Indigenous reps at COP27 say we are “horrifyingly far from our goals” if what is happening on the ground continues to be ignored Last month, a coalition of NGOs submitted a complaint to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) against Malaysian timber giant Samling. The 40+ page report chronicles allegations from more than a dozen Indigenous Sarawakian communities. Their claims are backed up by evidence spanning five years of encroachment.

Evidence shows that in August 2021, Samling began building a logging road on Long Pakan land and removing trees to prepare for its logging operations, despite the community at large staunchly opposing the operation. Community members were quick to file a report with the police. When that went nowhere, they…

Last month, Indigenous Penan and Kenyah communities of the Baram and Limbang rivers lodged official complaints to the Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC) outlining alleged breaches of its scheme by timber giant Samling. …

For the second time this year, the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah have been hit by devastating floods. …

On a field visit to the Baram region of Malaysia’s Sarawak state on the island of Borneo, we approach the Penan village of Long Sepigen. Like most villages of the Penan people, Long Sepigen is only accessible on foot or by boat. We’re here as part of a team from…

Communities in Sarawak are in a David and Goliath battle to safeguard some of the richest carbon and biodiversity stocks left on the planet. — A wild boar hightails it into the forest as we approach the village of Long Tungan in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. In the driver’s seat of our Hilux, Erang says that if his gun had been within reach he could have given the beastie a run for its money. …

As leaders in tropical rainforest destruction, Malaysia and Indonesia are in the hot seat for our collective planetary health. Assigning responsibility for the coronavirus pandemic is a tricky business. With over 200,000 global deaths by the end of April 2020, we are collectively despairing. …

Rainforest destruction continues while indigenous conservation leaders are in lockdown. In the Sungai Asap settlement in Sarawak, social distancing is near impossible. This ramshackle town 2 hours east of Bintulu is home to thousands of indigenous people displaced in the early 2000s to make way for a mega-dam. …

Want to prevent toxic haze? Start by supporting frontline campaigns Clouds of toxic haze are drifting across the Malaysian peninsula once again, in the worst uncontrolled burnoff since 2015. Like the Amazon, these smog-belching fires are deliberately lit for agricultural purposes. …