PPLH Seloliman

Getting to the PPLH Environmental Education Center in Seloliman is fun - or at least the last part where you take a motorcycle taxi (an ojek) from the town of Trawas. Zipping through the backcountry of Eastern Java, we fly past villages and people caring for their fields. We breeze down hills with hair flying, sorry to say no helmets around here, and after an exhilarating 20 minutes ride we reach the PPLH Center. The center is located on the slopes of Mount Penanggungan, and they can also arrange pickups for those not as keen on motorcycle riding.

(Scenery on the ride to the PPLH – and I did take this pic ;)

At the center I was greeted by Purjoko, coordinator for the education programs. Well, first I was greeted by two visitors to the center that wanted a picture taken with the newly arrived “white girl” before I can even set down my bags. Later on this would become the theme of the evening ;) Due to poor planning on my part, there is no dorm vacancy at the center, but Purjoko is happy to set up a stay in the nearby village. As he tells me, if you’re arriving on the weekend it is best to email: pplh@indo.net.id a week in advance, or if you’re coming on a holiday weekend even a month in advance.

I continue talking with Purjoko in the restaurant area of the center, and he tells me about the place’s history. PPLH Seloliman was first established in 1990 with funding from the WWF, but since then it has developed into a self-supporting NGO to educate the public about the environment. The center here focuses mainly on agricultural learning, but other branches of PPLH operate around Indonesia and focus on other topics, such as marine life rehabilitation. The PPLH Seloliman center really sees a wide range of visitors. When I arrive a group of kindergarteners from Surabaya are playing an educational game in the nearby woods, but primary, secondary, graduate, and post graduate students also visit, as do full-fledged adults. We go on a tour of the area, and Purjoko shows me the storeroom for planning the programs oriented for young kids. As he tells me, “most kids are only used to coloring with crayons and other manufactured products, but here we teach kids about natural products.” He shows me a root and the bright yellow streaks it produces. Kids here can also use flowers and charcoal to color their printouts of local wildlife. He also tells me about some other fun projects for the kids including educational hikes, visits to the organic garden, seeing the local animals that reside at the center, learning how to boil down paper to reuse it, and even a game to teach kids how to sort out products to recycle.

We continue our tour to see the other components of the PPLH center. The goal of the center is to be very nearly self-sustaining, so he shows me where waste is naturally composted and broken down under the earth. A nearby PPLH run hydro-electric power station generates electricity for the center, surrounding villages, and even enough energy to then sell to the government. We pass a resource library that holds a collection of Indonesian and English books on environmental conservation, wildlife, development programs, etc. There is also a seminar room, spiritual house for prayer, bungalows, a guest house, and a 60 person dormitory. Again, these spots fill up quickly on the weekends. As we pass the organic garden, Purjoko explains that programs are also arranged with the local community to help develop awareness on how to manage the forest’s resources. The center holds education classes for local kids, as well as working with farmers to plant crops that include those that enrich the soil and prevent erosion. At first, he explains, there was some tension between the locals wishing to use the surrounding forest for its resources and to meet their daily needs, while the center hoped to conserve and manage the natural resources of the area. In addition, government regulations and enforcement on logging had changed, so since 2001 PPLH witnessed an increase in illegal logging. At that time, as I’m told, the center stepped up its efforts to help villagers find other ways of gaining income from the forest that didn’t include cutting down the trees, like harvesting non-timber related assets like fruit. Meetings have also been held with local farmers from the surrounding communities on how to help damaged forest recover and about managing a community forest near the main one with short term and long term crop strategies. The center also promotes organic farming in the area, and has been working to find long lasting business partners in Surabaya to buy the goods. As we walk by a display case, he shows me some of the products for sale made by home industries in the local village, like herbal medicines. Over the past 17 years the center has reached a comfortable level of interconnectivity with the locals in the area, as around 70% of the staff, over 40 people, comes directly from the surrounding countryside and those who don’t come from the area rent rooms in the villages.

