The Coral Triangle, a marine region stretching across Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Timor Leste, is endangered by extensive human activities. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), this marine region encompasses portions of two biogeographic regions: the Indonesian-Philippines Region, and the Far Southwestern Pacific Region, endowing it with the world’s richest marine biodiversity.

Member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bear minimal historical responsibility to carbon emissions but are equally suffering the impact of climate change as its effects on the world become more apparent. True ‘climate justice’ was needed and in December 2015, with the adoption of the Paris Agreement by 195 countries, justice was served.

Last week, tragedy struck the waters of Balikpapan Bay as an underwater pipeline transporting crude oil cracked and leaked oil into the ocean. The oil spill first occurred over the weekend at the beginning of the month and is now beginning to spread into the open ocean.

Environmental issues like climate change and greenhouse gas emissions have come to shape the global agenda for the future. The logic it follows is simple – no environment, no humanity. This concern was most urgently dealt with on a cold winters’ day in December 2015 in Paris when the leaders of 195 countries agreed to adopt the world’s first ever universal global climate deal.

Late last month, Indonesia saw the return of its infamous forest fires that occur each year producing toxic, choking smog in the form of haze as the rainy season trails off. The fires this time have broken out in the four provinces of South Sumatra, Riau, West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan. Twenty-three of the 90 hotspots recorded across the country were in West Kalimantan, where thick smoke blanketed the provincial capital Pontianak and disrupted flights.

One of the best things about Southeast Asia is that it’s home to lush, green rainforests and extremely diverse wildlife. This is probably one of the many reasons why – according to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) – over one hundred million tourists flocked to the region in 2016. However, as more and more tourists arrive, opportunists are taking advantage of this growth to prop up shady businesses that seek to cash in on the growing demand for wildlife tourism.

The recent Mount Mayon eruption is the 52nd eruption to date since 1661. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) raised the alert level to four on a scale of five on Tuesday, indicating that a hazardous eruption could take place at any moment.It also raised the danger zone radius from seven to eight km of the volcano’s crater.

Intense lava fountains shot like fireworks up to 700 metres (2,300 feet) into the air above Mayon, the Philippines' most active volcano, on Tuesday as showering debris turned morning skies dark and spread fear among anxious residents. More than 40,000 people have already fled since smoke and ash started spewing from the mountain, with scientists warning of the danger of an explosive eruption and authorities urging people not to be complacent.

Indonesia is home to 521 natural lakes and about 100 reservoirs, covering an area of approximately 21,000 km². The total volume of water held across the country is approximately 500 km³. The largest lake, by both area and volume, is Lake Toba in Sumatra. It holds about 240 km³ of freshwater, and is the largest lake body in Southeast Asia.Lake Toba is an immense volcanic lake covering an area of 1,707 km², making it even bigger than Singapore.

Thousands fled from their homes as lava oozed out of a rumbling Philippine volcano on Monday in what volcanologists described as a "quiet eruption", warning it could lead to a hazardous explosion within days.Lava was slowly flowing out of the Mayon volcano's crater along with a spectacular 1,000-metre (3,280-foot) ash plume rising into the sky, the nation's volcanology institute said.More than 12,000 people have been ordered to leave a seven-kilometre (four-mile) danger zo