Fight to Save the Reef

Published on Apr 19, 2015 by Luke Hunt

In the coming months, the United Nations and the Australian government will square off over whether to list the Great Barrier Reef as endangered. Environmentalists said the unique marine park is threatened by development and needs stronger safeguards. The Australian government insists it is already a responsible caretaker of the landmark.Read and hear more from Luke Hunt at Voice of America .

Hunt for Rare Indochina Wildlife

Published on Apr 19, 2015 by Luke Hunt

Way out on the remote borders that divide Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam sits the Virachey National Park (VNP), one of the last bastions for endangered Indochinese wildlife and the focus of scientific attention for groups like HabitatID.Greg McCann, a field coordinator with HabitatID, said his latest field trip into the region to retrieve photos from a batch of 21 camera traps hidden in the forests had been a success, with his finds countering arguments that the park had been poached into an “empty forest.”Read more from Luke Hunt in The Diplomat..

Fight to Save The Great Barrier Reef

Published on Apr 12, 2015 by Luke Hunt

In Australian political parlance “robust discussions” often borders on gang war typified by self-interest and an armada of lawyers, politicians, and lobby groups whose inability to find common ground is too often undermined by a win-at-all-costs mentality.In recent years, attitudes to asylum seekers arriving unannounced along the coastline, drastic spending cuts by the ruling conservatives, and even drugs in sport have bought out the worst in a nation that thrives on immigration, government subsidies, and Olympic success.There are, however, exceptions. The Great Barrier Reef is one. The World Heritage Committee has managed to bring stakeholders together in a rare display of unity, with the result that an A$2 billion ($1.5 billion), 10-year plan has been announced to ensure the future....

Must Go On; Can't Go On

Published on Mar 28, 2015 by Luke Hunt

THE Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts for Cambodia (ECCC), an unusual and ambitious international legal body with a name to match, has occupied a compound on the dusty outskirts of the country’s capital since 2006. Officially its goal is justice for the victims of the Khmer Rouge, whose bloody misrule ended in 1979.In recent years the ECCC’s lawyers and judges have bickered and toiled, usually in obscurity but sometimes under a spotlight, often testing the tolerance of Cambodia’s prime minister, Hun Sen. Last week they may have breached it.Read more from The Economist..

Burmese Leaders Outed Over Alleged Land Grabs

Published on Mar 28, 2015 by Luke Hunt

 Swapping military uniforms for business suits has been a long-standing symbol of Myanmar’s half-hearted attempts at normalizing relations with the rest of the world. The catch was how do the generals find social acceptance while legitimizing their wealth at the same time?Read more from Luke Hunt in The Diplomat.