How #Australia combines modern tech and #IndigenousKnowledge to fight #wildfires

by Lana Lam, 1 August 2026

Excerpt: "Yebra has spearheaded an innovative project, bringing together millennia-old knowledge in Australia's #Indigenous communities with cutting-edge #SatelliteImagery to help detect where fires are most likely to break out.

The satellite images pick up the 'fuel moisture content' in the landscape, which signals where there might be a large amount of fuel, such as dry leaves, grass, shrubs and bark. But such data provides just one part of a bigger picture.

"That's where the likes of Adrian Webster come in.

"Growing up on the south coast of New South Wales (NSW), Webster learnt how to read the environment or 'country' - the term Indigenous Australians use for their ancestral homeland – from his elders.

"Using Indigenous ecological knowledge – a plant's colour and scent, for example, or the shade cover of trees - he can verify information in the satellite images from Yebra's team.

" 'She had all this amazing data, but there was no translation to what it meant on the ground, so it was kind of useless,' he explains.

" 'But through an Indigenous perspective, it was not useless. It was a map that could guide you through the country and, if you understood it, take you directly into a place that is ready to burn.'

"For Webster, assessing the land involves him 'literally digging and going underground,' he says.

" 'We're looking at the subsurface level and then everything from that up beyond the canopy.'

"Yebra said there was a 'remarkable agreement' between Webster's local knowledge and the satellite data, demonstrating the combined value of Indigenous expertise and Western science."

Read more:
bbc.com/news/articles/czdmvr98…

Archived version:
archive.ph/CtF6c

#SolarPunkSunday #ClimateChange #WildfirePrevention #Australia #IndigenousKnowledge #Science #TraditionalEcologicalKnowledge

Native Knowledge: What Ecologists Are Learning from Indigenous People

From Alaska to Australia, scientists are turning to the knowledge of traditional people for a deeper understanding of the natural world. What they are learning is helping them discover more about everything from melting Arctic ice, to protecting fish stocks, to controlling wildfires.

By Jim Robbins • April 26, 2018

Excerpt: "The #Skolt #Sami people of #Finland, for example, participated in a study that was published in the journal Science last year, which adopted indicators of #EnvironmentalChanges based on #TEK. The Sami have seen and documented a decline in salmon in the #NäätämöRiver, for instance. Now, based on their knowledge, they are adapting – reducing the number of seine nets they use to catch fish, restoring spawning sites, and also taking more pike, which prey on young salmon, as part of their catch. The project is part of a co-management process between the Sami and the government of Finland.

"The project has also gathered information from the Sami about insects, which are temperature dependent and provide an important indicator of a changing Arctic. The Sami have witnessed dramatic changes in the range of insects that are making their way north. The scarbaeid beetle, for example, was documented by Sami people as the invader arrived in the forests of Finland and Norway, far north of its customary range. It has also become part of the Sami oral history.

"It’s not only in the Arctic. Around the world there are efforts to make use of traditional wisdom to gain a better and deeper understanding of the planet – and there is sometimes a lot at stake."

Read more:
e360.yale.edu/features/native-…

#SolarPunkSunday #Science #TraditionalKnowledge #Biodiversity #ForestGardeners #Australia #IndigenousPeoples #IndigenousKnowledge #TraditionalEcologicalKnowledge #TEK

Indigenous Peoples Fight Climate Change

In the wake of the worst wildfires in living memory in Mexico and Central America in 2024, news outlets were looking for someone to blame. Howler monkeys and many species of parrots perished in the blazes. Slash and burn farming practices by Belize‘s indigenous communities were singled out as a primary cause. Yet this knee-jerk reaction is not evidence based and doesn’t take into account forces like corporate landgrabbing for mining and agribusinesses like meat, soy and palm oil.

Belize’s indigenous Maya communities are rebuilding stronger based on the collective notion of se’ komonil: reciprocity, solidarity, traditional knowledge, gender equity, togetherness and community.

In the wake of horrific #wildfires in #Belize and #Mexico caused by #climatechange, #indigenous #Maya are rebuilding using the notion of se’ komonil: reciprocity #community and solidarity. #indigenousrights #landrights #BoycottPalmOil @palmoildetect wp.me/pcFhgU-924

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Written by James Stinson, Senior Research Associate and Evaluation Specialist, Young Lives Research Lab, Faculty of Education, York University, Canada and Lee Mcloughlin, PhD student, Global Sociocultural Studies, Florida International University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Driven by extreme heat and drought, some of the worst wildfires in living memory raged across Mexico and Central America through April and May 2024.

News agencies reported howler monkeys dropping dead from trees, and parrots and other birds falling from the skies.

In Belize, a state of emergency was declared as wildfires burned tens of thousands of hectares of highly bio-diverse forest. Farmers suffered huge losses as fires destroyed crops and homes, and communities across the country suffered from hazardous air quality and hot, sleepless nights. Many risked their lives to fight off the approaching fires.

