs do not adequately account for the climate and health benefits provided by forests. A protester at a rally against deforestation on Aug. 16 holds a banner reading: &#8220;Know your enemy,&#8221; in reference to sites that could be used as alternatives to forest to build&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/singapore-spending-billions-to-adapt-to-climate-change-but-deforestation-continues/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/singapore-spending-billions-to-adapt-to-climate-change-but-deforestation-continues/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-327585</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Urban heat islands have solutions; many tropical cities can’t afford them</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/urban-heat-islands-have-solutions-many-tropical-cities-cant-afford-them/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/urban-heat-islands-have-solutions-many-tropical-cities-cant-afford-them/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Aug 2026 00:34:02 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Adam Litchkofski]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/12214622/5-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=326095</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Planetary Boundaries]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, China, East Asia, Global, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Jakarta, Nigeria, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Tropics, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, Biodiversity, Cities, Climate, Climate Change, Climate Science, Conservation, Development, Disasters, Earth Science, Economics, El Nino, Energy, Environment, Extreme Weather, Fossil Fuels, Global Environmental Crisis, Health, Heatwave, Impact Of Climate Change, Infrastructure, Natural Resources, Planetary Boundaries, Planetary Health, Plants, Poverty, Public Health, Research, Science, Sustainability, Sustainable Development, Temperatures, Trees, Tropical Conservation Science, urban ecology, Weather, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Urban heat islands pose a growing global health threat. But in tropical cities, the peril is surging. Already burdened by hot-humid equatorial weather, global warming, intense poverty, rapid urbanization, and a lack of cooling infrastructure, tropical city officials now face a powerful 2026-2027 El Niño that could put millions of vulnerable urban dwellers at risk. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Urban heat islands pose a growing global health threat. But in tropical cities, the peril is surging. Already burdened by hot-humid equatorial weather, global warming, intense poverty, rapid urbanization, and a lack of cooling infrastructure, tropical city officials now face a powerful 2026-2027 El Niño that could put millions of vulnerable urban dwellers at risk. Heat islands form because artificial surfaces, like roads and rooftops, trap heat by day and release it by night, never giving highly-urbanized spaces time to cool. When climate change-induced heat domes stall over cities, temperatures can soar for weeks into the triple digits. Every “city has a rhythm, it has a metabolism,” Matthias Roth, a National University of Singapore researcher, told Mongabay in a video interview. “The metabolism of each city — especially how incoming solar energy is divided between heating surfaces, warming the air, evaporating water, and being stored in the ground and buildings — influences how much energy heats up buildings, surfaces, and air. The prevalence of concrete and asphalt and the absence of vegetation creates a heat island.” But not all tropical urban heat islands (UHIs) are created equally, with the severity of their heat burdens dependent on innovative city planning and the financial clout to keep pace with global warming. In wealthy Singapore (which has devoted high levels of funding to curb UHI effects), air temperatures can still swell; compact high-rise building complexes there can see outdoor temperatures 4.3° Celsius (7.9° Fahrenheit) above rural areas. But in poorer cities, like Lagos,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/urban-heat-islands-have-solutions-many-tropical-cities-cant-afford-them/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/urban-heat-islands-have-solutions-many-tropical-cities-cant-afford-them/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-326095</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Cambodia’s banned sand trade with Singapore appears to be back</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/cambodias-banned-sand-trade-with-singapore-appears-to-be-back/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/cambodias-banned-sand-trade-with-singapore-appears-to-be-back/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Aug 2026 22:18:21 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Andy Ball]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/11152720/Mekong-Sand-Mining_Credit-Andy-Ball_00002-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325924</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Cambodia, Mekong Basin, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Business, Coastal Ecosystems, Corporate Environmental Transgressors, Corporations, Environment, Environmental Law, extractives, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Illegal Mining, International Trade, Law, Mining, Natural Resources, Oceans, Rivers, and Trade]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Authorities in Cambodia&#8217;s Koh Kong province say they&#8217;ve approved a sand mining operation exporting to Singapore, despite an export ban imposed by national authorities a decade ago after large-scale dredging was found to be damaging riverine and coastal ecosystems. The dredging is occurring in an area of the Trapeang Rung River that falls within the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Authorities in Cambodia&#8217;s Koh Kong province say they&#8217;ve approved a sand mining operation exporting to Singapore, despite an export ban imposed by national authorities a decade ago after large-scale dredging was found to be damaging riverine and coastal ecosystems. The dredging is occurring in an area of the Trapeang Rung River that falls within the boundaries of Tatai Wildlife Sanctuary and Botum Sakor National Park. Khlem Yonviseth, director of the Koh Kong provincial mining department, told Mongabay that the 2017 sand export ban had been lifted, and that his office had given a permit to the dredging operation and approved the exports. Yonviseth did not respond to a request to provide documentation of the ban being lifted. Mongabay was unable to locate any official announcement regarding the ban, and the relevant national agencies did not respond to requests for comment. Yonsiveth’s comments come after activist group Mother Nature Cambodia exposed the dredging operation in a video published July 14. In a subsequent video, published Aug. 8, the group tracked multiple cargo ships heading from Koh Kong Krao, Cambodia’s largest island, to Singapore’s Tuas Port. “How many more tons of Cambodian sand will be lost?” asks Lisa Mean, an activist with Mother Nature Cambodia, in the latest video. Analysis by Mongabay confirms that four of the ships identified by the group traveled to the Tuas Port, where a state-backed land reclamation project is currently underway. Mongabay has also found that the company Yonviseth said had been given a dredging license, Catalyst&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/cambodias-banned-sand-trade-with-singapore-appears-to-be-back/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/cambodias-banned-sand-trade-with-singapore-appears-to-be-back/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325924</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>As Singapore culls ‘nuisance’ birds, rapid urbanization continues to fuel an avian boom</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/as-singapore-culls-nuisance-birds-rapid-urbanization-continues-to-fuel-an-avian-boom/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/as-singapore-culls-nuisance-birds-rapid-urbanization-continues-to-fuel-an-avian-boom/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Aug 2026 16:39:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Robin Hicks]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/11072535/crow-in-singapore-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325857</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Cities, Conservation, Deforestation, Development, Environment, Human-wildlife Conflict, Research, urban ecology, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — On a Friday afternoon in July, a pest control officer patrols the grounds of Sungei Tengah Lodge, Singapore’s largest dormitory for migrant construction workers, picking up birds in various stages of distress. Some are twitching, others are wobbling, as if drunk. The officer tosses the birds, which he had poisoned with baited scraps [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — On a Friday afternoon in July, a pest control officer patrols the grounds of Sungei Tengah Lodge, Singapore’s largest dormitory for migrant construction workers, picking up birds in various stages of distress. Some are twitching, others are wobbling, as if drunk. The officer tosses the birds, which he had poisoned with baited scraps a few hours earlier, into a garbage bag. Most of them are still alive. The bagged birds will later be gassed using carbon dioxide, a culling method for “pest” birds the authorities say is “humane” — a claim contested by animal welfare groups. Though culling may immediately trim the local population, ecologists question the long-term effectiveness of efforts to reduce urban birds, arguing that Singapore&#8217;s rapid urbanization creates favorable conditions for them to thrive, as forests are lost to high-rise buildings. Birds considered pests in the tropical metropolis are the common pigeon (Columba livia), Javan myna (Acridotheres javanicus) and house crows (Corvus splendens), which are not protected under the Wildlife Act and routinely culled in response to complaints from the public. Known as “nuisance” birds, they’re framed as invasive species that are noisy and a threat to public health and local biodiversity by competing with and, in the case of crows, preying on native birds. Crows, in particular, have found themselves in the crosshairs of late. The government resumed a program to shoot crows in March after a six-year hiatus, as complaints about attacks on people have surged. A crow poisoned by a pest control&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/as-singapore-culls-nuisance-birds-rapid-urbanization-continues-to-fuel-an-avian-boom/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/as-singapore-culls-nuisance-birds-rapid-urbanization-continues-to-fuel-an-avian-boom/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325857</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Looming loss of Singapore’s Maju Forest to development raises many questions (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/looming-loss-of-singapores-maju-forest-to-development-raises-many-questions-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/looming-loss-of-singapores-maju-forest-to-development-raises-many-questions-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Aug 2026 22:14:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rachel R. Y. Oh]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/08/05211030/maju-forest-singapore-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=325431</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Cities, Commentary, Development, Forests, Governance, Health, One Health, Planetary Health, Public Health, Tropical Forests, urban ecology, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Every city faces difficult choices about how to use its land. As populations grow, governments must provide homes, transport and other essential infrastructure while protecting the natural ecosystems that make cities liveable. These decisions are often framed as a trade-off between development and conservation, with forests viewed primarily as reservoirs of biodiversity or stores of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Every city faces