I remember butterflies in my stomach as a boarded my flight from the Philippines. I wonder what species I will encounter? Will Borneo be what I had imagined? Short answer: No.
Sabah. Capital Kota Kinabalu. Population c. 500,000. Not what you would expect from primative Borneo right? Well times have changed. Being part of Malaysia, one of the fastest growing economies, the pristine preconceptions I had envisioned soon faded. A landscape dominated by concrete and high-rises, it didn't set of to a good start.
Venturing into the interior, there was a glimmer of hope as shades of green emerged as I approached the National Park, but the major species... was palm. Palm oil is THE biggest cause of deforestation. Our insatiable appetite for oil and convenience food has driven species to the brink and jeopardised the livelihoods of local Borneans.
I remember, vividly, a late nigh conversation I had with a local tribesmen over beer. I had visited the Kinibatangan river to see some of Borneo's famous flora and fauna. Unfortunately the oily film clogging the watercourse (effluent (POME) from the interlaced palm oil plantations that lined the river banks), erosion on the banks and signs of eutrophication are my long lasting memories. I discussed my discomfort and concern to this man who happened to be our 'tour guide' if you will. He mentioned that the government of Malaysia receives very little money from tourism. Locals are able to keep all the profits, which is a bonus, but this gives Malaysia no incentive to preserve its wildlife. Considering development as help not a hindrance, I almost fell of my chair when the man responded:
'To us, buildings are more beautiful than nature'
Palm oil plantation on the Kinibatangan
Borneo is synonymous with endemism and rarity. Beauty and mystery. A utopia, where jungle is thick, water is deep and sky is infinite. But each year this bubble is burst as more forest is cleared and more roads are paved to allow for the trucks to penetrate the forests.
I am a positive person, but the situation in Borneo in bleak. Sabah and Sarawak still have many places that remained untouched but even the ignorant tourists want to pay top dollar to visit communities that should be left alone. There needs to be a balance between tourism and exploitation. Many people I met in Borneo went to harder to reach places that had little impact with the outside world and said their experience was unforgettable. Yet these trips cost $100s. When did people begin to cash in on nature?? O yea, since the invention of money.
It seems conflicting. But I am often at odds with my own conclusions. I went to Borneo to see untouched wilderness, but who doesn't these days. I want to travel the world, but more and more are doing so. The chance to do something someone else hasn't brings out our competitive nature. I have a somewhat compulsion to seek out the unique and challenging experiences and my generation is also craving this desire. But with this we must bare the consequence as we too are to blame for the destruction of nature.
We escape our reality as we are often dissatisfied, but as our western desires and gluttonous wants start to rub of on the east, the world we try to escape rears its head as soon as we arrive. From western food, to modern transport and an absurd need for fashion, my journey through SE Asia is starting to generate a pattern upon reflection.
Yes, Asia is beautiful. Yes, I would move there in a heart beat. And, yes the people you meet will be with you a lifetime. But I can't help but think that this will all be gone within a few decades. But what is the solution when we seek to see the last remaining tiger or the only tree remaining in the forest? What came first, tourists or tourism? Consumerism or consumption?
I hope someone has the answers as I am struggling. I think if we travel light and leave only footprints than we can live a sustained and wonderful life. Not only will we protect nature, but we will protect ourselves. That feeling you get, that anxious one, the one that makes you want to flee to the rest of the world. Part of it may be inquisition. But most of it will be dissatisfaction. Dissatisfaction from life. Dissatisfaction from yourself. I'll let you sleep on that one.
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