founder's blog News

Last week I received the Parker/Gentry Award for Conservation from the Field Museum. Several people have asked about my award acceptance speech, so I've included the introduction and the conclusion…

Global Forest Watch image showing forest loss near Lake Toba in North Sumatra. This map was used for a story about a conflict between a local community and an industrial…

Dr. Jane Goodall, primatologist, ethologist, and anthropologist, with a chimpanzee in her arms, c. 1995. Image Credit: Apic/Getty Images Primatologist and conservation legend Jane Goodall turns 80 today. In recognition…

APP One Year Forest Conservation Policy Anniversary event Today I moderated a panel at Asia Pulp & Paper's one year anniversary event of its forest conservation policy. Briefly, the policy…

Rainforest in Sumatra For the past decade and a half, Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) has been one of the most controversial paper producers on the planet. Environmentalists, human rights…

Community embraces ecotourism instead of deforestation for palm oil. Community-based Borneo rainforest tourism at its best Replacing rainforests and peatlands with oil palm plantations is ecologically devastating at the local…

South African sunset over the savanna Several people have asked me what became of Mongabay's 'Innovation in Conservation' award, which was granted each December between 2007 and 2012. The answer…

Transitioning to a non-profit model means that I'm spending less and less time working in the field these days, but I still managed take some photos in 2013, adding more…

The map does not distinguish between natural forests and plantations, but the underlying database will support the development of additional layers, which can be used to create masks for oil…

Last week the Mongabay.org board unanimously voted in favor of a motion to shift Mongabay's news production — news.mongabay.com — from the traditional for-profit entity to the non-profit organization formed…

Last month I had the great fortune of going on safari for a couple of days in South Africa. But I also had the misfortunate of witnessing the horror of…

One of the coolest endeavors I've come across in recent years of reporting has been the effort to develop "conservation drones" — model aircraft that are now being used to…

When I launched Mongabay in 1999 I had no idea it would grow into what it is today: a site that draws more than 2.5 million visitors per month and…

My apologies for the lack of blog updates. Between long-term projects and building up Mongabay.org--the non-profit arm of Mongabay--I haven't had the opportunity to post lately. However I'm happy to…

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the Costa Rican Amphibian Research Center (CRARC) outside of Siquirres in Limón Province, Costa Rica. I'll be doing a feature story on…

Gone are the days where I can spend a week trekking in the forest without communication, letting Mongabay.com run itself. But the good news (or bad news, depending on how…

When most people think of rainforests, the first thing that comes to mind is tropical rainforests like those found in the Amazon, Borneo, and the Congo. But rainforests also exist…

Yesterday I gave a talk at Cisco Systems in San Jose on "How Technology is Helping Save Rainforests". Here's a brief recap. After giving background on Mongabay, I provided a…

NOTE: This post refers to starting up an organization in a marginal niche market: environmental media. The advice may not apply if you're working in a potentially lucrative sector like…

Every month I tally the most popular articles on the news section. It should come as no surprise that the most popular articles are usually the ones that have done…

On my way back from the visit to the Katingan peat swamp in Central Kalimantan, I stayed a night at the "Eco Village" that is part of the Rungan Sari…

Just over a year ago, the Indonesian-language version of Mongabay went live (the official launch was May 19. 2012, but the site was live before that). Mongabay.co.id was the first…

In recent days several readers have asked about the status of the pictures from Aceh and Kalimantan I took last month. Well the pictures are all technically online, but aren't…

In November 2012 I had an amazing opportunity to do a flyover of parts of Sabah in Malaysian Borneo. We went from Sandakan to the Danum Valley Research Center, flying…

The palm oil industry in Indonesia gets a lot of criticism these days from civil society on issues ranging from deforestation, pollution, wildlife-killing, to social conflict. Writing for Mongabay, I…

While directly reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a far more effective approach to fighting climate change than "offsetting" them by buying carbon credits, I readily acknowledge that I'm presently not…

There is a common misconception that my reporting trips are sponsored by NGOs, state tourism boards, or other entities. In fact, I fund Mongabay.com-related travel through revenue generated via advertising…

I'm frequently asked how I go about making my travel arrangements. Well the answer is it takes a great deal of time to research and make logistical arrangements for some…

In March 2013 I visited Aceh Province on the western tip of the island of Sumatra for the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation - Asia Chapter meeting. Most of…

Many of the emails I receive include questions about my travels. How did you get there? Where did you stay? How did you find a guide? What did you see?…