difficult choices about how to use its land. As populations grow, governments must provide homes, transport and other essential infrastructure while protecting the natural ecosystems that make cities liveable. These decisions are often framed as a trade-off between development and conservation, with forests viewed primarily as reservoirs of biodiversity or stores of carbon. What if we have been overlooking one of their most important contributions? As climate change intensifies, urban heat worsens and chronic diseases associated with sedentary, high-stress lifestyles continue to rise, a growing body of research suggests forests are far more than wildlife habitat. They are living public infrastructure that helps keep people physically healthy, mentally resilient and socially connected. Mature forests cool neighborhoods, encourage physical activity, provide opportunities for stress relief, strengthen community cohesion and support biodiversity, which is fundamental to many of these benefits. This perspective is particularly relevant in Singapore. The city-state has earned global recognition for integrating nature into one of the world&#8217;s most densely populated urban environments. Yet many of its remaining forests – including the 23-hectare (57-acre) Maju Forest in Clementi – are increasingly under pressure from development. Current plans would retain about one-third of the forest and convert approximately 15 hectares (37 acres) into public housing. Over 100 species of wildlife have been recorded in Maju Forest and six – mainly birds – are of conservation significance, including the straw-headed bulbul (pictured), buffy fish-owl, changeable hawk-eagle, oriental magpie-robin, bamboo bat and long-tailed macaque. Image courtesy of Singapore’s National&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/looming-loss-of-singapores-maju-forest-to-development-raises-many-questions-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/looming-loss-of-singapores-maju-forest-to-development-raises-many-questions-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-325431</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Activists allege Cambodia has resumed sea sand exports to Singapore</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/activists-allege-cambodia-has-resumed-sea-sand-exports-to-singapore/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/activists-allege-cambodia-has-resumed-sea-sand-exports-to-singapore/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Jul 2026 08:40:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Gerald Flynn]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/21082924/RESIZED-Photo-by-Drone-of-CMR-sand-barges-on-Trapang-Roung-river-2-July-202614-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=324184</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Cambodia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Business, Corporate Social Responsibility, Ecosystems, Environment, extractives, Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, International Trade, Mining, Natural Resources, Oceans, Rivers, Saltwater Fish, Trade, and Turtles]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BANGKOK — Environmental activism group Mother Nature Cambodia on July 14 posted a new video alleging that Cambodia has quietly resumed sand exports to Singapore after the trade was banned in 2017. The prohibition followed a scandal involving environmental degradation along Cambodian rivers linked to shipments of sand sold to Singapore for land reclamation projects. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BANGKOK — Environmental activism group Mother Nature Cambodia on July 14 posted a new video alleging that Cambodia has quietly resumed sand exports to Singapore after the trade was banned in 2017. The prohibition followed a scandal involving environmental degradation along Cambodian rivers linked to shipments of sand sold to Singapore for land reclamation projects. In its latest video, Mother Nature Cambodia documented sand dredgers operating in waterways in Koh Kong province in Cambodia’s southwest, with footage appearing to show barges belonging to Catalyst Marine and Resources (Cambodia), a Singaporean-directed sand mining company that’s been registered in Cambodia since December 2024. Footage shows large-scale sand mining operations, including barges bearing the logo of Catalyst Marine and Resources, dredging sea sand from the coastal waterways of Koh Kong. Catalyst Marine and Resources’ barges were then tracked by Mother Nature Cambodia to two large cargo boats located just off the coast of Koh Kong Krao, Cambodia’s largest island, which is largely controlled by the Cambodian navy. Tracking devices on the cargo boats show those vessels are bound for Singapore, reigniting old fears that environmentally unsustainable sand dredging has resumed in Koh Kong to fuel land reclamation projects. “I have many questions, but today I will ask just one to Minister [of Mines and Energy] Keo Rattanak,” Lisa Mean, an activist with Mother Nature Cambodia, asks in the group’s latest video. “When did you quietly scrap the 2017 ban on sea sand exports?” Lisa then called on Cambodians to join the activist group&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/activists-allege-cambodia-has-resumed-sea-sand-exports-to-singapore/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/activists-allege-cambodia-has-resumed-sea-sand-exports-to-singapore/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-324184</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>The most underfunded climate opportunities may be at sea</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-most-underfunded-climate-opportunities-may-be-at-sea/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-most-underfunded-climate-opportunities-may-be-at-sea/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 May 2026 00:45:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/23171940/OceanImageBank_CameronVenti_2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=320057</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Philippines, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Alternative Energy, Decarbonization, Ecosystems, Energy, Energy Security, Energy Transition, Marine, Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Offshore Wind, Ports, Renewable Energy, Shipping, Wind, and Wind Power]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Ocean philanthropy remains a small field. Funding directed specifically toward ocean-climate solutions is smaller still. At last week’s “Sea Change” panel on ocean-climate solutions in Asia, convened as part of the Philanthropy Asia Summit, the discussion kept returning to this mismatch: the ocean is central to the climate transition, yet ocean-climate philanthropy remains a rounding [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Ocean philanthropy remains a small field. Funding directed specifically toward ocean-climate solutions is smaller still. At last week’s “Sea Change” panel on ocean-climate solutions in Asia, convened as part of the Philanthropy Asia Summit, the discussion kept returning to this mismatch: the ocean is central to the climate transition, yet ocean-climate philanthropy remains a rounding error in global giving. Ocean-climate philanthropy’s funding gap The numbers are stark: Less than 1.5% of global philanthropic giving goes to climate mitigation. About 0.25% goes to ocean issues. At the intersection of the two, the figure is roughly 0.05%. That is a narrow base of support for work that touches power generation, shipping, food systems, coastal protection, marine biodiversity, and the future of many island and coastal economies. The ocean has long been treated by funders primarily as a conservation concern. Grants have supported marine protected areas, fisheries management, coastal livelihoods, scientific research, and habitat protection. Much of that work remains essential. It has helped create institutions, protect places, and improve the management of fisheries and reefs. Climate change is now the force most likely to overwhelm many of those gains. Warming, acidification, rising seas, stronger storms, and shifting fish stocks are changing the conditions under which ocean conservation operates. Foundation Funding for Ocean-Climate (2015–2024). Foundation ocean-climate funding shown here is inclusive of all mitigation and sequestration-focused funding, including cross-cutting policy work. Funding to blue carbon is included in this chart as a sequestration strategy. Labels represent 2024 funding amounts. Graphic from &#8220;Funding Trends&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-most-underfunded-climate-opportunities-may-be-at-sea/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-most-underfunded-climate-opportunities-may-be-at-sea/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-320057</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Citizen science helps reconnect Singapore treetops for elusive leaf-eating langurs</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/citizen-science-helps-reconnect-singapore-treetops-for-elusive-leaf-eating-langurs/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/citizen-science-helps-reconnect-singapore-treetops-for-elusive-leaf-eating-langurs/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Apr 2026 09:57:38 +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/20/2026/04/23091734/Banner_DSCF2728-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=317985</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Citizen Science, Conservation, Forest Fragmentation, Forests, Infrastructure, Mammals, Mitigation, Primates, Research, Solutions, Wildlife, and Wildlife Corridors]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[ANG MO KIO, Singapore — On the edge of a bustling Singapore suburb, Lay Hoon steps into the shade of a forest reserve she’s visited monthly for eight years to search for one of the world’s most threatened primates. Scanning the dense canopy for signs of movement, she listens intently. “Before we see the langurs, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[ANG MO KIO, Singapore — On the edge of a bustling Singapore suburb, Lay Hoon steps into the shade of a forest reserve she’s visited monthly for eight years to search for one of the world’s most threatened primates. Scanning the dense canopy for signs of movement, she listens intently. “Before we see the langurs, we usually hear them,” she says. The foliage rustles above, but it turns out to be a plantain squirrel (Callosciurus notatus), one of a surprising number of small mammals found here at the Lower Peirce Reservoir Park, a 10-hectare (25-acre) patch of maturing secondary forest to the northeast of Singapore’s Central Catchment Nature Reserve. Hoon is looking for the Raffles’ banded langur (Presbytis femoralis), a leaf-eating monkey confined to pockets of fragmented forest in Singapore and the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia. Listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List, its total global population is estimated to be only 200-250 mature individuals, fewer than 80 of them in Singapore. The extent of habitat loss in Singapore over the past two centuries cannot be overstated. Today, less than 1% of the primary forest that once stretched across much of the main island remains; and of the island’s roughly 20% secondary forest cover, only about 4.3% is considered high-quality mature forest. With their habitats devastated, many groups of terrestrial vertebrates plunged into decline. Yet even after rapid urbanization since the 1960s, small groups of langurs have clung on in isolated forest fragments. However, as treetop specialists,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/citizen-science-helps-reconnect-singapore-treetops-for-elusive-leaf-eating-langurs/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-317985</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Nearly a million birds shipped from Africa to Asia in 15 years; canaries top the list</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Apr 2026 15:04:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/15120913/Photo-5-yfc-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=317571</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, Atlantic Forest, Guinea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Mali, Mozambique, North