A lone Dayak village in Borneo surrounded by palm oil plantations has held out for 14 years and resisted
corporate infiltration by global palm oil giants. My name is Dr Setia Budhi, I am a Dayak ethnographer and human rights advocate. I visited this village recently to see how they were going.
Tag Archives: Borneo
Mel Lumby: The beautiful begonias of Borneo and beyond deserve our love and protection
Begonias, along with orangutans and many other rainforest inhabitants are in danger now. Will these precious jewels of the jungle be located by scientists, described, eventually named and shared, so that people can love and marvel at their incredible beauty? Or will the bulldozer get there first, destroying where they live, making way to plant oil palm plantations for cheap palm oil? Retired horticulturalist and animal advocate Mel Lumby will keep fighting for as long as she lives.
A ‘mystery monkey’ in Borneo may be a rare hybrid between a Proboscis Monkey and Silvery Lutung
A new study has found that fragmentation of forests in Malaysian Borneo due to palm oil and mining has pressured two species of monkey (the Proboscis Monkey and Silvered Leaf Monkey/Silvery Lutung) to mate causing an unusual hybrid offspring. This has scientists worried as it indicates the animals are under stress
PepsiCo
Despite decades of promises to end deforestation for palm oil PepsiCo (owner of crisp brands Frito-Lay and Doritos amongst hundreds of other snack food brands) have continued sourcing palm oil that causes ecocide, indigenous landgrabbing, and the habitat destruction of the rarest animals on earth. All of these animals are on a knife-edge of survival.Continue reading “PepsiCo”
Procter & Gamble
Despite decades of promises to end deforestation for palm oil Procter & Gamble or (P&G as they are also known) have continued sourcing palm oil that causes ecocide, indigenous landgrabbing, and the habitat destruction of the rarest animals on earth. All of these animals are on a knife-edge of survival. It is for this reason,Continue reading “Procter & Gamble”
The Orangutan with the golden hair: A short story by Setia Budhi @setiabudhi18
He’s a golden haired orangutan, at least that’s what the villagers called him…. He is a male of the species of Pongo pygmaeus. This orangutan appears all the time on the slopes of the Müller Mountains, located 10,000 meters from the Mantikip Dayak village in the lush green heart of Borneo. News spreads rapidly throughoutContinue reading “The Orangutan with the golden hair: A short story by Setia Budhi @setiabudhi18”
Dayak Indigenous Ethnographer Dr Setia Budhi: In His Own Words
Dr Setia Budhi is a senior lecturer in Anthropology and Sociology at Universitas Lambung Mangkurat. He is an indigenous advocate, forest conservationist and a research specialist in Dayak ethnography in South, Central and East Kalimantan. He completed his PhD in 2010 at UKM Malaysia under the supervision of Prof. Awang Hasmadi Awang Moeis and Prof. Aishah Bt Mohamed. He now serves as Head of the Sociology Department and a member of the Indonesian Anthropology Association of South Kalimantan-Indonesia.
His research relates to the Dayak people and impact of socio-cultural changes, exploitation of natural resources and modernisation on their lives. In particular, he investigates how the depletion of the forest affects the availability of food sources for Indigenous Dayak peoples.
