BANKING ON ECO-TOURISM — THE FOUNDATION OF RESPONSIBLE HOSPITALITY

Historical Feature | The Sun Daily (2001)

In March 2001, Ian McIntyre of The Sun Daily captured a pivotal moment in Langkawi’s tourism history with the feature "Banking on Eco-Tourism." The article highlighted a bold move by the Mutiara Burau Bay Resort to move beyond conventional advertising, choosing instead to educate guests about the ancient Gunung Machinchang range and the island’s rich biological heritage.

The Rise of a Naturalist Icon:
The feature introduced Irshad Mobarak - Naturalist as a rising icon in the local nature scene. Even then, Irshad lived by the principle that humanity should co-exist with, rather than dominate, nature. Whether picking up discarded bottles along the trail or stopping every few minutes to explain the medicinal properties of forest leaves and the circling bird species above, Irshad’s daily nature trails became a "ferris wheel ride" of discovery for discerning tourists.

A Commitment to the Ecosystem:
The article also noted the contributions of fellow naturalist Jurgen Zimmer, emphasizing a shared outspoken commitment to making nature a permanent feature of the Langkawi experience. From billboards designed to educate rather than just sell facilities, to trails that led guests toward waterfalls and rare timber, the efforts documented in 2001 laid the groundwork for what JungleWalla represents today.

Twenty-five years later, we carry forward this legacy. What began as an "all-out effort to showcase the overlooked gifts of Mother Nature" has evolved into a world-class standard for ethical wildlife observation and conservation education in the UNESCO Global Geopark.

WALK THE HISTORIC TRAILS