Nanticha Ocharoenchai

Climate activism isn’t as fun as it used to be.
I remember the first time I striked–revving up the crowd was fun, and so was chanting for climate justice with a group of strangers. But long gone are those days. Climate Strike Thailand, the group I launched, grew bigger and it seemed like it was finally making the difference I had hoped for. But creating change meant fixing a problem, and fixing a problem meant facing the complexities of environmental policy and political drama.
Change also ca...

By Nanticha Ocharoenchai
When Ralyn “Lilly” Satidtanasarn was 8, she went to a beach in Phuket. She didn’t play in the water or build sandcastles like she had hoped to—all she could focus on was the garbage that lined up the coast that looked nothing like the photos she had seen of the ‘dream paradise’ on the internet. From water bottles to toothbrushes, all this plastic trash could have come straight from anyone’s home, and it wasn’t going to stop at the shoreline.
“I [had] watched this one ...

All it took was determination and initiative
Nanticha Ocharoenchai leading the Youth Strike 4 Climate in Bangkok (March 2019) © Biel Calderon / Greenpeace
It was three days into my editorial internship at Bangkok Post, where I was free to write about anything I wished to, be it the city’s wild nightlife scene or its complicated LGBTQ laws. Despite all the creative freedom, my mind always turned back to the environment. In the position to write for Thailand’s largest English-language newspaper...

One ordinary Monday afternoon on March 11, stuck in Copywriting class for three hours, once again I learned nothing new and got bored. And what do bored students do? They scroll through their phones. I scrolled through mine that day -and changed things up.
I flicked through some news to find an article about Greta Thunberg by The Guardian. I think we all know by now who Greta is – and those images of her in two short braids and a yellow raincoat, sitting on the concrete floor with her black a...

The choice is yours
Nanticha Ocharoenchai (Lynn)
Jan 3
For a couple years now, I’ve been in a constant self-struggle with the idea of “I need to save the earth and use less plastic” and “The world is going to end anyway, and also no one cares”, especially as someone who writes a lot and does environmental activism. It has very much messed with my head and mental well-being, but ultimately, I have come to terms that, whether or not your eco-friendly actions really impact our environmental cris...

A report from Science Magazine in 2015 showed that Thailand is now among world’s biggest contributors of ocean waste. A shocking eight million tons of plastic enters the ocean every year, with a few countries, including Thailand, responsible for 60% of the amount. This causes environmental damage on a global scale and poses a serious threat to wildlife. An increasing number of marine animals are found either entangled in plastic debris, or with plastic trash ingested in their stomachs. Our ve...

Over a year after its opening, Chulalongkorn Centenary Park is receiving more visitors as well as attention from names like the World Economic Forum, TED, The Guardian and Property Guru Asia. Built to commemorate the university's 100th anniversary by giving back to society, unlike other public parks the 28 rai plot of land -- more than 23 million baht worth of land -- wasn't made simply for people to take a stroll, have a picnic or ride a bike. With a water-retention pond, underground water-d...

How Parith Chomchuen is challenging outdated notions still prevalent in school texts
When transman Parith Chomchuen was younger, he was forced to wear skirts and do what girls are supposed to do. Later, when he grew up and realised the gender he was born into wasn't the gender he wanted to live by, it seemed people around him did not approve of such a thought -- not his family, friends, teachers, not even the textbooks.
All these told him that how he was feeling was simply "confusion", and th...

David Yeung, founder of the vegetarian food company Green Monday, hopes to save the world one meatless meal at a time
It's been almost 18 years since David Yeung became vegetarian. When the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report was published in 2006, he described it as a "shocker and eye-opener", and when the updated IPCC report came out earlier this month stating that eating less meat has a direct impact on controlling climate change, his belief was reaffirmed.
For yea...

Kanya Sesser was born with no legs. But that doesn't deter her from being many things, from an exceptional skateboarder, surfer, monoskier and basketball player to a model for lingerie, sportswear and streetwear products.
At only one week old, Kanya was abandoned on the front steps of a Buddhist temple in Pak Chong district of Nakhon Ratchasima province. For the first four years of her life, she was raised by caring monks and hospital staff. Seeing potential from her energy and capabilities, ...

State measures to reduce the pigeon population in Bangkok as well as legal protocols cracking down on bird feeders do not prevent the kind-hearted from showing their love for the animals by feeding them.

"If I don't feed them, no one else would," said Weerasak Sunthonjamorn, a 61-year-old man who went viral last year for feeding more than 200 pigeons for over three decades.

Weerasak is not the only one doing so. Another prominent recent example is the lady known as Auntie Pigeon, who has fed ...

The BMA's recent crackdown on Khao San street stalls has been ill-advised and primarily endangers vendors' livelihoods, local stakeholders say

It's 6.30pm on Khao San Road. A backpacker runs in his flip-flops, racing the rain to reach a hostel. Another tourist stands under a canopy, waiting for the downpour to end and catch a tuk-tuk. Nearby, a vendor sits idly in her tent, hoping for a customer, any customer, to come by.

"I've sold one pair of sandals this evening," says Sureeporn Meechupun,...

Chonburi testudine Om Sin died because people threw coins in her pond. Her story has inspired a book that aims to make people be more considerate towards animals.

Throughout the 25 years of her life, Om Sin -- a sea turtle from Chon Buri -- was a symbol of luck and longevity to people who threw coins into her concrete pond believing that doing so would bring them prosperity. Little did she know that it would bring bad luck upon herself.

Om Sin died in March last year after which condolences p...

‘Recyclable’ does not equal ‘recycled’
Thankfully, there is a sign with three chasing arrows on my water bottle — now when I dispose it, it’ll become another product instead of just waste. Right?
Think again. Just because that plastic bottle is ‘recyclable’, doesn’t mean it will be recycled. Contrary to popular belief, plastic bottles does not magically disappear once it’s thrown into the bin. Not all of them are used again, and definitely not all of them are turned into other products.
After...

Skipping that BBQ buffet can help our planet
‘All-you-can-eat’ barbeque nights out with friends are fun — an unlimited variety of heaps of pork, beef, and chicken. Grill it, broil it, roast it, fry it — options are endless. But what if swapping that meat buffet for a veggie hotpot could save animals, trees, and a planet?
Throughout its cycle — whether raising, grazing and feeding livestock, or processing and transporting finished products — the meat industry contributes to environmental degra...