Safeguarding the wetlands of Setiu

Fuziah Abdullah of Kampung Beris Tok Ku in Setiu, Terengganu, harvesting kercut for use in weaving mats.

In the northern corner of Terengganu where the district of Setiu sits, a type of sedge which locals call kercut grows wild in swampy areas. Villagers harvest the long-stemmed grass for weaving mats. But as gelam forest – the water-logged areas in which the sedge thrives – diminishes, the sedge may become scarce in future.

Should that happen, it would put an end to the tradition of kercut weaving. And that is just one of a myriad of changes that could happen here as the land undergoes massive transformation.