Kang GURU Magazine - September 2007

Environmental Keywords
Welcome Letter from Sue and Maggie
KGRE Voices
Idioms Inggris
Quick Fix
Environmental Science
The Environment
Environment with Tunas Hijau
Capt KGRE in Oz, Ogi in Oz
The Australia Indonesia Partnership
Oz-Indo Connections
University Page
Kang Guru Connection Clubs
The Joeys Club
Kang Guru in the Classroom
Entertainment / Interviews
Different Pond Different Fish
KGRE News Room

Eco

Are you eco-friendly? Or perhaps you consider yourself an eco-warrior? Words that use the prefix eco mean that that word is connected to the environment. An eco-warrior is a person who argues against, and tries to stop, activities which harm the environment. Some household products have an eco-label, an official symbol, which shows that the product has been designed to do less harm to the environment than other similar products. During a quick look at the internet, KGRE found eco–friendly products such as soaps, washing powders, napkins, bags, paper, fashion items, tea, refrigerators, cars, furniture, and even one company that promises eco-friendly burials!

Endangered or is it too late?

Many plant and animal species around the world are endangered. One of the main reasons is that humankind is destroying the natural habitats where these plants and animals live. Another reason is climate change also caused by humans. Endangered animals in Indonesia include the rhinocerous, tiger, orangutan, proboscis monkey (see picture) and other creatures large and small. In Australia the numbat, the dugong and the Australian sea lion are endangered. Although many organizations around the world work hard to save these species, sometimes it’s too late and the species becomes extinct.

Extinct means there are no more left.
Endangered means a species is in danger of becoming extinct and humans need to be careful to protect them.

Can you match the Indonesian words with the English words? You can find the words in articles on this page. Compare your answers with a friend or with your teacher. Enjoy!

Eco-tourism

Tourism is now one of the fastest growing industries in the world. Mass tourism helps local economies grow but without proper planning it can also do much damage. Tourist attractions become crowded and environmental degradation occurs. Areas of natural beauty become littered with non-biodegradable rubbish. To avoid some of these problems in the future, eco-tourism is being developed in many parts of the world, including Indonesia. Eco-tourism destinations believe in conservation, education, traveller responsibility and active community participation. Through eco-tourism travellers can enjoy areas of natural beauty while at the same time help local com-munities in a positive way. Eco-tourist organisations can be found on the Internet.

www.jed.or.id
www.ecotourism.org.au
www.bali-paradise.com/baliecotourism.cfm

KGRE’s December 2007 Magazine

Get ready for a lip-smacking edition of the KGRE magazine in December. The theme will be FOOD and DRINK! The KGRE Team travels a lot and samples a lot of food and drink from all around Indonesia. We’ve eaten soto Makassar and soup konro in Sulawesi, delicious durian in West Sumatra, ayam taliwang in Lombok, gado-gado and other vegetable specialities in Java and fresh fish and seafood around the country. If you have a special dish from your region then why not write to KGRE - or better still, prepare it for us when we come to visit! Write and tell us about the best food you have ever eaten – or the worst. Send your letters and stories to KGRE by letter or email by the end of October 2007. You never know, your story may be featured in the December magazine!

SMS competition

For the last couple of months I have been an active listener to KGRE at RAKA FM. I always join in the interactive segment by sending sms and I also enter competitions either at Raka FM or direct with KGRE. However, until now I have never won a competition. I want to call RAKA FM but I am reluctant to ring as I can’t speak English well. When I can speak English well, I will join in RAKA FM’s interactive segment.

Astri Novitasari
Sempu, Banyuwangi
EAST JAVA

Compilation of Quick Fixes

After reading your last magazine, especially the article about free KGRE materials, I am inspired to write. I’m convinced all you offer will be useful to anyone who wants to get ahead in English. I’m interested in the copy of compilation of the popular Quick Fix segments. I will use it for extra material for my students to vary and add to materials from the curriculum. I think learning your Quick Fix material will add to our knowledge in using words properly.

Hamka
SMK Amsir 1
Parepare - SOUTH SULAWESI

An Aussie style greeting from West Lombok

G’day mates at KGRE. I’d like to tell you about my environment. I live in a small village. Here, there are mosques, a traditional market, shops and a school. Not everyone in my village has a good economic situation. Some have bad lifesytyles which makes my environment’s condition not too good like not keeping clean and keeping pets’ cages near their houses. BUT, one thing I really like about the people in my environment is their high spirit of mutual cooperation and assistance. I hope it will exist forever. I hope everyone in my environment can have a good healthy lifestyle.

