Orangutan Volunteer Programme
| country: | Indonesia, Borneo |
| location: | Kalimantan |
| departures: | 2009: 3 May, 28 Jun, 23 Aug |
| price: | From £730 (6 weeks) excluding flights. We can offer advice on travel from the UK |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Our Volunteer Programme was established in 2000 in the Tanjung Puting National Park, Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). Our programme is like no other and promises some exciting opportunities for adventurous individuals; not only do volunteers participate in conservation fieldwork that really makes a difference, they also get the chance to see orangutans in their natural habitat.
Volunteers work in tor around the Lamandau Wildlife reserve, a Government designated orangutan release area managed by us. Past projects included the construction of a jetty, guard posts and a soft release site to enable release of further rehabilitated orangutans into the wild. All projects are primarily manual construction with tasks such as chiselling, sawing, painting and cementing. (No experience is necessary – everyone learns on the job!). 2009 projects are to be confirmed but will likely be construction of a new Information Centre or further Guard posts. Additional tasks include border-marking and elements of reforestation.
All volunteer work actively contributes to the protection of orangutans we reintroduce from our Care Centre and Quarantine Facility as well as existing wild populations. The project will operate in remote and basic conditions and you will be living “in the field”.
All programmes are six weeks in length with a maximum of 12 people per team. The programme is open to all nationalities. Throughout the programme volunteers will be working closely with the local staff which provides a fantastic insight into the Indonesian culture and an opportunity to learn some of the Indonesian language.
We want all volunteers to come away from the experience with a basic knowledge of orangutan and forest conservation and so we ensure that volunteers are taken on visits to our Care Centre and Quarantine and sites of habitat destruction. Paying volunteers inject an income and workforce into our field projects and without volunteer participation our orangutan release sites would not be nearly as smooth-running or numerous as they are – your participation really does count.
Accommodation is extremely basic and personal space lacking, but this never seems to bother anyone! You work a 6 day week and have one day a week off to catch up on washing/ help cooking etc or just relax and enjoy your surroundings. . Volunteers must note that they will not have hands on contact with orangutans or participate in scientific field research. You will, however, see many free ranging ex-captive orangutans in the locality and opportunities will be available to stay at Camp Leakey or a similar camp and visit the daily feeding.
Volunteers are also privileged to spend a morning visiting the Orangutan Care Centre and Quarantine Facility. Throughout the programme volunteers will be working closely with the local staff which provides a fantastic insight into the Indonesian culture and an opportunity to learn some of the Indonesian language.
Volunteers work in tor around the Lamandau Wildlife reserve, a Government designated orangutan release area managed by us. Past projects included the construction of a jetty, guard posts and a soft release site to enable release of further rehabilitated orangutans into the wild. All projects are primarily manual construction with tasks such as chiselling, sawing, painting and cementing. (No experience is necessary – everyone learns on the job!). 2009 projects are to be confirmed but will likely be construction of a new Information Centre or further Guard posts. Additional tasks include border-marking and elements of reforestation.
All volunteer work actively contributes to the protection of orangutans we reintroduce from our Care Centre and Quarantine Facility as well as existing wild populations. The project will operate in remote and basic conditions and you will be living “in the field”.
All programmes are six weeks in length with a maximum of 12 people per team. The programme is open to all nationalities. Throughout the programme volunteers will be working closely with the local staff which provides a fantastic insight into the Indonesian culture and an opportunity to learn some of the Indonesian language.
We want all volunteers to come away from the experience with a basic knowledge of orangutan and forest conservation and so we ensure that volunteers are taken on visits to our Care Centre and Quarantine and sites of habitat destruction. Paying volunteers inject an income and workforce into our field projects and without volunteer participation our orangutan release sites would not be nearly as smooth-running or numerous as they are – your participation really does count.
a day in a life of a volunteer
Volunteers will be staying in a rural and remote region of Indonesia Borneo and living “in the field” pretty much 24/7. The programme requires a great deal of physical exertion in hot and humid conditions. Depending upon the project you are participating in you will be required to undertake some of the following activities; strenuous walking/hiking, digging, carrying loads and/or working in swampy areas. Accommodation is extremely basic and personal space lacking, but this never seems to bother anyone! You work a 6 day week and have one day a week off to catch up on washing/ help cooking etc or just relax and enjoy your surroundings. . Volunteers must note that they will not have hands on contact with orangutans or participate in scientific field research. You will, however, see many free ranging ex-captive orangutans in the locality and opportunities will be available to stay at Camp Leakey or a similar camp and visit the daily feeding.
Volunteers are also privileged to spend a morning visiting the Orangutan Care Centre and Quarantine Facility. Throughout the programme volunteers will be working closely with the local staff which provides a fantastic insight into the Indonesian culture and an opportunity to learn some of the Indonesian language.
volunteer travel - what's it all about?
Are you are looking for an adventurous trip with a purpose, or on a gap year or career break? If you want to make a difference in some of the world’s most important conservation areas - and in community projects - then volunteer trips are for you! Volunteers tend to have a sense of adventure, and come from a range of different backgrounds and from all over the world. Edward Abbey said 'sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul'.
how this holiday makes a difference
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This operator organises and runs the volunteer programme. We ensure the programme runs in an environmentally and socially responsible way. Volunteers are there to support the work of the foundation whose main aim is to protect the orangutan and its habitat. We employ local people to work on our project and with the volunteers. We also try to use the services of the nearby town as much as possible. This encourages and creates alternative employment from illegal logging or mining. The entire fee for the programme is invested in the programme and pays for food, materials and local staff wages.
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