As the wildfire crisis subsided with rains in June, public attention shifted toward identifying the causes and allocating blame. Many singled out the “slash and burn” farming practices in Belize’s Indigenous communities as the primary cause. This simple knee-jerk reaction ignores the underlying causes of the climate crisis, are scientifically unfounded and stoke resentment of Indigenous Peoples.
Young Mayan women. Image source: Wikipedia

Fanning the flames

On June 5, one of Belize’s major news networks ran a story with the headline “Are Primitive Farming Techniques Responsible for Wildfires?” The story placed blame for Belize’s wildfires on “slash-and-burn farming”, arguing that “there has to be a shift away from this destructive means of agriculture.”

The story was followed by an op-ed published online asserting that “because of the increased amounts of escaped agricultural fires, aided by climate change, global warming and drought, slash and burn has become more of a problem than the solution it once was.” This sentiment was further reinforced by Belize’s prime minister, who declared that “slash аnd burn has to be something of the past.”

While some of the recent fires in Belize were connected to agricultural burning — and poorly managed fire-clearing practices can have negative air-quality impacts — blaming “slash and burn” for the wildfire crisis ignores the larger context and conditions that made it possible, namely global warming.

May 2024 was the hottest and driest month in Belize’s history. This extreme heat is part of a broader global trend, with June 2024 marking the 13th consecutive “hottest month on record” globally.

More fundamentally, these statements confuse other forms of slash-and-burn agriculture with the distinct “milpa” systems employed by Indigenous people in Belize.

Indigenous knowledge undermined

Throughout Belize, Indigenous Maya farmers commonly practise a form of agriculture referred to as milpa in which fire is used to clear fields and fertilize the soil. Within this system, small areas of forest are chopped down, burned, and planted with maize, beans, squash and other crops. After being cultivated for a year or two, the field is then left fallow and allowed to regenerate back to forest cover while the farmers move on to a new area within a cyclical pattern where areas are reused after a regenerative period.

youtu.be/ok787HRp_gA

Commonly derided as slash-and-burn farming, milpa has long been perceived as environmentally destructive. This perspective has been perpetuated by long-standing myths and misconceptions that portray the farming practices of non-Europeans, and specifically the use of fire, as wasteful and irrational.

In Belize, this negative view of slash and burn has driven many colonial and post-colonial interventions to modernize Maya farming practices.

Recent research, however, has shown that the lands of Indigenous Peoples around the world have reduced deforestation and degradation rates relative to non-protected areas. The southern Toledo district of Belize, where the majority of Maya communities are located, boasts a forest cover rate of 71 per cent, significantly higher than the national average of 63 per cent.

Further research has found that the species composition of contemporary Mesoamerican forests has been shaped by the agricultural practices of ancient Maya farmers.

In Belize, fire has been found to play a role in promoting ecosystem health and resilience and intermediate levels of forest disturbance caused by milpa can increase species diversity. Well-managed milpa farming can support soil fertility, result in long-term carbon sequestration and enriched woodland vegetation.

Research has also shown that previous studies of deforestation in southern Belize significantly overestimated the rate of deforestation due to milpa agriculture by not accounting for its rotational process.

Many researchers now believe that milpa is a more benign alternative, in terms of environmental effects, than most other permanent farming systems in the humid tropics. Indeed, findings such as these have led to a growing appreciation for the role of Indigenous Peoples in advancing nature-based and life-enhancing climate solutions.

Unfortunately, research in the region has also found that climate change is undermining the ecological sustainability of milpa farming by forcing farmers to abandon traditional practices and adopt counterproductive measures in their struggle to adapt. In some cases, this has resulted in a decrease in the biodiversity and ecological resilience of the milpa system. This issue is compounded by the decreasing participation of young people, resulting in a further generational loss of traditional ecological knowledge.

Together, these issues are serving to alter and undermine a livelihood strategy that has proven sustainable for thousands of years. However, rather than call for Maya farmers to abandon slash and burn, we encourage support for the self-determined efforts of Maya communities to adapt to this changing climate. youtube.com/embed/ok787HRp_gA?… A video documenting the Maya response to the 2024 wildfire crisis.

Planting seeds of collaboration

Since winning a groundbreaking land rights claim in 2015, Maya communities in southern Belize have been working to promote an Indigenous future based on principles of reciprocity, solidarity, traditional knowledge, gender equity and, most significantly, se’ komonil, the Maya notion of togetherness and community.

Led by a collaboration of Maya leaders and non-governmental organizations, work toward this has included efforts to revitalize traditional institutions and governance systems, as well as the development of an Indigenous Forest Caring Strategy and fire-permitting system. In an effort to encourage and support the participation of youth in this process, Maya leaders have collaborated with the Young Lives Research Lab at York University to develop the Partnership for Youth and Planetary Wellbeing.

