Tag: Environment
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Pinang Island is a private island that costs $1,000 per night
When Richard Kvech first set foot on Pinang four years ago, a dilapidated bungalow used by passing fishermen was the only sign of human life on the island. Kvech and three friends, all from the Czech Republic, slept in hammocks and cooked on the beach, while dreaming of creating an eco-retreat on the 50-hectare Indonesian…
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Philippines surpasses China to be most dependent on coal-generated power
Coal-fired power plants in Mariveles, Bataan, the Philippines, on June 6, 2023. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images The Philippines’ dependency on coal-fired power surged 62% last year, overtaking China, Indonesia and Poland, according to London-based energy think-tank Ember. The Philippines was also the most coal-dependent country in Southeast Asia in 2023, as adoption of…
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What is civet coffee? PETA issues a new warning to Bali tourists
If the idea of drinking civet cat coffee, which is made from feces from the Asian palm civet, is a turn-off, there may be yet another reason to rethink the drink. This week, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) issued a warning aimed at tourists in Bali after an investigator showed undercover footage…
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Economy, Gaza war and China ties dominate
Presidential candidates Anies Baswedan, Prabowo Subianto, and Ganjar Pranowo, along with their vice presidential candidates, are posing for photos after the first presidential candidate debate at the General Election Commission (KPU) office in Jakarta, Indonesia, on December 12, 2023. Indonesia is preparing to hold general elections for president and vice president for the 2024-2029 period…
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More bodies found after sudden eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Marapi, raising confirmed death toll to 22
Family members carry the body of Muhammad Alfikri, 19, a Mount Marapi eruption victim, in Bandar Buat, Padang, West Sumatra province, Indonesia, December 5, 2023, in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Antara Foto | Via Reuters Rescuers searching the hazardous slopes of Indonesia’s Mount Marapi volcano found 11 more bodies of climbers who were…
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Southeast Asia haze returns as peatland fires fan global warming fears
In this photo taken on Oct. 10, 2023, a man looks at a forest fire as it approaches houses in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra in Indonesia. Al Zulkifli | AFP | Getty Images With El Nino in full force, officials are bracing for the worst transboundary haze in southern Southeast Asia since before the pandemic…
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Global rice markets are in crisis amid ‘artificial’ shortage
Rice is a crucial staple for over half the global population and the world is bracing for its most significant shortage in 20 years. India’s export ban on rice is reverberating through global rice markets, threatening food security if developing nations cannot afford or access rice. “The only shortage out there right now would really…
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Southeast Asia looks to renewable power for energy security
The floating solar photovoltaic power plant by EDPR Sunseap Group, a unit of Energias de Portugal SA, in Woodlands, in Singapore, on Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2022. Bryan van der Beek | Bloomberg | Getty Images Southeast Asia is home to some of the world’s fastest-growing economies. As energy demand grows, the region is turning to…
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Cocoa farmers face mounting challenges as El Nino rages on
A woman spreads cocoa beans during the sun-drying process in the backyard of her house in Asikasu, Ghana on December 19, 2020. Cristina Aldehuela | Afp | Getty Images El Nino is here to stay — and that’s bad news for cocoa crops which are highly sensitive to weather changes. Frequent extreme weather events caused…
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Indonesia’s China-backed high-speed train sparks concerns of debt trap
Indonesia is starting trial runs for its first high-speed train, which will connect the capital Jakarta to a neighboring city of Bandung, after years of delays and cost overruns plagued the project. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images A $7.3 billion high-speed electric rail line between Indonesia’s two biggest cities is set to be launched…