• Rare sighting of tiger and cubs raises hopes for species in Thailand
• Elephants honored in Thailand as part of nation's heritage
• Organic farms help Thailand welcome cranes lost for 50 years

• Update: Transcendental Meditation in Thai girls' boarding school
• Dhammajarinee Witthaya School for at-risk girls in Thailand wins Rona Abramson Women's Initiative Award
• Thailand: Maharishi Vastu meditation hall inaugurated

• Thailand: Chiang Mai to hand out face masks as dust from fires hits hazardous levels
• Nearly 450 schools shut as pollution chokes Thai capital
• Thailand finds fourth coronavirus ahead of Lunar New Year

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Positive Trends
Short Summaries of Top Stories

Rare sighting of tiger and cubs raises hopes for species in Thailand
11 January 2024 - The number of tigers spotted by hidden cameras in the core of Thailand's biggest conservation area rose last year, while a rare sighting of a mother and her cubs has spread hope that the species is breeding in new areas. Camera traps in Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng wildlife sanctuaries captured 120 tigers during an exercise that concluded in April 2023, up from 100 the previous year. Thailand's tiger population was thought to be between 148 and 189 in 2022. Most of the country's tigers live in Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng wildlife sanctuaries, the core area of the country's Western Forest Complex. However, there are signs that tiger populations elsewhere may be recovering, too. (more)

Elephants honored in Thailand as part of nation's heritage
13 March 2023 - Thailand celebrated National Elephant Day on Monday, honoring the beast that is a beloved symbol of the country with feasts of fruits and vegetables. Thailand in 1998 declared March 13 as a day dedicated to the conservation of its elephants. (more)

Organic farms help Thailand welcome cranes lost for 50 years
14 November 2021 - A fuzzy-headed baby sarus crane hatched on a rural farm this fall offers a glimmer of hope for wildlife conservationists, organic farming advocates, and a nation grieving after the death of their beloved King. That's because this chubby chick named Rice is the first of its auspicious species to survive after hatching in the wild in Thailand in 50 years. (more)

Back to the land: Thai forest draws young, green farmers
30 October 2021 - A community forest in northern Thailand shows conservation is possible with the participation of local farmers. After a 20-year campaign, residents of Mae Tha won a community forest title for their cluster of seven villages, joining a small but growing back-to-the-land movement that is luring young, eco-friendly farmers away from the city. (more)

Thai monks bring grocery store to the poor as pandemic hits incomes
22 September 2021 - A group of Thai monks and volunteers wearing protective clothing carefully navigate the bumpy roads of a Bangkok suburb in a golf cart, towing a trailer loaded with fresh vegetables. 'Groceries are here! Groceries are here!' a monk announces through a loudspeaker. Their mission is to donate food and necessities to vulnerable people hard hit by the pandemic. (more)

Thailand makes COVID-19 protective gear out of upcycled bottles
3 September 2021 - With an abundance of plastic waste but a scarcity of personal protective equipment (PPE), Thailand is turning trash into treasure by upcycling bottles into protective clothing for people at risk of coronavirus infection. Though these are not medical-grade, they provide at least some protection for those potentially exposed to COVID-19, and one PPE suit can be made using only 18 plastic bottles. 'We're saving lives and the environment as well,' the Chakdaeng temple abbot said. (more)

Thailand floats hydro-solar projects for its dams as fossil fuel supplement
20 April 2021 - Thailand is close to completing one the world's biggest floating hydro-solar hybrid projects on the surface of a dam, a step toward boosting renewable energy production after years of criticism for reliance on fossil fuels. ... Thailand has long relied on coal for power, but plans for new coal-fired projects have been met with opposition over health and environmental risks, and two proposed southern coal plants were shelved in 2018. (more)

Struggling Thai fisherman finds rare Melo pearl worth $320,000 while walking on beach
12 February 2021 - Struggling fisherman Hatchai Niyomdecha was picking up oyster shells with his family last month when they stumbled upon three beautiful shells sticking to a discarded buoy ball. It turned out the fishing family had an extremely expensive pearl from a large snail, the Melo Melo, on their hands. (more)

