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January 2011 Update: The Ghost of Tompotika
Sulawesi is really weird. Or it's a biogeographer's paradise, depending on how you look at it. On this 11th-largest island in the world, right in the center of the Indonesian archipelago, almost half the vertebrate species are endemic -- that is, found nowhere else in the world. That's because Sulawesi has never been connected to a continental landmass -- instead the island is made up of many different parts which were once separate oceanic fragments, shifting over millions of years with the earth's tectonic plates, and eventually bumping into one another to form the oddly-shaped island we see today. Some of those oceanic fragments originated in the Asian region to the west, and others in Australasian region to the east, which has yielded a completely unique mix of Asian- and Australasian-related flora and fauna on Sulawesi today, characterized by pioneers who came from somewhere else and then stayed and evolved. It's weird -- unlike anything you'll find anywhere else on earth.
Take mammalian carnivores, for example. In most places in the world, you find the dog (Canidae) family (wolves, jackals, foxes, etc.) and/or the cat (Felidae) family (tigers, lions, jaguars, lynx). Maybe also bears, weasels, or their relatives. But not Sulawesi! No wild cats, dogs, bears or weasels in Sulawesi; there the largest mammalian carnivores are in the Viverridae, or civet family -- and who's ever heard of those? Like most of Sulawesi, the civets are weird: you might say they have the body of a weasel, the face of a dog, the movements of a cat. And the largest of these (4-5 ft long, with the tail) is the Sulawesi Giant Civet, Macrogalidia musschenbroekii, which, not surprisingly, is found nowhere else on earth.
And "found" it is not very often; hardly anybody is ever lucky enough to see one. There are only a handful of official records of this very shy, elusive carnivore from various parts of Sulawesi, and some of those are from forests that are now destroyed. The scientific community knows virtually nothing about its habits, life history, or ecology. In recent years, efforts to bait and camera-trap this ghostly forest prowler have proved that the civets are indeed still present in some of Sulawesi's forests, but we still know very little about them. What kinds of habitat do they prefer? What is their social system? Do they stay within a home range, or move around? What do they eat most? How many young do they have? How long do the young stay with the mother? No one knows the answers to these questions.
But if you want to learn as much as you can about the Sulawesi Giant Civet, go talk to local people. In Tompotika, in some areas local people tell us they've never seen them -- though they may have seen their more common cousin, the Oriental civet (Viverra tangalunga). But in the more remote villages, folks who spend a lot of time in the forest often have stories to tell of the sosop onduk, pojek anjing, oranjing malam (dog of the night). Whereas the Oriental civet will come into the village at night to steal chickens, they say, the Giant will not -- it keeps to the forest. If you think you glimpse one weaving through the trees at night, in another glance it has disappeared, just like a ghost. If you have snared a pig in the forest, often the Giant Civet will come to pay a visit. They never hurt people, but they always know what's going on in the forest, and they see us, even though we rarely see them.
None of us on the AlTo team has ever seen a live Giant Civet in the wild. But we're glad to know that they're there, wraith-like and unseen in the forests we're working hard to protect. We hope, some day, that we humans may get to know them better, learning from the insights of local people and scientific studies of the future. Meanwhile, we'll keep working to safeguard the Tompotika Forest Preserve and other places where they dwell. Though they may appear to us as ghosts who flit through the darkness, silent and mysterious, yet their presence is felt everywhere; as top predators, they are a central and irreplaceable component of this strange and beautiful Sulawesi ecosystem.
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
Vashon Is., WA 98070 USA
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December 2010 Update: The Giving Tree - PLUS: AlTo receives Conservation Award!
News Flash: We are delighted to announce that the
Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo), together with our colleagues at the Nantu Forest Conservation Program, which works in Northern Sulawesi,
has just been awarded the 2010 Conservation Award from Mongabay.com, a premiere website for international environmental news and information. Time, Inc. rates Mongabay as one of the 15 top environment and climate websites. Please see:
http://news.mongabay.com/2010/1207-mongabay_conservation_award_2010.html
Dear Friend of AlTo,
You'd be hard-pressed to find any part of creation that's more giving than a tree. This Tompotika fig tree does all kinds of things that are useful and/or necessary to humans: it takes in carbon dioxide and gives off oxygen, helps soak up extra rainfall to prevent flooding, stabilizes the soil to prevent erosion and landslides, helps purify water for drinking, regulates rainfall, provides shade, exudes beauty. And these are just what it does while standing, not to mention all the things people cut and use it for. When it comes down to it, we are bonded to the trees -- we couldn't live on our planet without them.
