Jungle camp training

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The Participants!

Last week, the first batch of participants arrived, a group of 19 Malaysian young people, they were greeted by the staff and taken to ‘Jungle Camp’ to begin expedition training. They then prepared to welcome their international team mates with a local song and some traditional Malaysian dancing the next morning.

The following day, the rest of our participants arrived, in total we’ll have around 110 participants and 29 staff across three phases of the programme. They hail mostly from the UK and Malaysia, but we are joined by participants and staff from Canada, Chile, the Netherlands, Ireland, Ghana, Australia and Lithuania. They have all volunteered to have come to Sabah to work together, to help the environment and local communities, as well as to embark on what for many will be a life-changing experience.

Jungle training …

To ensure the smooth running of the programme, our staff team took part in several intensive weeks of planning and jungle survival training.

They now have a solid grasp of radio communications, expedition health and safety issues, and rather importantly, cultural issues and youth development skills. The project staff have all been out to ‘recce’ their project sites, getting to know relevant project partners, carry out risk assessments, and meeting the communities with which they will work.

During their first four days, the participants have also been put through a version of the staff’s rigorous training programme, to prepare everyone for expedition life. They have learned what it’s like to brave the elements (hot and very humid!), how to cook on trangia stoves, use field radios, practice first aid, how to make porridge without burning it, and learning how to build a jungle hammock or ‘basha’ to ensure the most comfortable and undisturbed night’s sleep possible!

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Photos

Group picture
Malaysia Spring 07 participants and staff.