Orangutan Foundation

Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Local Communities, Orangutan Foundation Staff, Orangutans, Uncategorized | Date: May 29 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Meet Pak Roji.

Pak Roji at the market

He works on the Education Team for our Lamandau Ecosystem Conservation Partnership, as our Community Liaison. Pak Roji’s passionate about all things mouldy, and organic!

He’s our compost expert, with a background in chemistry, and at least a decade of farming experience in Java. He currently works with the farmers collectives in four villages by the Western boundary of the Lamandau Reserve, to help improve their crops by applying compost.
Earlier in the week I visited Pak Roji in Sukamara, with the Head of our Education Team, Eddie, and our Liaison Officer, Astri, to meet up with local government officials to discuss about our plans to commence a compost project in the town.

Eddie rescues some seedlings that would have been burnt along with the garbage, to be planted at our office in Sukamara.

You may wonder how compost ties into orangutan conservation – and I’d say that wildlife conservation overall is holistic: assisting local communities to find alternative sustainable livelihoods that are still culturally relevant, is vital in obtaining their continuing support for the Reserve. The sandy soils that these farmers work on are nutritionally-poor, and organic composts help increase the yield of crops, while decreasing pressure on the local dump-site. Working one on one with farmers at the Western boundary of the Reserve have yielded small successes, and we hope to see this grow.

So far, the response has been encouraging, and we have received a lot of comments and advice from respective government officers from various fields. Our hopes for this project is that it is community-driven, with farmers benefitting from the harvest.

Eddie, our Education Team Leader, discusses land options with the Village Head of Natai Sedawak, Pak Nadi

We also met up with the village head from Natai Sedawak, to discuss possibilities on where the compost project could take place. He took us to various sites, including the local garbage dump that reminded us why this project is crucial!

Astri, our Liaison Officer, demonstrates the height of the garbage pile

I believe everybody in his or her lifetime, needs to visit their local dumpsite and understand how our daily consumption affects the rest of the community, and the world.

Pak Roji hard at work!

I’ll keep you in touch on how this project develops over time, but rest assured, Pak Roji continues to churn the soil to keep all organic waste wonderful and mouldy!

Thanks,

June

Tags: Borneo, communities, conservation, Indonesia, Orangutans

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Category: Forest Fires, Guard posts and patrols, Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Orangutan Foundation Staff, Uncategorized | Date: May 26 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Last week the Central Kalimantan Agency for Conservation of Natural Resources (BKSDA) held motivation training sessions for their Forest Fire Brigade. They asked Orangutan Foundation staff to facilitate with this after the dedication they showed when tackling the recent fires that broke out in Sungai Lamandau Wildlife Reserve.

Pak Eko Novi, the Head of BKSDA SKW II Kalimantan Tengah, awarded a Manggala Agni (Forest Fire Brigade) Pin, to our staff at Danau Burung Post (Bird Lake Guard Post) because of their dedication and participation in tackling the fires.

Isam represented other KPEL (Partnership for Local Economic Development) staff (Sias, Amat, Fendy, Aris dan Jakir) at the award ceremony. It is hoped the award will help motivate other staff, BKSDA staff and the local community to have more responsibility and participation concerning the conservation of the Sungai Lamandau Wildlife Reserve.

At last week’s training session we aimed to build team cohesion and lift the spirits of the Forest Fire Brigade. We hope it will instill a sense of honour and the brigade will feel proud about their duties and their job. Fire fighting is not just a “job” but is “dedication” for nature conservation.

Pak Hudi leading the motivation and team building session.

The team building and motivation sessions included various games:

Carry a Bomb. Each team must carry a bottle (as a bomb) with limited tools from one place to a target. The aim is to encourage teamwork, strategy, and role distribution within the team.

Courier. Each team must deliver a message (a stick) from one place to another place only using their neck’s. This game has aim to build team work, strategy and the “quick think” response.

O-O Game. A pair of participants must save themselves from plastic rope that binds their hands. This game has the aim to build problem solving strategy.

Thank you,

Pak Hudi

Programme Coordinator, Orangutan Foundation UK

Tags: Forest Fires, Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Orangutan Foundation

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Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Lamdandau Vet, Orangutans, Uncategorized | Date: May 20 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Amoi, female Bornean orangutan, was released into the Lamandau Wildlife Reserve at Camp Siswoyo on July 14 2004. Recently Amoi is found in the vicinity of Camp Gemini, with her adopted son, Richard. Perhaps Amoi fancied a change of scenery or different companions!