America, Senegal, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Tanzania, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation, Crime, Environment, Health, Invasive Species, Parrots, Pet Trade, Planetary Health, Public Health, Regulations, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Worldwide, people buy and hunt nearly half of the 11,000 bird species in existence. In Asia, Europe, and North and South America, songbirds and parrots are highly desired pets. Collectors pay exorbitant sums for rare species or melodious birds to compete in high-stakes singing competitions. Falconers and sport hunters capture or kill raptors. Belief-based rituals [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Worldwide, people buy and hunt nearly half of the 11,000 bird species in existence. In Asia, Europe, and North and South America, songbirds and parrots are highly desired pets. Collectors pay exorbitant sums for rare species or melodious birds to compete in high-stakes singing competitions. Falconers and sport hunters capture or kill raptors. Belief-based rituals in West Africa incorporate vulture parts. Buyers in North America seek dead hornbills and hummingbirds as home décor. The list goes on. This massive commerce threatens more than 200 avian species with extinction. Now, as online marketplaces proliferate, customers can order a bird with a swipe on their phone from anywhere on the planet. Moving birds around the world also spreads deadly diseases, from avian influenza to circovirus, and when non-native birds get loose, they may proliferate, outcompeting residents. “There&#8217;s a lack of awareness and appreciation for the scale of this trade, and little attention on the impacts that this could be having on wild populations or the risks for the spread of invasive species and infectious diseases,” said Rowan Martin, director of bird trade at the nonprofit World Parrot Trust. “If people are not aware that this is even happening, then how are we going to be able to mitigate the risks associated with it?” In an attempt to understand the scale of the live bird trade, Martin and his colleagues used records from U.N. Comtrade, a database that aggregates information on all commodities traded between countries. The team analyzed live bird imports into&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/nearly-a-million-birds-shipped-from-africa-to-asia-in-15-years-canaries-top-the-list/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-317571</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Singapore resort said to halt controversial dolphin sourcing, breeding</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/singapore-resort-said-to-halt-controversial-dolphin-sourcing-breeding/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/singapore-resort-said-to-halt-controversial-dolphin-sourcing-breeding/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Mar 2026 05:21:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Robin Hicks]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/30112321/AP720134243665-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=316502</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Aquariums, Biodiversity, Captive Breeding, Cetaceans, Conservation, Dolphins, Environment, Environmental Law, Mammals, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Marine Mammals, Oceans, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — The Resorts World Sentosa casino and entertainment complex in Singapore has halted sourcing dolphins from the wild for its aquarium, Mongabay has learned. The resort’s Oceanarium has also suspended its breeding program, according to insiders. The facility is assembling a panel of experts to determine the future of the more than 20 Indo-Pacific [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — The Resorts World Sentosa casino and entertainment complex in Singapore has halted sourcing dolphins from the wild for its aquarium, Mongabay has learned. The resort’s Oceanarium has also suspended its breeding program, according to insiders. The facility is assembling a panel of experts to determine the future of the more than 20 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) it has held since 2013. RWS has not announced any formal policy regarding the dolphins and declined to comment. Multiple visits by Mongabay to the Oceanarium were unable to confirm the exact number of animals held at its Marine Mammal Habitat, although trainers said no additional dolphins were being captured or bred. The last dolphin born at the facility was Kenzo, a male now 7 years old, staff said during a visit in March. Uncertainty over the fate of Singapore’s captive dolphins comes amid a growing global shift against keeping cetaceans in captivity, as awareness grows of their intelligence, complex social structures, and poor welfare in confined environments. In June 2025, Mexico became the latest country to ban the captivity of cetaceans for entertainment, joining Canada, France, India, Chile, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Taiwan is also phasing out cetacean performances. But countries including China, Japan and some in the Middle East continue to source dolphins for newly built aquariums as they expand marine attractions aimed at boosting tourism. RWS originally sourced 27 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins from the Solomon Islands in 2008 and 2009. The Dolphin Island exhibit&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/singapore-resort-said-to-halt-controversial-dolphin-sourcing-breeding/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-316502</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Can Singapore rewild its lost reptiles?</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/can-singapore-rewild-its-lost-reptiles/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/can-singapore-rewild-its-lost-reptiles/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Mar 2026 02:06:34 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/04171924/Gimlett-s-reed-snake-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315032</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Founder's briefs]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Ecosystems, Green, Herps, Lizards, Reintroductions, Reptiles, Restoration, Rewilding, Snakes, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In the older quarters of Singapore, fragments of forest persist like memories that refuse to fade. Within them live creatures that few residents ever see, and some that no longer exist there at all. The disappearance of species on an island is not always dramatic. Often it happens quietly, in decades of thinning habitat and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In the older quarters of Singapore, fragments of forest persist like memories that refuse to fade. Within them live creatures that few residents ever see, and some that no longer exist there at all. The disappearance of species on an island is not always dramatic. Often it happens quietly, in decades of thinning habitat and interrupted life cycles, until absence becomes normal. A snake not recorded since 1904 leaves no trace in the soil, only a line in an archive. Selangor mud snake (Raclitia indica), which was rediscovered in Singapore in 2020 after an absence of 106 years. Photo credit: the Law Brothers Singapore’s ecological history is one of compression. Since the 19th century, most primary forest has been cleared for plantations, industry, and housing. Today only a sliver of original forest remains, surrounded by a landscape remade for human needs. Such transformation has exacted a toll on wildlife, especially terrestrial vertebrates. Estimates suggest that roughly a third of species across several groups have disappeared locally over two centuries. Snakes and lizards, however, tell a more complicated story. A recent analysis of Singapore’s squamates, the group that includes snakes and lizards, reconstructs a timeline of loss using historical records and statistical modeling. The pattern resembles two pulses of erosion. The first, in the early 1900s, coincides with the near-total conversion of primary forest. A second, smaller wave arrives late in the 20th century, as remaining secondary forests give way to rapid urbanization. Primary-forest specialists suffered most. Species able to tolerate&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/can-singapore-rewild-its-lost-reptiles/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-315032</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Reforestation and wild pig decline spark surge in miniature deer in Singapore</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/reforestation-and-wild-pig-decline-spark-surge-in-miniature-deer-in-singapore/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/reforestation-and-wild-pig-decline-spark-surge-in-miniature-deer-in-singapore/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 Dec 2025 18:02:52 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jeremy Hance]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/12/08175216/Banner_GMD-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=310790</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Camera Trapping, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Diseases, Ecosystems, Environment, Forest Recovery, Forests, Green, Islands, Mammals, Reforestation, Research, Restoration, Ungulates, Wildlife, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Rabbit-sized, nocturnal and elusive, the greater mouse-deer hadn’t been seen in Singapore for more than 80 years. Researchers long presumed it was locally extinct. In 2008, however, researchers confirmed sightings of the pint-sized ungulates, Tragulus napu, on Pulau Ubin, a 10-square-kilometer (4-square-mile) island in the Johor Strait that separates Singapore’s main island from Peninsular Malaysia [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Rabbit-sized, nocturnal and elusive, the greater mouse-deer hadn’t been seen in Singapore for more than 80 years. Researchers long presumed it was locally extinct. In 2008, however, researchers confirmed sightings of the pint-sized ungulates, Tragulus napu, on Pulau Ubin, a 10-square-kilometer (4-square-mile) island in the Johor Strait that separates Singapore’s main island from Peninsular Malaysia to the north. The team quickly set up a monitoring program to learn more about the small population. They expected to see numbers slowly recover as new suitable habitats became available thanks to ongoing forest restoration programs on the island. But the scale of what they recorded over the next 15 years astonished them. “I had to perform the analyses multiple times and check my data to be sure there was no mistake,” Marcus Chua, curator of mammals at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum at the National University of Singapore, told Mongabay. In a new study published in Biological Conservation, Chua and his colleagues document a fivefold increase in the population density of greater mouse-deer on Pulau Ubin between 2009 and 2024. By 2024, the mouse-deer population density was three times higher than previously recorded anywhere in the species’ range. While the rehabilitation of forest habitats will have given the mouse-deer an initial boost, the researchers conclude the most dramatic surge was triggered by the outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) in 2023. The virus, which is infectious and deadly to wild and domestic pigs, wiped out more than 98% of Singapore’s wild&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/reforestation-and-wild-pig-decline-spark-surge-in-miniature-deer-in-singapore/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-310790</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>As Singapore heats up, pests are seeking refuge indoors</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/as-singapore-heats-up-pests-are-seeking-refuge-indoors/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/as-singapore-heats-up-pests-are-seeking-refuge-indoors/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Oct 2025 07:08:45 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Robin Hicks]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/10/09070714/Dorsal_view_of_Papilio_demoleus_Linnaeus_1758_%E2%80%93_Lime_Swallowtail_02-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=307253</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animal