Orangutan Foundation International
Focus: Animal care and Conservation.
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Project Description
The OFI Long Term Volunteer Program offers individuals a rare opportunity to travel abroad and witness firsthand the impact and realities of wildlife and habitat protection, by working at OFI’s Orangutan Care Center in Pasir Panjang, Kalimantan. The OFI Long Term Volunteer is an unpaid position designed to increase OFI’s impact and to offer participants a unique insider experience. Orangutan Foundation International protects 6,000 wild orangutans in Tanjung Puting National Park, in Kalimantan, Indonesia. Facilities include the Orangutan Care Center, which rehabilitates 330 young orangutans and prepares them for return to the wild, 16 guard posts throughout the park and numerous staffed feeding stations. Volunteering for OFI can have a big impact — on your life and the lives of the thousands of orangutans we fight to protect. Each year, OFI is grateful to receive many kind inquiries from volunteers willing to spend weeks, months, even years in Kalimantan, helping in the Orangutan Care Center or in Tanjung Puting National Park.
Except for the positions listed, OFI is not currently setup to accommodate volunteers in the field. We are proud to be a major employer in Pasir Panjang (home of the Care Centre.) Each job we create for Indonesians represents proof that environmental conservation and economic development can go together. For our successful long-term volunteers, OFI is pleased to be able to offer letters of reference that will serve as testimony of their dedication to our organization and the quality of the contribution they have made to our cause. Volunteers are expected to submit a final report on what they have learned, experienced, and accomplished during their tenure with OFI.
The OCC&Q is situated in the village of Pasir Panjang, a 15 minute drive from the small city of Pangkalan Bun. This city has an airport and is situated in the south of the province of Kalimantan Tengah, Borneo, Indonesia. Living conditions are basic, with limited running water, no landlines or Internet. Internet is available a 10 minute ride away in the town. Most of the locals speak rudimentary or no English. Languages are Indonesian and local Dayak dialect. The OCC&Q houses over 300 orphaned orangutans, most of who are being prepared for release. The majority of individuals are under 10 years old. The Centre consists of a central clinic and units housing the older individuals, while the outlying juvenile units and the medical quarantine facility are set in the surrounding 80 hectare forest. Most of the orangutans are very well-habituated to humans. They arrive in the OCC&Q by confiscation from homes, black markets, entertainment industry, and abusive zoos.
Volunteer Information
Costs & Benefits
Requirements
Contact information
Project Summary
Volunteers work on a daily basis in the Orangutan Care Centre and Quarantine in Pasir Panjang. The staff working hours are 8:00 to 16:00, with a lunch break at around noon. If desired, the volunteer may take one day off a week.
Living arrangements are typically with a local family homestay. The quality of care in the homes varies, from simple room accommodation to cooking and laundry.
OFI makes an effort to arrange homestays for all its interns and volunteers, but there is an element of unpredictability in any such arrangements. In case of emergency, hotel/motel accommodations are present in Pangkalan Bun and even closer to Pasir Panjang.
Food is provided to local staff and all willing volunteers in the Care Centre twice a day (breakfast and lunch). The fare is simple but healthy (usually rice and vegetables or tofu). Dinner is the responsibility of the volunteer (homestay families may cook for their guests).
Volunteer positions are unpaid. The volunteer is responsible for flights, internal transportation, visas and health insurance. Successful applicants will receive an assignment of four to six months. OFI will organize a homestay with a host family. Room and board ranges from $200-$250 USD a month. The complete cost of a six-month volunteer experience originating from North America is approximately $3,800 USD.
Passion for orangutans and rainforest conservation; highly flexible in personal habits and space; ability to multi-task; strong writing skills. Volunteers aged 18 years old and over. Proof of vaccinations of: hepatitis A and B, typhoid, tetanus (Vaccination book scans/photocopies, or a health certificate from a doctor). Negative tests results for Tuberculosis and HIV.
Orangutan Foundation International
824 S. Wellesley Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90049
Tel: 1-(310) 820-4906
Email: ofivolunteer@gmail.com
Website: www.orangutan.org
Location:Pasir Panjang - Kalimantan - Indonesian Borneo
Average cost per day:$10
Focus: animal care and Conservation
Skills needed: Volunteers must be at least 18 years old. See requirements.