Muamalah
Labuapi - WEST LOMBOK

Keeping in touch by SMS

My name’s Dedy. I live in a small village, Alue Raya, in Samatiga district. It’s only about 15km from a small town, Meulaboh. I am very interested in using the KGRE magazine because I am a teacher. My hobbies are football, volley ball, music and reading. I like my handphone because I can communicate with all my friends. Thanks KGRE

Dedy,
Samatiga - WEST ACEH

Magazine request

I’m an English lecturer in the English Department of the University of Mahaputra Muhammed Yamin. It’s located in Solok, a small city in West Sumatra. I teach writing and drama classes. I used to be a broadcaster and a journalist, so listening to the radio and writing are my hobbies. I’d like to register for the KGRE magazine.

Budi F Helmi
Solok - WEST SUMATRA

ADS Information

Hi, I’m Hendra Sakti. I’d like to ask about ADS. I am very interested in applying for an ADS scholarship. Where must I go to apply and get an application form? I am looking forward to your response.

Hendra Sakti
Palembang, NORTH SUMATRA

Dear Hendra, Check out the AusAID page on the KangGuru website at
www.kangguru.org/ausaidprojects/2007_scholarships.html

You will find lots of information about ADS scholarships and application procedures right there. Read more about ADS in this maagzine too, okay?

Here’s the first word – clean. The two sayings are ‘clean as a whistle’ and ‘clean up your act.’ In order to make clear and pure sounds a whistle has to be absolutely clean. Anything or anyone as clean as a whistle has been judged to be guiltless, or flawless, and not involved in anything illegal.

'He hasn’t got a criminal record, he’s as clean as a whistle.'

The second saying is ‘clean up your act.’ If someone tells you to 'clean up your act' they are asking you to stop doing something other people do not approve of and start behaving in a more acceptable way.

‘The organisation wasn’t telling the truth about their involvement in illegal logging. It’s time they cleaned up their act otherwise problems such as landslides my occur in the future.’

Here’s the second word – dirty. If someone gives you a dirty look then perhaps be careful! It means they are looking at you in an angry or disapproving way.

‘I don’t know what I said to annoy her but she really gave me a dirty look.’

Plastic is the third word. We all use plastic bags but did you know plastic money is becoming more popular?

‘I like to use plastic when I travel. I don’t feel safe using cash.’

This of course refers to plastic credit cards - plastic money. I don’t know of any country that uses plastic bags as currency! Do you?

‘What a load of rubbish!’

Has anyone ever said that to you? I hope not! It usually means they don’t believe what you or someone else has told them. Maybe they have been reading an article in the newspaper or heard something on the news that they don’t believe.

‘Have you read the article about what that company is doing to reduce greenhouse gases? What a load of rubbish! I just don't believe that is true.'

environment (a noun)

To help protect the environment, the government has laws that stop factories and people from littering and polluting the earth.

(an answer from students at Matthew Flinders Girls High School in Seabrook, Victoria, in response to questions from KGCC #005, the Edelweiss English Club in Madura)

environmental (an adjective)

Which environmental problem is currently being discussed by most people in Australia?

The environmental problem most commonly discussed in Australia at the moment is global warming and the drought in Australia.
(a question from KGCC#005. Answer from students at Matthew Flinders Girls High School).

environmentally (an adverb which is more commonly used as an adjective)

How do teachers in Australia teach their students NOT to throw rubbish away carelessly?

Teachers teach their students to be environmentally aware by reducing, recycling and reusing rubbish rather than just throw it away
(a question from KGCC#003 Best Forum Club in Makassar with an answer from Penrhos College in Western Australia)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The use of prepositions in and on with months and dates

We use in when we refer to the month only but use on when an actual date is mentioned too.

eg. in September and in July but on September 14th or on July the 29th. Here are some further examples for you.

In April 2007, KGRE wrote to schools in Australia asking them to participate in an environmental information exchange with Kang Guru Connection Clubs (KGCC). KGCCs sent their questions soon afterwards and in June, they received answers from students at Matthew Flinders Girls High School,W.A. On July 15th, KGCC#003, the Best Forum English Club in Makassar, received the answers to their questions from students at Penrhos College in Western Australia. Students from Mount Erin College in Victoria emailed their answers to KGCC#050 Medan English Speaking Club on the 31st of May. Fantastic!

What is the greenhouse effect?

The Earth's atmosphere is all around us. It is the air that we breathe. Some of the gases in the atmosphere, like water vapor and carbon dioxide, are called greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere keep the Earth warm by absorbing infra-red radiation that is radiated by the Earth's surface. The greenhouse effect is very important and useful. If there were no greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the Earth would have an average temperature of minus 20°C. It would be cold and dead.

How does the greenhouse effect work?

