About 180,000 chimpanzees, gorillas and bonobos could be directly or indirectly threatened by current and future mining projects for these transition metals, particularly in West Africa.

With the world focusing its attention on clean energy transition, a boom in African mining activity is expected as critical minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel and cobalt are needed for clean energy technologies such as wind turbines and electric cars. This surge in demand is driving destruction of tropical rainforests which are critical habitats for Africa’s great apes.

In a recent study, researcher Jessica Junker and a team of scientists found that the overlap between mining exploration and preparation areas and important ape habitats was particularly high in West Africa, especially Guinea.

On this episode of Climate Connections, lead author of the study, Jessica Junker, Researcher, Re:wild shares her insights on the delicate balance. 

Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg)
Voiced by: Emaad Akhtar
Photo credits: Re:wild
Music credits: pixabay & its talented community of contributors

About 180,000 chimpanzees, gorillas and bonobos could be directly or indirectly threatened by current and future mining projects for these transition metals, particularly in West Africa.
With the world focusing its attention on clean energy transition, a boom in African mining activity is expected as critical minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel and cobalt are needed for clean energy technologies such as wind turbines and electric cars. This surge in demand is driving destruction of tropical rainforests which are critical habitats for Africa’s great apes.
In a recent study, researcher Jessica Junker and a team of scientists found that the overlap between mining exploration and preparation areas and important ape habitats was particularly high in West Africa, especially Guinea.
On this episode of Climate Connections, lead author of the study, Jessica Junker, Researcher, Re:wild shares her insights on the delicate balance. 
Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg) Voiced by: Emaad Akhtar Photo credits: Re:wild Music credits: pixabay &amp; its talented community of contributors

A special segment on Money FM 89.3's Breakfast Show that brings you on an exclusive audio journey to the ends of the world, covering in-depth environment, natural history and climate change stories that intertwine with human life on Earth.

A special segment on Money FM 89.3's Breakfast Show that brings you on an exclusive audio journey to the ends of the world, covering in-depth environment, natural history and climate change stories that intertwine with human life on Earth.

Climate Connections

Get a head start to your work day with Ryan Huang, Emaad Akhtar and Audrey Siek from 6am to 9am. 

Listen to insightful discussions on the stories and issues that matter the most to you and be apprised of the markets and the companies to watch.

Get a head start to your work day with Ryan Huang, Emaad Akhtar and Audrey Siek from 6am to 9am. 
Listen to insightful discussions on the stories and issues that matter the most to you and be apprised of the markets and the companies to watch.

Breakfast with Ryan Huang, Emaad Akhtar and Audrey Siek

A special segment on MONEY FM 89.3's Breakfast Show that brings you on an exclusive audio journey to the ends of the world, covering in-depth environment, natural history, and climate change stories that intertwine with human life on Earth.

A special segment on MONEY FM 89.3's Breakfast Show that brings you on an exclusive audio journey to the ends of the world, covering in-depth environment, natural history, and climate change stories that intertwine with human life on Earth.

Climate Connections: A third of African apes under threat as demand surges for critical minerals needed for clean energy technology

Nature films tell the stories of the world's flora, fauna, and landscapes - often a journey into the secret lives of what exists around us. These stunning visual tales show us how we are interconnected with nature in many ways. This, in turn, allows us to better understand the current conversations about climate change, sustainability and biodiversity, and put us in a better position to be agents of hope and change.

That’s exactly what the inaugural ‘Earth in Focus’ Singapore Nature Film Festival 2024 hopes to achieve. Running from 1st to 3rd November this year, the festival will showcase local and international films, photography and ecological art exhibitions, as well as workshops run by conservation NGOs - covering a wide range of conservation topics, from ocean and land conservation to water scarcity and technology for conservation.

On this episode of Climate Connections, Daphne Ong, Conservationist & Festival Director of Earth In Focus, and Andy Ridley, CEO of Citizens of the Reef & Co-founder, Earth Hour share their insights ahead of the festival.

Find out more about Earth In Focus and register for film screenings and workshops here: https://www.earthinfocus.co/festival-happenings

Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg)
Voiced by: Audrey Siek
Photo credits: Earth In Focus
Music credits: pixabay & its talented community of contributors

Nature films tell the stories of the world's flora, fauna, and landscapes - often a journey into the secret lives of what exists around us. These stunning visual tales show us how we are interconnected with nature in many ways. This, in turn, allows us to better understand the current conversations about climate change, sustainability and biodiversity, and put us in a better position to be agents of hope and change.
That’s exactly what the inaugural ‘Earth in Focus’ Singapore Nature Film Festival 2024 hopes to achieve. Running from 1st to 3rd November this year, the festival will showcase local and international films, photography and ecological art exhibitions, as well as workshops run by conservation NGOs - covering a wide range of conservation topics, from ocean and land conservation to water scarcity and technology for conservation.
On this episode of Climate Connections, Daphne Ong, Conservationist &amp; Festival Director of Earth In Focus, and Andy Ridley, CEO of Citizens of the Reef &amp; Co-founder, Earth Hour share their insights ahead of the festival.
Find out more about Earth In Focus and register for film screenings and workshops here: https://www.earthinfocus.co/festival-happenings
Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg) Voiced by: Audrey Siek Photo credits: Earth In Focus Music credits: pixabay &amp; its talented community of contributors

Climate Connections: Earth In Focus - Tapping On The Power Of Thought-Provoking Nature Films & Community For Conservation

Nature is our life support system, but right now, it’s in trouble. WWF’s latest Living Planet Report reveals that the average size of wildlife populations have declined by a staggering 73% since 1970, providing a stark warning “that the world is fast approaching dangerous tipping points”. 