Welfare, Cities, Climate, Climate Change, Conservation, Environment, Forests, Global Warming, Insects, Pesticides, Rodents, Temperatures, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — Singapore’s reputation as one of the world’s cleanest cities is being put to the test by a surge in rodent and insect infestations that experts say is being fueled by climate change and heat stress. At Changi Airport, famous for its indoor gardens that embody the “City in Nature” image Singapore markets to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — Singapore’s reputation as one of the world’s cleanest cities is being put to the test by a surge in rodent and insect infestations that experts say is being fueled by climate change and heat stress. At Changi Airport, famous for its indoor gardens that embody the “City in Nature” image Singapore markets to the world, lush plant displays have been succumbing to disease and insect attacks. In the last two years, swaths of greenery have had to be replaced. It’s a similar story at the iconic floating Apple Store at Marina Bay Sands, where a circle of Chinese banyan trees lines the interior of its glass dome, encircling the latest iPhones, iPads and MacBooks. Last year, the trees had to be replaced because of insect infestations. “The insects are coming inside — to escape the heat,” says Veera Sekaran, a botanist at the National University of Singapore and founder of Greenology, the firm that manages landscaping at both Changi and Apple’s flagship store. “Heat stress doesn’t just affect people.” Biological markers for heat stress Plants grown in artificial indoor environments are already vulnerable to disease. When insects move in to feed on sap or build nests, they become even more susceptible, Sekaran tells Mongabay. “The best biological markers are the little creatures, because their tolerance to extremes is very low,” he tells Mongabay. “This is especially true in the tropics, where temperatures are usually stable. For a butterfly, a 1-degree [Celsius, or 1.8° Fahrenheit] temperature rise is very&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/as-singapore-heats-up-pests-are-seeking-refuge-indoors/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/10/as-singapore-heats-up-pests-are-seeking-refuge-indoors/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-307253</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Upmarket fish maw trade in Singapore &#038; Malaysia includes endangered species: Study</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/upmarket-fish-maw-trade-in-singapore-malaysia-includes-endangered-species-study/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/upmarket-fish-maw-trade-in-singapore-malaysia-includes-endangered-species-study/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Aug 2025 15:33:46 +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/20/2025/08/06151613/15430637796_4791d70d4c_o-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=303862</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, China, East Asia, Malaysia, and Singapore]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Consumption, Critically Endangered Species, Ecosystems, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Fish, Fishing, Food, Food Industry, Food Prices, Illegal Trade, International Trade, Marine, Marine Conservation, Natural Resources, Overconsumption, Overfishing, Research, Saltwater Fish, Trade, Wildlife, and Wildlife Trade]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Fish maw — the dried swim bladder of ray-finned fishes — is prized across East and Southeast Asia as a culinary delicacy and symbol of wealth and status. In Chinese culture, it’s served at family and business gatherings. Beyond tradition, maw is promoted for supposed health and beauty benefits, from aiding recovery after childbirth to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Fish maw — the dried swim bladder of ray-finned fishes — is prized across East and Southeast Asia as a culinary delicacy and symbol of wealth and status. In Chinese culture, it’s served at family and business gatherings. Beyond tradition, maw is promoted for supposed health and beauty benefits, from aiding recovery after childbirth to reducing signs of aging due to its high collagen content. As demand has surged with urbanization and rising incomes, fish maw trade has grown into a multimillion-dollar industry. In Hong Kong alone, studies have found maw imports were worth up to $394 million between 2015 and 2018, with some single bladders selling for nearly half a million dollars. Rare species fetch the highest prices, but once processed, maw is hard to identify — this opens the door to mislabeling and substitutions that mislead buyers. “Given the value of the trade, it is surprising that we do not really know what species are involved or where they are coming from,” Benjamin Wainwright, a marine biologist at the National University of Singapore, told Mongabay by email. A new study, published in Conservation Letters in June 2025, sheds light on the fish maw trade in Singapore and Malaysia. Led by Wainwright and marine taxonomist Seah Ying Giat of Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, the study used DNA barcoding to identify the species behind the trade — revealing, among others, the presence of two vulnerable, four endangered and two critically endangered species on the IUCN Red List, including the European eel&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/upmarket-fish-maw-trade-in-singapore-malaysia-includes-endangered-species-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/08/upmarket-fish-maw-trade-in-singapore-malaysia-includes-endangered-species-study/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-303862</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Tropical forest roots show strain as changes aboveground filter below</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/tropical-forest-roots-show-strain-as-changes-aboveground-filter-below/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/tropical-forest-roots-show-strain-as-changes-aboveground-filter-below/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jul 2025 16:59:44 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Petro Kotzé]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/15090836/1-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=302479</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Central America, Costa Rica, Global, Latin America, Panama, Puerto Rico, and Singapore]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation To Climate Change, carbon, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change, Conservation, data, Deforestation, Drought, Ecosystems, El Nino, Environment, forest degradation, Forests, Fungi, Plants, Precipitation, Rainforests, Research, Symbiotic Relationships, Trees, Tropical Forests, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The destruction of tropical rainforests — seen in shocking images of huge wildfires, vast clear-cuts and dying drought-stressed trees — is unfolding annually before the world&#8217;s eyes. But some serious changes in growing forests are occurring unseen, below the surface. As aboveground changes in those forests intensify, those effects are also filtering underground, and researchers [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The destruction of tropical rainforests — seen in shocking images of huge wildfires, vast clear-cuts and dying drought-stressed trees — is unfolding annually before the world&#8217;s eyes. But some serious changes in growing forests are occurring unseen, below the surface. As aboveground changes in those forests intensify, those effects are also filtering underground, and researchers are sounding the alarm due to potentially adverse changes to tropical forest roots. Roots are key to how rainforest trees and soils capture and store atmospheric carbon dioxide, especially as climate change progresses, says Daniela F. Cusack, associate professor in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability at Colorado State University. The hidden world of plant roots, and the impacts of human-caused stressors on them, is not yet well understood, but important clues are emerging. An overlooked science While underground plant growth is more difficult to study than what’s happening aboveground, roots are no less important than forest floor to canopy processes, explains Cusack, who is also a research associate at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Scientists began looking at the complex tropical forest underworld about 40 years ago. Today, they know tropical tree species’ roots grow in a mat on the forest floor to collect nutrients from composting vegetative matter. Some trees have shallow root systems that run for more than 100 meters (325 feet) to steady the tall trees, especially since strong winds often rock the canopy. Others have evolved large, thin extensions of the trunk that begin some 6 m (20 ft)&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/tropical-forest-roots-show-strain-as-changes-aboveground-filter-below/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/tropical-forest-roots-show-strain-as-changes-aboveground-filter-below/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-302479</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Singapore biobank offers backup plan for pangolins</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Apr 2025 22:20:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Claire Turrell]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/10215243/Pangolin-1_Credit-Mandai-Wildlife-Group-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=297470</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Captive Breeding, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Endangered Species, Environment, Ex-situ Conservation, Mammals, Pangolins, Wildlife, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — A cloud of condensation rises as Shangari Sekar, the assistant laboratory manager for Mandai Wildlife Group, carefully lifts a ladle filled with vials from the center of a cryo tank. She moves slowly as the cargo is precious: within the vials are the genetic building blocks for pangolins, the most trafficked mammals on [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — A cloud of condensation rises as Shangari Sekar, the assistant laboratory manager for Mandai Wildlife Group, carefully lifts a ladle filled with vials from the center of a cryo tank. She moves slowly as the cargo is precious: within the vials are the genetic building blocks for pangolins, the most trafficked mammals on Earth. With the future looking bleak for these scaly anteaters, scientists have launched a pangolin biobank to help ensure they live on. Dr. Sonja Luz, CEO of Mandai Nature, the wildlife group’s conservation arm, says they’ve taken this step to create a safety buffer: “We are really worried we are getting too many ‘too little, too late’ scenarios.” There are four known pangolin species native to Asia and four to Africa, and all populations are declining. Poaching and habitat loss have pushed all eight species into the threatened category on the IUCN Red List. Singapore is home to the critically endangered Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica), which is also found in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam. “The Sunda pangolin has seen its population decline by over 50% in the last 15 years due to high levels of poaching driven by the illegal wildlife trade,” says Uma Sachidhanandam, director of conservation and science for WWF in Singapore. Demand for their scales, which are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, has made pangolin the world&#8217;s most trafficked mammals. Image courtesy of Mandai Wildlife Group. The international trade in wild pangolins is banned under CITES, the global wildlife&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-297470</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Protecting peatlands and mangroves could halve Southeast Asia’s land-use emissions</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/protecting-peatlands-and-mangroves-could-halve-southeast-asias-land-use-emissions/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/protecting-peatlands-and-mangroves-could-halve-southeast-asias-land-use-emissions/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Feb 