Showing 41 - 50 of 191
Going bananas over Chinese investment
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 20/04/2016
» Kluai hom -- or the Cavendish banana -- found itself in the spotlight recently on social media and in local news. The issue involves Chinese investors renting land in Chiang Rai to grow kluai hom. Local villagers complained about water because the farm sucked up a large volume of it, leaving so little for local farmers. Fears about the use of chemical fertilisers also arose. Another problem is that the practice might be against the law, which reserves the occupation of farmer for Thais. The public is alarmed because Chinese-backed kluai hom farming in Laos has already proved a disaster. Toxic pesticides are dumped into the river, while environmental management is below par.
Unforgettable Puey Ungphakorn
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 09/03/2016
» Today marks the centennial of Puey Ungphakorn, a remarkable man who lived a remarkable life as a founding father of the modern Thai economy, pedagogue at Thammasat University and Bank of Thailand, role model and larger-than-life figure who was influential during some of the most momentous years of Thai history.
Right to rest in peace
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 03/02/2016
» Nestled in a small alley on Arun Amarin Road, Tonson cemetery has stood next to the community mosque for over three centuries. This is probably the country's oldest "kubur", Islamic burial grounds, dating back to the time before the founding of Bangkok as the capital.
Inventors with a revved up edge
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 10/02/2016
» What image comes to mind when you think of a car race? Perhaps fast and furious steeds or gasoline guzzling engines steered by daredevil drivers?
Saturday morning fever
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 17/02/2016
» Every Saturday, try the running workshop at Lumpini Park, a free activity that is gaining popularity. The general perception is that running workshops are for elite runners -- national team athletes with dreams of becoming Olympians. But that's not true. The Saturday outdoor running lab is run by Sathavorn Chanpongsri, a former national athlete who won a bronze medal for marathon at the Sea Games 1985, and a respected coach in the local running circle. To him, every runner should take a short introduction course on running, regardless of their level of experience.
Against the flow
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 17/02/2016
» Songkhram River is a little-known tributary of the Mekong River. Yet staying under the radar has turned out to be a blessing in disguise, for the placid 420km river has been left untouched from development projects such as dams and major construction. Compared to other waterways in the northeastern region such as the Chi and Mun rivers, which are straddled by dams, the Songkhram -- known as a source of delicious freshwater fish -- is the only tributary of the Mekong which runs free and unobstructed.
Documenting a niche
Muse, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 27/02/2016
» When Thida Plitpholkarnpim — editor of the respected film review magazine Bioscope — floated her idea to launch a Documentary Club for screening of documentaries, her friend simply told her to drop off the plan.
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.
Books as bridge to Latin culture
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 07/03/2016
» For many Thais, Latin America seems an unknown land. Asst Prof Pasuree Luesakul, an acclaimed translator of many Latin American novels, believes that Thais miss a good chance to learn the culture which is strikingly similar to ours. With a doctorate in Latin American Literature from University of Salamanca in Spain, Pasuree is now head of Spanish section and director of the Center of Latin American Studies, Department of Western Languages at Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Arts. She has translated the Chilean Nobel laureate Pablo Neruda's Twenty Love Poems And A Song Of Despair and María Rosa Lojo's historical novel Finisterre. She is also editor of the bilingual version of César Vallej's Anthology, a project subsidised by the Embassy of Peru in Thailand to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Thailand and Peru.
A chance of less haze?
Life, Anchalee Kongrut, Published on 20/01/2016
» Despite the cool weather, the period between late January to March is not a pleasant time for villagers in Lampang and the other northern provinces. It is the time that haze -- caused by the swathes of smoke from forest fires and the burning of agricultural waste -- blankets the region. The man-made smog has been an inevitable seasonal event. Every year, farmers need to clear agricultural leftovers on their farms before sowing new seeds in May. In the old days, haze was tolerable. But mono-cultivation, especially large scale corn plantation, has recently forced farmers to clear large plots of land quickly for re-harvesting.