Custodians of nature

What do you do when you have a piece of coastal land that draws nesting turtles? You could build a sprawling resort and make a lot of money. Or you could start a project to protect the turtles. Meet three people who opted for the latter.

Years ago, turtles nested all along the coast of Pulau Lang Tengah, an isle off Terengganu. But tourism development changed all that, as resorts came up on almost all the beaches. With the noisy crowds and bright lights, most of the sandy beaches no longer lure turtles ashore to lay their eggs, save for two spots: one beach that remains undeveloped and another that has a small-scale resort with low occupancy and is quiet with no bright lights.