Showing 1 - 10 of 19
New books worth reading
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 29/12/2016
» From Dust To Dust: A Journalist's Memoir
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.
Through the haze
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 30/09/2015
» For almost two months, Southeast Asian countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and some parts of southernmost Thailand are affected by haze -- the result of forest clearance for palm oil plantations in Indonesia, the world's top palm oil producer. Since palm oil production has become a major business in this region in the past two decades -- in Malaysia and Thailand as well -- haze has become a growing problem.
A right royal read
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 09/02/2015
» When Subhatra Bhumibrabhas said she wanted to translate The King In Exile: The Fall Of The Royal Family Of Burma by Sudha Shah, people warned that the prospects weren't that bright. Why, they said, would Thai readers want to read about the late Burmese king who lived in exile and died almost a century ago? Subhatra, former journalist and now media activist whose interest in Myanmar dates back years, shrugged off such caution and followed her heart in translating the book into Thai.
Protecting their natural rights
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 03/12/2014
» Some animals are considered man's best friend, and we love them as long as they don't become a burden. When love fizzles out, as all love does, those once cute pets or loyal beasts can be subject to mistreatment.
Gorilla in the urban mist
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 01/10/2014
» Bua Noi placidly chews fruits and sucks milk from a UHT carton given to her by a zookeeper. The 28-year-old ape — the only gorilla in Thailand — shoots a glance at visitors and bares her teeth, stands up as a way of greeting and pounds her chest. Her eyes are strikingly similar to a human's, yet they are still difficult to decipher. Does the gesture show her happiness or it is simply an act of repeated showmanship, one which she has been trained to display for over two decades? Does the primate ever dream of Africa, the original habitat of her species?
The big trade-off
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 01/07/2014
» Since the European Union curtailed its diplomatic relationship with Thailand last week in response to the coup, there has been a simmering resentment from some Thai citizens.
A golden opportunity for change
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 04/06/2014
» Everything that glitters is gold, but not for villagers at Ban Na Nong Bong, who live at the edge of a gold mine in Loei province. Since Thung Kham arrived to extract gold in 2003, villagers have complained that the company is poisoning its water source and farmland and harming their health.
In the line of duty
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 30/04/2014
» Thai activists walk a dangerous road, a belief most recently confirmed in the disappearance of Porlajee ‘Billy’ Rakchongcharoen
Tales from the kingdom
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 27/01/2014
» Using one's national language sometimes has a downside. Among the obvious disadvantages are communication barriers and the low exposure of local literature on the international scene.