Latest news with #Respect
The Star
2 days ago
- General
- The Star
Managed grasslands the key to reducing human-elephant conflict, say Sabah eco groups
KOTA KINABALU: Evidence is mounting that managed grassland pastures for wild elephants is the way forward in curbing human-wildlife conflict, conservationists say. Trial grassland plots at the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Lahad Datu and along the Kinabatangan River over the past three years found that elephants purposely and repeatedly visit these pastures to feed on managed grasses and supplementary minerals. Conservationists with the Borneo Rhino Alliance (Bora) and RESPonsible Elephant Conservation Trust (Respect) said such pastures have shown positive results in reducing human-elephant conflict. Bora chief Datuk Dr John Payne said two herds totalling about 60 elephants have spent the past two weeks feeding on 13ha of managed grassland initiated in 2021 with funds raised initially from The Hornbill Award and later by CIMB Foundation. "From September last year to March this year, the elephants would feed in oil palm plantations," he said in a statement on Monday (July 28). He added that the managed pastures kept the elephants grazing there instead of straying into plantations. In Kinabatangan district, a 0.2ha (half-acre) Napier grass plantation managed by Respect and funded by Intrepid Foundation at Tanini Kinabatangan, Kg Bilit, is repeatedly visited by elephants to graze. Payne, who is also a cofounder of Respect, said that even a small herd of elephants needs more than a tonne of food daily, and 70% of that must be either palms or grasses. 'We project that if less than 1% of the Tabin Wildlife Reserve were to be converted to managed pastures, it would provide enough food for the elephant population and they would not need to venture into plantations or villages," he said. The elephants' favourite is a tall native grass known locally as barau, which grows along the banks of the Kinabatangan River as well as inland. Payne said a well-managed pasture can potentially yield 50 tonnes of elephant food per hectare per year. He appealed to the state forestry authorities and large landowners to allocate several small areas for elephant pastures. Respect chairman Alexander Yee said they aimed to plant about 14ha of grass along the riparian reserve as the frequency of elephant visits has increased at their plot in Kg Bilit. He said the project was in line with Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Christina Liew's plan for an elephant food corridor, Almost RM1mil in funding from the Borneo Conservation Trust, Japan, has helped to support the initiative over five years, he added. The NGOs say that grasslands will not result in a total elimination of human-elephant conflict, noting that a herd of 14 animals grazing at the Kg Bilit site caused damage to houses at Kampung Sukau nearby. However, they remain confident that managed pastures will lead to a considerable decrease in such occurrences.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Kepner: In the vintage village of Cooperstown, it's still how you play the game that counts
'The reason I am here, they tell me, is that I played the game a certain way, that I played the game the way it was supposed to be played. I don't know about that, but I do know this: I had too much respect for the game to play it any other way. And if there is a single reason I am here today, it is because of one word: 'Respect.'' – Ryne Sandberg, 2005 Advertisement COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. – Everything about the Baseball Hall of Fame is carefully orchestrated, like a standard from the great American songbook. It is a testament not just to organization and efficiency, but to the greater mission of the people who steer the institution. They want it to embody more than baseball. They succeed at this spectacularly. The village, and the fantasyland it becomes every induction weekend, is so inviting that John Smoltz woke up here on Saturday morning, called a game in Boston that night, then scurried back to be on the golf course, swinging in the rain, the very next morning. The pull of the brotherhood, the pull of the purpose, is that powerful. 'It feels special,' CC Sabathia said late Sunday, after officially joining the ranks of the immortals, 'and it feels like you have a responsibility to carry the game forward.' There was a reason that Jane Forbes Clark, the chairman of the Hall and the granddaughter of its founder, Stephen Carlton Clark, quoted the Sandberg speech to begin Sunday's induction ceremony, which welcomed Sabathia, Ichiro Suzuki, Billy Wagner, Dick Allen and Dave Parker to the Hall. Sandberg, the Chicago Cubs stalwart from the 1980s and '90s, is deep into his struggle with prostate cancer. He is part of the Hall family, and the theme of his speech is as timeless and wholesome as a Rockwell. 