Youths blog to save Sumatran tiger habitat

JAKARTA: In the effort to change the fate of a critical tiger habitat in Sumatra, six youths have opted to blog.

Three youths each from Indonesia and Germany were selected to join a now three-month-old initiative by WWF Indonesia and Germany, called “Forest Friends”, in which they blog, compete for fans and raise support for forest conservation, the WWF said in a release received by The Jakarta Post.

Through Forest Friends the youths communicate and share their views via articles, videos and photo uploads.

The six have worked in pairs since May, sharing their views and practical tips of forest and biodiversity conservation, asking fellow youths to show real commitment and contribution to save the earth. For each fan they receive, WWF and partners are pledging to plan 10 trees in Tesso Nio National Park, a critical Sumatran tiger habitat in Riau Province. “WWF sees social networking media as an opportunity to extend its conservation messages to younger audiences,” WWF Indonesia’s chief executive Efransjah said.

Desmarita Murni, Forest, Species and Fresh Water Program’s communication coordinator at WWF Indonesia, said:

“We believe that Forest Friends is an innovative platform to engage with today’s internet-savvy youths who care about what is happening to the natural world, and want to be heard and contribute.” — JP