Students help improve orangutans' cage<\/p>\n
Text and photo by Kafil Yamin<\/p>\n
BANDUNG (JP): Akriti and her classmates, who are students at
\nBandung International School (BIS), visited the zoo at the
\nweekend. They were excited at seeing various species of animals
\nbut were stunned when they saw two orangutans sitting somberly
\ninside their small cage.<\/p>\n
The orangutans moved, but they didn't behave the way they
\nnormally did: jumping, hopping, sliding, swaying...<\/p>\n
\"They looked lackluster. There must be something wrong,\"
\nrecalled Haifaa, one of the students.<\/p>\n
The children were soon engaged in a small discussion about
\nwhat was happening to the orangutans. In minutes, they came up
\nwith the conclusion that the cage was the reason.<\/p>\n
\"The cage is too small and the orangutans lack the space to
\nhang, jump and do other exciting things. We think they are not
\nhappy,\" said Eun, an eighth grade South Korean student.<\/p>\n
Akriti and her friends shared the orangutans' feeling and
\nagain discussed how to help them. They knew the cage conditions
\nhad to be improved.<\/p>\n
They expressed concern at the zoo visitors' habit of feeding
\nthe animals with everything they had on them that was edible such
\nas leaves, peanuts and snacks, without realizing that they could
\nbe making the animals sick.<\/p>\n
The teens decided to meet the zoo manager to ask why the cage
\nwas not in good condition. The manager told them that he was
\naware of the condition, but the zoo lacked the funds to renovate
\nit.<\/p>\n
This situation motivated the students, who were also members
\nof the BIS environmental club, to raise money for the orangutans.
\nThey told their teachers about the zoo and their desire to be
\nable to change it.<\/p>\n
With the guidance of their class teacher, the club pursued
\nsome initiatives to raise funds. It produced and sold stickers,
\nT-shirts and leaflets carrying the message \"Save the Orangutans\".<\/p>\n
The students asked their parents to spread the news of their
\ncampaign to colleagues, friends and relatives. They would have to
\ndeal with obstacles during their campaign for the protection of
\nendangered species in a community that sees rare species merely
\nas pets.<\/p>\n
As one BIS teacher put it, \"Not only in Indonesia, but even in
\nsome developed countries, owning rare species of animals like
\norangutans is considered prestigious\".<\/p>\n
\"It's a sign of being wealthy,\" she added.<\/p>\n
The club invited orangutan experts to their school to gain
\nmore information on the animal and the best way to save them.
\nThey soon learned that the orangutan had been facing the threat
\nof extinction due to their illegal trade, deforestation and the
\nlack of public awareness of the issue.<\/p>\n
However, the students still managed to collect about Rp 25
\nmillion (US$2,650) in a few months to support their campaign.<\/p>\n
Illegal logging<\/p>\n
The threat of animal extinction is mainly due to illegal
\nlogging. Indonesia is home to around 80 percent of the world's
\norangutans and rampant logging in Kalimantan and Sumatra has seen
\ntheir habitats shrink and their population plunge by half in the
\npast decade to between 15,000 and 25,000.<\/p>\n
Illegal logging is threatening the survival of not only
\norangutans but also Sumatran tigers and other animals. It is also
\na threat to nearly 60 million Indonesians who depend on the
\nforest for their livelihood.<\/p>\n
Environmentalists have been urging the government to take
\naction instead of promises to show its seriousness in stopping
\nillegal logging.<\/p>\n
The Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), an international
\nnon-profit group with offices in London and Washington, said in
\nits reports that Indonesia had failed to halt even the most
\nblatant illegal logging operations.<\/p>\n
The group released footage showing unlicensed sawmills and
\nillegally felled timber floating down rivers in the Tanjung
\nPuting National Park in Kalimantan. The loggers go after Ramin
\nwood, which is used to make furniture.<\/p>\n
World Bank figures estimate that Indonesia loses 1.5 million
\nhectares of forest a year, mostly through illegal logging.<\/p>\n
The vast Indonesian archipelago contains 10 percent of the
\nworld's remaining tropical forests and at the current rate of
\nlogging, production forests will disappear within two decades,
\nclaim EIA reports.<\/p>\n
After obtaining information from an expert, Akitri and other
\nmembers of the club worked together to design a better cage for
\nthe orangutans, which was then proposed to the zoo's manager.<\/p>\n
\"A spacious cage with good space and facilities for orangutans
\nto play and rest. You see? We made a fancy cave for them inside,\"
\nEun screamed in joy.<\/p>\n
The club was also informed that five orangutans had arrived at
\nthe zoo from Kalimantan to join the present population of three.
\nThe five are now still in the zoo's quarantine, so that they can
\nadjust to the local environment.<\/p>\n
\"So the new cage is like a welcome for the new inhabitants,\"
\nsaid Takako, a Japanese student.<\/p>\n
The zoo's manager promised to get an engineer to renovate the
\ncage. When club members visited the zoo recently, they were very
\nexcited seeing that the renovation was already underway.<\/p>\n
\"Look! They are doing it!\" shouted Takako, as they all rushed
\nto the cage. \"Soon there will be a better home for the
\norangutans.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/students-help-improve-orangutans-cage-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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