Ecology Camp This great 3 days, 2 nights program, offers participants a diverse experience in ecology.  It is designed to educate, entertain and opens the doorway for reflection. Day One - Visiting Caves A two-hour bus ride from KL takes us to Gua Tempurung and its fascinating labyrinth.  In the quiet of the cave, an awe-inspiring faucet of nature is revealed.  Stalactites and stalagmites abound…hey, how did this CaCO3 get here? Notice the bats avoiding you with their ancient, analogue sonar systems, not patented nor copy protected but easily outperforming the latest digital systems made by man.  We’re the smart ones…aren’t we? Taiping is next for accommodation.  After dinner, journal entries are made on the experiences at the caves.  Team Building games before lights out. Day Two – Ecosystem Exploration Part 1 – Mangrove Forest Explore one of the largest and best-managed sustainable mangrove forest in the world near Taiping. Part 2 – Sustainable Charcoal Manufacture Firewood is the earliest and most extensively exploited resource in the mangrove forest.  Students learn that nature allows man to use, but not abuse it.  Abuse it and the forest will die, no more charcoal, freight transporters lose business, families lose income, coastal marine chain is broken affecting bigger marine life that depend on the smaller for food, fishermen get less fish, price of fish goes up in the cities, the oxygen cycle is affected, air becomes stale, cost of mangrove goes up inflating the cost of marine construction, and the inter-relationship continues.  Did someone say it’s just charcoal?  Part 3 – Fish cultivation in the sea Here you see the day’s catch, the sorting and transport to the cities.  Aha, even fish transporters owe their business to the mangrove forest, they probably don’t know it…but you do. Take a boat and see fish cultivation.  Enjoy the sightseeing experience as you cruise along Kuala Sepatang fishing village and know it will not be there if not for the mangrove. Reflect on the interactions in the ecosystems and make journal entries.  End the evening with team bonding games. Day Three – Natural Change in an ecosystem After breakfast, visit the Taiping Prison, possible accommodation for those who choose to break the laws protecting the mangrove forest.  Our modules are well thought out…don’t you think? Trekking by the river is next, followed by a visit to the Zoo.  2.00pm and depart for Kuala Lumpur, an opportunity to think the whole thing out on the bus. Copyright 2007 - Explore the Wilderness