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Native Honey Bees of Southeast Asia and Conservation Challenges

Article

The disappearance of the honey bee is widely publicized, especially in Europe and North America, with colony collapse disorder observed in apiaries of the western honey bee, Apis mellifera. Much less interest, however, has been paid to Southeast Asian native honey bees whose fate also deserves attention. This article explores the conservation challenges of the eight native honey bee species of Southeast Asia.

By Eric Guerin

Recent Articles

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Building Space for Lasting Change – LGBTI in Southeast Asia

Report

Visibility and acceptance of lesbians, gays, bisexual, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI) in Southeast Asia have grown in recent years even though some countries continue to criminalise same-sex relations or individuals with different gender expressions.

From Myanmar to Indonesia to Timor Leste, even the most difficult environments have given birth to stories of love, hope and humanity. In this report, APCOM sums up the conditions and recent progress for LGBTI in each country and highlights the strategies that have helped to advocate for change.

By APCOM Foundation
Freedom Island, the Philippines

Philippines: Banning Single-Use Plastics at the National Level and Strengthening Existing Laws Needed to Curb Plastic Pollution Crisis

Article

Single-use plastics have been in the spotlight for the past years because of its impact on our environment. It pollutes throughout its lifecycle beginning from extraction, refining, and ending in their disposal in the oceans and waterways, soil, and in the air we breathe through burning or incineration. In fact, it does not only impact our environment but also our health, livelihoods, food and wildlife. Further, plastics do not biodegrade. Instead they slowly break down into smaller pieces of plastic called microplastics. 

By Jed Alegado

Interview Videos on Climate Change

Climate Crisis happened, we have to take action before it's too late.
Nguy Thi Khanh - Vietnam
We have to reduce plastic usage and consumption in our society.
Tara Buakamsri - Thailand

We are in a Climate Crisis and the way these big projects are coming at us, we need to counter this with our own development agenda.
Rayyan Hassan - The Philippines
For the rest of our life, fight hard in saving Mother Earth. That's the only chance that we have.
Dr. Dewi Candraningrum - Indonesia

Cement and the Kendeng Mountains

Threatened Biodiversity and Empty Wombs: Climate Change and Women’s Plight in Central Java

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Kendeng Movement: Speak Up for Mother Earth!

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Dossier: 70 Years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 - 2018

Click Here for Articles and Videos on 70 Years of UDHR

The UDHR and Migrant Workers Rights in ASEAN - Jolovan Wham

The UDHR and Human Rights in ASEAN - Dr. Dinna Wisnu

The UDHR and Democracy in ASEAN - Dr. Naruemon Thambhumpon

The UDHR and LGBTI Rights in ASEAN - Dr. Dédé Oetomo

Messages in the Social Media Bottle

Article

In the Southeast Asian region, the Philippines tops the list as the highest in terms of remittances from their exported labor. In 2015, the country received more than US$30 billion in remittances — which makes it the third highest in the entire world. While many of the emerging economies as well as industrialized nations rely on these remittances and foreign workers, many stories filter out from certain nations of exploitation and abuse inflicted upon these migrant workers.

By Jose Santos P. Ardivilla

Ecology & Social Justice

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Sustainable Electricity Scenarios in Southern Thailand and the Lower Mekong Countries

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Redefining Development and the Hidden Cost of Land Reclamation in Penang

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“You want people to become environmentalists? Make it practical and logical. Make it a trend.”

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Plastic Atlas Demonstrates Scale of Plastic Pollution Crisis and Solutions for a Zero Waste Future

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Read more on Ecology & Social Justice

Democracy & Participation

ASEAN 2020

Toward a “Cohesive and Responsive” Region: Vietnam’s Priorities and Challenges for Its ASEAN Chairmanship in 2020

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Student Protest in Jakarta

More than Sex: Indonesian Students as Last Line of Defense for Justice

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“The civil union bill misses the target” says Thailand’s first transgender MP

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The 2019 Philippine Elections: Consolidating Power in an Eroding Democracy

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Read more on Democracy & Participation

Upcoming Events

Terrace Talk: “Pollinators and Biodiversity in Thailand and Southeast Asia”

Bangkok

About the Foundation

Articles and Podcasts on 50 Years of ASEAN

Blogs

Air Quality Measurement - Click here to follow our station!

