INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE · GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

Eco-English Adventure – Green Camp, Bali, Indonesia

A Holistic Learning Experience for Students

29 May – 5 June 2016
Tour Coordinator: Dr. Stephen CARTWRIGHT

Building upon the success of last year’s trip, and taking on board some of the recommendations from students to make it even better, we extended this adventure trip to eight days. This summer, 12 students departed for Bali to participate in an array of outdoor activities with the Green Camp Bali, Indonesia. To provide a holistic learning experience for our students, a wide variety of activities were organized to build up teamwork, gain cultural insight, and most of all, challenge students to break out of their comfort zones. These activities included rafting down a river on a bamboo raft they built themselves, hiking up a volcano-side at 2am in the morning, engaging in cultural activities such as Balinese dance and preparation of prayer offerings, and a lot more Balinese experiences. On the theme of “Go Green” students’ activities orientated around sustainability. One of the key activities was to design and build a model of a sustainable island and to incorporate ideas that students had learnt thus far from the other groups, and also be challenged on their ideas. Overall, the excursion provided a novel experience! We all came home with a stronger sense of camaraderie.

"A Precious Opportunity for Personal Growth"

HO Ka Tip （Business Administration, Year 1）

I used to be a shy person, who was not very out-going or talkative. By participating in this camp, I did a lot of things which I had never tried before. For example, I learnt how to work with other participants to build a bamboo raft. We woke up at 2am to go hiking on Mount Bartur and watched the stars and sunrise. We also had a chance to build a tent on a steep slope and stayed overnight in Plaga, and this was my first ever camping experience in my life! I never imagined I could complete all those tasks despite the harsh environmental conditions. The experience I gained had really empowered me with confidence and courage to face future challenges.

I also have many other unforgettable memories from Green Camp, Bali. For example, we did sound mapping near the Nyitnyit waterfalls to hear the sounds of nature, spent home-stay in a village and learnt a traditional dance with the locals. We also made natural dyes, bamboo paper, chocolate and helped design the eco-village. All these hands-on experiences enabled me to revisit the beauty of nature and gave me an opportunity to interact with different people. After the trip, I decided to take action to protect our environment. I am eager to share what I have experienced during the camp with my family and friends in order to inspire them to start recycling with me. I hope to take the step to influence people around me that we should all respect Nature!

"Exploring Our Own Potentials"

CHAN Yat Hin, Boris （Environmental Conservation Studies, Year 1）

As a sports and nature lover, I gained a lot of unique experiences from Green Camp, Bali and I really explored my own potentials. Among the various activities that we had, I found the raft-building most exciting. We were provided with a few items – tyres, rubber bands and bamboo sticks to build a raft in the rainforest within 40 minutes. The condition was quite harsh as it suddenly started to rain heavily. Fortunately, we still managed to finish building the raft and sail down the river. After that, I learnt the importance of teamwork because both raft-building as well as paddling along the river required rapport and coorporation between team members. I also established confidence in leading a group of people to achieve a common goal.

Another highlight was our homestay with a local family in a village near Mount Bartur. During the visit, we did community service by helping to paint the wall of their toilets as well as collecting plastic waste for recycling. Even without a common language, we could still manage to interact with one another through different methods and we had so much fun learning Balinese and traditional dances from the locals. The experience of making new friends with the Balinese people reminded me that a smile and a friendly attitude are the universal languages which can bring us closer. The eco-village also gave me much inspiration about the true meaning of “sustainable living”. After coming back to Hong Kong, I hope that I can maximize the use of the resources and develop my own sustainable lifestyle.