(Purjoko explaining water treatment)

In the evening a workshop is going on for a large group of science teachers from Surabaya. I sit in on the presentation. Though entirely in Indonesia, I can easily understand the general ideas of the presentation as they use some easily discernable pictures, like a little devil with horns burning garbage and an image of a sad looking globe with a thermometer in its mouth. After the presentation, I join the group for dinner in the main hall. As to be expected the food here is very healthy, grown locally and without additives or artificial ingredients. By the end of the evening I think I had my picture taken with the majority of the 70 plus group of science teachers. As they posed my in different positions, I couldn’t help but wonder how many random photo albums I’m in throughout Asia.



The next morning I could again observe the science teacher workshop. After a hike, the staff members of PPLH demonstrated nature related science activities, like making paper. The teachers were then given an opportunity to try their skills. Another activity was going down to the river with nets and microscopes to look at the creatures that live in the water. While the group gathered next to the river, I could see a grey haired woman from the village collecting firewood, creating an odd juxtaposition with the merriment of the science teachers.

My last activity around PPHL was to go with the Arief, from the Research and Development staff, to visit the nearby Jolotundo temple and a nearby community garden. Both places are about 1 km away from the center, but up a steep hill. Jolotundo is one of about 80 Hindu temples built into the sacred Penanggungan Mountain, and as one can see from the picture local kids enjoy playing in the water. In a large plot nearby is one of the community gardens that PPLH works to develop with local farmers. As we arrive a boy is just departing with two large baskets of leaves and other food for livestock, strung on a pole over his shoulders. For those who wish to stay longer Arief also conducts educational eco-hikes in the surrounding mountainside.

If you’re curious to find out more about the PPHL Center at Seloliman, they have a website – http://www.blogger.com/www.pplh.org. They also happily welcome volunteers, so if you’re interested contact pplh@indo.net.id.

The Blind Masseuses of Malang

From Yogyakarta I travelled briefly to Solo. The tourism industry here has declined severely as fewer tourists are visiting Indonesia and those who do usually just go to Yogya, which has most of the same tourist draws – a Sultan’s palace and local dance performances. It doesn’t help that many of the guest houses in Yogya encourage visitors to skip Solo and stay longer in their town. I’m afraid I didn’t stay long in Solo, just long enough for lunch before catching the next bus to Surabaya. After Jakarta this is the second biggest city. The city has a few highlights, like a fascinating China town and an old district full of crumbling Dutch buildings, but it is mostly business people who visit this city. At the inexpensive guest house I stayed at, I was surprised in the morning to find the courtyard full of men in suits sipping tea.

Again I did not stay long in Surabaya, but hopped a bus to Malang. I am now entrenched in East Java, the least populated of Java’s province. It is also home to several of Java’s finest parks and volcanoes, including the popular Mount Bromo. On the short 2 hour ride from Surabaya to Malang I could see acres of forest out the window. Malang itself is full of Dutch architecture, as its sometimes cool temperatures made it a favorite destination for European vacationers during colonial times. While many of the buildings date from the Dutch era, like most places one can still find McDonalds and a few other global chains.

Traditionally the tourism industry specializes in providing lodgings and transport to tourists, but a “linkage” is when the tourism industry encourages growth in supplementary industries as well. Throughout SEA massage industries have taken off as an accompanying industry in many tourist destinations. While sometimes these massage parlors bring unforeseen negative social impacts, they can also be used to positively impact a community. In Malang I discovered Nuansa Fajar, a massage place that trains and employs the blind. In the back of a store, several rooms are set up where masseuses give 1 hour massages. I visited Malang during the offseason, so at the time I visited there were few other tourists and I didn’t have to wait long for a masseuse. As the blind lady used strong fingers to get out all the kinks I’d developed during the last few days of travelling, I could hear a local band on the street strumming away. After the massage, it was at this place that I saw my first and only other Caucasian tourist in the town, and he too was getting a massage.