Showers of lotus flowers mark end of Buddhist Lent in Thailand
1 October 2020 - Thousands of Thai devotees lined the banks of a river winding through Bangkok on Thursday [1 October] to hurl lotus flowers onto a barge carrying a golden Buddha to celebrate the end of a three-month period marking Buddhist Lent. From before dawn, people gathered along the river bank clutching bunches of white lotus flowers as a symbol of purity. Many wore face masks to ward against coronavirus and the crowds also included Buddhist monks in bright saffron robes. (more)

Thai villagers save ancestral forest
29 September 2020 - Using activism and scientific research, a Thai community stopped a wetland forest from being turned into an industrial zone. (more)

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Success of Maharishi's Programmes
Short Summaries of Top Stories

Update: Transcendental Meditation in Thai girls' boarding school
2 January 2022 - In Thailand in 1993, a group of Buddhist nuns created an entirely free boarding school to provide a loving, safe home and education to 20 orphaned girls. Today, Dhammajarinee Witthaya School has expanded to 1,000 students, with young girls in pre-school up to to grade 12 teens; more than 4,000 have been educated there. Students repeatedly place first in national and regional competitions. Foundational to Dhammajarinee becoming a leader in quality education was the introduction of the Transcendental Meditation technique to teachers and students - resulting in increased motivation, creativity, and academic success, and dramatically reduced stress. (more)

Dhammajarinee Witthaya School for at-risk girls in Thailand wins Rona Abramson Women's Initiative Award
29 April 2020 - The 2020 winner of the Rona Abramson Women's Initiative Award is the Dhammajarinee Witthaya School in Thailand. The school is a refuge for over 1,000 at-risk girls from nursery school through grade 12 - helping them grow in a loving and protected environment, and empowering them to live healthy, productive and successful lives. The school focuses not only on students' immediate survival needs, including proper food and healthcare, but also their long-term integrated development. This includes twice daily practice of Transcendental Meditation by all the girls, resulting in reduced stress and increased happiness and academic success. The unique curriculum also incorporates practical life skills and vocational training. This annual award is part of the Rona and Jeffrey Abramson Foundation's commitment to supporting women leaders who apply effective, creative, inspirational and entrepreneurial programmes to improve their communities and the world. (more)

Thailand: Maharishi Vastu meditation hall inaugurated
15 February 2020 - The largest Maharishi Vastu meditation hall in the world was inaugurated near the end of last year, at the Dhammajarinee Witthaya School - a girls boarding school southwest of Bangkok, Thailand. The beautiful two-storey building, designed according to Maharishi Sthapatya-Veda architecture, is 5,000 sq m (almost 54,000 sq ft). The school now has over 1,000 students who practise the Transcendental Meditation technique twice daily; the teaching staff also practise TM. The school was founded over 20 years ago to provide at-risk and orphaned girls a safe place to live, proper food and medical care, quality education and traditional Buddhist instruction. It is the only free Buddhist boarding school for girls in all of Thailand. (more)

Buddhist school in Thailand offers Transcendental Meditation to its students
22 June 2015 - The Dhammajarinee Witthaya school in northern Thailand continues to be a very special school where poor or orphaned girls can get free education from kindergarten to grade 12. Thousands of girls have been uplifted from poverty under the leadership of Buddhist nun Acharn Yai, the school's director and principal. Over 400 students are enjoying their twice-daily practice of Transcendental Meditation, saying it relieves stress, and promotes inner peace and mental clarity. 'Before learning to meditate I felt frustrated and didn't want to do anything. But when I close my eyes to meditate, my frustration decreases, my irritation subsides and I feel good. . . . I can focus on my studies more,' said one student. (more)

Promoting the feminine entrepreneur
30 November 2014 - 'Enabling female entrepreneurs worldwide to develop the confidence to be successful without sacrificing their own values is where Transcendental Meditation and all of Maharishi's consciousness-based programmes come in', said Arabella Higgins, educator, teacher of TM, producer of sustainable leadership programmes, and school administrator. With regards to Arabelle's current research on business practices of the women entrepreneurs of Thailand she said, 'female entrepreneurs will often view the business as a family, bringing employment and supporting the community'. (more)