Marbled Cat Pardofelis marmorata
Marbled Cat Pardofelis marmorata Bangladesh; Bhutan; Brunei Darussalam; Cambodia; China; India; Indonesia (Kalimantan, Sumatera); Lao People’s Democratic Republic; Malaysia (Sarawak, Sabah, Peninsular Malaysia); Myanmar; Nepal; Thailand; Vietnam Near Threatened Southeast Asia has one of the highest and fastest deforestation rates mainly due to logging and forest conversion for human settlements, agriculture, oil palm, coffee, rubberContinue reading “Marbled Cat Pardofelis marmorata”
The Stealth and Beauty of the Clouded Leopard
Beautiful and unique Clouded Leopards are #endangered by #palmoil, #meat #mining #deforestation and human persecution across their range. Help them every time you shop and be #vegan, #Boycottpalmoil and #Boycott4wildlife
Bearded Pig Sus barbatus
Bearded pigs have hair which grows along their jowls and resembles a beard giving them their namesake. They live in forests, swamplands and mangroves. Tragically they are now extinct in Singapore and Philippines. They are vulnerable in Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia due to palm oil and rubber deforestation and human persecution. Help them every time you shop and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife
Bornean Gibbon Hylobates muelleri
Bornean Gibbon Hylobates muelleri Endangered Borneo The Bornean Gibbon, also known as the Gray Gibbon or the Mueller’s Gibbon belongs to the genus Hylobates. The word Hylobates means ‘Forest Walker’ in Greek. The gibbons in this genus are known for the white circle of fur around their faces. They are known to communicate in species-specificContinue reading “Bornean Gibbon Hylobates muelleri”
Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi
Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi Endangered Malaysia, Borneo, Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand The Storm’s Stork occurs at low densities in large, undisturbed blocks of level lowland forest, particularly freshwater and peat-swamp forests, on the floodplains of large rivers. They also frequent disturbed, recently burned and logged areas, and occasionally areas subject to tidal movements, although these mayContinue reading “Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi”
Masked Finfoot Heliopais personatus
Masked Finfoot Heliopais personatus Endangered Borneo, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Bangladesh, India, Singapore The Masked Finfoot lives principally in rivers in lowland riverine forest including mangroves, but has been recorded in coastal and inland wetlands, such as tidal creeks, flooded forest, swamps and lakes (rarely reservoirs or industrial pools on passage). OneContinue reading “Masked Finfoot Heliopais personatus”
Bornean Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron schleiermacheri
Bornean Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron schleiermacheri Endangered Indonesia (Kalimantan); Malaysia (Borneo) The ecological needs of the Bornean Peacock-pheasant are poorly understood. Analyses using geographical information systems (GIS) indicate that they live in the lowland plain and lowland dipterocarp forest on moderately fertile soils, probably avoiding wetter substrates in swamp-forest or near water-bodies. A recent study further confirmedContinue reading “Bornean Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron schleiermacheri”
Bornean Ferret Badger Melogale everetti
Bornean Ferret Badger Melogale everetti Endangered Location: Borneo, Malaysia (Sabah) All records of Bornean Ferret Badger seem to come from within evergreen hill and montane forest or adjacent scrubland. J.A. Eaton (pers. comm. 2014) saw one along a main road through shrubby secondary regrowth between two villages, but this was only a couple of hundred metres from tallContinue reading “Bornean Ferret Badger Melogale everetti”
Bornean Rainbow Toad Ansonia latidisca
Bornean Rainbow Toad Ansonia latidisca Endangered Indonesia (Kalimantan); Malaysia (Sarawak) The Bornean Rainbow Toad lives in primary, hilly montane rainforest. Individuals are entirely arboreal, except juveniles that have been found near permanent streams. They are speculated that this species spawns in streams and have torrent-adapted tadpoles. If they are similar to other members of its genus,Continue reading “Bornean Rainbow Toad Ansonia latidisca”
Borneo Bay Cat Catopuma badia
Borneo Bay Cat Catopuma badia Endangered Indonesia, Malaysia Brunei (Presence unknown) The Borneo Bay Cat appears to be forest dependent, with records from hill and lowland forest as well as swamp forest (Meijaard 1997, Azlan et al. 2003, Hearn 2003, Bricknell 2003, Azlan and Sanderson 2007, Yasuda et al. 2007, Sastramidjaja et al. in press,Continue reading “Borneo Bay Cat Catopuma badia”
Bornean Banded Langur Presbytis chrysomelas
Bornean Banded Langur Presbytis chrysomelas Critically Endangered Brunei; Indonesia (Kalimantan); Malaysia (Sarawak) The Bornean Banded Langur is found in swamp and lowland forests, as well as mangrove. The average size of groups is around 3-7 individuals (J. Hon pers. Comm). This species of Langur is listed as Critically Endangered as it is only known fromContinue reading “Bornean Banded Langur Presbytis chrysomelas”
Sumatran Mesia Leiothrix laurinae
Sumatran Mesia Leiothrix laurinae Endangered Indonesia (Sumatra) A species of bird that lives in montane evergreen forest in Sumatra, Indonesia. The species has undergone a very rapid decline across the majority of their range due to trapping for the cage bird trade along with habitat loss. The species is now absent from sites at whichContinue reading “Sumatran Mesia Leiothrix laurinae”
Sumatran Leafbird Chloropsis media
Sumatran Leafbird Chloropsis media Endangered Indonesia The Sumatran Leafbird occurs in the middle and upper strata of lowland evergreen forest in Sumatra, Indonesia, in secondary forest, plantations and village orchards from 600-1000 m. The population is considered to be declining at a rapid rate due to trapping for the cage bird trade in conjunction withContinue reading “Sumatran Leafbird Chloropsis media”
Palm Oil Detectives 