Green Maps in Yogya

As a major tourist destination, Yogya receives a hefty amount of visitors both domestic and international each year. I decide to stop at the tourist information booth in the center of town, to see what type of information they offer to visitors. The lady behind the front counter gave me a large map of the area. On the backside over 30 different destinations in and around Yogya were highlighted, including some lesser known places like villages, a snake fruit agricultural tour, and an education forest. I also found a mini newspaper called the JogjaPages that include articles related to traveling, and more alternative opportunities for touring the surrounding areas like at a pottery village, a copper goods village, village home stay opportunities, and a bamboo handicrafts village. This type of tourism management seems positive as its trying to emphasize the local potential of other interesting, but less visited places.

That evening on a rather stormy night I met with members of the Yogya Green Map club at a little restaurant on the main street of town. I was greeted by Joyo, a young lanky guy in glasses, who is the coordinator of the Indonesian hub of Green Map. Also at the table were Thomas and Inu, other “green mappers.” I hadn’t heard of this group previously, but it is actually a worldwide organization started in New York in 1995, with the head of the Asian hub being in Taiwan. Using Google Earth communities are able to map interesting places in their area, and then make interactive and print maps for distribution. As Joyo explains, the Green Map club provides workshops to those interested in making maps and teaches the universal codes used by all green map members, but it is the community that creates and develops each map.

While Jakarta had the first green map club in Indonesia, the group in Yogya is now the most active. It’s primarily students that create these maps, as they are often very comfortable using computers and are usually more eager to help with volunteer projects. And as Joyo puts it, “the number of socially conscious university students around Yogya has really been a benefit to keeping our group active and focused.” Thomas, Inu, and Joyo told me they first discovered the club about 4 or 5 years ago when they were also university students.

As Joyo goes on to explain, one of the primary benefits of doing the mapping projects is that through the act of making the maps it gets others, especially young people, interested and aware of the assets of their community. By getting the community involved and educated about the interesting features of their area, the group hopes to encourage residents to be more apt to manage and preserve these unique features. “One of the most important steps of the map making” Joyo continued, “is the review process, which acts like a forum where participants can analyze the strengths and weaknesses of various points of interest.” They feel that by discussing weaknesses and strengths of different areas, this will encourage interest in more local community planning.

The next workshop the group is holding is taking place the following Sunday and the Green Map group will be helping to educate the community at Borobudur how to map their area. This will be a special “youth map” created by junior high students, with the purpose of encouraging visitors to extend their stay and visit other places in the local area surrounding the Borobudur World Heritage Site. Currently, most visitors are bused into the temple and then depart, without ever visiting the town or other interesting places and smaller temples around the area. However, as the group explains to me, there are hotels in the area, and inexpensive horse drawn carriages can be hired to visit the lesser known points of interest, thus providing an alternative experience to the routine mass tourism of the area.

In one sentence Joyo was able to sum up the goal of their group, “To empower local people to see their local resources honestly, and to encourage community involvement in planning and managing these assets.” I thanked the group for all the information, and as I left I couldn't help feeling very optimistic to see the passion they have for this work. Green maps really do seem like an innovative idea that can benefit local communities, as well as guests to their area.

Green Maps really is a global endeavor, so to find out more visit: http://www.greenmap.org/

Walking Around Temples

The Buddhist temple of Borobudur and the Hindu temples at Prambanan are both popular and easily reached tourist attractions, and World Heritage Sites, near Yogya. As I’d yet to go on a packaged day tour in Indonesia, I thought I’d give it a try and see what it’s like.

The minivan picked us up at 5am and our group included 11 very tired looking people. As we drove out of town I saw a striking sight, against the pink dawn sky the volcano Gunung Merapi was silhouetted in the distance. From its mouth a steady stream of smoke curled upwards. I wish I could have captured that very Indonesian moment in picture, but I don’t think I could have done it justice.

