The Geeky Eco Warrior

Buying lipstick, or a pack of crisps? Remember that there are only around 13,400 Sumatran orangutans that remain in the wild. She did not give up her home when those out to kill her, ripped her months-old baby from her. She did not give up her home even when she was shot 74 times. Even when the air-gun pellets pierced her eyes, blinding her, she felt her way up the tree trunks with her fingers searching out fruits for her sustenance. She did not give up her home because she had nowhere else to go. Her name, ironically, is Hope . She is a Sumatran orangutan. One of the thousands who are rendered homeless and killed in fulfilling our demands for everything from snack foods to soaps —everywhere palm oil is needed. All Hope lost. It is unlikely Hope will be released back into the wild. It is unlikely that she will survive in the wild. (Photo: Twitter/ Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry) Orangutans are the most intelligent beings on the planet after human beings. In fact, the w...

IUCN’s study provides practical guidance as to how to make rainforests more climate-resilient. While carbon emissions continue unabated, here is some good news. If IUCN’s   study   is anything to go by, then all is not lost when it comes to combating climate change. The international governing body of protected sites, in its report —  Reforesting for the climate of tomorrow  — analysed the traits of around 250 species of trees and other plants native to the rainforest of Kutai National Park in Indonesia and identified species resilient to the fires and drought conditions that are expected to increase as the climate warms. According to a  statement by IUCN , the climate change-resilient species included those with low sensitivity to changes, high capacity to adapt to them, or both. Two tree species that were singled out for their resilience to fire were a native palm, Borassodendron borneense, and the hardwood tree Eusideroxylon zwageri, known locally a...