Nayland College has answered the call of the jungle.
This Saturday, 20 of its students will embark on a 13-night backpacking excursion to the third largest island in the world, Borneo, situated in Southeast Asia’s Malay Archipelago.
The journey is part of World Challenge, which develops leaders of tomorrow through sustainable school travel, and the students will meet orangutans, sleep in hammocks, learn jungle survival, and contribute to a sustainable initiative to improve local livelihoods.
Nayland College World Challenge coordinator, Alana Wall, says the opportunity at the college had taken students to Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam in previous years, and it has now returned to full swing after Covid-19.
“This is the first time we’ve had 20 students... we’ve normally had a handful of students and therefore combined with another secondary school in New Zealand just to get numbers, so it’s pretty epic... I think people just really want to travel,” she says.
“The students are absolutely buzzing since the [the opportunity] was first launched. We have been meeting during the lead up, and now and then I’ll put in some little fun facts about bears, orangutans, currency, and we’re just slowly chipping away at their knowledge.
“But [the students] generally don’t know too much about Borneo, which kind of makes this trip quite exciting because I’d imagine they’re going to be popping out of their heads with cultural shock and new experiences.”
Alana says the trip costs $7500 which covers health insurance, flights, accommodation, food, and transportation.
She says the outcomes for the travelling students will include gaining a better understanding of global citizens.
“I think it’s such a great opportunity to dive into a completely different culture from New Zealand with different languages, currency, animals, and religion,” Alana says.
“We’re tapping into third-world communities, so hopefully they feel a bit more grateful and gracious about where they come from, and you’re just making them better citizens at the end of the day.”