There are many earth-friendly, energy-smart ways to reduce the amount of fossil fuel used to run vehicles. In Europe, Japan and the US, people can buy hydrogen powered cars and hybrid electric cars. Biodiesel fuel, where plant oil is processed into fuel, is available in many countries including Australia. It is manufactured from various vegetable oils such as peanut, soy bean and canola. It can even be made from used cooking oil. In fact, way back in 1895, Dr Rudolph Diesel developed an engine which ran using peanut oil as fuel. Apart from being more environmentally friendly than petrol, the exhaust fumes from biodiesel fuelled vehicles are more pleasant smelling.

What is global warming?

Over the past 150 years humans have been burning more and more fuel, especially fossil fuels - coal and gas for example. The fuel is needed to power vehicles and factories and to generate electricity. Because more fuel is being burnt, more carbon dioxide is being put into the atmosphere. The extra carbon dioxide is increasing the greenhouse effect, so the Earth's atmosphere is absorbing more infra-red energy and the Earth is getting warmer.

Why is global warming an environmental problem?

The Earth is getting warmer so now the ice at the North and South Poles is melting. This is putting more water into the seas and oceans, which can cause flooding in coastal areas.

ecause the Earth's atmosphere is getting warmer there is more energy in the air, so storms, hurricanes and typhoons are becoming stronger and more frequent. There is also evidence that global warming is changing the Earth's climate, making some places drier and others wetter.

What can we do to reduce the greenhouse effect and global warming?

Riding a motorcycle or using electricity is not wrong. But we should all try and save energy, so that we reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere - exhaust fumes for example.

Here are some ways to save energy and help reduce the greenhouse effect. Remind your family and friends at school, or in your English club, to do these things too.

Save Electricity at home, at schools and at work
Whenever we use electricity, we put greenhouse gases into the air. If you turn off lights, the television, and the computer when you have finished using them, you can save a lot of energy - and reduce your electricity bill too! That also means not using STANDBY mode either!

Bike, bus, and walk
You can save energy and keep healthy too by riding a bike, or walking to school, work or the warung instead of using a motorbike. Can you cut your use of motorbikes? We are sure you can - walk more!

Plant Trees
Planting trees is fun and a great way to reduce greenhouse gases. Trees absorb carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, from the air. Have a tree-planting day in your school or village. Heh, don't cut down trees in your garden unless you really have to, okay?

Recycle
Recycle cans, bottles, plastic bags, and newspapers. When you recycle, you send less trash to the landfill or rubbish tip. You are also helping to save natural resources, like trees, oil and metal.

Think before you cut

Here are some interesting facts about trees:

• Trees first appeared on earth long before the dinosaurs did – about 400 million years ago.
• Many trees can outlive humans - some can live to be more than 1000 years old.
• Trees are the largest of all living things - some species can grow 100 meters tall and weigh 600 tonnes.
• Trees combat the greenhouse effect and slow the effects of global warming. They soak up carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen for us to breathe.
• Trees help prevent landslides (tanah longsor) and soil erosion due to their root systems.
• Trees attract native wildlife to an area, providing food and shelter.
• Trees have many commercial uses including building materials, paper products, furniture, medicines and fuel for cooking and heating.

Don’t cut down trees unless it is really necessary.

The importance of mangroves

Recently KGRE asked students about environmental problems in their immediate environment. One of the most common problems students told us about was damage to the marine (perairan) environment. In coastal areas, developers have destroyed areas of mangrove trees. Many people think of mangrove swamps as useless, smelly places full of mosquitoes. But mangroves play a very important role in protecting the shoreline from erosion. They also can lessen the effects of tsunami and are homes to some very special wildlife vital to the food chain.

In Bali visitors are welcome to visit the Mangrove Information Centre and learn about this special environment. Specially constructed wooden walkways take visitors through the twisted mangrove trees and trained guides point out fascinating wildlife and other interesting sites. Visit their website www.jica.or.id/mangrove.htm

No smoking!

Did you know that smoking is banned on some beaches in Australia. They are smoke-free zones. Smoking is also banned in indoor restaurants, enclosed workplaces such as factories, shops and offices, covered areas on train platforms and even at bus stops, on public transport and even at some children’s playgrounds. In fact the no smoking ban is becoming law in countries around the world. Do you think Indonesia should follow the same rules?

Where did you get that great bag?

The XSProject is based in Jakarta. They make some fantastic products and at the same time help reduce waste. KGRE recently visited them at their workplace and spoke to Adit and Uni (see left). These two successful young women gave up jobs in the city to work with the project. Here’s part of the interview with Uni and Adit.

Visit their website at www.xsprojectgroup.com

In mid-2007, Tunas Hijau held activities with refugee children in Porong near Surabaya. They have lost their school and their play areas due to the hot mudflow which is affecting the area. Tunas Hijau Club, led by Septian, a student of SMA Negeri 7 Surabaya, brought a giant sized Snakes and Ladders game to Pasar Baru, Porong for the children. Members of Tunas Hijau demonstrated the wonderful environmental game and then held a mini version of the Snakes and Ladders competition with about 40 local children. Prizes included environmental comics plus smaller-sized Snakes and Ladders games about the ozone layer.

