Natural disasters

Food Banks Offer Hunger Relief Amid Virus Crisis

This past year COVID-19 has placed Southeast Asia on the brink of a socio-economic crisis, with 218 million informal workers’ livelihoods at risk and as many as 38 million people pushed into poverty. The crisis, coupled with typhoons that devastated countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines, risks rolling back a generation of progress in the fight against hunger. More than 64 million people in Southeast Asia were undernourished in 2019.

23 January 2021
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Nations Failing To Fund Climate Adaptation: UN

The world is falling short of promises made under the Paris climate deal to help the most vulnerable nations deal with the increasingly devastating impacts of climate change, according to the United Nations (UN). Adaptation - reducing the fallout among communities and increasing their capacity to deal with climate-related disasters such as floods and drought - is a pillar of the landmark 2015 accord, which aims to chart a path away from catastrophic warming.The deal requires signator

18 January 2021
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Our Oceans Are Too Hot

Oceans cover more than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface and about 97 percent of our planet’s water is in them. Of the tiny percentage of water that is not found in our oceans – about two percent – is frozen up in glaciers and ice caps.The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) noted that the oceans are a life-support system for the Earth and a global common that provide us with free goods and services, from the food we eat to the oxygen we breathe.

29 September 2020
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Thailand's secret weapon in climate change battle

Bangkok's future hangs in the balance. Rising sea levels, unchecked development, groundwater extraction, and rapid urban population growth has left millions vulnerable to natural disasters - scientists warn the city itself may not survive the century. New analysis by the Nestpick 2050 Climate Change City Index says the Thai capital could be hardest hit by global warming. And while it is not alone facing such a threat - Venice, New Orleans, and Jakarta are predi

4 March 2020
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Dark tourism in ASEAN

From the 1945 Brunei-Australia Memorial in Brunei to the Cu Chi Tunnels in Vietnam, Southeast Asia has more than its fair share of dark tourism sites. World War II, the Khmer Rouge and a multitude of natural disasters have seen the creation of dozens of museums, monuments and memorials dedicated to providing the public with a deeper understanding and greater reverence of these key events.However, discussing the merits of sites which sell themselves on tragedy – such as the “Killing f

22 November 2019
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World must adapt to ‘inevitable’ climate change

Nations rich and poor must invest now to protect against the effects of climate change or pay an even heavier price later, a global commission warned Tuesday.Spending US$1.8 trillion across five key areas over the next decade would not only help buffer the worst impacts of global warming but could generate more than US$7 trillion in net benefits, the report from the Global Commission on Adaptation argued.“We are the last generation that can change the course of climate change, and we are the

12 September 2019
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Indonesia needs a better tsunami warning system

Tsunamis in Indonesia claimed more than 2,600 lives last year – a number which could have been much lower had their Tsunami Warning System (TWS) been in working condition.A tsunami after a 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed around 2,200 people in Palu on Sulawesi island in September and another tsunami after the Anak Krakatoa volcano erupted in the Sunda Straits in December killed around 400 people in Java and Sumatra.

11 February 2019
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Disasters rock Indonesia's tourism push

Picture-postcard Tanjung Lesung was a cornerstone of Indonesia's bid to supercharge its tourism industry, boasting palm-fringed beaches, a towering volcano in the middle of turquoise waters and a rainforest sanctuary for endangered Javan rhinos.But the beachside town now lies in ruins, pummelled by a deadly tsunami that has raised fresh questions about disaster preparedness and the future of a multi-billion-dollar push to replicate Bali's success across the Southeast Asian archipela

3 January 2019
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