Hi!
This week’s lead is a very interesting piece on philanthropists and conservation. I came across quite a bit of this during my trip to Raja Ampat, and the story is well worth a read.
As I mentioned last week, Talking Travel Writing are in the midst of running a four-part series I wrote for them about sustainable tourism and travel writing—you can see the first one here, and the second (paid subs only) is here, next one out tomorrow! They’re also running a travel writing retreat which may be of interest—if travel writing is your thing. You can sign up for either their free- or paid-newsletters via the prompt below.
My Raja Ampat trip is sadly done and dusted—what a place! If you have a chance to get out to that part of the world, particularly if you dive, jump at it. This week’s cuscus pics are from there—last ones I promise!
Cheers
Stuart
Cuscus o’clock
Take my word for it, cuscus like bananas. Photo: Stuart McDonald.
⭐️ Story of the week
📚 What I’m reading
To The Lake by Kapka Kassabova (Still—hey, I’ve been diving!)
🇲🇲 Burma
No Homecoming For Many This Thingyan from Frontier Myanmar ($)
Looking to book your transport online when you’re on the road in Southeast Asia? For Vietnam, look no further than Baolau. For the rest of the region, 12Go should be your first port of call.
🇰🇭 Cambodia
‘Everywhere Is Broken’: How Land Grabs In Cambodia Are Demolishing Lives from The Guardian
Lost Lands: Andy Ball Photographs The Devastating Impact Of Sand Mining In Cambodia from Far Out Magazine
Ad: Phnom Penh’s Penh House, from US$70 per night. Click here for the details.
🌴 Environment
Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition Partnership Must Increase Transparency (Commentary) from Mongabay
Is Traveling To Antarctica Environmentally Defensible? from Sierra Club
What Are Green Buildings And How Can They Help South Asia Address The Climate Crisis? from The Third Pole
🇮🇩 Indonesia
Indonesia Considers Tourist Tax To Curb Bad Behaviour In Bali from The Guardian
An Influx Of Russian Visitors Fleeing Vladimir Putin's War Has Changed The Dynamic In Bali from ABC
Bali Is Overrun By Influencers. Locals Are Fighting Back from Financial Review ($)
Exposed: The Links Between Indonesia’s Deforestation And Xinjiang from Aljazeera
Indonesian Soldier Killed During Operation To Free Pilot In Papua from Benar News
🇱🇦 Laos
Southeast Asia’s “battery” Laos Embraces Wind Power To Sustain Energy Exports from Nikkei Asia ($)
Laos Celebrates New Year In Full Tilt With Pandemic Precautions Aside from SEAGlobe ($)
Laos-China Railway Launches Crossborder Passenger Service from The Diplomat
Looking for deals on organised tours? Here are a few for Southeast Asia via Travelfish partner GetYourGuide.
Cambodia
Up to 15% off a full-day trip Angkor Wat’s Kulen Waterfall.Indonesia
Up to 15% off a tour to Merapi, Borobudur and Prambanan.Malaysia
Up to 10% off a bicycle tour of Kuala Lumpur’s old city.Thailand
Up to 30% off a 4-hour tour of Bangkok’s Chinatown.Vietnam
Up to 50% off a one-day Hạ Long Bay tour.
🇲🇾 Malaysia
In Malaysia, Conservative Forces And Police Crackdowns Are Putting LGBTQ Lives At Risk from The Diplomat
🇸🇬 Singapore
11 Unexpected Places For Hiking And Trails In Singapore from Coconuts Singapore
Art SG Propels Singapore To Creative Big Leagues from Nikkei Asia ($)
🇹🇭 Thailand
T.I.D.: Intro To The Upper Gulf of Thailand from Thai Island Quest
Thailand’s Right-Wing Parties: Keeping Democracy Close But Its Enemies Closer from Fulcrum
Ad: Bangkok’s Sala Arun from US$73 per night. Click here for the details.
🇻🇳 Vietnam
Tourists Complain As Trash Washes Up In Ha Long Bay from VNExpress
Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay Grapples With Floating Styrofoam Buoys from Tuoi Tre News
Random other stuff
Do Tourism Pledges Work To Change The Way We Travel? from NZ Herald
How To Tell If A Travel Company Is Really Following Sustainable Practices from Travel Pulse
Travel Writing from Place Writing
The Next Singapore from Future Southeast Asia
Poised to leap
Picture blurry as I was sure was about to leap onto me (it didn’t). Photo: Stuart McDonald.
See you next week!
So that’s the wrap. I hope you are all in good health, and thanks for reading.
Cheers!
Stuart
Stuart, I looked up the recommended 12GO App on the Google Play Store. The app is not supported on Android 13. FYI
Needs more cuscus!