By Cindy Fan

In Laos, former logging elephants have found new employment and a healthy, peaceful life at camps such as The Elephant Village, 15 kilometres outside of Luang Prabang. At its stunning location overlooking the Nam Khan River, visitors can get up close and personal with Asian elephants, the planet’s second-largest land animal, whose mass is surpassed only by the African elephant. Travellers learn that despite an elephant’s hefty size, it is a remarkably gentle, sensitive and agile creature.

Maliau Basin is one of the world’s finest remaining wilderness areas. It encompasses over 390 square kilometres of pristine rainforest in the south-central part of Sabah, Borneo, in Malaysia. The rainforest is so dense that less than 50 percent of it has ever been explored. Today, the Maliau is awaiting UNESCO World Heritage Site status, which would help with conservation efforts.

By Shelley Seale

Three decades after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, its legacy remains: over 30% of Cambodia’s population is under age 14 and uneducated. Nearly all of these post genocidal-era children work or beg in the streets rather than attend school. Without proper education this cycle of poverty cannot be broken and the suffering merely gets passed from generation to generation. That’s something that Ponheary Ly wants to end – with the help of an Austin, Texas-based nonprofit called Windows of Wonder Institute (WOWi).

By Melanie Jae Martin

If you want to see great apes in the wild, Sumatra’s rainforest is one of the most accessible places to do just that. However, you need to know how to visit them responsibly or you could introduce illnesses, since they share over 97 percent of our DNA. Less than 7,000 Sumatran orangutans live in the wild, and they’re an essential part of the rainforest ecosystem, helping seeds to germinate and even pruning the canopy.

Borneo is home to the Rungus people, one of the island’s few remaining indigenous ethnic groups who reside in the area surrounding the former capital of Kudat. Organisations like Borneo Ecotourism Solutions and Technologies (BEST) Society help the indigenous Rungus people harness the power of tourism to maintain their vibrant performing arts, customs and traditions. To this day the Rungus live in longhouses, which are extended single-floor structures elevated off the ground on stilts and are designed with an emphasis on community.

By Cynthia Ord

Living in splendid isolation in the remote mountains around Luang Namtha in northern Laos, the country’s most traditional ethnic groups have for centuries cultivated rice and inhabited small rural villages. These tribes, however, are at a crossroads between traditional ways of life and the forces of modernity and tourism. In 1993, the surrounding region was declared the Nam Ha National Biodiversity Conservation Area, and since then, streams of tourists plan treks to enjoy the outdoors of Nam Ha and the culture of Laos’ ethnic groups.

By Melissa Lim

The quality of life of our future generation lies in our actions today. Borneo Eco Tours, through its work with the Borneo Ecotourism Solutions & Technologies (BEST) Society, has always put effort in not just promoting the conservation of Sabah’s mega biodiversity to tourists, but also in nurturing the young generation of the “River people” (Orang Sungai) of Kinabatangan emphasizing the importance of forest-regeneration and its impact on the biodiversity of flora and fauna in the Kinabatangan flood plan.

By Hollie Tu

Last month I headed out on a tiny plane into the interior of Borneo to spend 10 days with the Penan. The Penan are one of the indigenous peoples of Sarawak and were, until recently, the only people to live a nomadic lifestyle within the rainforest. Today, most Penan have settled in villages where they primarily cultivate the land yet still utilize their hunter-gatherer skills to supplement their diet.

By Melissa Lim

The Borneo Ecotourism Solution and Technologies (BEST) Society is a non-profit foundation formed by Borneo Eco Tours, a leading tour operator specializing in regional ecotourism adventures and accommodation. The BEST Society was established in 1995 in Sabah, East Malaysia, when Borneo Eco Tours joined hands with the Sukau Rainforest Lodge to organize a large environmental protection project in Kelananap oxbow lake.

Every year, eager travelers set off to experience the legendary Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia. A journey along this leg of the famous ‘Indochina Loop’ is virtually guaranteed to provide a good balance between adventure, cultural awakening, natural beauty and just plain good fun. One major destination in the Golden Triangle is the historic city of Chiang Mai, Thailand. The second-largest city in the country, it is a vibrant gateway to the spectacular northern region.