'There is not a man seated behind me this afternoon who didn't play the game the same way Ryno did,' Clark said, after echoing Sandberg's speech. 'It is that respect, character, sportsmanship, integrity and excellence that leads to just 1 percent of those who have ever played Major League Baseball to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.' Plenty of baseball fans reject the view that membership in the Hall should reflect such an idealized vision. It is, after all, a business filled with complicated people who sometimes make flawed decisions. Performance matters most. Advertisement Yet the career leaders in hits (Pete Rose), home runs (Barry Bonds) and Cy Young Awards (Roger Clemens) do not have plaques here. Neither does Alex Rodriguez (696 home runs), who should have been celebrating his 50th birthday here on Sunday, surrounded by the few others on earth who ever played as well as he did. Bonds and Clemens might get another look this December if they make it onto an Era Committee ballot. Rose is eligible – at last, posthumously – for consideration by a future committee. And Rodriguez has six more years to be voted on by writers, who have yet to give him half of the 75 percent needed for election. Steroids and gambling – the most explosive, divisive factors in evaluating historic greatness – invariably cloud the selection process. But the Hall makes clear, in ways both overt and subtle, that while membership cannot be revoked once awarded (see: Roberto Alomar), it should belong only to those who played the game right. At the end of their candidacies, Bonds and Clemens – who were never suspended for steroid use – got about two-thirds of the writers' support. But it's funny: even if you believe they deserve admission, when you're actually in the gallery, you don't really think of the players not on its walls. If someone is missing, you're too charmed to notice. Five new members joined the team on Sunday, bringing the total to 351, the same as Allen's career home run total. Allen was misunderstood for too long, and should have been elected long before he died of cancer in 2020, at age 78. His plaque is a bit of a jumble – he has a '60s-era cap and glasses and hair from the '70s – but its meaning is clear. Welcome to baseball immortality, Dick Allen. — National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) July 27, 2025 'His story's not just about home runs or rewards,' said Allen's widow, Willa, in her acceptance speech. 'It's about principle, compassion, unwavering determination. That is what carried him through every challenge and every triumph.' The breadth of these stories are rarely as neat as we'd like to believe; the middle of Parker's career – between his late-'70s prime to his late-'80s elder-statesman phase – was especially thorny. He lived to learn of his induction, but Parkinson's disease took him in June, at age 74. His son David II, an uncanny lookalike, gave a heartfelt, joyous speech that included a poem his father wrote: Here I am, 39, about damn time, I know I had to wait a little, but that's what you do with fine-aged wine, I'm a Pirate for life, wouldn't have it no other way That was my Family – even though I didn't go on parade day, I love y'all The Bucs own my heart, because those two championships I got? Y'all played in the first part. I'm in the Hall now, you can't take that away That statue better look good, you know I got a pretty face Top-tier athlete, fashion icon, sex symbol, no reason to list the rest of my credentials. I'm him. Period. The Cobra. Known for my rocket arm, and I'll run any catcher over. To my friends, family, I love y'all. Thanks for staying by my side. I told y'all Cooperstown would be my last ride. So the Star of Dave will be in the sky tonight. Watch it glow. But I didn't lie – on my documentary, I told y'all I wouldn't show. Dave Parker II reads a poem that his late father wrote for his @BaseballHall induction! 🥹 — MLB (@MLB) July 27, 2025 You get the feeling that Suzuki would have loved Parker, a fellow strong-armed right fielder with a clever, cheeky sense of humor. Suzuki, who missed unanimous election by one vote, spoke in English and addressed the unknown grouch who rejected him: 'The offer to have dinner at my home has now expired.' Ichi's got jokes 😂 #IchiroHOF — Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) July 27, 2025 Wagner, the first Division III player to reach the Hall of Fame, was exceedingly humble and gracious; Sabathia emphasized the impact of the women who have shaped his life, and spoke of his devotion to helping reverse the alarming decline of Black participation in MLB. But it was Suzuki, the final speaker, who drove home Clark's opening point. This is a man who loves baseball so much that he worked out at least twice this week on a Little League field in nearby Hartwick, N.Y. – long-tossing, running, taking batting practice in a cage off Wagner. He has visited Cooperstown eight times. Advertisement 'I could never imagine as a kid in Japan that my play would lead me to a sacred baseball land that I didn't even know was here,' Suzuki said. His efforts, Suzuki said, required utter and total devotion. He is married, but has no children. He is retired, but still trains with the Mariners as if he were on the roster, so he can properly demonstrate skills to any Seattle player who asks. 