And that's just a few of the direct and obvious benefits for humans. When considering the additional things that this fig tree does for its neighbors in Tompotika, you could go on practically forever: its fruits feed everything from tiny ants to red-knobbed hornbills to Sulawesi flying foxes to Tonkean macaques. Strange marsupial cuscuses eat its young leaves. Orchids and other epiphytes grow in its branches and crevices. A family of gremlin-like tarsiers roosts by day inside the tangle of its trunk. A tiny gecko hides on a limb, camouflaged by the age-old mimicry between her colors and the splotches on the bark. Mycorrhizal fungi grow on its roots, performing an array of invisible services that keep the whole forest healthy. And so on; when you begin to add it up, the tree's capacity for giving is profoundly humbling; the trees set an example for us all.
In Tompotika, this fig and the others around it are threatened by all manner of human activities. But they still stand, and with your help, AlTo will continue to honor, defend, and be inspired by them. In this season, you may see Christmas trees in your home or neighborhood; we hope they will inspire you to be mindful of your bonds to the trees, and grateful for all that they give. And for everyone, everywhere, we wish you peace, happiness in the things you are bonded to, and the joy of giving!
... And speaking of the joy of giving, don't forget that any donation you make to AlTo through December 15th will be matched dollar-for-dollar by some generous (and exceedingly joyful!) AlTo supporters. Please mail your check to the address below, or donate on-line at www.tompotika.org.
Happy Holidays from all the AlTo team!
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
Vashon Is., WA 98070 USA
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September 2010 Update: What About Big Blood-thirsty Man-eaters?
There is a school of thinking in conservation which says that the only way to get people to care enough about other animals, forests, natural areas, etc. is to give them (or publicize their) economic value: if people get some direct monetary value from a lake, tree, or critter, then—perhaps—they may care enough to save it. This is held to be truest of all when dealing with large, dangerous carnivores like crocodiles: unless you want to hunt or farm them for export as shoes and bags, the conventional wisdom goes, then say goodbye to crocodiles—people won’t put up with having such dangerous creatures around.
But in Tompotika, this just ain’t so. Although crocodiles have indeed declined precipitously, and have disappeared from most of the island, in some remote pockets of Sulawesi, Indonesia—including Tompotika—the Indo-Pacific or estuarine crocodile,
Crocodylus porosus, continues to persist in the wild. Larger populations of this species still remain in New Guinea and Australia, so it is not globally endangered, but it hangs on by only a thread in Sulawesi. But
what does that thread look like? Turns out, it is made of love, not money.
One of AlTo’s flagship conservation villages, Teku, hosts two large beautiful brackish-water lagoons, and these lagoons harbor crocodiles. Local people use the lagoons for fishing, they have huts along the banks—and they live at peace with the crocodiles. “We have a pact with these crocodiles,” a local man explains. “These crocodiles have five fingers, like humans, and that means they are like us. We don’t hunt them, and they don’t eat us.” Here in Teku, no one can remember a time when they have hunted or killed their neighbors the crocodiles; nor when the crocodiles have bothered them. “If they had only four fingers, then they might be naughty. But these have five, just like us.”
A few villages away, there is a family which takes this notion of kinship with crocodiles to even greater lengths. An ancient Southeast Asian tradition holds that,
once in a while, a woman will give birth to twin babies: one a human, and one a crocodile. When this occurs, the family raises the crocodile as one of their own. However odd that might seem to outsiders, the practice is accepted unquestioningly by locals. Thus, though the sight of wild crocodiles in Tompotika has become quite rare, in this village Wira the crocodile is doted upon but considered otherwise unremarkable in her home. Wira is a 16-year-old crocodile whose human twin sister, Wirda, is also 16 and now attends high school in a neighboring town. The twins’ human father supports the family by selling vegetables from a cart, and from whatever other side jobs he can find. According to the parents, the twins were born when the family lived in a city some distance away, and they were separated at birth, but when she was 9 years old Wira the crocodile missed her family so much that she traveled many miles into the country to find them.