2025 11:48:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/12/06135320/peats-indonesia-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=294600</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Thailand, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Carbon Emissions, Climate, Climate Change, Conservation, Deforestation, Drivers Of Deforestation, Ecosystems, Emission Reduction, Fires, Forests, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Landscape Restoration, Mangroves, Nature-based climate solutions, Peatlands, Reforestation, Restoration, Solutions, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA —  Southeast Asia’s peatlands and mangroves store immense amounts of carbon, yet they’re rapidly disappearing. A new study finds that conserving and restoring these ecosystems could cut the region’s greenhouse gas emissions from land use in half — equivalent to 16% of the world’s total land-use emissions. An international team of scientists from the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA —  Southeast Asia’s peatlands and mangroves store immense amounts of carbon, yet they’re rapidly disappearing. A new study finds that conserving and restoring these ecosystems could cut the region’s greenhouse gas emissions from land use in half — equivalent to 16% of the world’s total land-use emissions. An international team of scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS), with contributions from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore and James Cook University in Australia, assessed the potential for emissions reductions through conserving and restoring peat swamp forests and mangroves across Southeast Asia. Their study, published in Nature Communications, concluded that despite occupying only 5% of the region’s land area, these ecosystems hold immense potential for climate mitigation. According to the study, restoring currently degraded peat swamp forests and mangroves in Southeast Asia could reduce 94 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2e) annually. Combined with conservation, as much as 770 MtCO2e could be mitigated each year, representing nearly half of the region’s land-use emissions. The study estimated that there are 5.34 million hectares (13.4 million acres) of drained peatlands in Southeast Asia, an area larger than Costa Rica, and that rewetting them offers the largest emissions reduction potential. Restoring degraded peat swamp forests, of which there are 2.64 million hectares (6.52 million acres) in the region, and mangroves (0.07 million hectares, or about 170,000 acres) could further enhance carbon sequestration, the study found. “These ecosystems pack a climate mitigation punch far beyond their size, offering one of the most scalable&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/protecting-peatlands-and-mangroves-could-halve-southeast-asias-land-use-emissions/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-294600</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Carbon exchange leader and sustainability advocate Mikkel Larsen dies at 50</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/sustainability-leader-mikkel-larsen-dies-at-50/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/sustainability-leader-mikkel-larsen-dies-at-50/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jan 2025 21:23:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhett Ayers Butler]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Rhett Butler]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/01/27212112/mikkel-larsen-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=293493</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Singapore]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Carbon Market, Environment, Green, Obituary, and Sustainability]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Mikkel Larsen, a prominent figure in the global carbon markets and sustainability sector, passed away unexpectedly last week at the age of 50. As the former Chief Executive Officer of Climate Impact X (CIX), a Singapore-based carbon exchange, Larsen played a pivotal role in shaping the voluntary carbon market with a focus on transparency and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Mikkel Larsen, a prominent figure in the global carbon markets and sustainability sector, passed away unexpectedly last week at the age of 50. As the former Chief Executive Officer of Climate Impact X (CIX), a Singapore-based carbon exchange, Larsen played a pivotal role in shaping the voluntary carbon market with a focus on transparency and integrity. Larsen&#8217;s career in finance began at KPMG in Denmark and later took him to Citigroup and UBS in London and Hong Kong. He eventually moved to Singapore, where he served as Group Chief Sustainability Officer at DBS Bank. During his tenure at DBS, Larsen integrated sustainability into the bank&#8217;s financial policies, championed nature-based solutions, and helped phase out coal lending. He was instrumental in making DBS the first publicly listed company in Singapore to incorporate sustainability into financial reporting. His leadership extended beyond corporate sustainability initiatives. Larsen was an early pioneer of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) and played a key role in Singapore’s Emerging Stronger Taskforce during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also contributed to the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s green financing initiatives, positioning Singapore as a global hub for climate finance. Larsen co-conceptualized the creation of CIX, which was established to facilitate high-integrity carbon trading. Under his leadership, CIX developed guidelines that aimed to ensure that carbon credit projects delivered tangible benefits to Indigenous peoples and local communities. His work earned him a reputation as an advocate for high-quality carbon markets. Steve Howard, Head of Sustainability at Temasek, remarked on Larsen’s&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/sustainability-leader-mikkel-larsen-dies-at-50/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-293493</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Study: Singapore biodiversity loss is bad — but not as bad as previous estimate</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/12/study-singapore-biodiversity-loss-is-bad-but-not-as-bad-as-previous-estimate/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/12/study-singapore-biodiversity-loss-is-bad-but-not-as-bad-as-previous-estimate/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>22 Dec 2023 17:52:41 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/12/22111342/oriental-pied-hornbill-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=276981</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Cities, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Deforestation, Development, Endangered Species, Environment, Extinction, Forest Loss, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Habitat Loss, Infrastructure, Rainforest Destruction, Rainforests, Saving Species From Extinction, Solutions, Threats To Rainforests, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[With its iconic skylines and waterfront vistas, Singapore is today a bustling city-state with one of the highest population densities in the world. Two centuries ago, before the British chose to build the port city in 1819, Singapore was covered by rainforests, mangrove forests and swamp forests. In the two centuries that followed, these forests [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[With its iconic skylines and waterfront vistas, Singapore is today a bustling city-state with one of the highest population densities in the world. Two centuries ago, before the British chose to build the port city in 1819, Singapore was covered by rainforests, mangrove forests and swamp forests. In the two centuries that followed, these forests were cleared to make way for people, plantations and concrete structures, and iconic species like tigers and leopards vanished. A new study estimates that Singapore has lost more than a third of its species in this transition. It uses observational data from more than 3,000 species from 10 major taxonomic groups, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, plants and insects. Using mathematical models, the study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), estimates the species extinction rate over time. The analysis also considers “dark extinctions” — extinction of species that are yet to be discovered. &#8220;The number we came up with, which was 37%, is quite a lot but it&#8217;s about half that of a previous estimate,&#8221; says theoretical ecologist and lead author Ryan Chisholm from the National University of Singapore. The previous estimate Chisholm refers to comes from a 2003 study, which found a whopping 73% species extinction rate in Singapore. That study assumed species in Peninsular Malaysia, which borders Singapore, were also present in similar habitats in Singapore, an assumption the current study&#8217;s researchers say is flawed. Because the area of Singapore is tiny — just 1% of Peninsular Malaysia —&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/12/study-singapore-biodiversity-loss-is-bad-but-not-as-bad-as-previous-estimate/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-276981</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indonesia welcomes new Singapore regulation to help curb lobster smuggling</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/11/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-reexport-sfa-fisheries-marine/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/11/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-reexport-sfa-fisheries-marine/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Nov 2023 09:35:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Basten Gokkon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Basten Gokkon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/09/15090753/A-benih-lobster-ntb-1536x982-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=275557</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Singapore, Southeast Asia, and Sumatra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Corruption, Crime, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Illegal Fishing, Law, Law Enforcement, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Overfishing, Politics, Sustainability, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Indonesian fisheries authorities have welcomed as “better than nothing” a new policy by neighboring Singapore that should in theory help stem the smuggling of lobster larvae out of Indonesian waters. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has since Oct. 1 required traders in the city-state who are reexporting live animals to other countries to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Indonesian fisheries authorities have welcomed as “better than nothing” a new policy by neighboring Singapore that should in theory help stem the smuggling of lobster larvae out of Indonesian waters. