Working with Ape Malaysia to help support the natural environment
In the Easter of 2018 I took my then 13 year old son Sam, on a trip of a life time, helping to support the work in Borneo where rainforests are being restored.
It was a long journey. We travelled via Malaysia to the fabulous 3rd largest island in the world and ancient 140 million year old rainforests of Borneo. We spent a lovely week relaxing and exploring the island before meeting up with the wonderful Ape Malaysia team.
The first night was spent in Happy Estate in Sarawak, where we met the other volunteers and were given a run down of the itinerary for the week. We slept in lovely traditional houses on stilts for the night and awoke early to set off to our home at Evergreen Lodge for the next 5 days in the beautiful riverside village of Sukau in Sandakan. Our accommodation there was basic but clean and suitable for our needs, with a lovely communal area down by the river.
The indigenous people native to the state of Sabah Orang Sungei (River People) were the friendliest people I have ever met, so welcoming and grateful that we had made the journey to help restore their beloved rainforest. They all waved and said hello and were fascinated with the blond haired, blue eyed visitors.
We were treated to wildlife spotting along the river Kinabatangan, studying the eco-system in the rainforest, culture days alongside our voluntary work of clearing the weeds from the saplings planted by previous volunteers, and planting 100 of our own saplings.
These fast growing trees are being planted in areas called “corridors of life”, previously logged regions of the forest, which inhibit the orangutans from moving safely across the canopy of the forest to find food. They often have to leave the safety of the tree tops and travel along the ground to move from area to area. Here, they are vulnerable and the mothers are often killed by poachers who steal their babies for illegal and cruel pet trades.
Ape Malaysia rely on volunteers and donations to be able to continue this vital work to protect these critically endangered relatives of ours and other endangered animals such as the sun bear.
You can see how our trees have grown…
I cant encourage you enough to make this journey and give a little back to the rainforest we are all responsible for. It is a fabulous experience and extremely humbling. You will definitely not return the same person. If you are unable to make the journey then please do try to make a donation for tree planting, however small.
Thanks for taking the time to read this post.
Lou Honour.
LANDS understands the effects that industries such as construction, development and maintenance can have on the environment.
We strive to minimise our impact and to continue to support causes such as Ape Malaysia in helping to protect and restore the natural world.
If you would like to discuss how LANDS can provide services for your sites and facilities, while being mindful of the effects the work can have on the environment, please contact us now.