When she reappeared to them, they immediately recognized her as their long-lost twin daughter, and incorporated her right into their family along with their other children, building a special pool in their kitchen for her use.
Now, Wira sleeps every night either under her parents’ bed, or in a special bed they’ve made for her. In the afternoon, her father feeds her some rice. Then she comes out of her room and makes her way to her pool in the back of the house, where, before she went off to school, her twin sister Wirda would often sit and join her.
At the end of the day, her mother bathes her, the pool is drained for refilling the next day, and she makes her way back to her bedroom to be tucked in for the night. According to her parents, in the seven years that she’s been with them, she has never bitten anyone.
This family is far from rich. They have to work hard and scrimp to feed their four human children, let alone a croc as well. And then there is the substantial proportion of their small four-room house that they have devoted to building a pool and other needs for this special member of the family. For all the trouble they go to
, of what “value” is this croc? Talk with these folks, and it is clear that that is not a question that it would ever occur to them to ask. Wira the croc is a member of their family. They love her, they do whatever is necessary to live with her, and her presence enriches their lives. Call them crazy. Or: perhaps we have a lot to learn from these people.
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
21416 86th Ave SW
Vashon Is., WA 98070 USA
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August 2010 Update: Making Conservation Cool
For many of the folks AlTo works with in Indonesia, conservation -- including such issues as deforestation, endangered species, and climate change -- is rather a new thing, something they've given little, if any, previous thought. "Honestly, I wasn't concerned about that before I was involved with AlTo," said Tompotika native Ama Kasim, 16. But the health of our planet -- and what must be done to protect it -- is an issue that is becoming increasingly impossible for any Earth resident to avoid confronting, and its effects will be felt all the more profoundly as time goes on.
The truth is, especially for the youth of today, sooner or later there will be no escape from thinking about conservation matters. But here at AlTo, we want them to think about conservation in a positive way. AlTo has a strong presence in Tompotika's schools, reaching out to children and youth through our Conservation Awareness campaign. And in the last two years, AlTo has sponsored two special projects aimed specifically at young people aged 15-19. These young people are the definers of Tompotika's youth culture, and the ones that younger children look up to and mimic; how they think and behave holds a special power, now and for the future.
In 2009, AlTo gathered 14 young Tompotika artists to focus on the area's rich but vulnerable array of endangered wildlife (as seen in the 2010 Tompotika Youth Calendar).
This year, the focus was trash, litter, and the problem of marine plastic debris, and the team of AlTo Eco-Service visitors included three energetic -- and it turned out, irresistible -- youth ambassadors for conservation: Logan Emlet (18) and Clara Summers (18) from the U.S., and Dea Tasirin (19), from Manado, North Sulawesi. They, along with 8 Tompotika high school students, made picking up trash cool.
Picking up trash isn't usually something one thinks of as glamorous. But this August, AlTo's Eco-Service travelers -- which besides Logan, Clara, and Dea also included seven other cheerful trash-pickers -- made a party out of cleaning up beaches and putting trash in its place. (Read more about the Trash Jamboree in AlTo's upcoming newsletter, October '10.) Villagers and visitors of all ages -- from 8 months to 80 years -- joined together in the effort. But it was the young people who were most visible. When the teenagers went swimming, all the village children and youth swarmed into the water. When they danced, everyone danced. And when Logan, Dea, and Clara joined with the 8 local high school students to make up a skit about maleos, sea turtles, and trash, the entire village -- hundreds of people -- came out to watch. Everywhere we go, AlTo's task -- building support for conservation -- is a serious one. But the youth helped ensure that the atmosphere in each village where the group picked up trash was decidedly festive!
In this month's event, a lot of trash was picked up. Tompotika's main sea turtle nesting beaches -- where mother turtles and hatchlings have had to tangle with plastic bags, abandoned fishing nets, and other hazards in their quest simply to survive -- were made clean. That's good news. But more than that, the people of Tompotika, especially children and youth, are now thinking about proper disposal of their trash -- and other conservation matters -- for the first time. And doing the right thing, they've come to believe, is cool. As 16-year-old Ama put it, being involved in AlTo projects has been "one of the great things in my life... It can change [peoples'] habits, especially for the trash problem. But for me, it is not enough yet. I hope I can do more for this planet."