Building on previous research with Maya youth, the project has produced innovative youth-led research and education on the impacts of climate change, the importance of food sovereignty, traditional ecological knowledge and the struggle to secure Indigenous land rights in Maya communities. This work has been shared with global policymakers at the United Nations and local audiences in Belize.

Rather than fanning the flames of climate blame, we must work together to revitalize Indigenous knowledge systems and plant seeds of climate collaboration and care.

Written by James Stinson, Senior Research Associate and Evaluation Specialist, Young Lives Research Lab, Faculty of Education, York University, Canada and Lee Mcloughlin, PhD student, Global Sociocultural Studies, Florida International University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

ENDS

Read more about human rights abuses and child slavery in the palm oil and gold mining industries

SOCFIN’s African Empire of Colonial Oppression: Billionaires Profit from Palm Oil and Rubber Exploitation

Investigation by Bloomberg exposes that despite being RSPO members, #SOCFIN plantations in #WestAfrica are the epicentre of #humanrights abuses, sexual coercion, environmental destruction, and #landgrabbing. Operating in #Liberia, #Ghana, #Nigeria, and beyond, SOCFIN’s…

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Palm Oil Threatens Ancient Noken Weaving in West Papua

Colonial palm oil and sugarcane causing the loss of West Papuans’ cultural identity. Land grabs force communities from forests, threatening Noken weaving

Read more

Family Ties Expose Deforestation and Rights Violations in Indonesian Palm Oil

An explosive report by the Environment Investigation Agency (EIA) details how Indonesia’s Fangiono family, through a wide corporate web, is linked to ongoing #deforestation, #corruption, and #indigenousrights abuses for #palmoil. Calls mount for…

Read more

West Papuan Indigenous Women Fight Land Seizures

Indigenous Melanesian women in West Papua fight land seizures for palm oil and sugar plantations, protecting their ancestral rights. Join #BoycottPalmOil

Read more

Greasing the Wheels of Colonialism: Palm Oil Industry in West Papua

A landmark study published in Global Studies Quarterly in April 2025 has revealed that the rapid expansion of the #palmoil industry in #WestPapua is not only fuelling #deforestation, #ecocide and environmental destruction but…

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The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

Read more

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

Read more

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status…

twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status…

twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1…

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Pledge your support

#belize #boycottPalmOil #boycottpalmoil #childLabour #childSlavery #climatechange #community #goldMining #humanRights #hunger #indigenous #indigenousActivism #indigenousKnowledge #indigenousRights #indigenousrights #landRights #landgrabbing #landrights #maya #mexico #palmOil #poverty #slavery #wildfires

Palm Oil Detectives

2025-10-21 15:34:00

SOCFIN’s African Empire of Colonial Oppression: Billionaires Profit from Palm Oil and Rubber Exploitation

An investigation by Bloomberg exposed that despite being RSPO members, #SOCFIN plantations in #WestAfrica are the epicentre of #humanrights abuses, sexual coercion, environmental destruction, and #landgrabbing. Operating in #Liberia, #Ghana, #Nigeria, and beyond, SOCFIN’s #rubber and #palmoil plantations continue historical colonial legacies of exploitation. Despite widespread evidence of abuse and deforestation, SOCFIN and its partners benefit from weak sustainability certifications such as #FSC and #RSPO. Europe and the US buy products directly linked to these violations, greenwashing the destruction in the process. Indigenous communities and workers are actively resisting this huge injustice —They seek proper redress in the form of stricter #EUDR regulations and better protections of their health, livelihoods and families. Consumers can boycott palm oil and rubber in solidarity. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

#News: 🚨 #SOCFIN #palmoil and #rubber is linked to sexual #violence, forced #labour, #landgrabbing #deforestation in #WestAfrica🌴🔥🤢☠️🙊🚫 French tycoon Vincent Bolloré profits while communities suffer. 💀✊🏽 #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife palmoildetectives.com/2025/10/…

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A recent Bloomberg investigation into SOCFIN, a plantation empire co-owned by French billionaire Vincent Bolloré, reveals ongoing human rights violations, sexual exploitation, deforestation, and colonial-style land grabs across West Africa. SOCFIN, based in Luxembourg and co-owned by Bolloré, operates sprawling palm oil and rubber plantations in Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, and elsewhere. The investigation uncovered systemic abuses and environmental destruction, exposing the toxic greenwashing reality behind RSPO corporate sustainability claims.

According to Bloomberg’s extensive report published in April 2025, SOCFIN plantations in Liberia and Ghana are sites of widespread sexual coercion, rape and sexual abuse.