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has since Oct. 1 required traders in the city-state who are reexporting live animals to other countries to provide a health certificate from the country where the animals originate, according to a local news report. This applies to destination countries that demand health documentation when receiving live animals from Singapore. The SFA said the rule would improve trade facilitation and apply to all live animals, including their young and eggs. For Indonesia, the new rule is “a positive move, rather than nothing, from Singapore,” Adin Nurawaluddin, the director-general of marine and fisheries resources surveillance at the Indonesian fisheries ministry, told Mongabay in a text on Nov. 16. Indonesia maintains a ban on the export of lobster larvae, but these continue to be smuggled out of the country in large volumes. A key destination is nearby Singapore, from where the larvae are often reexported to third countries like Vietnam and China, where they’re raised to maturity in fish farms and tanks and sold at much higher prices. Hundreds of thousands of lobster larvae seized from a foiled smuggling attempt. Image courtesy of the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries. The SFA’s new regulation comes in the wake of calls by Indonesian fisheries authorities for Singapore to boost security in the two countries’ maritime&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/11/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-reexport-sfa-fisheries-marine/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-275557</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indonesia, Singapore to work more closely against lobster larvae smugglers</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-illegal-fisheries-trade-sustainability/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-illegal-fisheries-trade-sustainability/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Aug 2023 16:28:33 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Yogi Eka Sahputra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Basten Gokkon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/08/23075543/Bentuk-benih-lobster-yang-disimpan-dalam-kain-basah.-Benih-lobster-terlihat-masih-hidup-ketika-dilepaskan.-Foto-Yogi-Eka-Sahputra-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=272501</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Riau Islands, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Corruption, Crime, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Illegal Fishing, Law, Law Enforcement, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Overfishing, Politics, Sustainability, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BATAM, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities have called on their counterparts in neighboring Singapore to crack down on the illegal lobster larvae trade, given that the city-state is a key hub for the regional trade of the crustaceans. Indonesia has since June 2021 banned exports of lobster seed in an effort to conserve declining wild stocks [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BATAM, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities have called on their counterparts in neighboring Singapore to crack down on the illegal lobster larvae trade, given that the city-state is a key hub for the regional trade of the crustaceans. Indonesia has since June 2021 banned exports of lobster seed in an effort to conserve declining wild stocks and tackle the illegal lobster market. But smuggling of the in-demand shellfish remains rampant, particularly via the country’s Riau Islands, less than an hour’s boat ride to Singapore. For its part, Singapore still permits the import of lobster larvae, not only to meet domestic demands but also to forward them to Vietnam and China, where the larvae are raised to maturity in fish farms and tanks and sold at much higher prices. Smugglers’ most frequent tactic is to “escape from our authority by entering Singapore’s territorial waters,” Adin Nurawaluddin, director-general of marine and fisheries resources surveillance at the Indonesian fisheries ministry, said in a statement published Aug. 7. Lobsters and their larvae are among Indonesia’s top fisheries commodities. Image by Yogi Eka Sahputra/Mongabay Indonesia. The most recent case was reported in early July, when customs officers in Batam, the largest city in the Riau Islands, seized a shipment of nearly 50,000 lobster larvae, of the species Panulirus ornatus and P. homarus, bound for Singapore. The value of the shipment was estimated at 5.55 billion rupiah ($363,000). It was unclear where the larvae had come from, but authorities said they released them into the waters off Batam.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-illegal-fisheries-trade-sustainability/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/indonesia-singapore-lobster-larvae-smuggling-illegal-fisheries-trade-sustainability/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-272501</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>From grassroots to government, Singapore takes lead in tackling e-waste</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/from-grassroots-to-government-singapore-takes-lead-in-tackling-e-waste/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/from-grassroots-to-government-singapore-takes-lead-in-tackling-e-waste/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Aug 2023 15:08:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhishyant Kidangoor]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Glenn Scherer]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/08/21145453/e-waste-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=272430</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Circular economy and Product Lifecycles]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Chemicals, Community-based Conservation, E-waste, Environment, Governance, Industry, Pollution, Recycling, Sustainability, Technology, and Waste]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — If you didn’t know better, you might think Edwin Beng is heading home after buying a new appliance. It’s a muggy Sunday morning in Singapore, and Beng, carrying a signature bright blue Ikea bag in one hand, steps off the street, descends into a building basement, and enters a corner room. The vibe [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — If you didn’t know better, you might think Edwin Beng is heading home after buying a new appliance. It’s a muggy Sunday morning in Singapore, and Beng, carrying a signature bright blue Ikea bag in one hand, steps off the street, descends into a building basement, and enters a corner room. The vibe inside is cheery as Beng pulls a table fan from his bag. It’s far from new; in fact, he bought it three years ago, but it stopped working the previous week. Beng was about to throw it away when a neighbor told him about Repair Kopitiam. He decided to give the program a shot to see if it could bring the fan back to life. Repair Kopitiam (kopitiam means coffeeshop in the Malay language) isn’t an official repair center. Rather, it’s an innovative program and weekly community gathering where volunteers help fellow Singaporeans repair and reuse their electrical and electronic goods. Started in 2014, the group consists of volunteers enthusiastic about repairing things who have been trained by other volunteers with more technical expertise. A volunteer at Repair Kopitiam inspects a clock brought in for repair. Image by Abhishyant Kidangoor / Mongabay. On this day, a volunteer is focused on fixing a hair dryer. Another listens intently to a woman explaining the issues with a clock she bought in Hong Kong. Shuttling between each group is Danny Lim, overseeing the gathering. “By repairing, we take an item for which carbon is already spent during manufacture,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/from-grassroots-to-government-singapore-takes-lead-in-tackling-e-waste/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/from-grassroots-to-government-singapore-takes-lead-in-tackling-e-waste/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-272430</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Meet the tech projects competing for a $10m prize to save rainforests</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/meet-the-tech-projects-competing-for-a-10m-prize-to-save-rainforests/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/meet-the-tech-projects-competing-for-a-10m-prize-to-save-rainforests/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jun 2023 09:28:33 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhishyant Kidangoor]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhishyantkidangoor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[global forests]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/06/15081157/robot-dog-camera-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=269767</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Drones, Rainforests, Research, Robots, Technology, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — Macaques look on from trees as a round of applause breaks out. After repeated attempts, a team has managed to fly a drone and drop a sensor platform on a tree canopy. It will stay there all night to gather the sounds of wildlife in the forest. A 10-minute walk away, another sound, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — Macaques look on from trees as a round of applause breaks out. After repeated attempts, a team has managed to fly a drone and drop a sensor platform on a tree canopy. It will stay there all night to gather the sounds of wildlife in the forest. A 10-minute walk away, another sound, that of amusement, fills the air as another team attaches a hexagonal web of tapes to a drone. After the original plan to collect soil samples failed, this was the last resort. Over the course of three weeks in late May and early June, Windsor Nature Park and Central Catchment Nature Reserve in Singapore were witness to scenes like these as 13 teams from around the world displayed, tested and tweaked technological solutions as part of the semifinals of a $10 million competition. The five-year competition, currently in its penultimate year and organized by California-based nonprofit XPRIZE Foundation, aims to identify technology that can automate how scientists study and survey the world’s fast-degrading rainforests. In these semifinals, ecologists, botanists and molecular biologists have come together and collaborated with drone pilots, mechanical engineers and machine-learning experts. From robots and drones that can collect samples for DNA testing, to mobile platforms that can gather audio data from tree canopies, a wide range of technology was put on display. While a few teams managed to execute their projects as planned, many others scrambled to troubleshoot last-minute glitches. The teams that move on to the next round, expected to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/meet-the-tech-projects-competing-for-a-10m-prize-to-save-rainforests/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/meet-the-tech-projects-competing-for-a-10m-prize-to-save-rainforests/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-269767</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Competing for rainforest conservation: Q&#038;A with XPRIZE’s Kevin Marriott</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/competing-for-rainforest-conservation-qa-with-xprizes-kevin-marriott/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/competing-for-rainforest-conservation-qa-with-xprizes-kevin-marriott/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jun 2023 11:23:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhishyant Kidangoor]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhishyantkidangoor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[global forests]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/06/02100715/Kevin-Marriott_03-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=269310</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Drones, Fellows, Interviews, Interviews with conservation players, Rainforests, Research, Technology, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — It’s been a hectic few weeks for Kevin Marriott. On a humid May morning in Singapore, he shuttles between two locations at the city’s Windsor Nature Park. At one site, he looks on as a team of scientists and aviation experts get ready to launch a fleet of drones to gather information about [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — It’s been a hectic few weeks for Kevin Marriott. On a humid May morning in Singapore, he shuttles between two locations at the city’s Windsor Nature Park. At one site, he looks on as a team of scientists and aviation experts get ready to launch a fleet of drones to gather information about biodiversity from tree canopies. A 10-minute walk away, another team attempts to send a robotic dog out into the forest on its own to collect photo and audio data. The teams are among 13 projects from around the world that qualified for the semifinals of a competition with prize money of $10 million. Organized by California-based nonprofit XPRIZE Foundation, the five-year competition aims to accelerate technological solutions that will automate the monitoring and assessment of biodiversity in rainforests. As the