Yes, Ama, together we can and will do more!
Thanks for your support.
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
Vashon Is., WA, US
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July 2010 Update
We have just posted a few recommendations and words of encouragement up on our donation page.
Our contact page now allows you to Skype Marcy directly - at least when she is at home.
If you'd like to submit your own comments or suggestions for enhancement, please use our feedback form. We would love to hear from you!
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May 2010 Update: World Turtle Day May 23
May 23rd is World Turtle Day. In honor of the occasion--and because we always love an excuse to tell Tompotika stories!--
please join us Sunday afternoon, May 23, 3-5 pm at the home of Susan and Jim McColley, 21419 - 86th Ave SW, Vashon Island, Washington, USA. This is just an informal gathering--a chance to hear, for example, how organic farming in Tompotika is helping save sea turtles, why maleo birds are becoming celebrities, and see photos of waterfalls and wildlife that live in the new Tompotika Forest Preserve. The event is free and all are welcome, refreshments will be served. For questions or directions, contact Marcy (contacts below).
Meanwhile,
May is a peak month for sea turtle nesting in Tompotika. It's not all good news: sea turtles in the Asia-Pacific region have been on the decline for decades now, due above all else to overharvest of adult turtles and eggs by humans. Although in Tompotika AlTo has been working with local villagers since 2008 to protect them, we have not yet seen an increase in the number of female sea turtles who, at this time of year, laboriously haul themselves up on the beach to dig a hole and lay their eggs.
Until 2008--and despite the fact that it's illegal--pretty much every sea turtle nest that people could discover in Tompotika was dug up, and the eggs were taken for sale or consumption.
The number of green, hawksbill, olive ridley, and leatherback mothers who've returned has declined, steadily and relentlessly. In fact, it may already be too late for the leatherbacks--they haven't been seen nesting in the last few years.
But it's not too late for the others. And now, the tide is turning, and sea turtles have a new chance at life in Tompotika, thanks to AlTo's partnership with local villagers to protect them.
It's going to take time. Sea turtles may take 20 years or more to reach sexual maturity--that means that baby turtle hatchlings that we protect this year won't come back to nest until around 2030.
It's going to take faith: faith in the strength and resilience of natural processes--that if left alone, sea turtle populations can recover. Faith that some semblance of natural beach--likely at higher sea levels--will still be there in Tompotika when those turtles do come back 20 years hence. Faith that people can and will change their ways and attitudes toward sea turtles and all nature. Happily, there are plenty of reasons behind this faith: in Tompotika, we have already seen critical changes in people's attitudes and behavior. And in other parts of the world--the Caribbean, for example--we have seen that when nesting beaches are protected, sea turtle populations really do eventually recover.
It's also going to take work. We know what we need to do, but doing it will not be easy. Nor will there be a single turtle who will have an easy way ahead. It's estimated that, after 20 years of predators, floating plastics, fishing by-catch, and the like, only one of every thousand turtle hatchlings will live to return to her natal beach for nesting. But in Tompotika, every time we watch a newly-laid egg drop into its sandy nest--a nest that, for the first time, will be protected and allowed to hatch--we think:
I wonder if it's this one. With your help, it may be.
Happy World Turtle Day on May 23rd! We hope to see you.
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
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April 2010 Update: Salutary Stories from Tompotika
Come, Eat, and Hear Stories
If you are in the area of Vashon Island, Washington, USA,
please join us on Sunday, May 23,
3-5 pm for an afternoon of pictures and stories of the latest news from Tompotika. What use is a maleo? How is organic farming helping preserve rainforest on Tompotika? Where do bats go when it’s windy? What do folks in Tompotika have to teach Americans? >
We’ll talk about this and much more at the gathering, which will be held at the home of Susan and Jim McColley (complete with Susan’s fabulous refreshments!),
21419 86th Ave SW, Vashon Island. Call AlTo at 206-463-7720 for directions.