'Baseball is so much more than just hitting, throwing, and running,' he said. 'Baseball taught me to make value decisions about what is important. It helped shape my view of life and the world. 'As a kid, I thought I could play baseball forever. The order I got, I realized the only way to keep playing the game I loved until 45, at the highest level, was to dedicate myself to it completely. When fans use their precious time to come watch you play, you have a responsibility to perform for them, whether we are winning by 10 or losing by 10. I felt my duty was to motivate the same from opening day through game 162. 'I never started packing my equipment or taping boxes until after the season's final out. I felt it was my professional duty to give fans my complete attention each and every game. Fans deserve to be entertained whenever they choose to come. Baseball taught me what it means to be a professional and I believe that is the main reason I am here today – not because my skills are better than others.' Ryne Sandberg couldn't have said it better himself. (Top photo of Ichiro Suzuki:)
The Star
6 days ago
- The Star
Taking a compassionate approach to jumbo care
Conservation measures include cultivation of Napier grass along Sg Kinabatangan as alternative food source for Bornean elephants UNDER the relentless sun, a boat glides through the murky waters of Sungai Kinabatangan, a habitat known for Sabah's largest crocodile population. Today, however, the focus is not on these reptilian giants but on the endangered Bornean elephant, which numbers have been steadily declining due to habitat loss. This decline in their population is primarily due to the clearing of forests for agriculture and development, leading to conflicts between farmers and elephants displaced in search of food. Guided by Sharon Rahman from the RESPonsible Elephant Conservation Trust (Respect), the boat passengers await a signal. After nearly four hours, a crackling radio announces the sighting of wild elephants near Kampung Bilit, setting the stage for an awe-inspiring encounter. Two majestic adults first emerge from the dense forest, their movements with unexpected grace belie their massive size. A curious calf follows and then two more adults join, creating a scene of serene beauty along the riverbank, observed by tourists in hushed silence. The Bornean elephant (Elephas maximus borneensis), the smallest subspecies of the Asian elephant and endemic to northern Borneo, now numbers about 1,000, with the majority residing in the Kinabatangan region and some in Kalimantan, Indonesia. Towards long-term survival The solution to Sabah's human- elephant conflict involves more than just physical barriers. It requires finding a balance where both humans and elephants can coexist peacefully. The Bornean elephants are protected by law, including Sabah's Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997. Also in place is the state government's Bornean Elephant Action Plan (2020-2029) to ensure the long-term survival of the species. Viewed as a pragmatic policy by experts, the 10-year plan focuses on habitat protection, research and, most importantly, human-elephant conflict mitigation. Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Christina Liew recently discussed the plan's importance in an interview with Bernama. 'We are making genuine attempts to prevent these gentle giants from joining the ranks of the disappeared,' she stressed. 'Elephants are among the animals I am most passionate about,' said Liew. 'We are very lucky in Borneo that we have this particular species. So we must protect them.' Despite interest from international zoos in Borneo's elephants, Liew has remained firm in her resolve to keep them in their |natural habitat, stating, 'They belong here, not in foreign zoos.' The action plan outlines a |comprehensive approach, acknowledging that some elephants will inevitably require human care. It emphasises humane treatment and dignity, moving beyond the outdated practice of displaying them as zoo exhibits. Other items in the plan – elephant corridors, habitat restoration, community engagement and enforcement – read like a conservationist's dream. Progress reports are already rolling in and Liew can barely contain her excitement. 