technical lead for the competition, Marriott has been busy planning logistics and rallying the teams that are taking part. They come from around the world — Brazil, Mexico, U.K., Switzerland and elsewhere — and are given 24 hours to gather data from the forest. They get another 48 hours to analyze the data and draw conclusions about biodiversity from it. While automated collection of environmental DNA (eDNA) — the genetic material left behind by animals — seems to be the primary focus of most of the teams, others are deploying drones and robots to collect visual and audio data. “We hope the solutions provide new insights into the forest that we haven&#8217;t been able to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/competing-for-rainforest-conservation-qa-with-xprizes-kevin-marriott/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/competing-for-rainforest-conservation-qa-with-xprizes-kevin-marriott/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-269310</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Conservationists decry palm oil giants’ exit from HCSA forest protection group</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/conservationists-decry-palm-oil-giants-exit-from-hcsa-forest-protection-group/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/conservationists-decry-palm-oil-giants-exit-from-hcsa-forest-protection-group/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Mar 2023 15:27:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/01/09234259/jambi_220676-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=266210</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, Indonesia, Liberia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Business, carbon, Carbon Emissions, Climate, Climate Change, Conservation, Corporate Environmental Transgressors, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporations, Deforestation, Environment, Forest Carbon, Forest Destruction, Forests, FPIC, Palm Oil, Plantations, Rainforest Destruction, Rainforests, Supply Chain, Threats To Rainforests, Trade, Transparency, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Two major palm oil companies recently exited a committee that helps identify forest areas for protection, bringing the total number of firms quitting the framework since 2000 to four. The committee, called the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA), is a widely supported mechanism to distinguish forest areas that should be protected from degraded [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Two major palm oil companies recently exited a committee that helps identify forest areas for protection, bringing the total number of firms quitting the framework since 2000 to four. The committee, called the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA), is a widely supported mechanism to distinguish forest areas that should be protected from degraded areas that can be developed. This, environmentalists say, points to a startling industry trend in which industry giants are shirking responsibility for their harmful business practices. The two companies that recently withdrew from HCSA are Singapore-based Golden Agri-Resources (GAR), the main palm oil arm of the vast Sinar Mas conglomerate, which is owned by the billionaire Widjaja family; and IOI Corporation Berhad (IOI), one of Malaysia’s biggest conglomerates. GAR played a major role in developing the HCSA No Deforestation methodology and was a founding HSCA member. GAR chief sustainability and communications officer Anita Neville said that being a member of the HCSA is no longer necessary for the company. This is because the HCSA toolkit has been embedded into industry standards including the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification, which is the world’s largest association for ethical palm oil production, she said. The HCSA toolkit is a guidebook that provides standardized, scientifically robust and cost-effective methods for distinguishing and protecting viable forest areas. “The decision not to renew our membership was not taken lightly,” Neville told Mongabay. “However, as the HCSA evolved beyond creation and rollout of its toolkit, we saw increasing overlap with other industry bodies including&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/conservationists-decry-palm-oil-giants-exit-from-hcsa-forest-protection-group/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/conservationists-decry-palm-oil-giants-exit-from-hcsa-forest-protection-group/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-266210</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indonesian lobster larvae bound for Singapore reveal role of smuggling network</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/09/indonesian-lobster-larvae-bound-for-singapore-reveal-role-of-smuggling-network/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/09/indonesian-lobster-larvae-bound-for-singapore-reveal-role-of-smuggling-network/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Sep 2022 13:53:32 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Basten GokkonYogi Eka Sahputra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Basten Gokkon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2019/12/19025652/lobster5-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=260867</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Jakarta, Riau Islands, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Coastal Ecosystems, Conservation, Corruption, Crime, Ecosystems, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Fisheries, Fishing, Governance, Illegal Fishing, Law, Law Enforcement, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Oceans, Overfishing, Politics, Sustainability, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA/BATAM, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities are investigating a network smuggling wild-caught lobster larvae to Singapore, following the seizures of two shipments worth an estimated 33.9 billion rupiah, or about $2.2 million. “The smuggling of lobster larvae remains rampant because there’s still such high demand for it from abroad coupled with some people who really are [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA/BATAM, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities are investigating a network smuggling wild-caught lobster larvae to Singapore, following the seizures of two shipments worth an estimated 33.9 billion rupiah, or about $2.2 million. “The smuggling of lobster larvae remains rampant because there’s still such high demand for it from abroad coupled with some people who really are benefiting from the smuggling itself,” Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, the Indonesian fisheries minister, said in a statement sent to Mongabay on Sept. 28. Authorities made the first seizure, worth Rp 30 billion ($2 million), from a boat headed from Indonesia’s Riau Islands to Singapore, about an hour away, on Aug. 28. The second shipment, worth Rp 3.9 billion ($257,000), was impounded at the Jakarta international airport on Sept. 12, also destined for Singapore. In both cases, local smugglers appeared to be working with counterparts in Singapore, who had a “schedule” for deliveries into the city. Lobster larvae confiscated from a failed smuggling attempt. Image by Suryadi/Mongabay Indonesia. Hundreds of thousands of lobster larvae were confiscated from a foiled smuggling attempt in August. Image courtesy of the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries. Exports of lobster larvae were banned in 2016 by then-fisheries minister Susi Pudjiastuti in an effort to conserve the declining wild population and tackle the illegal lobster market. Susi’s successor, Edhy Prabowo, lifted the ban in May 2020, but was later jailed for taking bribes in exchange for awarding export licenses to companies controlled by his cronies. Sakti, who succeeded Edhy, reinstated the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/09/indonesian-lobster-larvae-bound-for-singapore-reveal-role-of-smuggling-network/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/09/indonesian-lobster-larvae-bound-for-singapore-reveal-role-of-smuggling-network/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-260867</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>As dry season starts in Indonesia, risk of fires — and haze — looms</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/as-dry-season-starts-in-indonesia-risk-of-fires-and-haze-looms/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/as-dry-season-starts-in-indonesia-risk-of-fires-and-haze-looms/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jul 2022 14:59:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hans Nicholas Jong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Hayat Indriyatno]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/04/26024454/indonesia-fire_RAB-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=258032</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, Kalimantan, Riau, Singapore, South Kalimantan, South Sumatra, Southeast Asia, Sumatra, and West Kalimantan]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[agribusiness, Air Pollution, Business, Corporate Environmental Transgressors, Corporations, Deforestation, Environment, Fires, Forests, Palm Oil, Peatlands, Plantations, Rainforest Destruction, Rainforests, Threats To Rainforests, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — A new analysis warns of the potential for forest fires in Indonesia that could spread smoke to neighboring countries as this year’s dry season sets in, following two years of haze-free skies across this part of Southeast Asia. In their “Haze Outlook 2022” report, researchers at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — A new analysis warns of the potential for forest fires in Indonesia that could spread smoke to neighboring countries as this year’s dry season sets in, following two years of haze-free skies across this part of Southeast Asia. In their “Haze Outlook 2022” report, researchers at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) said there’s a higher risk this year than last of the region experiencing some fires and transboundary haze. They looked at three factors — weather, policies and people — to determine that the risk comes primarily from the prospect of forest fires being set to clear land for plantations. Current record-high prices for palm oil and other forest commodities pose an incentivize for small farmers and big companies alike to expand their operations. In their report, the researchers cited an NGO warning of the potential for degraded peatlands in several provinces on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo being burned. “Fires in Riau, Jambi, and South Sumatra might reach Singapore and Peninsula Malaysia, while fires in West Kalimantan might affect air quality in East Malaysia,” the report said. “However, the NGO noted that this haze would be ‘short and limited’ compared to previous haze years.” This region of Southeast Asia has experienced several episodes of severe transboundary haze in the past, particularly in 1997/1998, 2015 and 2019, when smokes from fires in Sumatra blew across the Malacca Strait to Singapore and Malaysia, even going as far as southern Thailand, a distance of more than 600&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/as-dry-season-starts-in-indonesia-risk-of-fires-and-haze-looms/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/as-dry-season-starts-in-indonesia-risk-of-fires-and-haze-looms/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-258032</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Twenty years since a massive ivory seizure, what lessons were learned? (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/06/twenty-years-since-a-massive-ivory-seizure-what-lessons-were-learned-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/06/twenty-years-since-a-massive-ivory-seizure-what-lessons-were-learned-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jun 2022 15:33:12 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Julian Newman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2019/03/04222619/Botswana-Elephants-Linyanti-Drinking-Herd-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=257709</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, China, Malawi, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Southern Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Commentary, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environmental