On March 24-26, AlTo staff and partners traveled to Manado, North Sulawesi, for the First International Maleo Conference. The conference was organized and funded in large part by conservationists from the Netherlands, and pulled together about 75 people—just about everyone in the world who has anything to do with maleo conservation—to share lessons learned and make plans that will, it is hoped, reverse the decline of maleos all over, just as we have succeeded in doing in Tompotika. The conference was a great success, highlighted by the fact that Taima village, AlTo’s partner and host to Tompotika’s key maleo nesting ground, was awarded The Maleo Award for outstanding conservation achievement. Stay tuned for more on that story later. But meanwhile, we’d like to share another tale of how maleo conservation is spreading and growing.
We already know that our maleo work has made a big difference:
since AlTo’s conservation program started in 2006, the number of maleos coming every day to nest at the Taima nesting ground has tripled.
Our hope in inviting Pak Ilham and a few of his government colleagues to the conference was that they might be inspired to take their own initiative to protect maleos, especially because we know from our other work with them that they have come to really support the notion of conservation generally. But there were no guarantees; and at present maleo eggs in Teku are still being poached (though huge progress has been made in protecting sea turtles).
So, we were keen to hear Ilham’s feedback after he and the others had attended the conference. When we met again the following week, the first thing he said was,
“The conference showed that the maleo is getting attention from the whole world. So we here in Indonesia really ought to be making serious efforts to protect it.” He went on to say that, during the conference, he and the other government officials had spent a lot of time discussing the fact that, although the law is clear on protecting maleos, in most places it’s not enforced and people don’t know about it.
With the support of his government colleagues, he wants to make a specific declaration, mark out the boundaries of his village, and erect some signs: Maleos are a protected species! Within this area, no taking of maleo (or sea turtle!) eggs will be tolerated, and those who do it will be fined!
He and the others plan to pursue the issue of ensuring real enforcement of laws protecting maleos and other wildlife. AlTo can help with
sosialisasi (public awareness), as by providing brochures, hosting informational meetings, etc. (we are already well known in this village and are well-positioned to help in this way).
Pak Ilham went on at some length about how it is really time for people to start taking the law seriously and for it to be enforced with real penalties for violations. At conference meals and during their homeward travel time, Ilham and our other Tompotika partners came to this clear conclusion, and although the talk must be followed by action steps, we were really encouraged by Pak Ilham’s words, which we heard echoed several times by others in that group. This is a shift that will help maleos—more than that, it will help elevate the rule of law and civil society in general. Simply and deeply, it’s a good thing. And, we were struck by how far we have come: a few years ago, Ilham had never given the slightest thought to maleo birds in his village; now here he was explaining with great energy how essential it is that maleo protection get serious. “The maleo is a world treasure,” he said. Certainly, at AlTo we have worked hard to try to encourage that way of thinking. But now, with a 3-day conference in which his neighboring village of Taima received international recognition, Ilham is making his own plans to act on that notion. This is what can happen when the world comes together. Thanks for being part of it.
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
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March 2010 Update: Portrait of a Predator, Converted
This is Pak Jaling. He is 67 years old, and has been here at Bangkiriang since 1981. Bangkiriang is a nesting ground for the endangered maleo bird (Macrocephalon maleo)—formerly one of the largest and most active maleo nesting grounds on earth. Bangkiriang lies southwest of the Tompotika peninsula, about 85 miles as the crow flies from the maleo nesting ground where AlTo is at work in Taima, Tompotika.
Pak Jaling is not what you would call a conservationist. In fact, it's quite possible that Pak Jaling himself has been responsible for the non-existence of more maleo birds than just about anyone else on earth. Since 1981, Pak Jaling has lived here at Bangkiriang, and made his living taking eggs and trapping adult maleos. Though there have been others as well, Pak Jaling has been the key, the main Maleo Man, the unofficial guardian of Bangkiriang. He speaks of the old days at Bangkiriang. "When I came in 1981, and even up through the 1990's, I could collect over 100 eggs a day here at Bangkiriang—I and others. The beach was black with the birds, everywhere you looked."
Over the years, Pak Jaling and the others took their toll on the maleos, taking all eggs they could locate—and many adults as well. The practice continued unabated, despite the fact that the birds received full legal protection in 1990. The eggs were sold, mostly as a luxury item and souvenir, rather like caviar. Eastern Sulawesi acquired a reputation as an excellent place to buy maleo eggs. Wealthy status-seekers and corrupt government officials commissioned Pak Jaling to collect eggs and live-trap adult birds on their behalf, thinking that a cageful of maleos would make their homes look luxurious. 
