KUALA LUMPUR: National zoos across the world often rely on the work of passionate volunteers who put their hearts into animal welfare and conservation and make a meaningful difference to the zoos that they volunteer in.
“Seeing their smiles and positive feedback from the young volunteers who have contributed to wildlife conservation awareness at Chester Zoo makes me feel very satisfied and happy,” United Kingdom’s Chester Zoo volunteer manager Lindsay Marston said after a sharing session on zoo volunteering with Zoo Negara recently.
On her volunteering journey, Marston said it all began when she decided to join Chester Zoo as a volunteer in 2019.
“Volunteering has a significant impact on people, making them feel better about themselves, enhancing their communication skills and fostering confidence, which is beneficial for their overall personal development.
“The journey aims to ensure they fulfil the volunteer criteria, essentially contributing to a positive and rewarding experience,“ said Marston, who is head of Chester Zoo’s wildlife conservation and education team.
Chester Zoo was named UK’s best zoo and sixth in the world, which currently has a grand total of 35,139 animals, from more than 500 of the world’s rarest species recorded in 2020.
Marston said in addition to educating about wildlife conservation, the young volunteers were also exposed to awareness on the importance of stopping deforestation, especially concerning endangered wildlife species such as Bornean orangutans.
“Although it is not in their national curriculum to learn about deforestation and biodiversity loss, we try to expose them to the dangers faced by nearly extinct wildlife due to deforestation for oil palm plantations in a very simple and enjoyable way.
“This is because these are very complex issues.
“When we talk about biodiversity loss, climate change and wildlife conservation, we need to engage with young people in a very interesting and simple way to help them better understand and, therefore, explain to the zoo’s visitors the importance of keeping endangered wildlife alive.”
She said besides that, the young volunteers also managed to inspire their friends in schools and family members to choose sustainable palm oil by recognising the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) logo and the Rainforest Alliance logo on some paper products.
“When they introduce the Bornean orangutan, for example, while explaining about the species and its endangered status according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), they also explain how our daily actions can have a positive impact on saving these endangered animals.
“By supporting sustainable palm oil products with RSPO logos, they can actually help stop deforestation and assist society in making a difference in preventing biodiversity loss,” she said.
Orangutans are currently listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ under the IUCN Red List.
Meanwhile, Zoo Negara deputy president Datuk Rosly@Rahmat Ahmat Lana said there are plans to enhance its partnership with Chester Zoo for more robust education and conservation projects in the future.