‘We visited from Surabaya not to give food or money or anything like that. We just gave messages through these games to the children about the environment’, said Diofan, an activist from the Tunas Hijau Club.

Tunas Hijau also held some other activities such as watching environmental movies: ‘Ozzy Ozone’ and ‘The Day After Tomorrow’.

‘From these activities, we hope that the children could know how important it is that we take care of the environment even though their immediate environment is getting worse everyday.’

These activities were appreciated by the people in the mudflow refugee camp, both young and old.

How many words can you make from the letters in this word - environmental You can use letters more than once if you wish.

For example the letters e, r and t can be used to make the word tree. Here's another example for you - the letters e, m, t and a can be used to make meat. All words must have more than 4 letters in them, okay? The more letters you can use in each word, the better!

Save their homes

Did you know the Kalimantan and Sumatran orangutan and the Australian koala have something in common? They are both endangered and losing their habitats at an alarming rate. That's why conservation groups such as the Sumatran Orangutan Society in Indonesia and the Australian Koala Foundation are working hard to conserve them and their habitats.

Kalimantan and Sumatra are the only places in the world where orangutans are found. They live mainly in trees. They sleep at night and are vegetarian. Orangutans are endangered because their environment is being destroyed through logging, clearing and burning and also because they are hunted for food and kept in captivity. The Sumatran Orangutan Society runs rehabilitation centres where the orangutans are trained to return to living in their natural habitat. Find out more at www.orangutans-sos.org

Have you heard about the Australian Koala Foundation’s No tree..... No me! slogan? It's a good one, isn't it?

Australia’s unique, nocturnal koala needs eucalyptus (gum) trees to survive both for their homes and their food but only certain types of eucalypts are suitable. Trees being cut down to make way for urban development have destroyed up to 80% of Australia’s original eucalyptus forests. The koalas are in trouble.

In Australia, September 2007 is Save the Koala month.

Learn more about koalas at www.savethekoala.com

Capt KGRE in Oz - an environmental observation

On July 12th I was at a popular tourist site called Gregory’s Tree, approximately 600km from Darwin and just 76km from Kununurra in far North West Australia. Back in the middle 1800s, early explorers, led by a man called Gregory, lived at the site for 9 months while they were exploring the surrounding area. Today the boab tree, into which they carved their names way back then, is still there. Tourists drive 5 km from the main highway to see the tree and read about Gregory and his camp. And guess what? There’s a rubbish bin there. It was terrific to see a rubbish bin nearby for tourists to use. Please Note: A strong plastic bag lined the bin and it was taped around the top. This meant the plastic bag stayed in place inside the bin until staff from the National Park office collected the rubbish each week. Good idea, eh?

**Capt. KGRE is Kevin Dalton, KGRE's Project Manager in indonesia - email: kdalton@ialf.edu

To the Dump!

Every day in Jakarta 6,000 tonnes of rubbish is sent to a rubbish dump in Bekasi. 6000 tonnes! That's the same weight as 3,700 Toyota Kijang cars or one submarine! For our KGRE readers, how much of that rubbish belonged to you?

What did you find on the beach today?

It’s hard to find a clean beach these days. At low tide some beaches look like rubbish dumps. Depending on the winds and tides, rubbish dumped in places many kilometers away arrives on beaches far from where it was originally discarded. It’s not a pretty sight. Broken sandals, shampoo bottles, plastic packaging, glass bottles, toothbrushes, tin cans, syringes, styrofoam lunch boxes and much, much more. YUK!

Beach communities often organize beach clean-ups. Sometimes school children spend a day at the beach cleaning up rubbish and learning about the environment at the same time. In tourist areas, hotels located on the beach also help to make the environment clean for locals and tourists to enjoy. KGRE would like to say a big thank-you to all of them for making beaches nicer places to be. Be environmentally aware at the beach and other tourist sites and take your rubbish home!

Bags of trouble

Here's some interesting information about plastic bags.

• Plastic bags are the fifth most common type of rubbish found on beaches.
• Australians use over 10 million plastic bags a day – or 6,000,000 million a year. Tie all those bags together and you would have a chain which would go round the world 37 times. How many bags are used in Indonesia every day? How many do you use everyday?
• Plastic bags are serial killers. One bag can kill more than one animal. The body of an animal, which has died after eating plastic, will decay more quickly than the plastic bag will decay. The plastic bag is then released back into the environment to be eaten by another animal. The tragedy goes on and on!

Litter traps in Yarra River

When I was in Melbourne earlier this year, I took a cruise along the Yarra River. It really surprised and impressed me how clean the river is. You can’t see a single piece of trash floating in there. Instead I saw some litter traps floating along the river. These devices trap all kinds of rubbish that get washed from streets when it rains. The litter includes plastic, glass bottles, drink cartons, cigarette butts and lighters and syringes, as well as tree branches and vegetation debris from the parks. A river barge patrols the Yarra River regularly and empties the litter traps.

