Pongo Goes to School

The school has established a ‘Nature Club’ to help the children learn more about the wildlife they live alongside, but further education is incredibly helpful.

Sylvia created the character called ‘Pongo’, who is a cartoon representation of an orangutan, which the children loved! Pongo was brought to life in the form of one of her team dressed in a full-sized orangutan costume. He interacted with the children, helping to show them that there’s no need to fear orangutans, as well as creating a really memorable learning experience for them.

The team have also been visiting villages, taking a variety of educational tools and materials to share their invaluable knowledge about orangutan conservation. Many people in Sabah are unaware of the threats to orangutan populations. They can sometimes perceive their presence as a threat, where they could destroy crops and jeopardise their livelihoods.

Providing information on the best ways to manage these situations should hopefully result in less human-orangutan conflict and a more harmonious relationship between this critically endangered species and those sharing their habitat.