Showing 1 - 7 of 7
Our delicate environment
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 19/12/2016
» From the controversial planned promenade on the Chao Phraya River to the tiger temple scandal, key ecological issues from 2016 will continue to capture society's attention well into the coming year
Waterworld
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 19/09/2016
» Once deserted and useful only to drain Bangkok's floods, Khlong Phadung Krung Kasem is now abuzz with people. During rush hour, passengers queue up to board free boats running from Thewet pier to Hua Lamphong. In the morning or after work, boats get crowded and passengers sit all the way to the back.
The reluctant activist
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 25/04/2016
» The reign of the current government is not the perfect time for protesting. Anyone who raises voices against the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) might be summoned by the army for "attitude adjustment". Still, there are a few activists who dare to defy the military government -- among them is Somnuck Jongmeewasin.
Unconventional conservationist
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 02/03/2016
» By look and temperament, Sasiprapa Raisanguan, a 22-year-old staff member at the Centre for Protection & Revival of Local Community Rights (CPCR), doesn't fit the stereotype of a Thai conservationist. She is no starry-eyed tree-hugger clad in natural-dye cotton, nor does she have a hemp rucksack or ride a bicycle to reduce her carbon footprint. At our interview in Chiang Mai, Sasiprapa arrives on her motorcycle, which she calls "a practical choice" to getting around the northern city where her office is.
Drought, fishing scandals and winding roads
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 23/12/2015
» In the past year, environmental disasters once again proved how much of an impact they have on everyone's lives: the air we breathe (the haze in the South, blown over from Indonesia); the water we use (the contentious Chao Phraya roads); the lights we see (the coal-fired power plants); the ground beneath our feet (the gold mining scandals); the food we eat (the fishery disputes). In all of this, local communities and the rural poor feel the heat and the fire more than Bangkok's urbanites and they're the people who keep showing public resistance against environmental problems and the depletion of natural resources, despite the grip of military rule.
Encroaching on villagers' rights
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 07/01/2015
» As a New Year's gift, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has promised to return happiness to the people by giving 53,000 rai of state land to landless villagers. On paper, it looks like a generous present.
Environment for disaster
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 15/12/2014
» The year 2014 hasn't been entirely memorable — in a good way, at least — when considering the progress of environmental campaigns.