Women workers at the Liberian Agricultural Company (LAC) plantation, one of SOCFIN’s largest operations, routinely face demands for sex from supervisors as a condition for securing daily work. Women like Rebecca (a pseudonym) describe daily harassment and abuse, forced to accept demands out of economic necessity. Contract workers earn as little as $3.50 a day and face threats of dismissal if they refuse sexual advances.

Similar accounts emerge from SOCFIN’s Salala Rubber Corporation (SRC), recently sold after violent worker protests over labour abuses, inadequate medical care, and poor housing conditions. Women workers have described supervisors openly demanding sexual favours in exchange for continued employment. Mamie, a former SRC worker, described being violently raped by her supervisor after repeatedly refusing his advances. Such experiences remain common, despite superficial anti-harassment measures like “No Sexual Harassment” signs erected by the company (Bloomberg, 2025).

SOCFIN’s operations are rooted deeply in colonial history. Established in the Belgian Congo in the late 1800s, SOCFIN expanded aggressively during colonialism, exploiting rubber and palm oil resources across Africa and Asia. Today, its co-owners, Vincent Bolloré and Belgian businessman Hubert Fabri, control vast landholdings, perpetuating neo-colonial dynamics of wealth extraction. According to an article by Tony Lawson for Shoppe Black, the plantations replicate exploitative plantation models, extracting wealth from African land and labour for European profit, reminiscent of colonial rubber plantations and antebellum slave operations like Louisiana’s Nottoway Plantation.

This neo-colonial exploitation is glaringly evident in Nigeria, where SOCFIN’s subsidiary, Okumu Oil Palm Company, operates 19,062 hectares of palm plantations and 7,335 hectares of rubber plantations. Palm Oil Detectives (2024) documented widespread displacement of local Indigenous communities due to plantation expansion. Villages such as Lemon, Agbeda, and Oweike have been forcibly dismantled, leaving hundreds homeless. The affected communities received no compensation or consultation—violating international human rights standards on Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC).

Austin Lemon, whose family established Lemon village in 1969, recounted witnessing his ancestral land seized by SOCFIN and converted into plantations without consent or compensation. The trauma from losing their homes, livelihoods, and ancestral heritage remains profound, with many residents still unable to recover decades later.

In Ghana, SOCFIN’s Plantations Socfin Ghana (PSG) has systematically destroyed vital rainforests, despite clear warnings from environmental assessments. PSG admitted clearing over 1,089 hectares of natural forest between 2012 and 2016. The loss of biodiversity and increased carbon emissions from these activities directly exacerbate the climate crisis, severely impacting local rainfall patterns and agricultural productivity. Farmers around PSG’s plantations suffer reduced yields, poverty, and food insecurity.

Meanwhile, the EU continues to import vast quantities of palm oil and rubber from SOCFIN, despite mounting evidence of human rights violations and deforestation. Europe’s reliance on SOCFIN’s supply chains for products such as Michelin tyres, Nestlé’s consumer goods, and numerous cosmetic brands implicates major companies in these abuses. Investigations show European tyre manufacturers purchasing rubber sourced from plantations like Liberia’s LAC and SRC, despite credible allegations of labour abuses, sexual coercion, and land theft.

SOCFIN and its partners rely heavily on weak and ineffective sustainability schemes like the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). But investigations repeatedly reveal these certifications as ineffectual greenwashing tools. For example, SOCFIN’s Cameroon plantations—RSPO-certified—face lawsuits alleging severe environmental damage and community displacement. Water pollution tests conducted near these plantations revealed dangerous contamination levels, threatening public health (Bloomberg, 2025).

Vincent Bolloré, despite his influential position as a major shareholder and board member, consistently denies responsibility, claiming limited involvement. Yet Bolloré’s role remains central. Known for his vast media empire and conservative political influence in France, Bolloré has maintained his SOCFIN stake despite decades of documented abuses. Lawsuits brought under French duty-of-vigilance laws now challenge Bolloré directly, arguing that his oversight constitutes effective control, making him legally responsible for SOCFIN’s actions.

Public pressure is growing. In 2024, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund excluded Bolloré Group and strongly recommended divestment from Bolloré and SOCFIN, citing overwhelming evidence of abuse. Luxembourg’s stock exchange delisted SOCFIN the same year, further isolating the company. Despite these actions, European governments and multinational corporations including the RSPO continue to support SOCFIN financially, facilitating ongoing abuses in Africa.

Communities across West Africa resist despite enormous personal risk. Liberian union leader Mary Boimah was jailed after protests against SRC’s labour conditions. Nigerian community member Iyabo Batu was shot by SOCFIN-affiliated security personnel while protesting environmental contamination and blocked access to her village. Despite these risks, communities persist in their demands for justice, compensation, and the return of their lands.