What a wonderful way to protect the river! Clean rivers not only make it safe for people to do water sports such as canoeing or boating, but also help protect animals, plants and fish living in the waterways. And they look good too!

Ogi, KGRE Coordinator at KGRE in Bali

Oz Indo Deforestation Initiative

Trees play a very important role in the environmental well- being of any area. Trees help clean the air and trees also protect land and animals. When trees disappear, problems such as landslides occur. In June 2007, the Indonesian and Australian governments agreed to work together on the issue of deforestation. The loss of valuable forests, both legally and illegally, needs to be looked at and the problems associated with it addressed. The Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Mr. Bill Farmer, told KGRE recently that with cooperation between local communities, the Ministry for the Environment, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and other relevant agencies, the issue of uncontrolled deforestation can be, and needs to be, solved. On July 24th, the Australian government announced that it will commit Rp77 billion to support efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and promote sustainable forest management in Indonesia. The funding is being provided from the Australian Government’s Rp1.54 trillion (A$200 million) Global Initiative on Forests and Climate.

How much money is Australia committing to the Global Initiative on Forests and Climate?

Send an SMS to 081 2387 0479 before the end of September and you could win prizes from CIFOR.

In June 2007, Kevin and Ogi from KGRE, and Ana from IALF Bali, met with a wonderful young man named Pak Julmansyah from the Kantor Dinas Kehutanan & Perkebunan in Sumbawa Besar. In conjunction with several important international forestry partnerships, Julmansyah’s office has been conducting forestry research in Sumbawa. The partnerships are with ACIAR (Australian Centre of International Agricultural Research), CIFOR (Centre for International Forestry Research), WWF (World Wildlife Fund), Forestry Research and Development Agency Republic of Indonesia, and Land & Water Society from Charles Sturt University in New South Wales, Australia.

The project is titled, Community partnerships for plantation forestry: enhancing rural incomes from forestry in Eastern Indonesia and Australia.

Julmansyah and the Kantor Dinas Kehutanan & Perkebunan in Sumbawa have been helping local teak wood growers to increase their income from the crops and to understand the importance of looking after the environment in which they grow their products. The project has been conducting important training programs with local communities about the importance of the forest and the environment. Pak Julmansyah went to Australia on a study tour in 2006 to see forests and environmental projects there. He says he learnt a lot, but he also says that his Australian counterparts learnt a lot from him and the other 6 participants on the tour.

Look at the article by Abby Millerd on Page 10. She works with AYED Bogor encouraging farmers to plant trees with their crops.

• Be well prepared both mentally and physically.
• Get to the interview/test location early – a day before is best so that you are fully rested and not worried about being late or lost.
• Read, read, read. Browse the Internet to gather information about the academic programs available at Australian universities.
• Compare programs and choose the one which is best for you. (Don’t choose a university just because your friend is studying there!).
• Make contact with the universities you are interested in and find out more about their programs.

• In the interview be confident and prepared to talk about where you want to go, why you want to go and what you want to do there.
• Bring a copy of your application form, all documents, certificates and any papers, articles or books you have had published.
• Check your application form and make sure you have missed nothing out.
• Don’t be afraid to say you don’t know or are unsure but say why you are unsure.
• Don’t tell lies during the interview. The interviewers are experienced lecturers and know when students are not telling the truth.

Membership Grows to 1,500

Only three months after the launch of OzMate (www.ozmate.org), over 2,500 Australian alumni have joined this online networking community. OzMate’s job board and ‘search’ feature, allowing alumni to find old friends or make new friends, are the favourite features. OzMate continues to be developed, providing more features for the online community.
OzMate has been promoted on radio talk shows in Jakarta, Surabaya and Medan. Ms. Dian Krishna (Metro TV’s News Anchor) and Mr. Mario Lawalatta (actor) were invited to talk to listeners about their experiences studying in Australia and the importance of maintaining alumni networks. They highlighted OzMate as a fun and interactive way for alumni to keep in touch, find new jobs and search upcoming events. Have you joined yet? Do it NOW!

The official launch of 3 LAPIS (Learning Assistance Program for Islamic Schools) activities took place in August at IAIN Surabaya: ELTIS (English Language Training for Islamic Schools); ELOIS (Equal Learning Opportunities in Islamic Schools); and PGMI (Islamic Basic Education). These activities are funded by the Australian government, as part of its support for Indonesia’s Basic Education Initiative. And we all know how important education is!