Amoi has a very tame nature and when the Camp staff order her to leave camp and go to the forest, Amoi replies with a sound similar to a man crying “hink….hink…hink…”.

Amoi and her adopted son, Richard.

Last year Amoi “adopted” a three-year-old male orangutan called Richard. Richard’s mother Ruta died in February 2008. Camp staff tried to find an appropriate mother for Richard and the job fell to Amoi. Initially Amoi rejected Richard but the camp staff continued to present Richard to Amoi and eventually Amoi accepted him. Since March 2008 she has become his new mother.

Thank you,

Dr Fiqri

Tags: adoption, Borneo, Orangutans, Rehabiliation

One response so far

Category: Forest Fires, Guard posts and patrols, Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Orangutan Foundation Staff, Uncategorized | Date: May 13 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

At the end of April, there was another fire breakout, near the Pos Danau Burung (or Bird Lake Post) that borders the western section of Sungai Lamandau Reserve.

Map showing Bird Lake Post on the Reserve Border.

Thankfully, at that time, our Programme Coordinator, Pak Hudi, was visiting the area with the Section Head (II) of the Central Kalimantan Agency for Conservation of Natural Resources (BKSDA), Pak Eko Novi. Along with our ever-ready Patrol Manager, Pak Jak, they raced to assist our field staff at Pos Danau Burung.

Field staff from Pos Danau Burung who made up the fire-fighting team

Face to face with the fire wall

Trying to stop the fire - forest in the background

Caught unaware they had to grab whatever was at hand to beat the fire.

They slogged to beat out the fires for many hours under the hot sun. We appreciate the hard work of our field staff, whose primary role is to replant the western part of the Reserve but would not hesistate to switch roles as fire-fighters when needed.

Tears for nature - tired and emotional.

Pak Eko Novi was also very appreciative of our staff’s dedication that he organized a special ceremony for the field staff, in which he presented pins from the Fire-Fighting section (Manggala Agni) of BKSDA Section II. It was truly an honour, and much appreciated!

It does not stop there for our hard-working Programme Coordinator, Pak Hudi. Today (13th May), under a special invitation from Pak Eko Novi, he will be giving a team-building exercise for the Fire-fighting team of BKSDA Section II, Central Kalimantan.

Hopefully, we will have a post from Pak Hudi himself about this experience!

Thanks,

June

Programmes Manager

Tags: Borneo, Fires, Indonesia, Orangutan Foundation, Wildlife Reserve

3 responses so far

Category: Uncategorized | Date: May 12 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

HRH The Prince of Wales launched a global public awareness campaign last week to save rainforests.

The focal point of the campaign is this 90 second public awareness film in which HRH The Prince of Wales appears alongside his sons and an array of well-known faces including Harrison Ford, the Dalai Lama, Daniel Craig and Robin Williams.

Support for the cause can be demonstrated by the public by signing up on The Prince’s Rainforest Trust website http://www.rainforestsos.org/

Tags: deforestation, film, Prince's Rainforest Trust, rainforests

4 responses so far

Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Lamdandau Vet, Orangutans | Date: May 06 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

Below are some photos of Dr Fiqri, our Lamandau vet, receiving the medicines funded by The Gemini Foundation.

Dr Fiqri sorting through the newly received medicines. Our veterinary programme in Lamandau is kindly supported by The Gemini Foundation.

Tags: Borneo, Orangutans, vet

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Category: Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve, Local Communities, Yayorin | Date: May 01 2009 | By: orangutanfoundation

On the 22nd April Orangutan Foundation and Yayorin celebrated Earth Day with students from various schools at Sukamara, which lies close to the western part of the Lamandau Wildlife Reserve.

Together with the Yayorin Education Team, the school children took part in a full-day of activities, starting with ‘socialization’ or getting to know each other through a series of games, stickers and magazine were distributed. As well, it wouldn’t be Earth Day without any seedlings being planted! Together, the students planted 60 seeds from four indigenous plants at the Danau Burung Post.

The day ended with a film screening open to all, regardless of age, of various environment-related films, including a popular local film called “Laskar Pelangi” or Rainbow Warriors.

Environmental film screenings

Thanks,

June

Tags: Earth Day, education, Orangutan Fundation, Yayorin

One response so far