Benjamin Ong

Malaysia, like much of the so-called developing world, is rapidly urbanising. Keenness to compete on the world stage, buoyed by industrialism and the legacy of colonisation, has resulted in policy- and decision making that favour a 'technosolutionist' approach to sustainable development challenges—often with detrimental consequences to the environment, society, and cultural values. Reliance on knowledge produced through the Western scientific method exacerbates the othering of local, indigenous and traditional knowledge. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s high biodiversity and rich biocultural heritage means that nature conservation often happens 'elsewhere'—far from the urban centres where nearly four-fifths of Malaysia’s population now finds itself.

My research explores human-nature relationships in the postcolonial, developing, tropical city, through the eyes of learning, aesthetics and language. It questions notions of what, where and who is worthy in the practice of nature conservation. And it supports the quest for ecologically regenerative cities and reimagined pedagogies of nature, reflecting diverse knowledge traditions.

There is nature, there is wonder, and it is here.

Urban ecology; environmental education; tropics; botanic gardens; sustainable development; speculative design; futures