SOCFIN’s stated commitments to human rights and sustainability remain hollow. Decades of documented abuses, superficial responses to audits, and persistent denial illustrate systemic failure and wilful negligence. As long as global markets reward SOCFIN’s rubber and palm oil, the cycle of violence and exploitation will continue.

The time has come to demand real accountability. Regulators and law-makers in the EU and USA must recognise their complicity in human rights abuses and ecocide in palm oil and rubber supply chains. Until this time, people and landscapes will continue to suffer from forced labour, sexual coercion, and environmental destruction. SOCFIN’s ecocide and human rights abuses—must end now.

Learn more

Bloomberg. (2025, April 17). The Rubber Barons. Retrieved from bloomberg.com/features/2025-so…

Palm Oil Detectives. (2024, July 31). Socfin’s Destructive Empire: Palm Oil Deforestation and Human Rights Abuses in West Africa. Retrieved from palmoildetectives.com/2024/07/…

Shoppe Black. (2025). Labor Abuses: Nottoway and Liberia Plantations. Retrieved from shoppeblack.us/labor-abuses-no…

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Read more about human rights abuses and child slavery in the palm oil industry

Indigenous Peoples Fight Climate Change

After wildfires, Belize’s indigenous people rebuild stronger based on “se’ komonil”: reciprocity, solidarity, gender equity, togetherness and community.

Read more

Palm Oil Threatens Ancient Noken Weaving in West Papua

Colonial palm oil and sugarcane causing the loss of West Papuans’ cultural identity. Land grabs force communities from forests, threatening Noken weaving

Read more

Family Ties Expose Deforestation and Rights Violations in Indonesian Palm Oil

An explosive report by the Environment Investigation Agency (EIA) details how Indonesia’s Fangiono family, through a wide corporate web, is linked to ongoing #deforestation, #corruption, and #indigenousrights abuses for #palmoil. Calls mount for…

Read more

West Papuan Indigenous Women Fight Land Seizures

Indigenous Melanesian women in West Papua fight land seizures for palm oil and sugar plantations, protecting their ancestral rights. Join #BoycottPalmOil

Read more

Greasing the Wheels of Colonialism: Palm Oil Industry in West Papua

A landmark study published in Global Studies Quarterly in April 2025 has revealed that the rapid expansion of the #palmoil industry in #WestPapua is not only fuelling #deforestation, #ecocide and environmental destruction but…

Read more

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Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.

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Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

Join 3,171 other subscribers

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Read more

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Read more

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Read more

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

Read more

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

Read more

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

Read more

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status…

twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status…

twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1…

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Pledge your support

#boycottPalmOil #boycott4wildlife #boycottpalmoil #childLabour #childSlavery #deforestation #eudr #fsc #ghana #greenwashing #humanRights #humanrights #indigenousRights #labour #landRights #landgrabbing #liberia #news #nigeria #palmOil #palmoil #rspo #rubber #slavery #socfin #violence #westafrica

Bolloré Group fined €12 million in Togo corruption case

French industrial group Bollore on Friday reached a settlement over a decade-old corruption case in Togo, prosecutors said, but a separate plea deal with three top company executives was thrown out by a judge.

^{NEWS WIRES (FRANCE 24)}

The Indigenous Malaysian concept of ‘Badi’: respecting the land and wildlife

The Indigenous Semai #indigenous people of #Malaysia can teach us a lot about how to protect people, planet and biodiversity. The Indigenous concept of #badi is not superstition or taboo, it’s about respecting the land, environment and #wildlife in order to avoid negative ecosystem impacts. #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife

#Semai are a large #Indigenous group in #Malaysia 🇲🇾 with beliefs and traditions connected to their ancestral land 🌊🫧🎋 and #environment. Their knowledge can help protect against #ClimateChange #Boycottpalmoil 🌴🪔💀🚫 #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect wp.me/pcFhgU-78c

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Written by Dr Cyren Wong – an anthropologist and ecologist who specialises in the study of Indigenous communities, humanity’s relationships with nature, and tropical terrestrial ecosystems. He is also the head of the Malaysia Immersion and Pathways, a field-based research and education hub under the Vice President (Education) portfolio at Monash University Malaysia. Follow his Facebook page, Naturetalksback with Dr. Cyren Asteraceya to know more about his latest outreach work. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™, read original.

“In the forest, you never know who is related to whom,” says a Semai villager.

The Semais, one of Malaysia’s largest Indigenous groups, have a rich system of beliefs, practices and traditions connected to their ancestral lands’ ecosystem and environment. They offer a highly localised strategy for mitigating unwanted disasters such as environmental degradation, a global pandemic or the occurrence of major zoonotic diseases.

When the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, the Semai community blamed it in part on society as a whole having incurred ‘badi’. The badi was so severe it spread beyond the confines of the original offenders to the entire world.

