Bridging Communities Through Language: Launch of OWN’s Multilingual Wildlife Advisories

Article by Jasvic Lye, OWN Campaign Manager

Earlier this month, the OWN campaign marked a major milestone with the launch of Singapore’s first multilingual wildlife advisories. This initiative is part of OWN’s commitment to making wildlife knowledge accessible to all, including the many communities in Singapore who may not be fluent in English.

As urbanisation continues to bring people and wildlife into closer contact, fostering coexistence is more important than ever. OWN promotes this through education, but a longstanding challenge has been the language gap—vital information on how to respond to common wildlife encounters often remains out of reach for non-English-speaking residents and workers.

To bridge this gap, OWN initiated a project to translate our joint wildlife advisories not only to the three commonly spoken languages in Singapore—Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil—but with the inclusion of languages spoken by our migrant community—Bengali, Burmese, Tagalog, Bahasa Indonesia, and Thai. These resources cover scenarios such as what to do if you see a snake, a civet, or a macaque, and how to prevent unwanted visits from wild animals on one’s premises. 

Before the recent launch, four languages of the translated advisories were soft-launched in June at the Migrant Workers’ Centre’s May Day celebration and during an on-site engagement focusing on long-tailed macaques at Coney Island, carried out by ACRES, Jane Goodall Institute (Singapore), and OWN. It was a good start to kick things off before the official ceremony, which was scheduled a month later.

On 20 July 2025, all eight languages debuted on OWN's website. The launch was witnessed by more than 40 people from diverse groups: representatives of the migrant workforce, members of the campaign’s partnering groups, and volunteers.

The launch, held at Mandai’s Bird Paradise Learning Centre, was officiated by Dr Adrian Loo, Associate Professor and Deputy Director at the Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions at the National University of Singapore and former Group Director for Wildlife Management at the National Parks Board; Dr Sonja Luz, CEO of Mandai Nature; and the Core Committee members of the OWN campaign. The event concluded with a delicious lunch spread and a visit to the Bird Paradise, thanks to the generous support of Mandai Wildlife Group.

^ Click play to watch a snippet of the launch.

As shared by all speakers at the event, human-wildlife coexistence can be achieved through education and understanding—and this begins with communication and inclusivity. This is a proud moment to remember, as wildlife knowledge is no longer restricted to the English-speaking crowd, but is now accessible to others who speak a different tongue. This removes the language barrier that many of us face when carrying out roadshows in the heartlands, allowing us to promote coexistence to a wider audience.

Photobooth and props illustration by Phoebe, artist behind Wilducation.

On behalf of the OWN team, I would like to express heartfelt thanks to all the volunteers—local and international—who vetted the wildlife advisories in their native languages and mother tongues. We owe our success to the support from:

• Anbu Boopal

• Anuradha Bharath

• Gerry Atillano

• Keziah Mae Atillano

• Karina Lim

• Wellyanto

• Robiatul Asnawiyah

• Bill Johnathan

• Safari Masnor

• Syazleena Roslee

• Yee Kien Ling

• Shahriar Caesar Rahman

• Howlader Shamim

• Hossain Md Asga

• Safiullah Sheikh

• Nat Setawongpak

• Su Su Yamin

Also, special thanks to the following people who have contributed to the initiative in other ways:

• Phoebe Michelin (Wilducation)

• Ray Shyuan

• Cae Lyn

• Tan Lee Sar

• Rose Ann Valdez (SG Migrant Volunteers)

• Randy Ayson (SG Migrant Volunteers)

• Naing Myo Win (ItsRainingRaincoats)

• Heidi (ItsRainingRaincoats)

Be a part of this movement!

Here’s how you can help us spread the word:

1. Share and download the translated wildlife advisories. The advisories can be found under the dropdown menu of the “Resources” tab.
   

2. Connect us with communities. If you know of a group, space, platform, or opportunity for outreach to promote coexistence, email us at ourwildneighbours@gmail.com.
   

3. Volunteer with us—especially if you're bilingual or trilingual! Many of our roadshows take place in the heartlands, where English proficiency can be limited.
   

4. Share our website (www.ourwildneighbours.sg) with your friends and family. You’ll find not only our translated and English advisories, but also the Urban Wildlife Coexistence Communication Resource and other materials recommended by our partners.

   
   

5. Follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube (handles: @OurWildNeighbours) to stay updated on our latest happenings—including exciting initiatives like this launch!