The birds usually lasted a few weeks or a month before dying, whence with Pak Jaling's help they were often simply replaced with new wild-caught birds and the cycle repeated. Native forests nearby to Bangkiriang—habitat for the adult birds—were destroyed. And so, gradually but inexorably, Bangkiriang's maleos have been disappearing. Today as we visit, there are but two maleo pairs on the beach, doggedly but fruitlessly scratching out their egg pit. With so few maleos left at Bangkiriang, Pak Jaling now earns most of his living making sugar from palm trees, but he remains here because maleos are his life. Yet, unless things change, within a few more years, the birds will have vanished entirely.
But, mercifully, things are changing. In the last three years, AlTo has worked with villagers in Tompotika to protect nesting grounds and reverse the decline of maleos there. Now, with these villagers as converts and maleo advocates, we're reaching out to others like Pak Jaling in locations beyond Tompotika. Though he admits that he himself has had a direct hand in it, Pak Jaling mourns the decline of the maleo. Pak Jaling knows more about maleo nesting and development than just about anyone: he knows how they choose the perfect spot to dig their nest pit; he can hold an egg in his hand and know from its feel whether it is viable; he knows how the chicks develop over time, and what they eat; he has spent countless hours watching maleo social interactions. Pak Jaling loves these birds; he hasn't been their major predator because he wishes them ill, but because until now it was the only way his skills and knowledge of them were valued. So when we asked him if he'd like to join in an effort to conserve maleos all over Sulawesi—an effort like the one that AlTo has pioneered so successfully in Tompotika—he jumped at the chance. With this opportunity, he'll be able to use his knowledge and skills about the maleo in service of their conservation, not their destruction.
So, next week Pak Jaling will join the AlTo team on a journey to Manado, North Sulawesi, to attend the First International Conference on Conservation of the Maleo, March 24-26, 2010. In 67 years, it's Pak Jaling's first trip beyond the Bangkiriang area. At the conference, a few dozen people—PhD researchers, common villagers, students, government officials—just about everyone from anywhere in the world who has anything to do with conserving the maleo—will put their heads together to plan Sulawesi-wide steps to save the maleo. Part of the model and inspiration for these steps will be the actions AlTo has already taken in Tompotika—community-based nesting ground protection, widespread public education and awareness campaigns, outreach to governments to support conservation and discourage corruption—and that have brought such excellent results to date. But the maleo will not be saved by protecting it in Tompotika alone, so now it is time to scale up our efforts by joining together with others.
If you add it all up, there is plenty of know-how, and will, and expertise, and love, and—yes, even money—out there to save the maleo everywhere—not just in Tompotika. But we must build the right kind of team to help it happen. At AlTo, we're proud to be making sure that the Pak Jalings of the maleo world will be at the table. Next week will be a critical time. Hope and excitement for the future of the maleo are running high, as people from all walks come together on behalf of this remarkable, imperiled bird. Wish us luck!
Marcy Summers
Director, Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo)
Vashon Is., WA 98070 USA
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January 2010 Update: Tompotika Eco-Tour and Trash Jamboree
Dear Friend of AlTo,
As an AlTo supporter, there are a few things we’re pretty sure are true about you.
You are a global thinker. You care not only about your own backyard, but about the all the natural treasures that our beautiful planet harbors, and the people who live near them. You understand that we are all connected—not just because of our concern for one another, but also very directly and tangibly, in our use and sharing of the planet’s resources. And you understand that issues like the preservation of biodiversity, conservation of resources, sustainable livelihoods, and international friendship and understanding are also all linked together in the enterprise that is humans, in all their array, trying to learn to live gracefully on the Earth.
Maybe you like to travel, having experienced the wonder of exotic places, or the magic that happens when people from very different places and walks actually meet each other, and talk and share.
And, we’ll wager that you like to make a positive difference in the places you go and the people you touch.
Finally, if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s winter, and we’re offering the Tropics (just take a moment to imagine the warmth and brightness).
So, this is for you! As you know, AlTo is all about people-to-people conservation, and we are now assembling the small group of travelers who will be AlTo’s ambassadors for conservation in next summer’s eco-service tour. Please see the attached for details about the trip and a registration form.