Educating from the inside out in Thailand
3 November 2014 - The Excellence in Action page of Global Good News is featuring two articles on the Dhammajarinee Witthaya School in Thailand, where 400 at risk girls have learned the Transcendental Meditation technique. In the interview Principal Acharn Yai explains that TM is not only a way to help girls with a history of extreme poverty, broken homes, and domestic violence find their way to a successful and happy life, but its a way to create peace for the entire country. (more)

Thailand: Buddhist nun brings Transcendental Meditation to her school for at-risk girls

16 March 2014 - Acharn Yai is a Buddhist nun who is committed to employing the best of modern technology to help her school thrive. She is the founder of Dhammajarinee Witthaya School in Thailand, the first and only free Buddhist boarding school for Thai girls who are at risk due to poverty, abandonment, or abuse. The school has 530 in-residence students, preschool-grade 12, taught by 41 teachers. The girls not only receive safe haven and a free education, they also practise Transcendental Meditation, which Acharn Yai credits as the turning point for the school--since the girls started meditation, they now win top academic awards, live in harmony together, and have learned skills to succeed in a culture that would otherwise exploit them. Acharn Yai learned Transcendental Meditation in 2008, and is the first Buddhist nun to be trained as a teacher of the technique. (more)

Thailand: Buddhist school for girls offers Transcendental Meditation
10 August 2013 - In Thailand, over 400 girls are blossoming like beautiful lotuses at the Dhammajarinee Witthaya School--the first Buddhist boarding school for girls from kindergarten through 12th grade. By providing a rigorous modern academic curriculum along with Buddhist teachings, the school helps girls to lead better lives, and become the future leaders of their communities. Because many have suffered past trauma, the school also includes yoga and Transcendental Meditation as part of the daily routine, to reduce stress. (more)

Thailand: Rajapark Institute offers SCI degree programmes, Consciousness-Based Education schools flourish
17 July 2013 - With the support of Maharishi University of Management in the USA, Rajapark Institute in Thailand now offers a BA degree for women in the Science of Creative Intelligence (SCI). A Master of Arts degree in SCI is also offered now by the Institute; a dual degree will be awarded from both Rajapark Institute in Thailand, and Maharishi University of Management. The Institute has expanded to include 10 branch campuses throughout Thailand, and the student body has increased from 700 to 3,000. (more)

At Thai school for girls, Transcendental Meditation improves behaviour and understanding
23 April 2013 - Acharn Yai, the principal of Dhammajarinee Witthaya School for Girls in Thailand, has seen changes in the students after they learn Transcendental Meditation. Many come from poor families and broken homes, or are orphans who have been vulnerable to abuse and violence. 'It becomes much easier to take care of them,' Acharn Yai said. 'The aggressive behaviour decreases, their grades go up and they pay more attention to what we teach them. When they have inner happiness they soak up whatever knowledge we give, unlike before.' One of the high school students said, 'Back home I was a hot-tempered person, but since I learned TM, I feel a lot calmer. I feel that I'm happier and my learning ability is better. I feel that I'm happy all day.' (more)

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Flops
Short Summaries of Top Stories

Thailand: Chiang Mai to hand out face masks as dust from fires hits hazardous levels
8 March 2023 - The Chiang Mai authorities in northern Thailand will hand out face masks to the public as the province struggles with dangerously high levels of air pollution caused by persistent forest fires. The fires are an annual problem between the months of December and April, when farmers set light to their fields to clear the land ready for the next crop cycle. The government has temporarily closed several national parks and wildlife sanctuaries in north and western regions because of the fires, and it is expected that cloud-seeding will be used from Saturday in some areas, Thai PBS reported. (more)

Nearly 450 schools shut as pollution chokes Thai capital
23 January 2020 - Authorities in the Thai capital ordered nearly 450 schools to close on Wednesday [22 January] as pollution levels reached dangerously unhealthy levels. Like many growing Asian cities, Bangkok is plagued by vehicle fumes, dust from construction sites, and emissions from industry but the burning of stubble and undergrowth in fields in surrounding rural areas is believed to contribute to much higher pollution levels in the dry, winter months. (more)