'The impact of the action plan has been significant, with several key initiatives now underway,' she said. Rescue, Rehabilitation, Release A cornerstone of this initiative is the Captive Elephant Manage-ment Plan, introduced by Liew in April. The plan transitions from 'free contact' to 'protected contact' management, enhancing the safety of handlers while ensuring the elephants receive proper care. This approach minimises direct physical interaction, prioritising the well-being of both elephants and their caretakers. One of the key components of the plan is Sabah's 3R programme – Rescue, Rehabilitation, Release – which embodies a pragmatic and compassionate approach to conservation. The Bornean Elephant Sanctuary in Kinabatangan and Lok Kawi Wildlife Park near Kota Kinabalu are not mere tourist attractions; they serve as sanctuaries for elephants in need. 'When elephants are hurt, we bring them to the sanctuary for treatment and rehabilitation,' said Liew. 'Once they are well enough, we release them back into the wild.' Referring to the sanctuaries, she said: 'This is it. Our final 'dance' for these magnificent creatures. 'Failure isn't an option when extinction is waiting in the wings.' Napier grass: A peace offering Another innovative strategy involves cultivating Napier grass within designated habitats, providing an alternative food source to deter elephants from encroaching on farmland. A 9km stretch along Sungai Kinabatangan, managed by Respect with support from the Australian-based Intrepid Foundation and local communities, has shown promising results. 'We are rewriting an age-old conflict into one of coexistence,' remarked Respect chairman Alexander Yee, adding that the Napier grass they plant is sweeter than the variety commonly found on riverbanks. Initially a modest 0.4ha experiment launched in March last year, the project has grown significantly. Yee recounted a pivotal moment: 'Two months after planting, seven elephants, including a calf, discovered and devoured half of the grass.' This confirmed that wild elephants would consume human-cultivated grass within designated feeding areas, paving the way for broader acceptance and success. By January, the initiative expanded to 13.5ha at Kampung Bilit riparian reserve along Sungai Kinabatangan, creating what they now call the Borneo Elephant Food Corridor. Yee said more than 20 elephants were recently observed grazing peacefully from dawn until dusk, longer than they have ever stayed before, marking a significant shift towards a harmonious coexistence. Villagers who once viewed elephants as nuisance are now actively involved in planting Napier grass. Even resort operators along the river have taken to planting the grass. Yee said this initiative is not just about feeding elephants. It is about creating harmony in a land where man-wildlife conflict has become all too common. The strategy is straightforward: just give them their own 'dining rooms', far away from the farms and oil palm plantations they are forced to raid. Besides Napier grass, elephants also favour Barau grass and perupok (a type of shrub), though more research is needed to determine which type of grass works best. Elephants, it turns out, are master gardeners. As they move through the forest, they create natural clearings that allow sunlight to penetrate the canopy, fostering new growth. Yet challenges remain. Incidents of intrusions are still reported, like a case where a baby elephant wandered into a house in Kalabakan, Tawau, searching for food and water. But Yee and his team remain committed to their vision. 'We need long-term support from all parties, namely the government, NGOs and local communities,' he highlighted. Blueprint for coexistence In Lahad Datu, another ambitious grass-planting initiative has taken root – the 33ha Malambabula elephant pasture. Initiated by the Borneo Rhino Alliance (Bora) and funded by The Hornbill Award, with assistance from Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, the project began in August 2021. It offers an 'all-you-can-eat buffet' for elephants, meant to entice them away from neighbouring oil palm plantations. 'Buffet', in this case, consists of tall, lush grasses, mostly Napier and a couple of other varieties. Bora programme director Dr Zainal Zahari Zainuddin said the Malambabula pasture project architects have thought of everything these creatures need. There is ample fresh water flowing from Sungai Malambabula. There is even an artificial salt lick, complete with all the essential nutrients their massive bodies require. While initial visits to the project site were sporadic, the breakthrough came in June 2023 when a herd of 70 elephants showed up for an 'extended feast'. They consumed about 20 tonnes of grass – six days without any incident of human-elephant conflict in the area. The project illustrates how nature and industry can coexist sustainably, Zainal said. Elephants have shown a preference for Napier grass, particularly before it flowers, about a month after planting. As the grass matures, it becomes less appealing, but its ability to regrow swiftly ensures a continuous supply. 