WHAT WHERE WHEN
or biological reasons.
“The centres aim to rehabilitate the animals and then release them in to the wild again,” he said.
“We help centres who need better equipment and material which they can’t get locally.”
The process is thorough and can take many months.
“We start with the centre and work out what they need and then we go through design process, then material selection to try and buy locally. If we can’t, we find out where can we import it from. Then we organise the material and export,” Warwick said. “The designs are custom-built for the needs of the individual centre.”
Possibly one of the most challenging parts is the transportation. With centres located in rural areas or remote jungles, it can take a while for components to get there.
“We fill two shipping containers and the boat goes via Singapore, then past the bottom of Borneo. It takes about three months to ship, and then the team will follow them over to help build,” he said.
The GWC team works out logistics with the centres, but it can involve a 30-plus hour road trip on a rusty old truck to get the material onsite. The GWC members, who have backgrounds in wildlife husbandry as well as construction, donate their time to then help build the structures as well as enabling the centres to become self-sufficient in organising their own materials and educate them in the skills they need to carry it on by themselves.
“Coaching has a two-fold effect,” Warwick said. “It employs locals, and there is a better respect for the wildlife as they understand the local environment better.
“At the end we hand the project over, then it becomes theirs to use as an asset to encourage more philanthropy.”
Since GWC began less than two years ago, they have already funded and established projects in Borneo and two in Malaysia. The first Malaysian job involved building a quarantine centre for macaques (a type of monkey), while the second involved the rescue of sun bears which are a threatened species in Southeast Asia.
Their current venture, which they have been involved with previously, is aiding the International Animal Rescue centre in Kalimantan with two enclosures to house orangutans.
“Orangutans have always been my passion; it’s where it started,” Warwick said.
“When orangutans are rescued they are a bit like humans, they suffer emotional trauma. They are nursed back to health and then learn to be wild animals again. They are monitored and put in enclosures and do all the things that orangutans can do.
“They then are moved to islands where they are dehumanised before being moved back into the wild.”
It’s a step-by-step process which can take four to five years. The period is longer if it involves a juvenile as orangutans stay with their mothers for eight years before they go their own way.
The centre has taken care of about 1100 orangutans since 1999, with 480 residents still there. It is estimated about 100,000 have been killed since 1999, putting them on the critically-endangered list.
The enclosures that GWC is hoping to build will cost around $38,000 each with the first shipment slated for October this year. To this end, they are hosting Dubbo’s first Ride for the Wild on Sunday, April 8, at Victoria Park No.1 to raise much-needed funds. Individuals and teams of two or four are encouraged to gain sponsorship to ride for six hours, with at least one rider on the track at all times. There will be prizes on the day and all money raised goes straight to the cost of the enclosure materials.
GWC is always happy to have more members join their team and Warwick is all ears if any local businesses have interest or advice.
“We are happy to listen. We’d like GWC to be local and keep it that way so in 10 years we can still say it’s Dubbo’s wildlife charity.” z Dubbo Ride for the Wild
z Victoria Park No. 1
z Sunday, April 8
z Cost: $15 per person
z More information: www.globalwildlifeconstructions.com