Rodney, the orangutan, captivated a class of British school children recently as he promoted Sarawak in the UK. The younger children at The Colleton School in Twyford, Berkshire had been studying the rainforest as part of their geography lessons when Rodney turned up on Rainforest Day and encouraged the youngsters to support Borneo and its wildlife.
The children had all made and painted their own masks depicting various rainforest animals, and Rodney took pride of place at the front of the conga line as the children and their teachers danced around the school to show off their handiwork.
“Rodney is our lovely mascot,” said Christina Wendt, director of sales and marketing at the Sarawak Convention Bureau. “He is a huge soft toy orangutan, and we use him when we hold promotional events in Europe as he makes a fantastic talking point, and everyone loves having their photograph taken with him. Rodney even met the Malaysian High Commissioner in London when we launched the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching to the UK market last year.”
After Rodney’s visit to The Colleton School, the children were asked to work on a project at home that would reflect everything they had learned about the rainforest.
One of the children, aged 6, decided to adopt an orangutan from the new Heart to Heart program being launched by the Sarawak Forestry Corporate Sbd Bld which supports the Semenggoh and Matang Wildlife Centres.
“I have received a certificate, and I am looking forward to learning more about the orangutans in Sarawak,” she said. “We had great fun the day that Rodney came to our schoo!.”
“At the Sarawak Convention Bureau, we are really keen that the region of Sarawak and Borneo should be promoted to all ages all across the world. After all, the children at The Colleton School may be the next generation of conference organizers!” said Wendt.
For further information, please contact Julie Watterston, Watterston Associates Ltd, UK Representative – Sarawak Convention Bureau on +44 118 934 5542 or email [ايميل محفوظ ٿيل].