ASEAN explained in 5 Minutes

50 Years of ASEAN - Still Waiting for Social and Ecological Justice

Within 50 years of existence, ASEAN has made progress on environmental policies – at least on paper. On the ground, paradigms around economic development and growth still shape realities of the people who find it literally harder and harder to breathe.

Forest fires and the haze, daily traffic routines and large-scale industry make the extent of environmental damage in Southeast Asia visible. In this podcast series, we look behind ASEAN´s promises to be sustainable and people-oriented and find that the institution still falls short of social and ecological justice.

State of Democracy in Southeast Asia

Publication

Recent Publications

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Recommendations on the Protection of Those who Exercise Their Rights and Freedoms from Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participations

Study

Public participation is held to be a political principle and practice that forms an important basis of democratic society. The constitutions of Thailand, especially the 1997 Constitution, have guaranteed various rights and freedoms to create an opportunity for the public participation of the people, such as the freedom to express opinions, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, the right to petition, community rights and the right to participate in the management of resources.

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Perspectives Asia #8: Asia for Future

This edition of Perspectives Asia presents the work of climate change activists in Asia who are calling their governments and people to action. They are raising their voices, some of them despite severe restrictions on the right of free assembly and freedom of speech. These activists show immense courage and they deserve international recognition for their work.

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Plastic Atlas 2019

Plastic Atlas

Plastic is ubiquitous: we use it for life-saving medical devices, clothing, toys and cosmetics; we use it in agriculture and industry. But we also know the growing risk of plastic waste in the environment, landfills and the oceans.

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Safeguarding People and the Environment in Chinese Investments (Second Edition): A Reference Guide for Advocates

This publication provides a practical guide to the policies, standards and guidelines for Chinese outbound investment. The updated guide builds on our 2017 edition, adding new details on the Belt and Road Initiative, China’s new vision for enhancing global connectivity, along with updates to administrative guidance from China’s central state agencies on outbound investment.  It also covers new guidelines on rubber, agriculture, infrastructure projects and more. The guide explains the key actors involved in Chinese overseas investment and describes the environmental and social standards and guidelines that apply. It provides practical tips on how these standards can be used in advocacy with relevant Chinese actors and institutions.

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Afraid of the Light: Unmasking the Discourse on Irregular Migration and Its Implications for Migration Governance in ASEAN

This paper attempts to investigate the issue of irregular migration in the ASEAN region. The space and attention given to a burgeoning reality of irregular migration is yet to be given its due space at national policy-level and regional discussions. The primary objective of the paper is to function as a baseline study for future advocacy on protection of the rights of undocumented migrants in the region. Primarily, it focuses on the governance of migration, or the lack thereof, by contextualising the current status of irregular migrants in major destination countries of the ASEAN region, being Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.

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ATLASES

Plastic Atlas 2019

Plastic Atlas

Plastic is ubiquitous: we use it for life-saving medical devices, clothing, toys and cosmetics; we use it in agriculture and industry. But we also know the growing risk of plastic waste in the environment, landfills and the oceans.

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Agrifood Atlas – Facts and figures about the corporations that control what we eat

The list of the world’s largest 500 companies by turnover contains a huge number of firms engaged in agriculture and food. And the trend continues towards a further concentration of power. Agrifood corporations are driving industrialization along the entire global value chain, from farm to plate. Their purchasing and sales policies promote a form of agriculture that revolves around productivity. The fight for market share is achieved at the expense of the weakest links in the chain: farmers, and workers.

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Soil Atlas: Facts and figures about earth, land and fields

We are using the world’s soils as if they were inexhaustible, continually withdrawing from an account, but never paying in. For it takes several thousand years to build a thin layer of fertile topsoil, but only an hour of heavy rain to lose it. The average European needs 1.3 hectares – two football pitches – to produce all of the food and other products he or she consumes each year. That is about six times more than is available to each Bangladeshi. Almost 60 percent of the area consumed by Europeans lies outside the European Union.

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Coal Atlas: Facts and figures on a fossil fuel

Global demand for coal is still rising: EU member states have been reluctant to take action against coal projects and continue to subsidize coal related business with almost 10 billion euros per year. King Coal also generates 43 percent of Germany’s total energy.

Our Coal Atlas contains the latest facts and figures on the use of coal and its environmental and social consequences. With more than 60 detailed graphics, the atlas illustrates the coal industry’s impact on nature, health, labour, human rights and politics.

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Meat Atlas

The publication sheds light on the impacts of meat and dairy production, and aims to catalyse the debate over the need for better, safer and more sustainable food and farming.

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