Nazeem Hussain is young, an Aussie, and one of the five members of the 2007 Muslim Exchange Program who visited Indonesia earlier this year. He is a very busy man back home. In Australia he is -

• a full time student studying a double degree in Law and Science
• a Director for the Islamic Council of Victoria
• the President of the Islamic Society at his university, and
• a presenter on Salam Café, a weekly television comedy program.

Why did Nazeem join the 2007 Muslim Exchange Program? Nazeem told KGRE it was simple: he got to travel to Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world. And what did he see in Indonesia that amazed him? The most interesting thing was to experience Islam being practiced in a moderate fashion and not as hard-lined as perceptions of Indonesia might indicate in the media in Australia.

While in Indonesia , Nazeem and his co-participants visited Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Sukabumi. In Sukabumi they witnessed the opening of a new pesantren school constructed with assistance from AusAID's Basic Education Program. He says it was the nicest thing he has ever done. The young SMP students were so excited and fantastic. They thought the visiting Aussies were superstars. Nazeem said, ‘The students knew that some Aussies were coming to visit their school and probably expected us to be white but they were doubly surprised to see our dark skin AND that we were Muslim too’. Big surprise!

As for the future, he will no doubt be a lawyer one day but his interest in Salam Café is quite strong too. This popular television show provides a look at the lives of ordinary Muslims in Australia showing that they are in fact normal, happy people who are educated, enjoy things like football and like to crack a joke – it is both a serious and humorous look at life of Aussie Muslims. Ninety five percent of viewers are non-Muslim, the target audience. In 2006 the program won Program of the Year at the Australian Community Television Awards. Café Salam has a website www.salamcafe.com.au Check the site out and see what it is all about.

The Australian Youth Ambassadors Program

The Australian Youth Ambassadors Program (AYAD) sends skilled young Australian volunteers on short-term assignments to Asia and the Pacific. KGRE recently met Abby Millerd. She is working with farmers in Bogor as a Communications Development Officer for the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) through the AYAD program. Her role is to promote agroforestry as a management system. Abby will be using her communication skills to educate farmers about some of the factors that need to be considered when selecting trees for agricultural integration. This will assist farmers in choosing trees to plant, such as fruit trees, for personal use and for the market. She also uses her communica-tion skills in assisting with the content for brochures and posters on eco-certification. As a result of work in this area, a large rubber manufacturer has since expressed interest in investing in eco-certified jungle rubber. There is a hope that money from eco-certification will ensure farmers maintain their environmentally friendly farming practices.

Another New City - FANTASTIC!

Would you like to live in interesting places all over the world? Who wouldn't? New and exciting environments to enjoy - fabulous! Jakarta resident, Elaine Farmer, has lived in many locations around the world including Cairo, New York, Kuala Lumpur, Port Moresby, London, Mexico and Fiji. You would have to agree that these places are certainly all very, very different. How does Elaine cope with living in such varied locations? How does she make her 'new environment' comfortable from the very beginning? Elaine has certainly followed all of her rules here in Indonesia and really loves living here. The rules?

• Call the new location HOME as soon as you arrive.
• Start making friends as soon as you can.
• Quickly become familiar with the new environment. Go visiting and travel around the city or even the country if you can.

Together with her husband, Mr. Bill Farmer, Australia’s Ambassador to Indonesia, Elaine has visited Aceh, South Sulawesi, many parts of Java and even Komodo. KGRE asked Elaine what was so good about their trip to Komodo? They loved the fresh air and sea breezes on board the Ombak Putih from Bali to Komodo, the wildlife and the remoteness – a relaxing and peaceful environment away from the bustle of Jakarta. And yet Elaine told KGRE that it is the hustle and bustle of Jakarta that she loves about that city – always something happening – never a dull moment. Listen to Elaine speaking on KGRE radio in October and November for more insights into her very busy life.

Successful Debates

Sri from Yogjakarta and Syahrir from Makassar have both asked KGRE for information about conducting successful debates and running a debate club.

Here are three reasons why debates are a good way to practise a foreign language:

• they can energize students and teachers
• subjects, which once appeared boring and abstract, can come to life in a debate situation
• students become actively involved in their own learning process

Students must:

• ask themselves what the issue means to them personally
• research the social, political, ethical and historical contexts in which the issues are situated
• learn to see complex problems from widely different perspectives
• learn and use new vocabulary
• be able to think on their feet and react quickly to opposing arguments
  

Because all this learning is geared towards a specific purpose (performing well in the debate itself) students have added incentive and a clear goal to work towards.

Starting a debate club

A successful debate club has a strong sense of group identity. No one member works alone, rather, the whole club should work as a team.

Some useful steps to creating a successful debate club:

Where will the club meet?

A club-room should:

• be easily accessible to all members,
• have resources such as dictionaries, newspapers and maybe the Internet

How often should the club meet?

The club members should meet regularly to build friendship and trust. Weekly meetings of all club members will improve fluency. Members can practise and prepare arguments on a variety of topics.

