The young conservationists with representatives from BOH, Media Prima, WWF and MOE. A collaborative effort between BOH Plantations Sdn Bhd (BOH), WWF-Malaysia and TV9 and endorsed by the Ministry of Education, the New Hope for Orang-utan School programme was conceived with the purpose of continuing to create awareness on the plight of the orang-utan among youths and to empower them to play a role in spreading the message of conservation of these primates.
Caroline Russell, CEO of BOH Plantations (left) said, “Much importance is placed on the character of youths today, who are the leaders of tomorrow. The virtues instilled in them now will one day be passed on to the future generations. Judging from the quality of entries of the New Hope for Orang-utan School Programme, I strongly believe that our young people have proven that they can be instrumental in creating change for the orang-utan and providing an impetus towards a more sustainable future.” Also at the event was the Head of TV9 Brand Management Group, Feisal Malik, who added, “We are very honoured to be a part of this campaign where we can work as a team to help save the nearly-extinct orang-utans and at the same time, inspire youths from all over Malaysia to join hands in protecting the environment. TV9 and its personalities have interacted with the students through exciting games, constructive talks and interviews so that these young students are able to better understand the issues we are currently facing and that they too have the power to assist in solving these problems.”
Speaking at the event, Dato’ Dr Dionysius S.K. Sharma, Executive Director / CEO of WWF-Malaysia said (pic below), “Working with local community groups, our partners and generous supporters such as BOH Plantations, WWF-Malaysia has rehabilitated degraded patches of forest by replanting native tree species, with the aim of improving the connectivity of wildlife habitat to facilitate the animals' movement, feeding and breeding. From 2005 to July 2010, WWF-Malaysia and our partners have worked together to replant about 109,857 trees, restoring about 385 hectares of degraded forest areas in the Lower Kinabatangan.”
The New Hope for Orang-utan School Programme was open to all private or secondary schools nationwide with participating students aged between 13-17 years. Sixty schools participated in the programme, whereby students had to spearhead a campaign with on-ground activities to promote awareness of orang-utan conservation to their fellow peers and the wider community. A unique element of the programme entailed the students utilising blogs as a medium to creatively express the activities of their awareness campaign.
The Kawan 9 team from TV9 embarked on a 4-week school roadshow by visiting seven schools in the central region and another 32 surrounding schools outside and inside of the Klang Valley to create awareness on the school programme.
Out of the 60 blogs submitted, 10 blogs were shortlisted for public voting. The third place team from SMK Dang Anum, Melaka walked away with RM 2,000 cash prize and a plaque, while the second place team from SMK Lembah Bidung, Setiu, Terengganu earned RM 5,000 cash prize and a plaque. The winning team from SMK King George V, Negeri Sembilan earned the coveted prize of RM 8,000 cash prize and a plaque.
Another feature at the New Hope for Orang-utan School Programme prize presentation ceremony was the launch of Tea for Trees Facebook fan page. Tea for Trees is BOH’s ongoing public awareness orang-utan conservation programme aimed at encouraging the public to play a small but active role in orang-utan conservation efforts by way of adopting a tree for replanting efforts. For a small fee, donors can help towards the restoration of the orang-utan home in Kinabatangan by symbolically adopting a tree. Funds generated will be channeled to WWF-Malaysia for reforestation work.
Following its inception two years ago, Tea for Trees has matured from a once-a-year public event to a daily venture that can be easily accessed throughout the year via BOH’s Facebook.
Speaking about the new virtual Tea for Trees, Russell said, “In today’s environment where social media has such a wide-spread appeal and it is an effective and important communications platform, we feel it is necessary for us to reach out to this audience, many of whom are aspiring conservationists. Digital media has changed the way we consume information and establishing a Tea for Trees fan page serves as a powerful tool for us to channel vital information such as orang-utan conservation.
“People do listen, share their views and participate in activities through social networking sites like Facebook. With this being the ‘life’ today, we to take Tea for Trees and saving orang-utans to the next level,” Russell stated.
Environmental enthusiasts can now support the Tea for Trees cause and be fan by accessing by http://apps.facebook.com/newhopefororangutan/.
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