Pompeii of the Animal Kingdom

When I saw the dots of fire on the map of Kalimantan, my mind went straight to the animals.

I ache to imagine how many endangered species have already been lost, and yet the fires are still burning.

The national treasure and the pride of Indonesia—wooosh! Gone.

I picture a National Geographic edition published a hundred years from now:

Once upon a time, there were this and that animal on an island called “Kalimantan.” But due to a fire that spread throughout the island’s forests around 2026, they all went extinct.

It would be like the story of Pompeii, but for the animal kingdom.

This photo was taken in the northern part of the island, on Malaysian territory. Some news reports have reported that, interestingly, Malaysia’s forests have remained fire-free despite bordering Indonesia. Whether that’s true or not, one thing is for sure: fires in Indonesia’s forests definitely affect wildlife in Malaysian territory.

When Pompeii of the Animal Kingdom gets published, it will not talk about citizenship.

Can we really draw a border between one country’s forest and another country’s wildlife?