Thailand finds fourth coronavirus ahead of Lunar New Year
22 January 2020 - Thailand has quarantined a fourth patient with the new coronavirus, including one Thai national, authorities said on Wednesday [22 January], days before Saturday's start of the Lunar New Year holiday is expected to bring an influx of Chinese tourists. At least nine people have died from the flu-like virus in China following an outbreak in the central city of Wuhan, and more than 470 cases have been reported globally. (more)

Salty water in Bangkok is new 'reality' as sea pushes farther inland
20 January 2020 - Bangkok's water authority says tap water is becoming saline as seawater pushes up the depleted Chao Phraya River, a growing risk faced by many of Asia's coastal cities. ... The drought conditions have worsened saltwater intrusion, which can have major impacts on farming and on health as drinking water is contaminated, said Suppakorn Chinvanno, a climate expert at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. (more)

Air pollution soars in Thai capital, authorities issue warning
19 December 2019 - Authorities in Thailand's capital warned people to wear face masks or stay indoors on Thursday [19 December] after choking air pollution returned to Bangkok following months of clear air in one of the world's top tourist destinations. No cause was given for the deterioration in the air quality, which tends to get worse in the dry season from December to April. (more)

Thai farmers asked to delay rice planting as drought bites
22 July 2019 - The Thai government has asked farmers to delay planting rice because of drought and the pumping of water from reservoirs for irrigation threatens household supplies, an agriculture ministry official said on Monday [22 July]. Farmers in the world's second-biggest rice exporter usually plant their main crop in May, the beginning of the rainy season, for harvest between August and October. (more)

Plastic bags jam stomach of dead pilot whale in Thailand
3 June 2018 - Some 80 pieces of plastic rubbish weighing eight kg (17 lb) were found in the stomach of a whale that died in Thailand after a five-day effort to save it, a marine official said on Sunday (3 June). Globally, eight million tonnes of plastic -- bottles, packaging, and other waste -- are dumped into the ocean every year, killing marine life and entering the human food chain, the United Nations Environment Programme said in December. (more)

Bombings in Thailand target tourist cities, killing 4 people
12 August 2016 - Attackers using firebombs and homemade explosives struck a series of popular resort cities and beach towns across Thailand in some of the worst violence to hit the country since a military coup two years ago. At least four people were killed and dozens wounded, including 11 foreigners. The attacks occurred south of Bangkok and several of the blasts -- including one on Patong beach in the tourist town of Phuket and four in the seaside resort city of Hua Hin -- appeared designed to strike the tourism industry, which provides vital income to the government. Police said firebombs also triggered blazes at markets and shops in six places, including Phuket, Trang, Surat Thani, Phang Nga, and a souvenir shop in the tourist town of Ao Nang, Krabi. (more)

Series of blasts hit resort towns in Thailand
12 August 2016 - A series of blasts hit three of the most popular tourist resorts as well as towns in southern Thailand on Thursday and Friday, killing four people and wounding dozens, days after the country voted to accept a military-backed charter in a referendum. Four bombs exploded in the upscale resort of Hua Hin on Thursday evening and Friday morning. Other blasts hit the tourist island of Phuket, a resort town in Phang Nga province, and Surat Thani, a city that is the gateway to islands such as Koh Samui in Thailand's Gulf. The attacks are bad news for Thailand's tourist sector, which has been one of the few bright spots in a sluggish economy. 'Why now when the country is getting better, the economy is getting better, and tourism is getting better? We have to ask why and who did it,' Thai junta chief and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha told reporters. (more)

Thailand bombs: travel warnings as tourist resorts hit by fatal explosions -- as it happened
12 August 2016 - There have been multiple explosions in nine incidents in at least five separate locations across Thailand in the past 24 hours -- Hua Hin, Phuket, Phang Nga, Surat Thani, Trang. The attacks appear to be at least in part targeting areas where tourism is important. Foreign embassies are warning visitors to Thailand to be vigilant. As details of each incident trickle out, it is clear some of the devices were detonated using timers or a mobile phone signal. (more)