Carolyn P. Cowan

Staff Writer at Mongabay

Staff writer at @mongabay covering Southeast Asia. Photographer. Martial artist.

Articles

Despite tree planting efforts, Bangkok’s green spaces still face pressure

1 week ago | eco-business.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Urban tree-planting efforts are gathering pace in Bangkok, underpinned by aspirations to boost climate resilience, mitigate dust pollution, and conserve biodiversity. However, a recent study warns that the Thai capital continues to rapidly lose tree cover from its existing green spaces.
Wildlife Crime Crackdown in Jeopardy Worldwide After US Funding Cuts

1 week ago | rsn.org | Carolyn P. Cowan |Charles Mpaka |Gerald Flynn |Hans Nicholas Jong

In 2019, Malawi registered a massive win in the fight against the illegal wildlife trade. Intelligence-driven operations culminated in the arrest of more than a dozen members of the Chinese-led “Lin-Zhang gang,” one of Southern Africa’s most prolific trafficking syndicates. Found to be in possession of hundreds of pieces of elephant ivory, rhino horn, pangolin scales and hippo teeth, the traffickers were sentenced to between 18 months and 14 years in prison.
As tree planting gathers pace in Bangkok, urban green spaces still under threat

2 weeks ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Bangkok lags behind global urban green space standards, sparking large-scale tree-planting initiatives across the city. Recent research warns that despite these efforts, the city continues to rapidly lose tree cover from its existing green spaces. The researchers urge city planners to focus on preserving existing green spaces and mature trees, while also ensuring big-budget tree-planting initiatives prioritize the ecosystem value and long-term survival of their plantings.
New population of rare douc langurs found in Vietnam’s highland forests

2 weeks ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Conservationists surveying upland forests in central Vietnam have located a new subpopulation of critically endangered gray-shanked douc langurs. Fewer than 2,400 individuals are thought to remain in the wild, mostly in Vietnam, where more than half live outside of formally protected areas. Forest loss and hunting pressure have driven the species to the brink of extinction, spurring stakeholders to develop an action plan for the species in 2022.
DNA probe links Japan’s otter-themed cafes to poaching hotspots in Thailand

1 month ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Asian small-clawed otters have long been taken from their wild habitats in Southeast Asia to supply the opaque and often illegal pet trade. Booming demand for captive otters, stoked by social media and TV shows, looks set to worsen amid an emerging trend for exotic animals cafes. A new genetic study links otters found in exotic animal cafes in Japan with wild populations in well-known poaching hotspots in southern Thailand.
Wildlife crime crackdown in jeopardy worldwide after US funding cuts

1 month ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

In 2019, Malawi dismantled the Chinese-led Lin-Zhang wildlife trafficking syndicate, a major win in its fight against the illegal wildlife trade, thanks in part to funding from the U.S. government. The Trump administration’s recent slashing of international development funds, however, threatens these gains, leaving frontline enforcers and conservation programs without critical support.
In New Guinea, megadiverse lowland forests are most at risk of deforestation

1 month ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Located at the edge of the western Pacific Ocean, New Guinea is a vast island where the biota of Asia and Australasia meet, making it a melting pot of unique plants and animals that occur nowhere else on the planet. Development pressure is ramping up across the island, however, opening up landscapes to new roads, industrial logging and agricultural conglomerates pushing biofuel agendas.
Agroforestry can reduce deforestation, but supportive policies matter, study finds

2 months ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Agroforestry is recognized as a way to boost local biodiversity, improve soils and diversify farming incomes. New research suggests it may also benefit nearby forests by reducing pressure to clear them. The study found agroforestry has helped reduce deforestation across Southeast Asia by an estimated 250,319 hectares (618,552 acres) per year between 2015 and 2023, lowering emissions and underscoring its potential as a natural climate solution.
Salvar a los monos langures: un plan vital para detener su alarmante declive en Asia

2 months ago | es.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

Un nuevo plan de conservación busca frenar el declive de los langures en el Sudeste Asiático, donde la pérdida de hábitat y la caza furtiva han reducido drásticamente su población. El proyecto se centra en los seis países que forman parte del hotspot de biodiversidad de Sundaland, una región conocida por su asombrosa variedad de hábitats y especies.
Action plan aims to save Asia’s leaf-eating monkeys amid ‘alarming’ declines

2 months ago | news.mongabay.com | Carolyn P. Cowan

A new conservation plan aims to halt the decline of langur monkeys in Southeast Asia, where habitat loss and poaching have severely reduced their numbers. The 10-year Asian Langurs Conservation Action Plan focuses on the six countries in the Sundaland biodiversity hotspot, a region known for its astonishing range of habitats and species. Based on insights from leading primatologists, the plan prioritizes measures needed to safeguard 28 species and subspecies of langurs.