Mission Statement

The purpose of the Bukit Lawang Charitable Trust is to;

Enhance the health, sanitation, shelter and education of the community, to improve the quality of life for people in Bukit Lawang, and the Bohorok region, North Sumatra, Indonesia and such other village communities in South East Asia.

Assist with environmental and wildlife projects in connection with the endangered orang-utans living in the Gunung Leuser National Park and other such areas in Indonesia.  

The Ethos of the Trust

The ethos of the Trust is to empower the people so that the community is in control and involved in every aspect of the project.

Fundamentally people actively want to participate in a social life that concerns them. The community must be involved at all levels. Individuals must be encouraged to get involved and come together to decide what is best for the future, acting as a catalyst for change. Participation also mobilises interest and gets more individuals involved. When people hear about positive things happening they obviously want to go and "see what the fuss is about". This leads to more people getting involved in the project, which increases the skills and knowledge banks available.  This bringing of people together increases group solidarity and belief resulting in a sense of empowerment, of being able to change and influence the future.

For people to be empowered they need to have control over the project. This allows people to build collective strength, awareness and to respond to situations in an increasingly positive way.  This then leads to an improvement in abilities and skills of the individuals involved, which will then lead to better control and so on and so forth, helping individuals fulfil their human potential. It can be seen as a continuous circle.

Mathew Winpenny (Trustee)
Matt’s studying for his Masters in third world development at Oxford Brookes University.