SUMECO (Sumatra Ecoproject)

WILDLIFE CONSERVATION EFFORTS IN BUKIT LAWANG THROUGH ECOTOURISM

SUMECO (Sumatra Ecoproject) is based in Bukit Lawang, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Focused on preserving the biodiversity of Gunung Leuser National Park through its wildlife conservation work by rescuing the animals, which were mostly held in illegal captivity or as pets. It was officially established in 2014 with a strong intention to protect the local environment and animals belonging to Gunung Leuser National Park as their natural habitat. Having a role in the ecotourism business in Bukit Lawang, North Sumatra, Indonesia, its founder has committed to utilizing his company profits to support SUMECO wildlife rescue mission.

Gunung Leuser National Park is well-known to be a region with the highest concentration of Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii). The Gunung Leuser National Park (GLNP) ecosystem is also considered to be the most important conservation area on earth. Leuser is located in the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra, situated on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia.

Covering more than 2.6 million hectares, the area is one of the richest expanses of tropical rainforest in Southeast Asia. It is the last place on earth where Sumatran elephants, Sumatran rhinoceroses, Sumatran tigers, and Sumatran orangutans are found within one area. As of 2003, the Gunung Leuser National Park was declared by UNESCO to be one of the world heritage sites.

BUKIT LAWANG, CONSERVATION STRATEGIC AREA

Bukit Lawang is a village located directly bordering the Gunung Leuser National Park forest area, and it has to be categorized as a buffer zone village for the park. This tourist village was formed in 1972 because of its WWF-funded conservation project to open the Sumatran orangutan rehabilitation center. Bukit Lawang cannot be separated from conservation values and efforts because it is also a village utilizing the biodiversity of Gunung Leuser National Park as its regional income.

We must be honest and admit that we must coexist with the animals in Gunung Leuser National Park, which are frequently in conflict with human settlements; this will not be possible unless their habitat is degraded. Any idea that promotes environmental awareness will be the best strategy for developing Bukit Lawang into a conservation-based ecotourism village.

PHILOSOPHY OF SUMECO (SUMATRA ECOPROJECT)

We are here to try a new breakthrough by making conservation efforts with our own money. They are part of the money we earn from the profits of the ecotourism business that SUMECO has established in several places. SUMECO will not tell or claim that we are saving the earth; we prefer that we are aware that we live from ecotourism that requires forests and animals to remain sustainable and protected.

We will ensure that the ecotourism tour packages we offer will always be closely related and contribute directly to conservation efforts, such as animal rescue, public awareness of the importance of a protected environment, and most importantly, maintaining our seriousness in our commitment. Of course, this is not an easy thing to do, as realizing good conservation performance requires large finances, but we are still convinced that:

1. Ethical jungle trekking will create awareness of the importance of animals in the Sumatran forest to be maintained and protected.
2. Herping tour will guide the community to have sufficient ecological understanding of snakes.
3. Bird watching or birding will make the community aware that birds should not be in cages.
4. Nocturnal or night hiking will inform the community that without hunting animals, we can also generate income.

SUMECO was conceived in 2010, developed in 2012, and formally registered and established in 2014. Trying to make it happen was a lengthy journey. Naturally, it takes a lot of consistency to share the company’s income in order to keep the ecotourism business going, hiring staff, save animals, and support law enforcement. Since SUMECO was founded by me, Bobi Handoko, to spend some of my own money and demonstrate to the public that we are working, although on minor projects, it cannot be manipulated since it is not an NGO set up to solicit donations and grow its reputation only.

CONSERVATION, & ECOTOURISM THROUGH ETHICAL JUNGLE TREKKING IN BUKIT LAWANG

Wildlife-exploited tourism in Indonesia began in the 1980s. In reality, this tourism model was initiated to reduce the number of hunts that reduced the population of wild animals on a large scale; not a few even became extinct. Along with the development of technology, especially social media, tourism models such as the use of animals as tourist attractions or entertainment have begun to be abandoned for a breakthrough in tourism that is more ethical and more acceptable to those who have a high concern for animal welfare in the 2000s.

Even now it has arrived at a different phase again, SUMECO (Sumatra Ecoproject) which continues to learn and has a high environmental awareness has been able to see foreign tourists with a new perspective and one that is more directed towards wildlife conservation. This process has given birth to a new civilization in the world of tourism that promotes ecotourism with a high conservation background, making it very possible to save animals during the ecotourism activities.

The transition of modern society’s interests from general tourism or mass tourism to special interest tourism and conservation-based ecological tourism has been utilized by people who want to learn and adapt as an opportunity to increase wildlife conservation through ecotourism. Sustainable wildlife conservation based ecotourism development utilizes natural habitats with the aim of reaping several benefits, especially in terms of conservation, economy, education, and social and cultural development for the better future.