Habitat loss and degradation, driven primarily by our food system is the most reported threat to wildlife populations, followed by overexploitation, invasive species and disease. 

With Australia’s role as a regional food supplier growing in importance as global food demand surges, an Australian farmer-owned mutual - Regen Farmers Mutual - is working hard at giving landowners greater access to the growing environmental goods and services markets as the world transitions to net zero.

More than 80 farmers, conservationists and landcarers behind Regen Farmers Mutual have designed a new brokerage model to reduce transaction costs and enable farmers to aggregate their market power to sell environmental services. They are raising $51 million from mining and energy players to fund a series of regenerative farming projects. The mutual has agreed to $100 per unit for the first 1,000 of 18,500 available carbon credits across 750 hectares of land.

On this episode of Climate Connections, Rohan Clarke, Co-director, Regen Farmers Mutual shares how they’re tapping on carbon markets and regenerative farming to preserve their lands.

Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg)
Voiced by: Emaad Akhtar
Photo credits: Regen Farmers Mutual
Music credits: pixabay & its talented community of contributors

Nature is our life support system, but right now, it’s in trouble. WWF’s latest Living Planet Report reveals that the average size of wildlife populations have declined by a staggering 73% since 1970, providing a stark warning “that the world is fast approaching dangerous tipping points”. 
Habitat loss and degradation, driven primarily by our food system is the most reported threat to wildlife populations, followed by overexploitation, invasive species and disease. 
With Australia’s role as a regional food supplier growing in importance as global food demand surges, an Australian farmer-owned mutual - Regen Farmers Mutual - is working hard at giving landowners greater access to the growing environmental goods and services markets as the world transitions to net zero.
More than 80 farmers, conservationists and landcarers behind Regen Farmers Mutual have designed a new brokerage model to reduce transaction costs and enable farmers to aggregate their market power to sell environmental services. They are raising $51 million from mining and energy players to fund a series of regenerative farming projects. The mutual has agreed to $100 per unit for the first 1,000 of 18,500 available carbon credits across 750 hectares of land.
On this episode of Climate Connections, Rohan Clarke, Co-director, Regen Farmers Mutual shares how they’re tapping on carbon markets and regenerative farming to preserve their lands.
Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg) Voiced by: Emaad Akhtar Photo credits: Regen Farmers Mutual Music credits: pixabay &amp; its talented community of contributors

Climate Connections: Farmers eye carbon credits as a way of regenerating revenue and nature

Solar power saw a boom in 2023, making it the fastest growing source of electricity generation for the 19th year running. This comes as countries around the world push for a transition towards greener sources of energy.

Australia has given the go-ahead for a A$20 billion (US$13.5 billion) solar project that plans to ship energy from a giant solar farm in the country's north to Singapore through a 4,300 km undersea cable. The approval comes with strict conditions to protect nature and the project must avoid the habitat of greater bilby, which are small rabbit-like marsupials with long floppy ears.

A final investment decision is expected in 2027. If eventually approved, the project aims to deliver up to 6 gigawatts of green electricity to large-scale industrial customers in Darwin, the capital city of Australia's Northern Territory, and in Singapore.

But how challenging are such large scale energy projects and are cross-border collaborations the most important key to renewable energy adoption?

On this episode of Climate Connections, Hanwei Wu, Editorial Director, OPIS shares his insights. He heads the Asia-Pacific team in producing price assessments and proprietary data for the oil, petrochemical, renewables and carbon markets.

Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg)
Voiced by: Audrey Siek
Photo credits: SunCable
Music credits: pixabay & its talented community of contributors

Solar power saw a boom in 2023, making it the fastest growing source of electricity generation for the 19th year running. This comes as countries around the world push for a transition towards greener sources of energy.
Australia has given the go-ahead for a A$20 billion (US$13.5 billion) solar project that plans to ship energy from a giant solar farm in the country's north to Singapore through a 4,300 km undersea cable. The approval comes with strict conditions to protect nature and the project must avoid the habitat of greater bilby, which are small rabbit-like marsupials with long floppy ears.
A final investment decision is expected in 2027. If eventually approved, the project aims to deliver up to 6 gigawatts of green electricity to large-scale industrial customers in Darwin, the capital city of Australia's Northern Territory, and in Singapore.
But how challenging are such large scale energy projects and are cross-border collaborations the most important key to renewable energy adoption?
On this episode of Climate Connections, Hanwei Wu, Editorial Director, OPIS shares his insights. He heads the Asia-Pacific team in producing price assessments and proprietary data for the oil, petrochemical, renewables and carbon markets.
Feature produced and edited by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg) Voiced by: Audrey Siek Photo credits: SunCable Music credits: pixabay &amp; its talented community of contributors

Climate Connections: Australia-Asia Power Link Project awaiting Singapore's approval. Are cross-border collaborations the most important key to renewable energy adoption?

Climate Connections: A third of African apes under threat as demand surges for critical minerals needed for clean energy technology

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