This year, we’re going to be tackling the global problem of litter, improper waste management, and marine plastic debris, as manifested in Tompotika. Heard about the great garbage raft in the North Pacific Gyre? Seen the degradation of natural and built areas when folks throw garbage willy-nilly? Well, here’s your chance to do something about it. This summer, we’ll be joining in teams with local villagers to pick up trash and kick off new methods for trash management in Tompotika. In addition, we’ll be taking time to observe the elaborate nesting rituals of endangered maleo birds, explore the abundant life of pristine rainforests, snorkel the world’s richest coral reefs, and more.
Come join the fun (yes, really—this picking up trash is going to be fun!) this summer. See attached and contact us for more details.
What: AlTo’s Tompotika Eco-tour and Trash Jamboree
Where: Sulawesi, Indonesia
When: July 25-Aug 8, 2010
Who: Max of 10 intrepid travelers
How much: $3000 for the 15-day trip, not including international airfare. Note: Only $2900 if you register prior to March 1!
See you in Tompotika!
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December 2009 Update: What Happens When the World Opens
Dear Friend of AlTo,
As you may remember hearing, last August AlTo brought twelve Indonesian high school artists together for a special workshop on how to draw and paint from nature. These 12 Tompotika youth had been selected by their teachers for showing artistic potential, but they’d had no previous experience or instruction in how to draw such things as fur, feathers, and leaves, nor even how to paint with watercolors or oil pastels. So it was a completely new experience for them to come together for 9 days in the Tompotika village of Teku to learn how to draw animals and plants under the expert instruction of Vashon Island wildlife artist Sandra Noel. The students received instruction not only in art techniques, but in the ecology of many of the unique and endangered animals native to the forests and seas of their Tompotika home—some of which they didn’t even know existed, and most of which they never gave much thought to, taking them for granted, like wallpaper.
The workshop was a resounding success. The students were extremely grateful to have been given the opportunity. They worked very hard, and enjoyed the workshop themes—and each other—immensely. They also produced a lot of truly beautiful art work—all featuring Tompotika wildlife—that has since been pulled together into AlTo’s Our Heritage, Our Future 2010 calendar (you can pick one up at a local retail location or order through AlTo using the attached form).
Recently, AlTo staff had the privilege of delivering to the students printed copies of this calendar of their animal artwork, and witnessing how, for these students and their neighbors, the world opened. Families gathered round, workers left their tasks, children clambered to see as the students carefully examined each precious page. They pored over the paintings, the animal descriptions, and (naturally!) the photos of themselves. Some teared up. Others had to turn away, overwhelmed. All were visibly moved by the pride they felt in this first-ever acclaim they were receiving for their creative expression. Parents grinned. Neighbors maneuvered to try to get a copy for themselves. Grandmothers scrambled to offer food, their expression of gratitude.
And so what does it all mean, in the end? Was it just a fun project, where people had a great time, and everybody feels good? That much, certainly. But here at AlTo, we pay attention to young people in part because we have faith in the future. And here are a few of the “ripples” we are already seeing in Tompotika, just a few months after the workshop: children are testing each other on wildlife facts. The mother of one of the young artists showed us the pile of nature paintings he has continued to produce in the months since the workshop. Villagers have paged through the calendar, noting each of the 12 endangered wildlife species, and congratulating themselves with, “I’ve seen that one, that one, that one...” Many other villagers have noted that they didn’t realize that these animals were globally important, unique to their area, and protected by law. For many Tompotikans—those people living right at the heart of the Earth’s biodiversity epicenter—the world has indeed opened: through the calendar project, they have found a new awareness and pride in their natural heritage, new skills and expressions of their creativity, and new pride in the power of their youth. Over the coming year, we look forward to more ripples: for each calendar sold in the U.S., another will be distributed for free in Tompotika; we hope that every one of Tompotika’s roughly 50,000 residents will see the calendar during 2010.
You can help the ripples spread. Buy a calendar or two. Better yet, buy one of the original paintings done by the workshop students; the paintings are on display during the month of December at the Red Bicycle restaurant on Vashon Island, and each is framed and available for sale for $60. Proceeds from art sales will be split between the young artists themselves and AlTo, to support this and other Art for Conservation projects. (If you are interested in the artwork but can’t make it to Vashon Island, just contact us.)