Badi: over-exploitation of nature and other creatures results in spiritual sickness

Semais see badi as a negative consequence of over-exploiting or disrespecting nature and other creatures, spiritually inducing sickness and bad luck. It can affect humans on an individual level but also has the potential to spread beyond the borders of a village to affect other communities or even the entire world.

The vagueness around badi and its control over so many aspects of Semai life might seem perplexing to outsiders. Anthropologist Robert Dentan explained that the Semai like many Indigenous communities often engages in what is known as “ad hoc empirical testing”; a form of reflexive adaptation of the community to challenges faced whereby the definitions of taboos and customs are necessarily broad to accommodate for the unpredictability of natural phenomena. The undefinable “tragedy” that must be mitigated through avoiding badi can take on various forms and negative events are often only attributed to badi retrospectively. By reflecting on their actions and their consequences, the Semai badi is also articulated in the context of behaviours and lessons that need to be enforced among future generations.

The Semai live in close proximity to wildlife, creating a path for zoonotic diseases or the transmission of animal pathogens to humans to occur. By evading badi, the Semai believe they can prevent contracting any animal-borne diseases, especially during hunting and gathering.

Badi is most commonly known among Semai hunters and their wives whose responsibilities are to prepare the animals for consumption. A wide range of practices and beliefs could be attributed to badi, from the way animals are killed and the type of animals to how they are stored before consumption. For example, you should not keep two different kinds of animals near one another, and ensure animal blood does not mix, transfer, or touch human bodies while hunting and slaughtering animals. When asked the reason for these taboos around hunting and food, the Semai people would succinctly describe it as precautions taken to avoid incurring badi.

Though often phrased as ‘local food superstitions’ or ‘taboos’ by past observers, our growing engagement with Indigenous communities and understanding of their knowledge and identities have presented an alternative view.

But this is not the same time-worn ‘ecologically noble savage’ debate which assumes an essentially a-contextual, holistic and mutually beneficial relationship between Indigenous peoples and the environment.

The Semai, like any other communities, are subjected to the same social and ecological pressures of climate change and global warming. Just as the composition of animals in the rainforest has changed, so too has the Semai’s adaptation to the changing environment.

The mass extinction of native wildlife and the migration of animals to escape destruction and encroachment has forced Indigenous communities to struggle with the loss of culturally significant plants and animals.

They have been exploring new ways of engaging with the existing resources. In the Ulu Geroh village in Perak, Malaysia, butterflies, which were once considered sacred to Ngku, the feared Thunder God have now been collected en masse and sold for money to buy food as the Semais can no longer hunt and sustain themselves.

However, the practices and beliefs of the Semai people still impart a valuable lesson in temperance and moderation.

“The world is changing all around us. We are entering new relationships with nature and have no idea what the implications of our actions will be. But we may have no choice in the matter, but we must approach with caution, never take more than we need or be overcome by greed as we try to understand our new place in it.”

Semai villager

Written by Dr Cyren Wong – an anthropologist and ecologist who specialises in the study of Indigenous communities, humanity’s relationships with nature, and tropical terrestrial ecosystems. He is also the head of the Malaysia Immersion and Pathways, a field-based research and education hub under the Vice President (Education) portfolio at Monash University Malaysia. Follow his Facebook page, Naturetalksback with Dr. Cyren Asteraceya to know more about his latest outreach work. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™, read original.

ENDS

Read more about deforestation and ecocide in the palm oil industry

The Great Malaysian Timber and Palm Oil Swindle

A joint investigation by Malaysiakini and Pulitzer Center’s Rainforest Investigations Network (RIN) reveals alarming deforestation in Pahang, #Malaysia, caused by one of the country’s largest #palmoil plantations. The plantation threatens endangered species like…

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Deadly Harvest: How Demand for Palm Oil Fuels Corruption in Honduras

Latin America is the fastest-growing producer of palm oil, but at what price for the environment and its defenders? Park rangers in Honduras tell harrowing tales of daily threats to their lives and…

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India’s Palm Oil Push Leaves Northeast Indian Farmers, Forests and Animals at Risk

#Palmoil cultivation in #India’s northeast such as #Nagaland and #Assam is devastating natural ecology with increased human-animal conflicts and #ecocide leaving #animals, #forests and people at risk. Resist and fight back every time…

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The CUT Campaign and its partners ask MP Kemi Badenoch to keep UK tariffs palm oil to prevent ecocide

Last month UK Tory MP Kemi Badenoch announced that a new UK trade deal would cut tariffs on palm oil imports from 12% to zero.