Law, Illegal Trade, Ivory, Law, Law Enforcement, Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In late June 2002, the container ship MOL Independence docked at a Singapore port after a voyage of almost a month from Durban in South Africa. On board was a consignment which had been on a far longer journey. Beginning in an industrial area on the outskirts of Lilongwe, the capital of land-locked Malawi in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In late June 2002, the container ship MOL Independence docked at a Singapore port after a voyage of almost a month from Durban in South Africa. On board was a consignment which had been on a far longer journey. Beginning in an industrial area on the outskirts of Lilongwe, the capital of land-locked Malawi in southern Africa, the container was taken by road to the port of Beira in neighboring Mozambique and loaded onto a feeder vessel to Durban. According to the Bill of Lading, its contents were stone sculptures. Acting on a tip-off from my organization, London-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), Singapore customs officers inspected the container and discovered more than 6.2 tons of elephant ivory. At the time, it was the largest seizure of its kind since the international ban on the ivory trade had come into force in 1989 and the lessons learned from it would change the way the illegal wildlife trade was investigated and tackled, evolving from simple seizures and the arrests of any low-ranking criminals to much wider-reaching investigations led by gathered intelligence. Some of the ivory discovered in the ‘Singapore seizure’ of 2002. Photo courtesy of Singapore Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA). Unfortunately, the abject failure by authorities at both the source and destination countries to properly investigate and prosecute the case allowed the transnational wildlife trafficking syndicate behind the shipment to emerge largely unscathed. It was able to regroup and, through various incarnations, continued to use Malawi as its base of operations&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/06/twenty-years-since-a-massive-ivory-seizure-what-lessons-were-learned-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-257709</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Singapore, a forensics lab wields CSI-like tech against wildlife traffickers</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/in-singapore-a-forensics-lab-wields-csi-like-tech-against-wildlife-traffickers/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/in-singapore-a-forensics-lab-wields-csi-like-tech-against-wildlife-traffickers/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 May 2022 08:31:33 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Claire Turrell]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jeremy Hance]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/05/13075628/A-dog-from-the-K9-Unit-undergoing-training-with-test-bags-that-resemble-luggage-bags-on-a-conveyer-belt_Credit-NParks-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=255804</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Conservation Technology, Crime, DNA, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Illegal Logging, Illegal Trade, Innovation, International Trade, Ivory, Poaching, Research, Science, Technology, timber trade, Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[“Initially we were all excited because we had intercepted a record-breaking ivory shipment,” says veterinarian Charlene Fernandez of Singapore’s new Centre for Wildlife Forensics. “But when we started carrying the tusks one by one into this room to process, everyone suddenly became very quiet. A lot of the researchers started leaving the room as they [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[“Initially we were all excited because we had intercepted a record-breaking ivory shipment,” says veterinarian Charlene Fernandez of Singapore’s new Centre for Wildlife Forensics. “But when we started carrying the tusks one by one into this room to process, everyone suddenly became very quiet. A lot of the researchers started leaving the room as they couldn’t take the sight of the elephant graveyard in front of them.” After a decade of working in veterinary pathology, it was the first time that the Cornell alumna had seen anything so upsetting. In July 2019, authorities in Singapore had seized 8.8 metric tons of ivory en route to Vietnam aboard a shipment from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Now, following the opening of the center in August 2021, it was the job of Fernandez’s team to analyze it. What they didn’t realize at that time was that their work would become part of a breakthrough study, which used the same mode of forensic science adopted to arrest the Golden State Killer. The U.S. serial killer and rapist, who was arrested in 2018 and sentenced in 2020, was caught by using technology to trace family trees. But instead of serial killers, the Singapore wildlife center’s DNA findings would be used to catch poachers. A researcher extracting the DNA from samples in the Centre for Wildlife Forensics. Image courtesy of NParks. One-third of the world’s shipping containers pass through the port of Singapore, so the city-state’s anti-poaching efforts are key in the fight against wildlife&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/in-singapore-a-forensics-lab-wields-csi-like-tech-against-wildlife-traffickers/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-255804</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Study finds major brands selling cat food that contain protected sharks</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/03/study-finds-major-brands-selling-cat-food-that-contain-protected-sharks/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/03/study-finds-major-brands-selling-cat-food-that-contain-protected-sharks/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Mar 2022 15:26:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Elizabeth Claire Alberts]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Elizabethalberts]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/03/09151747/5594857346_9485e9c6c7_k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=253541</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Singapore]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Business, DNA, Ecosystems, Elasmobranchs, Global Environmental Crisis, Marine, Marine Animals, Marine Conservation, Pets, Science, Sharks, Species, and Technology]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Shark meat from vulnerable species is being processed into cat food for major brands, according to a new study. Researchers from the National University of Singapore used DNA barcoding technology to analyze 144 samples from 45 cat food products that were produced by 16 different brands in Thailand and sold in Singapore. They found that [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Shark meat from vulnerable species is being processed into cat food for major brands, according to a new study. Researchers from the National University of Singapore used DNA barcoding technology to analyze 144 samples from 45 cat food products that were produced by 16 different brands in Thailand and sold in Singapore. They found that 31% of the samples contained shark meat. The most common shark found in cat food was the blue shark (Prionace glauca), a species that isn’t protected under CITES, the international convention on the wildlife trade, but that research suggests is overexploited. The other species discovered in the products were silky sharks (Carcharhinus falciformis) and whitetip reef sharks (Triaenodon obesus), both of which are listed as “vulnerable” by the IUCN, the global conservation authority. Silky sharks are also protected under CITES Appendix II, which regulates trade through a set of conditions. However, none of the cat food products were accurately labeled as containing shark meat. Instead, they used generic terms like “ocean fish,” “white fish” and “white bait,” the researchers said. Leading brands such as Fancy Feast, Whiskas, and Sheba were among those found to contain shark meat, including CITES-protected silky sharks. Blue shark off southern California. Image by Mark Conlin/NMFS via WIkimedia Commons (public domain). “It is likely that many pet owners who are broadly interested in conservation, or more specifically in the protection of sharks, are unaware that they may be inadvertently feeding endangered species of sharks to their pets,” the authors write. Co-author&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/03/study-finds-major-brands-selling-cat-food-that-contain-protected-sharks/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-253541</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Want a wild bird on the hush-hush in Singapore? There’s a Facebook group for that</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2021/12/want-a-wild-bird-on-the-hush-hush-in-singapore-theres-a-facebook-group-for-that/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2021/12/want-a-wild-bird-on-the-hush-hush-in-singapore-theres-a-facebook-group-for-that/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Dec 2021 15:09:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sheryl Lee Tian Tong]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sheryl Lee Tian Tong]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2021/12/20150301/sc2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=250877</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Wild Bird Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Singapore]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Birds, Business, Conservation, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Governance, Law Enforcement, Poaching, Social Media, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Singapore’s live bird trade is thriving on Facebook largely unlicensed, according to a new report from watchdog group TRAFFIC, which notes the persistence of the illicit pet trade despite clampdowns by local authorities and calls for a compulsory wildlife-pet registration system. Researchers tracked 44 Singapore-based Facebook groups selling wildlife between December 2018 and April 2019, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Singapore’s live bird trade is thriving on Facebook largely unlicensed, according to a new report from watchdog group TRAFFIC, which notes the persistence of the illicit pet trade despite clampdowns by local authorities and calls for a compulsory wildlife-pet registration system. Researchers tracked 44 Singapore-based Facebook groups selling wildlife between December 2018 and April 2019, and counted 662 unique traders, most of them unlicensed and therefore acting illegally. They recorded 3,354 live animals for sale, 99% of them birds. Some of these birds had been smuggled from abroad or poached locally, they found. Although 13 of these groups were shut down by Singapore’s National Parks Board (NParks) and Facebook, five have resurfaced as of April 2021, the report said. “These observations point towards the persistent behaviour of online traders and buyers to circumvent regulatory actions, and the continued usage and relevance of online platforms in the trade of live birds in Singapore,” the researchers wrote. Screenshot of group administrators indicating awareness of regulatory actions carried out by Facebook to suspend or close groups and accounts trading wildlife, and their workarounds to circumvent the ban. Image courtesy of TRAFFIC. Singapore’s efforts to target the illicit wildlife pet trade have so far focused on monitoring and enforcement actions at the trader level instead of imposing licensing requirements at the consumer level, the report said. Pet shops, breeders and importers must be licensed to sell wildlife, which must come from legal sources, and which is mostly limited to birds and a small number&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/12/want-a-wild-bird-on-the-hush-hush-in-singapore-theres-a-facebook-group-for-that/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-250877</doi>				</item>
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