Leadership

Students should elect a president, a secretary and a treasurer from committed members of the club. New debaters can learn from experienced members.

Topics

Topics can be local issues, which affect the people, and or environment around you personally, or more global issues. Below is the address of a fantastic debate website with great topics and arguments, ideas for activities and much, much more. Have fun! www.idebate.org

KGCC#081 is Randu’s Chatting Club in Babadan, Ungaran, Central Java. They have 40 active club members. Here are two of their ten questions to students at Eaglehawk Secondary College in Victoria.

1. Who keeps your school and dormitories clean?
2. How do you manage the waste/rubbish from your dormitories or schools?

The Eaglehawk SC student response?

‘Our school is cared for by our caretaker John. We also have a private cleaning company called AERO which looks after the inside and outside grounds. Filling bags with rubbish is also used as a punishment and some students stay behind after school and get paid to pick up rubbish. The rubbish is put into recyclable and non-recyclable bins and then transferred to the local tip’.

Kang Guru Note: Details of this activity can be found at http://www.kangguru.org/kgreconnectionclubnetwork.htm KGRE plans more exchanges of information between Indonesian and Australian students and schools during 2008.

Best Forum Club #003 is based in Makassar. Their questions went to Penrhos College in Perth. Here are just three of their questions together with the answers given by the Penrhos College Year 9 students (SMP Class 3).

1. Please explain why people are not allowed to burn rubbish in their back yards.
2. How do teachers in Australia encourage their students to NOT throw away rubbish?
3. Which environmental problem is currently being discussed by most people in Australia?

The answers from Penrhos?

‘People aren’t allowed to burn rubbish in their backyards because it can cause air pollution and fires. We have very clean air in Perth and we want to keep it this way. Teachers teach their students to ‘Reduce, Recycle and Reuse’. They ask their students to think carefully about how they bring their lunches to school. They suggest that students use reusable containers and food that does not have a lot of packaging. They also encourage them to eat fresh fruit for their morning recess break rather than biscuits and potato chips so there is less rubbish. The environmental problem that is being discussed most in Perth is our lack of water. We have not had much rain this year or last year and the dams are very low. People have been asked to use less water’.

Attention KGCC Committees and All members

A big KGRE welcome to Maggie Brady and especially to the Kang Guru Connection Club network. Maggie will be looking after KGCCs until December 2007. Please feel free to email Maggie and say a big welcome to KGCC - emails to mbrady@ialf.edu OR kgcc@ialf.edu. Cheryl Reid has returned to work in Australia and we wish her all the best.

Thank you for all the fantastic posters and suggestions in KGRE’s recent environment competitions. Choosing the winners was really difficult! Some of the many great ideas from KGCC members included:

• creating green zones in school environments,
• local clean-up days,
• garbage separation at school and at home,
• educating people about the need to reduce,
• recycle and reuse,
• walking instead of going by vehicle,
• giving natural gifts such as plants
• using traditional organic wrappings for food, like banana leaves.

Get Me English Community (#071) organized a Rubbish Hunting activity where members ‘collected rubbish from around their school and then exchanged it for KGRE pins, pens and stickers. 5kg of rubbish was collected for recycling’ and guess what? They practiced their English at the same time. Well done!

Hikmah Hasanah is from the Pioneer English Club (#019) in Sumenep - Madura. ’In 2005, our school developed recycling programs to manage rubbish control and we have succeeded. Inorganic and organic waste is separated before the organic rubbish is recycled into compost. After 5 weeks when the rubbish has reduced in volume, it is sifted and the resulting compost is used to plant tobacco, vegetables, fruit and other plants.’

Sasak English Club (#023) in Lombok, concentrated on cleaning up the drains in their local environment to reduce the risk of dengue fever.

As Budi Hartawan from Pioneer English Club in Sumenep says :
’Be civilized towards nature or move to another planet!’

Gado-Gado English Club (#091) in Lombok conducts regular clean–ups as part of their club activities. ‘Once a month we have a ‘Minggu Bersih’ to clean up the rubbish in our area and promote the importance of a clean environment’

10 years in Bali for KGRE

KGRE has been based in Bali for the past ten years and here’s news of a special anniversary gift from KGRE. The technical team at KGRE has created a 10th Anniversary Compilation CD with some of your favourite voices heard on radio shows from the past ten years. Remember Dr Pintar and Liz in her Language Lab segments? Or what about Walter – KGRE’S first presenter in Bali? This special CD is just one in a special five compilation CD set. If you would like a copy of this special anniversary CD set then write to us at KGRE (letter or email) telling us when you first began listening to KGRE, which part of KGRE you like best, and how KGRE has helped your teaching. Don’t forget to include the name and address of your school.

