Hi everyone! For the past two weeks, our Project Developer Harriet has been out in Singapore and Indonesia, visiting the 'Asia for Animals' conference (AFAC) as well as the International Animal Rescue (IAR) Orangutan Project in Ketapang, Kalimantan – getting involved in all aspects of the project!
The conference was the largest and most representative Asian animal welfare conference, organised by the Asia for Animals Coalition – a coalition composed of 14 of the most well-known and respected animal welfare organisations, including 'International Animal Rescue' – an organisation which we are so proud to be associated with.
The theme of the AFA for this year was "Confronting Cruelty". Here is a statement from the coalition regarding the theme of the conference this year:
"There has undoubtedly been great progress in the animal protection movement in Asia in recent years, but there are still so many on-going and pressing animal protection issues, and challenges faced by all of us who are trying to address these issues. Many issues boil down to simple cruelty towards animals. By confronting this cruelty head-on, we can move animal protection forward further, and relieve the suffering of countless animals.
Many of us are working on similar issues in different countries, and by working together we can often achieve so much more for the animals. This year, we have a whole day of the conference dedicated to forming Working Groups on some of the most pressing issues, so that collaborations can be forged and long-term solutions can be developed."
During her time here, Harriet was able to attend workshops on the topic of 'Human/Animal Conflict,' including "Human-Elephant Conflict in Sri Lanka: An Advancing Inter-Species Competition" by Deepani Jayantha from the Born Free Foundation, as well as "Orangutans in Agro-landscapes (Agro-communities and Agro-industries): Mitigation and Conservation Strategies" by Gail Campbell-Smith from International Animal Rescue Indonesia. Both of these talks are specific to our projects in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Indonesia, so to be able to attend workshops like these is both a great privilege and something which we believe to be really important.
What's more, Harriet was also able to attend a day of workshops on the topic of 'Wildlife Trade', where talks included "Palm Oil and Wildlife Crime" by Paulinus Kristanto from the Centre for Orangutan Protection, as well as "Reduce Ivory Trade in China" by Grace Ge Gabriel from the International Fund for Animal Welfare. It sounds like Harriet has had a really interesting couple of weeks, and we look forward to hearing all about it on her return to the office on Monday. Expect photo updates and news of her visit to the IAR project too (we couldn't resist putting in a photo of two of the Ketapang orangutan residents here though)!
For further details of the conference for this year, please click here. As ever, keep your eyes peeled on our Facebook and Twitter pages for our most recent updates.