In this holiday season, the AlTo team wishes you much joy. We wish that you, too, may take pride and pleasure in the wonders of creation around you, and we are grateful for your support in helping to preserve and celebrate them. May the world continue to open for all of us, and may there be peace on Earth for all creatures. Happy holidays from the AlTo team!
Marcy Summers
Director, The Alliance for Tompotika Conservation
Vashon, WA, USA
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November 2009 Update
Dear AlTo Friend,
Now is the time. At this time of year, we know you are getting lots of appeals for donations. Please make sure that AlTo is on your list, give generously, and give now! Thanks to some wonderful AlTo friends, any donation you make between now and November 30th will be matched, dollar for dollar.
With AlTo, every donation already gets terrific “bang for the buck” – we are small, lean, and efficient, with a whopping 92% of our income going directly toward our conservation work in Tompotika. And now through November 30, you can double your already impressive power to make a difference in the world through AlTo. Please send in your gift today! And for any donation of $100 or more, we'll send you a free 2010 Tompotika Youth Calendar.
As a reminder, here are some examples of what your gift will make possible:
- Miles of pristine forest in the new Tompotika Forest Preserve: 25,000 acres of carbon-sequestering, wildlife-harboring, water-producing tropical rainforest. That’s about 38 square miles, larger than Vashon Island!
- That first breath: a chance to live for thousands of baby sea turtles and maleo birds, which otherwise would never hatch, and hundreds of adult turtles who will not fall to poachers
- A new outlook for the children and adults of Tompotika, who are learning about and taking pride in their natural heritage for the first time through AlTo’s Conservation Awareness Campaign
- The wonder of discovery for brand-new species like the Cyrtodactylus geckoes recently discovered through AlTo scientific surveys
- Clear vision for all the folks in our conservation villages who’ve gotten free eyeglasses through AlTo’s program
- Things of beauty: artwork featuring Tompotika wildlife, as in the works by Tompotika high school artists included in the 2010 Tompotika Youth Calendar
In this wounded world, it can sometimes seem as though our efforts to heal things are swamped by all the bad news. But in Tompotika, we go deep, and do it right, in one critically important corner of the planet. And it’s working, for everyone.
Please, take a stand for the good news. Send in your donation today, knowing that its impact will be doubled. Please see this form for giving options. Or you can donate on-line through our website, www.tompotika.org. On-line donations through Nov. 30th will also qualify for the matching funds.
Thank you for being part of the solution!
Marcy
Marcy Summers
Director, The Alliance for Tompotika Conservation
Vashon, WA 98070 USA
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October 2009 Update
Dear Friend of AlTo (Alliance for Tompotika Conservation):
Please note our newest newsletter has just been published.
As this year's Tompotika sea turtle season wanes and maleo season waxes, we have lots of great news to share with you, including:
- In Tompotika, AlTo team discovers three new species previously unknown to science!
- New Tompotika Forest Preserve grows to TEN times original size
- Art for Conservation: Tompotika high school artists gather for wildlife art workshop
- 2009 AlTo Eco-service travelers conduct survey of Tompotika butterflies
- Meet AlTo's terrific Tompotikan staff
Also, AlTo's Tompotika Youth Calendar for 2010 is now available! This 2010 calendar, printed on recycled, FSC*-certified paper, features truly gorgeous renderings of twelve of Tompotika's unique and endangered wildlife species, as created by the very talented Tompotika high school artists of AlTo's recent workshop. Perfect for holiday giving!
Calendars are available at bookstores and other retail outlets on Vashon Island and the Puget Sound area. Or, use this order form and we will mail you yours! Calendars are $15 each, or $12 each for 3 or more.
Please order your calendar(s) today, and know that for every calendar you buy here in the U.S., one more can be distributed free in Tompotika as a way to raise awareness and pride in Tompotika's wildlife and young people.
Thank you for supporting conservation, the arts, and young people for a green and lively future!
Marcy Summers
Director, The Alliance for Tompotika Conservation
Vashon, WA 98070 USA
*FSC = Forest Stewardship Council, and independent body certifying sustainably-managed forests and wood products.
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