After a 90 minute drive we reached Borobudur. Both it and Prambanan’s temples were declared World Heritage Sites in 1991. This means Western admission fees, about $8-10 payable in US dollars or rupiah for foreign visitors, and 1/10th that for domestic. That being said, the places are well maintained. The temple at Borobudur was built between 750 and 850 AD. It’s thought to be made of more than 2,000 rocks, some decorated with very intricate bas-relief, and the entire structure is in the shape of a giant stupa. With the decline in Buddhism, this place was abandoned and fell into disrepair. The Dutch during their administration attempted repairs, but it finally took 10 years and a $25 million USD restoration project finishing in 1983 to do the job. In 1985 opponents of Soeharto planted bombs in the upper levels, causing damage and requiring more restoration work. Next the temple faced damage from the 2006 Yoyga earthquake. Repairs were again made, and the temple seems to be in good condition (now) for something over a thousand years old. I was also very impressed by how well taken care of the temple is - I witnessed security guards patrolling the area, and when another visitor attempted to climb on the rocks a voice came over a loud speaker telling them to stop. However, at the time of visiting I think there were only about 30 visitors, so it was much easier to keep careful watch compared to peak times.

As far as benefits go, certainly this type of preservation and conservation work can be supported through tourism. However, I’m curious if the community of Borobudur really gains anything other than traffic congestion from busses, or garbage left over from visiters. On our tour we did not stop at the town, and the only local people we saw were unsuccessfully trying to sell drinks and souvenirs.

(Borobudur)

I really didn’t get to know most of the people in the group, other than another single traveler Buganj from Kuching, Malaysia. He was very fascinating to talk to, after 50 years of travelling he has seen many places in Asia and the Middle East. The other 9 visitors on the trip were all Europeans, but didn’t seem very talkative and preferred to stick with the people they came with. Those in the tour seemed different than the more youthful groups made up of long term backpackers that you find doing the loop of Thailand-Laos-Vietnam-Cambodia in mainland SEA.

The brochure for Prambanan Archaeological Park, claims Prambanan Temple “is the most beautiful Hindu’s Temple in the world.” Maybe a slight over-exaggeration in marketing, but the architecture of the main complex is pretty nice. These temples were created about 50 years after Borobudur, but most are in worse condition. The three main temples are attractively restored, but most of the others in the complex lay in rubble. Visitors are prohibited from entering, or even getting to close to the three standing temples because of structural damage caused by the 2006 earthquake. Besides the temples, the park has an Archaeological museum and a movie about the complex, a play ground area, Ramayana open theater – where a twice monthly ballet performance takes place during the dry season, a camping area, and 92 souvenir shops and 33 food stalls – so says the information booklet I picked up.

As I was walking around these temples with Buganj he made a comment about the importance of preserving these types of places. Out of curiosity I asked him, “Do you think tourism is always beneficial for a place?” His answer was immediate, “of course, it brings money to a place.” I try again, “but do you ever think tourism might be hurting the environment or negatively affecting the people - like the trash caused by tourism?” Again Buganj responded, “no, people are civic minded. When I’m staying at a hotel I always pick up my trash and put it in the waste bin, not making the people cleanup after me.” I persist, “What about beaches, like in Thailand, like Ko-Phanagn that suffer from garbage after all night parties? That can't be positive tourism.” “Well then the government needs to manage it, have all the garbage put it one place,” he logically replied. I decide not to mention the harm of having all that garbage, even if it is in one place, and decide to instead smile back and change the subject.

I enjoyed spending the day with Buganj, but I think that will be my last tour for awhile. The tours are easy to arrange, but it feels like your missing out when just going around with other foreigners. In addition, the money (usually inflated) is all given to the one tour company and in my case one in Yogya, instead of going to local transport in the area of the attractions or guides who live in that area. In addition, by going on a tour that just visited the temples, I missed possible other areas of interest in the community and surrounding areas.