Indonesian coral reefs, including those in the Anambas Islands, are experiencing severe coral bleaching due to rising temperatures. Our annual Reef Health Monitoring initiative has observed bleaching across all program sites: Kiabu, Telaga, Mengkait, Sunggak, and Bawah Island. As of June, NOAA’s alert categorized Riau Islands at Level 2, indicating severe bleaching and significant mortality are likely. Our Marine Conservation team is actively engaged in coral restoration efforts while researching coral resilience.
The Turtle Conservation initiative in Sunggak has successfully rescued 24,761 eggs and released 1,776 hatchlings to date. Recently, in collaboration with LKKPN Pekanbaru, we conducted a turtle tagging workshop attended by turtle rangers. Following the workshop, we ventured to the beach at night and tagged six turtles with metal tags. Learn more about the turtle tagging here.
In 2024, the Mangroves Ecoprint initiative launched. This collaborative effort between our Marine Conservation and Women’s Empowerment teams uses mangroves as natural dyes to create eco-print fabrics, crafted by village women. The inaugural workshop took place in Air Nangak Village with nine participants, resulting in 18 eco-print fabrics and seven batik sheets.
Meanwhile, in Kiabu, village women have been busy fulfilling orders from Bawah Reserve for pouches and tote bags.
The Digital English Club (DEC) initiated a short internship program for high school students in Tarempa, focusing on English education across four program locations. Eleven students participated in this internship.
Our Integrated Waste Management (IWM) efforts have prevented over 114 tons of recyclable materials from polluting the environment, processing 23 tons through our Recycling Centers. As of 2024, IWM operates in 16 locations with plans to expand further this year.
Lastly, our team participated in the Padang Melang Festival in June, organized by the Anambas Department of Tourism and Culture. At our booth, in addition to showcasing our work and products made by village women, we set up a mini Waste Bank where attendees could exchange plastic bottles and cups for souvenirs. Overall, 40 kgs of recyclables were collected during the festival and sent to our Waste Management Facility in Kuala Maras.
If you would like to support our programs, you may make an offline donation using the bank details provided. HERE
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