Ong Puay Liu

The Langkawi Global Geopark: local community’s perspectives on public education

The study reported in this paper represents one of the first attempts at exploring the perspectives of the local communities on the designation of Langkawi Island in Malaysia as a UNESCO Global Geopark. It is premised on the widely acknowledged assertion that the local communities constitute an important group of stakeholders in the planning and implementation of development activities. Hence, the communities living in the geopark areas in Langkawi are considered important stakeholders who play a crucial role in the development of heritage tourism in Langkawi Global Geopark. This paper examines their views on their appreciation of the geopark as heritage, the interpretation of their shared values, the benefits and opportunities afforded by the geopark, and the extent of their involvement in the implementation of geopark activities. The findings point to the need for more support for public education programmes, and awareness initiatives aimed not only at ensuring community engagement with the development of Langkawi Geopark but also at generating stewardship actions from the community.

Framings of the East: The Case of Borneo and the Rungus Community

Differentiation and stereotyping of the ‘East’ and the ‘West’ have preoccupied the minds of people residing in both. There is a tendency to place depictions of the East and the West in binary form; that is, East is this and West is that, with no point of connection. The worldly preoccupation is depicted by Kipling in his 1890s poem, Ballad of East and West: Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet, Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God’s great Judgment Seat; But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth, When two strong men stand face to face, tho’ they come from the ends of the earth! (Kipling, 2009)