109 / Gotong Royong, Langkat, North Sumatra
Mrs. Janine is a German teacher who moved to Sumatra to protect the nature and now works at the Bukit Lawang Trust, a non formal education center. The free classes focus mainly on English and environmental studies. For the children around Bukit Lawang the center even provides free transportation.
Bukit Lawang is a village near to Gunung Leuser National park, located in a highland, about 15 minutes to the primal rainforest and close to the river.
Local people are mostly living as guides of the national park, craftsmen or farmers. Teenagers who want to work as guides someday also come to the center to learn English.
The nearby river is polluted by the waste of the local tourists who come to visit the national park. Furthermore, the rainforest is being deforested to make space for palm oil plantations. Not only does this cause the decrease of wildlife in the area, it also resulted in a flash flood in 2003.
The waste management of the village contains of composting and recycling. However the knowledge and information about environmental issues still needs to be disseminated to raise more awareness.
Mrs Janine would like to teach the children about the environment using the eco-education program. She is hoping that they will apply what they learned in their daily life and also transfer the knowledge and information to their family, relatives and friends.