This move will likely grease the way…

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Dwindling tropical rainforests mean lost medicines yet to be discovered in their plants

About 80% of the world population relies on compounds derived from plants for medicines to treat various ailments, such as malaria and cancer, and to suppress pain. Our future medicines are likely to…

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Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

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Join 1,400 other subscribers

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Read more

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Read more

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Read more

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

Read more

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

Read more

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

Read more

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status…

twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status…

twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1…

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Pledge your support

#badi #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4wildlife #BoycottPalmOil #climatechange #corruption #deforestation #environment #indigenous #indigenousKnowledge #indigenousMedicine #indigenousRights #Malaysia #PalmOil #palmOilDeforestation #Semai #wildlife

Palm Oil Detectives

2025-02-25 14:29:00

The Great Malaysian Timber and Palm Oil Swindle

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A joint investigation by Malaysiakini and Pulitzer Center’s Rainforest Investigations Network (RIN) reveals alarming deforestation in Pahang, #Malaysia, caused by one of the country’s largest #palmoil plantations. The plantation threatens endangered species like #tigers and pollutes local water supplies. It has been described as “the worst-managed oil palm plantation in Malaysia.” Palm oil yields are low, while the #deforestation is chaotic, leaving the land barren and overrun with #elephants. The report highlights links between developers and political or royal ownership and rampant corruption and strongly pushes for more transparency, improved government oversight and regulatory enforcement. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

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#News: 🌴🇲🇾 Malaysiakini and Pulitzer investigation in #Malaysia: #Pahang’s badly managed #palmoil threatens endangered #tigers #elephants, disrupts villages. Rife with #corruption at highest level. #BoycottPalmOil 🌴☠️⛔️#Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect wp.me/pcFhgU-9GZ

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GIJN. (2024, December 20). Timber grab: The truth behind Pahang oil palm plantation. Global Investigative Journalism Network. Retrieved from gijn.org/stories/2024-editors-…

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An investigation by Malaysiakini, in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center’s Rainforest Investigations Network, has exposed the dire environmental and social impacts of one of Malaysia’s largest oil palm plantations in Pahang. Located near an environmentally protected area, the plantation’s operations have resulted in chaotic deforestation, disrupted water supplies, and threats to endangered wildlife, including tigers.

The plantation, described by an environmental consultant as “the worst-managed oil palm plantation in Malaysia,” has low palm oil yields and barren landscapes overrun with elephants. Developers often cite “wildlife conflict” to justify failures, shifting focus to logging valuable timber instead of sustainable plantation development.

Malaysiakini’s investigation also shed light on troubling links between plantation developers and political or royal interests, with 95% of the land developed by such entities. In December, the investigative team revealed that prominent banks provided large loans to plantation developers despite repeated project failures, questioning the banks’ credibility and oversight practices.

The investigation calls on the Malaysian government to tighten plantation approval processes and enforce environmental protections to prevent further harm to biodiversity and local communities.

For detailed insights, read the full Malaysiakini report via GIJN.

GIJN. (2024, December 20). Timber grab: The truth behind Pahang oil palm plantation. Global Investigative Journalism Network. Retrieved from gijn.org/stories/2024-editors-…

ENDS

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Read more about human rights abuses and child slavery in the palm oil industry

Violence for Palm Oil Against Peasant Communities in Honduras Meets Resistance

In the Aguán Valley of northern Honduras, peasant communities reclaiming ancestral lands face increasing violence and intimidation from armed groups linked to organised crime. The Dinant Corporation, a prominent palm oil producer, is…

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Deadly Harvest: How Demand for Palm Oil Fuels Corruption in Honduras

Latin America is the fastest-growing producer of palm oil, but at what price for the environment and its defenders? Park rangers in Honduras tell harrowing tales of daily threats to their lives and…

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Ten Victories and Challenges to Indigenous Rights in 2024

From Brazil’s action against illegal gold miners to the Sacred Headwaters Alliance defending the Amazon, these top Indigenous stories of 2024 highlight resilience and challenges. The year of 2024 underscored the importance of…

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Palm Oil Protesters Silenced and Arrested in Congo

On Tuesday, April 30, 2024, a shocking and disgraceful incident occurred in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). During a meeting of shareholders from Plantations et Huileries du Congo…

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Amazon Clarion Call: Pandemics Emerging in the Rainforest

The Amazon’s diverse ecosystem is under threat from rampant deforestation, degradation, a biodiversity crisis, and the climate crisis – jeopardising its ability to act as a carbon sink. This degradation increases the likelihood of zoonotic diseases emerging…

Read more

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Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Read more

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Read more

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Read more

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

Read more

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

Read more

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

Read more

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status…

twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status…

twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1…

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Pledge your support

#BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4wildlife #BoycottPalmOil #childLabour #childSlavery #corruption #deforestation #elephants #humanRights #indigenousRights #landRights #landgrabbing #Malaysia #News #PalmOil #palmoil #plywood #slavery #supplyChain #supplychain #tigers #wood

Digital Slavery, Nickel Downstreaming, and Timber Grabbing: 2024’s Best Investigative Stories in Southeast Asia

This year’s picks emphasize the region’s increasingly sophisticated cross-border crimes, but also how investigative journalists consistently expose them.

