Our Little Update... Vol. 3 December 2011 Smiles in the jungle. Summer Campers on their way to a gorgeous swimming spot on the Mentawak River in our extended backyard. The difference was remarkable, and the result of their effort was not only tangible but clearly visible. Our local staff in particular, who have been visiting the bay for years, were not only astounded but sincerely touched by the work of our Gr. Eight campers from Singapore. Garden International School was back, for what has become an annual visit to Juara for their ‘Discovery Week’ program. They explored conser- vation and development issues while working with the Juara Turtle Project and getting a taste for island life and adventure. Before they left we had the opportunity to launch a swimming platform built throughout the week, made up of a bamboo frame, fishing net and all of the bottles that the St. Joseph’s groups had collected a few weeks earlier. to conduct their forty-hour ‘Wilderness Advanced FirstAid’ course. In addition, we had two course directors from the Malaysian Canoe Association come to The Lagoon to run a basic kayak coach- ing certificate program for our staff; all of whom we can proudly say, passed their examinations. To kick off the season in true Little Planet fashion, we decided to completely re-vamp our Gr. Eight St. Joseph’s Intl. expedition program. This years’ program saw one class group set off north through the forest on foot while the other group loaded up the sea-kayaks and paddled off in the same direction. Our ultimate destina- tion was a remote beach to the north of Juara where the kayakers would spend the first night of their expedition before embarking on a two-day jungle trek back to The Lagoon. On the sec- ond day, the original group of trekkers would emerge from the woods and set up camp for their second night before returning to The Lagoon in the kayaks the first group had so graciously left behind. Got it? Between four class groups and two weeks of programs, campers managed to clean-up an entire section of the bay by removing thousands of plastic bottles that had accumulated on shore over the years. The amazing Wak! Perfecting the art of kayak re-entry during our MASCA coaching course while Richie keeps talking. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Have Fun! GIS students enjoying the fruits of their labour; in this case, a raft made up of recycled plastic bottles. Over the last four seasons at Little Planet, growth and change have been constant. By the end of our season in early November, we had organized a wide variety of adventure and service- based programs in locations spread across five countries! Our planet is shrinking. In our continued effort to develop quality programming that provides opportunity for genuine and valuable experience, we strive to foster existing relationships and forge new ones with the amazing schools, organizations and individuals that make up our Little Planet. In preparation for the season, we ran our usual in-house staff training program, but went a step further by bringing instructors from Wilderness Medical Associates International NPS International Gr. 9 students making their way through the terraced rice fields of Longshen, Guangxi Province, China.