|
(Archive)
YEAR 2005
Localised nature guide course
August 2005 - Red Ape Encounters in collaboration with the Ministry of Human Resources organised a 15 day (13 th – 27th August 2005) nature guide course which was conducted by Asean Tourism Institute in Sukau. There were 42 participants from the villages along the lower Kinabatangan. The team from Red Ape Encounters was among the participants. There were 16 passes including the RAE team and the participants are now certified nature guides. This course and certification are compulsory requirements from the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism for anyone who wants to be a guide in Malaysia.
YEAR 2006
Travel Trade Show
March 2006 - Red Ape Encounters participated in two consumer travel trade shows in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore respectively. This was to create awareness among the general public on Orang-utan conservation and to promote ecotourism programmes to support this conservation effort.
Visit of Mr. Fred Bagley from US Fish and Wildlife Services
17 th February 2006 - An official, Mr. Fred Bagley, from the US Fish and Wildlife Services was in Sukau in mid February 2006. This was the first time Mr. Bagley paid a visit to the operations base of Red Ape Encounters. RAE has received a substantial funding from US Fish and Wildlife Services last year for capacity building and research work on Orang-Utan. Mr. Sahdin Lias, the Managing Director of RAE gave a briefing to Mr. Bagley on RAE's progress and future plan. The trip was a productive trip as indicated by Mr. Bagley.
International School of Brunei (ISB) fundraise to support RAE’s reforestation project in the lower Kinabatangan
Since the beginning of 2006, the students at ISB began their fundraising campaign to support a reforestation project of approximately 1 hectare in the lower Kinabatangan. The reforestation project is an initiative undertake by Red Ape Encounters. This is part of an educational programme conducted by RAE to encourage participation in conservation among the youth.
On 4th March 2006, at the Borneo Global Issues Conference organized by ISB in Brunei, RAE’s Managing Director, Sahdin Lias presented a talked about environmental issues, Orang-utan conservation and local community development. The presentation was to inform the audience comprises of mainly students about the importance of conservation and protection Orang-utans.
Sahdin Lias also received a special award in the form of a cheque from ISB for the purchase of 100 trees for a replanting project being conducted at the Red Ape Encounters.
Also present at the conference was Dr. Isabelle Lackman-Ancrenaz, Director of Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project, also scientific technical advisor to RAE. Dr Isabelle was presented the ISB Conservation Award by the Deputy Minister of Industry and Primary Resources, Dato Paduka Haji Hamdillah. The award acknowledges the efforts and commitment of the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation project.
International School of Brunei (ISB) ground breaking at the reforestation site
July 2006 - Four students from ISB and their Director, Mr. David Taylor was in Sukau, Kinabatangan recently for a ground breaking ceremony of the 1 hectare reforestation site. The reforestation effort is undertaken by ISB student through a year long fundraising campaign in Brunei to support this initiative. The first four students and Mr. Taylor have planted the first five seedlings in the area and hope to come back again with more students to participate in the ground work.
RAE supports electric fencing
RAE funded the construction of electric fencing at a communal graveyard to prevent elephants from encroaching into the area. The gravesite lies along the regular migration route of about 150 Borneon elephants which their movements have caused damage to the gravestones resulting in human-elephant conflict. This is also an indication to the community that it is crucial to practice and carry out measures to integrate wildlife and habitat conservation that are suitable with local social-economic development. The funding comes under the Community Conservation Fund, which RAE has set aside 5% of its income to this fund. The Community Conservation Fund is RAE’s commitment to support conservation initiatives.
A newly discovered Orang-utan individual named Serena
A visitor to RAE’s tourism zone was lucky to discover an Orang-utan individual who has just made the the study site its home. It is a rare encounter to discover a visiting Orang-utan within the area because the zone is already occupied by a few other habituated Orang-utans individuals. Since this was the lucky discovery by this visitor, the research team decided to name the newly discovered Orang-utan Serena, after the name of the visitor’s daughter.
Learning and educational for sixteen Dutch visitors to Kinabatangan
The Orang-utan study site does not guarantee sighting of any Orang-utans because they are wild apes and roam freely in the forest. Nevertheless, the programme offered by RAE does not end there, visitors will still get interesting interpretation and educational facts through RAE’s well trained research office and nature guides. Sixteen Dutch visitors were unable to enter the study site because the habituated Orang-utans have moved away from the site, possibly due to food source at another side of the forest. Nevertheless, these visitors were given lectures and visual presentation to understand more about the behaviour and habitat of these red apes. The visitors later donated some funds to support the work of the conservation and protection of Orang-utans in the Kinabatangan.
YEAR 2007
RAE’s participation in the Visit Malaysia Year 2007
January 2007 - RAE participated in the launching of the Visit Malaysia Year 2007.
International School of Brunei signs conservation MoU with Red Ape Encounters
14 April 2007, Sukau, Sabah, Malaysia - A Memorandum of Understanding between Red Ape Encounters (RAE), a community-based Orang-utan ecotourism project and the International School of Brunei (ISB) was signed on 14 April 2007 in Sukau. The ceremony was witnessed by village head, representative from Sabah Wildlife Department, staff of ISB and RAE.
 In the MoU, ISB donated RM18,000.00 to support a one hectare reforestation site on a land adjacent to the wildlife sanctuary. The reforestation initiative called “1200 Trees Project” is in collaboration with RAE. ISB will be bringing groups of students to Sukau throughout the year to participate in this project. The trees planted in the area are native species which are food source for the orang-utans and birds. The lower Kinabatangan comprises of ten fragmented lots of forest which forms the wildlife sanctuary under the Sabah Wildlife Department’s jurisdiction.
During their trek to the site, the party observed a two year old infant. ISB has been given permission by the Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project and RAE to name the baby “Juta” in honour of the Million Trees Project. Mr. Sahdin Lias the Managing Director of RAE thanked ISB for its efforts in supporting the community based ecotourism enterprise and the conservation of orang- utans in the lower Kinabatangan floodplain.
|