^gijn.org

As promised, I'll be posting my revised #SolarPunkSunday lists of Mastodon accounts. This week, I'll be highlighting #Agroecology / #Permaculture / #Gardening / #Rewilding / #Forestry / #FoodSovereignty. List in Alpha order.

@artistsgarden Artist's private #garden inspired by the wabi sabi principles of embracing the natural, the imperfect and the impermanent.

@Bearhouse
Self-sufficient homesteading in #rural #Småland in #Sweden, but from the UK originally. Pusher of radical simple living. Rewilder.

@ellenwolcott
Permaculture enthusiast, cyclist

@IndigenousFoodSov
Posts and reblogs mostly about:
#Indigenous #IndigenousMastodon #IndigenousKnowledge #IndigenousFoodSovereignty

@nathanlovestrees
Master's degrees in music theory and theology (nonpracticing), classically trained and folk musician (also nonpracticing), and I once organized and helped plant over 800 trees on abandoned mine land (I do still plant trees occasionally).

@natureshelperokanaganhighlands
#ecodesign, #enercon, #photography, #nature, #permaculture

@opensourcegardens
Welcome to #Open #Source #Gardens, where openness is sown and freedom is grown! We grow Open Source #Seeds and use Open Source garden #technologies at home or in #community gardens

@PINA_na
Bringing Permaculture to the forefront in North America

@rewildingmag
Join the movement for a wilder world

@vegplotter
Official mastodon account of the best #vegetablegarden and #allotment planning app. Use vegplotter.com, The easiest way to plan your garden.

Join me for another #SolarPunkSunday next week! Suggestions for topics, accounts to follow, etc. are always welcome!

Revised #Solarpunk / #Permaculture / #Resiliency / #Hackerspace / #Makerspace / #RightToRepair / #LibraryOfThings list. I've included descriptions along with the account names. Sorted by category. Suggestions welcome!

#Agroecology / #Permaculture / #Gardening / #Rewilding / #Forestry / #FoodSovereignty

@Bearhouse
Self-sufficient homesteading in #rural #Småland in #Sweden, but from the UK originally. Pusher of radical simple living. Rewilder.

@IndigenousFoodSov
Posts and reblogs mostly about:
#Indigenous #IndigenousMastodon #IndigenousKnowledge #IndigenousFoodSovereignty

@opensourcegardens
Welcome to #Open #Source #Gardens, where openness is sown and freedom is grown! We grow Open Source #Seeds and use Open Source garden #technologies at home or in #community gardens

@rewildingmag
Join the movement for a wilder world

#Makerspace / #Hackerspace / #RightToRepair / #OpenSource

@lhc
LHC is a Brazilian hackerspace located in Campinas, SP. We maintain an open and community physical space where anyone can develop their projects in the technology area (but not only).

@pws
Former #bicycle mechanic, retired tech worker, repairer of things. Tell me about your bike and I'll try to help you fix it.

@restartproject
Fixing our relationship with electronics. Pro #RightToRepair. Together, let's feel better and waste less - tag us for fixing help!

@RepairCafe_Barry
A #RepairCafe! Reducing Waste. Sharing Skills. Bringing People Together. Held 1st Saturday of the month, 10am til 1pm, in Barry Library - everyone welcome. (Barry #Wales)

@tinker

#Tinkerer | Solarpunk | Hacker

#SolarPunk writers / activists / podcasts / prompts

@derek
Sustainability organizer seeking a #solarpunk world. Writing a book: "Where the Roots are Long" about modern environmentalist themes in The Lord of the Rings.

@rhyseverquill
Journalist, writer, and community organiser. Co-founder of @thegazettecoop. " #ADHD, #Bisexuality, #Polyamory, #CommunityOrganising, #Cooperatives, #Journalism, #Writing, #Witchcraft, #Druidry, #Gardening, #Cooking, #Cartography, #Art, #Thrifting, #Hiking, #Foxes, #NaturePhotography, #VideoGames, #OpenSource #Solarpunk, #anarchism

@solarpunkpresents
Solarpunk Presents is a podcast that explores the people and projects working on bringing us a better world today. Solarpunk is more than just an idea, more than just an aesthetic. Those inspire us, but where do we go from there? Hosts Ariel Kroon and Christina De La Rocha are producing podcast episodes featuring interviews with people working to make the world a better place right now. Join us to explore #solarpunk in the present.

@SolarpunkPrompts
What is Solarpunk? Why does it matter? In this series we discuss Solarpunk as a movement within art, literature, and activism. We explore its themes and talk about what separates it from its genre peers. Each episode explores a writing prompt set in a Solarpunk aesthetic with examples and inspirations from our world today.

#SolarPunkSunday