50th Anniversary Celebration of the Wildlife Conservation in Sabah

Date: October 11th 2013

Text by Chiew Lin May
Photos by Gloria Ganang & Chiew Lin May

An event was held at the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park, Sabah to capture the effort of wildlife conservation in Sabah and also in conjunction with the “Sabah Wildlife Department’s 50 Years anniversary celebration”. On last week (4^th October 2013 till 6^th October 2013), three of the BSBCC team members, Gloria, Ernie and myself where involve in this event. This event is an educational and public awareness programme focusing on the wildlife conservation activities in Sabah.  The motto of this event is “Past, Present and Future” (Dulu, Kini dan Selamanya in malay language).

Several exhibitions were carried out by government agencies and NGOs to encourage people about the issue of protecting wildlife and their habitat such as

a)      Sabah Wildlife Department

b)      Tabin Wildlife Reserve Resort

c)       Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre (BSBCC)

d)      Bornean Conservation Trust (BCT)

Elephant satellite collar – This collaring activity is one of the components of the Mega Biodiversity Corridor programme initiated by Bornean Conservation Trust (BCT), which aims to enhance forest ecosystem connectivity and ecological corridors within key habitats of the Bornean elephant.

e)      WWF

f)       Sabah Swiftlet House & Bird’s Nest Industry Association (SWIFIN)

g)      Tuaran Crocodile Farm

h)      Reef Guardian

The public are invited to the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park. The Lok Kawi Wildlife Park is run by Sabah Wildlife Department. The park consists of zoological and botanical component.

We set our booth near opposite is the elephant enclosure.

On October 4 2013, we held the opening ceremony at 9.30am. A memorandum of agreement between the Sabah Wildlife Department, The Reef Dive Resort, Tours, and Sipadan Pom-Pom Island was signed for the protection of four marine turtles in Malaysia and their habitats.

Gloria is introduce our sun bear booth and BSBCC work.

Assistant Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Kamarlin Ombi and Wildlife Department Deputy Director, Augustine Tuuga visiting sun bear booth. Gloria was explaining the works of BSBCC to the VIP Visitors.

Datuk Kamarlin Ombi and Augustine Tuuga was looking at the bear profile book.

Our teams are spreading the word of this forgotten species.

It is very important to creating more awareness about sun bears among the public.

Gloria is give some questions about sun bear to the kids.

Throughout the celebration, Lok Kawi Wildlife Park conducted various fun activities such as:

a)      Up-close and personal with two elephant calf

–   Wildlife Rescue Unit staff brought the elephant calves out and discussed the current threats that the Borneo Pygmy elephant is facing      in Sabah.

b)      Colouring contest

–   Involved children one to twelve years old, and allowed them to express their artistry, creativity, and love for animals through wonderful colors.

Look like sun bear become brown bear!

c)      Story telling contest

– Involved the secondary school students and the title of their story had to focus on the challenges and responsibilities around   protecting wildlife in Sabah. This story telling helps conserve wildlife by raising awareness around the threats that endangered animals  in Sabah are facing.

d)      Story telling contest

–  Involved the primary school students and the title of their story had to focus on the awareness that students have about our natural environment. Children are great fans of stories and love to listen to them. This contest plays a role into creating more awareness among the public.

e)      Photography contest

f)      Face painting

–   A face painting booth- one thing that all kids love! This is a great activity which kids and adults can choose their favorite animals and have their faces painted in resemblance.

Gloria get a footprint in her hand!

g)      Wildlife Game

–  A group of five students with one teacher is involved in this game. This is an adventurous learning activity related to wildlife. From the game, two questions are related to sun bears.

Question 1: What is the scientific name for the sun bear?

Question 2: What is the smallest bear in the world?

h)      Catch the entertaining animal show at the Park’s Amphitheatre.

i)      Recycled clothing contest

–   Students created new designs and fashions using reusable items and their imaginations. Examples of the recycled materials they used are bottle caps, aluminium can tabs, wire, juice boxes, cardboard boxes, plastic bottles, string, and feathers. The purpose of this activity is to create public awareness regarding the importance of saving the planet and the environmental benefits that recycling provides.

j)      Eco-Fashion show by Miss Earth Sabah

–   Recycled clothing is making waves in the fashion industry. In this fashion show all of the clothes were made from aluminium foil, DVDs, glass, metal, candy wrappers, and other recycled materials. The concept behind clothing made from recycled material supports saving the planet and would result in less pollution for a sustainable planet.

Thank you for supporters that support our sun bear!!

This event was a wonderful opportunity to learn about a variety of animals at the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park and share knowledge with the public. I really hope that this event helped raise awareness about the wildlife issues happening in Sabah, and encouraged people to react in ways that promote saving and conserving the Borneo wildlife habitat.