Nice one Irshad!

Our friend in North Malaya, Irshad Mobarak, who has put together our new tour to that fabulous part of the world and who will be co-leading it with Will Wagstaff, has won a major award - "Amazing Malaysians".

I first met Irshad last year at the British Birdwatching Fair and was immediately impressed. He wasn't always a naturalist. For five years he worked with a major bank before deciding that the corporate sector was not for him. 16 years ago he made a trip to the Malaysian island of Langkawi and was captivated by its beauty. He was eventually drawn to nature conservation where his interest in the preservation of natural habitats and ecosystems led him to study island ecosystems. Today he is the resident naturalist of the Datai Resort where he runs nature programmes for the guests, focusing mainly on birding and rainforest educational tours.

In recent years Langkawi has lost nearly half its wildlife, something which greatly concerns Irshad. The remaining wildlife is concentrated in five main habitats which are cut off from each other. Unable to move out of the areas, the wildlife and plant species are forced to in-breed which will lead to the weakening of the genetic pool and, eventually their extinction. Irshad has been lobbying to create wildlife corridors to connect the five habitats. Within the local community he has also been helping to educate fishermen on sustainable fishing while promoting conservation efforts among both islanders and developers.

The prize money from the award will go towards a children's project aimed at encouraging youngsters to become forest rangers with a life-long sense of responsibility to the environment. If you'd like to contribute to the project you can send your cheque payable to Island Holidays Plus Conservation Fund with a note that you would like your contribution to go to the Langkawi project. We'll do the rest. And, of course, you can go to Langkawi and see for yourself - it's included in our brand new tour of North Malaya which will be featured in our 2008 brochure and details of which will be available very shortly.

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