InsightTrekking for a cause: TSA Riley steps up for tiger conservation

Earlier this year, TSA Riley’s Kuala Lumpur team took a literal walk on the wild side. In the spirit of team bonding and conservation, our intrepid Malaysian Regional Director, Gandhi Suppiah, invited his colleagues on a jungle expedition. Aizat Gani, Amy Justin, Firdaus Bakar and Tracy Yip joined Gandhi and his family on a 2-day trek deep into the tropical corridor adjacent to Taman Negara, Malaysia’s largest national park.

Malaysia is home to some of the world’s most unique and endangered species, including the Malayan tiger. Once thriving across the Malay Peninsula, these tigers are now critically endangered with fewer than 150 estimated to remain in the wild. Our team travelled to the River Yu ecological corridor with a clear mission: to help conserve and protect the Malayan tiger and its dwindling habitat. Helping them achieve this goal was the Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (MYCAT).

Founded in 2003, MYCAT unites government and organisations to safeguard the Malayan tiger through anti-poaching initiatives, habitat protection, and community involvement. Our team participated in MYCAT’s Citizen Action for Tigers (CAT) Walk programme, which empowers the public to protect tigers and other wildlife by reporting illegal activities and monitoring wildlife in critical habitats.

The TSA Riley CAT Walk involved a two-day guided trek with overnight stays in an ecological guesthouse. Before setting out, the CAT Walk guides showed Gandhi and the team how to disable location tagging on their mobile phones. This precaution prevents poachers from using metadata in social media uploads to locate potential poaching sites.

On the first day, guided by certified MYCAT leaders from local communities and an indigenous trekker from the Batek tribe, the team spent over 6 hours learning to follow animal trails safely and without disturbing local flora and fauna. They identified tracks and footprints, recorded movements, and their presence actively deterred poachers and illegal deforestation. Importantly, they were tasked with locating and reporting illegal snares – devices that indiscriminately maim and kill wildlife – to Malaysian authorities for swift removal. The team was also briefed on ongoing forest rehabilitation activities, including replanting trees to conserve the ecology.

After staying overnight in the ecological guesthouse, they resumed the adventure with a 3-hour trek. Throughout the journey, their CAT Walk guides shared their deep knowledge of the surrounding ecosystem, including how selective logging (distinct from deforestation) can benefit Malayan tiger populations by promoting vegetation regeneration and providing more food for tiger prey. Amidst their learning and monitoring, our people were thrilled to experience numerous wildlife and nighttime sightings, from hornbills, tapirs, and barking deer, to a particularly vocal and disgruntled group of gibbons. They also identified the markings of other animals including the Malayan sun bear and great argus pheasant.

Every step taken by our people helped fund local indigenous communities and support conservation efforts, while also creating a unique and memorable experience. Bonding tightly as a team, they ventured into the heart of Malaysia’s wilderness and played an active role in safeguarding one of the world’s most endangered species—a truly impactful and transformative journey that left a lasting impression on all involved.