'The Malambabula pasture is more than a feeding programme; it is a blueprint for coexistence,' Zainal emphasised. 'Even if the elephants stay in our area (elephant pasture) for just two days, that is two days of not disturbing people or entering plantations. 'Recently, they stayed there for three weeks. It was a bonus for us. 'But now they have moved to the far end of the pasture,' he noted. The team managing the pasture studies every elephant visit and feeding pattern, learning their habits and preferences. But while the adults can handle the tough, tall grass, the calves need something more tender and manageable. 'These giants are incredibly attentive parents,' said Zainal. 'If the little ones can't eat, the whole herd moves, searching for more suitable feeding grounds. It is all or nothing with them.' This insight has revolutionised how Bora manages the grass at the elephant pasture. To ensure the entire herd gets to eat, young Napier grass is also made available so that the calves can eat too. Oil palm and conservation Sabah, with the second-largest oil palm cultivation in Malaysia, faces the challenge of balancing conservation with industry. The Jurisdictional Certification of Sustainable Palm Oil (JCSPO) and the Jurisdictional Certification Steering Committee (JCSC), established in 2016, aim to harmonise these interests. The initiative seeks broader commitments from stakeholders to sustainable practices, aligning the goals of conservation, supply chain sustainability, and green development. Sabah's chief forest conservator Datuk Frederick Kugan shares his vision for coexistence: 'This isn't just about protecting a few patches of forest. It is about creating a model where both nature and industry can thrive.' Local communities play a crucial role in the success of these initiatives. Respect guide Sharon underscores the importance of community engagement and support: 'We are on the right track, but we need more people to join the efforts to protect these elephants.'
Washington Post
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Rainbow armbands are dividing opinion at Euro 2025
Some captains are wearing them, some are not. Rainbow armbands at the Women's European Championship are proving more divisive than perhaps intended for a symbol promoting tolerance and inclusion. UEFA is giving team captains the option of wearing armbands with the bright colors of the rainbow flag or plain monocolored versions with the word 'respect' when they play.
Fashion Network
16-07-2025
- Business
- Fashion Network
Xcel Brands, Cesar Millan partner to launch new pet brand
Xcel Brands has entered into a licensing partnership with K9 Wear Inc., to develop and launch a new pet brand, through the lens of dog behaviorist, Cesar Millan. Dubbed "Trust. Respect. Love by Cesar Millan", the new lifestyle brand for pets is set to launch in early 2026. Designed to elevate the pet ownership experience, the line will include a range of premium products from toys, training tools, and accessories to grooming gear, nutrition, small appliances, and even pet tech. "This collaboration with K9 Wear marks another milestone in Xcel's mission to create exceptional consumer products across multiple categories. With the pet industry experiencing tremendous growth, this partnership allows us to meet the demand for high-quality pet accessories while continuing to expand our brand portfolio and category expansion,' said Robert W. D'Loren, chairman and chief executive officer of Xcel Brands. Millan, widely known as 'The Dog Whisperer", brings more than 20 years of experience to the brand, with every item in the collection reflecting his core values of trust, respect, and love. The new brand will make its industry debut at the Global Pet Expo in March 2026. Distribution will follow across select retailers, e-commerce platforms, and live shopping channels. 'I am thrilled to have Xcel Brands and K9 Wear join my pack, to bring a new and innovative line of products to the marketplace under my new brand Trust. Respect. Love by Cesar Millan,' added Millan. 'Every product is planned and designed for the well-being and comfort of both, the dog and its pet parent, incorporating a modern, casual and functional style. We have developed a complete line of products in tune with my natural, simple and profound philosophy."