KGRE e-NEWS for Teachers

The second KGRE e-NEWS for Teachers has been sent to over 300 teachers across Indonesia. Have you received your copy yet? If not, it’s easy to register - email Tjok at tningrat@ialf.edu and ask to join KGRE's teacher database. The July e-NEWS has information about the benefits of forming an English teacher group in your area, ADS scholarships dates, workshops and KGRE's ten years in Bali.

Useful Internet resources for teachers

Below are two interactive websites which have been specially developed for teachers and students. They are aimed at making everyone more aware of our impact on the environment. Recommend them to your students!

www.olliesworld.com Ollie has been educating Australians about interacting with the natural world since 1997. Primary schools in Australia use the CD Rom.

www.earthday.net/ This site is especially useful for teachers because you can download ‘Bobbie Bigfoot’ lesson plans, vocabulary lists, quizzes, and board games. Sounds great!

Nexus is a TV program and web site from ABC Australia which helps people learn English, and find out about Australian life and culture. Each day the website has an up to date schedule. There are video stories too especially for English language learning.

Go to http://australianetwork.com/nexus/

Feedback from teachers using KGRE Reward stickers

Luluk Rahmawati, an English teacher at MTsN Grogol Kediri, wrote to Sue.

"In correcting the students' assignments, especially writing assignments, I didn't correct their grammar but more the content. It doesn't matter whether their grammar isn't good. As long as the content is very good/different from others, I'll give them stickers. Thank you Sue. When will you visit Kediri again!!"

KGRE notes: This is a good example of using the KGRE Reward sticker. If you would like a set of 60 free KGRE stickers write to srodger@ialf.edu and tell us how you will use the stickers in the classroom. Motivate those students!

A FANTASTIC TEACHER TASK - What positive effects has KGRE had on your teaching?

Maybe you learnt some new ideas at a KGRE workshop, or have adapted some KGRE materials. Perhaps you introduced your students to the KGRE magazine or website. Send your entry to KGRE and you could win great teaching prizes from KGRE. PLUS a member of the KGRE staff will make a special visit to your school and meet with you, other teachers and your students. Send us a letter of no more than 200 words in English to KGRE Teacher Task, PO Box 3095, Denpasar 80030, Bali, or email to srodger@ialf.edu before November 30th, 2007.

To cover the increased cost of production and courier, the new price for the SMA Package or SMP Package is Rp 125,000 (for either cassettes or CD), and if you want to buy both audio (cassettes and CD), the price is Rp 150,000. Please send your money by pos wesel or bank transfer to KGRE:

Nama Account: IALF
Bank: Bank Central Asia Cabang Hasanudin
Alamat: Jl. Hasanudin No.58 Denpasar
No Account: 040-1-470-289

Note: For any order made by bank transfer, please send or fax the transfer slip to KGRE office with your name and phone no.

Care for our air from Christian Bautista

Did you know that famous Filipino singer Christian Bautista promotes caring for the environment in his native Philippines? He joined other famous artists to make a series of short videos to encourage Filipinos to ‘care for our air’ – a clean air campaign. Both Christian’s parents worked at the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources in Manila. His father also studied for an environmental degree in Sydney. They would often talk to him about the environment – how to take care of it, planting trees, efficient use of electricity, taking care of plants and not throwing away rubbish but finding ways to reuse or recycle.

On the video Christian speaks about the dangers of burning garbage (sampah). He tells viewers that ‘by burning waste you are not only polluting others but polluting yourself.’ Burning rubbish (especially waste plastic) releases harmful chemicals into the environment. Sometimes the fire smolders for hours. And all the time we are breathing those harmful chemicals into our lungs. Christian believes that education is the key. He says that if people are lazy about the environment then there will be big problems in the future.

Why not have a ‘clean air campaign’ where you live and educate others about reusing, recycling and disposing of rubbish carefully?

Balawan speaks about the environment

Earlier this year, KGRE interviewed I Made Balawan a very talented Balinese musician who has developed a unique style of guitar playing called tapping. KGRE asked Balawan about environmental problems in Indonesia. Balawan offered a simple way we could all help reduce rubbish – something he learnt during his time studying in Sydney.

You can listen to more from Balawan on KGRE radio shows and read about his visit to the KGRE office on the KGRE website - www.kangguru.org

Balawan is also a member of OzMate.

Observations from a visitor to Indonesia What do you think?

I observed a group of school kids, maybe a hundred or so, on a school outing to a famous temple. As they filed out of the temple they were each given a plastic water container - the kind that comes with a little straw. A half hour later there were a hundred little plastic glasses on the street in front of the temple.

A woman came out of the front door of her home and dumped a pail of plastic trash into the small irrigation ditch at the side of the road in front of her house. (Where did she think that rubbish would go?)

I also observed a couple riding a motorcycle - the man driving and the woman on the back. They crossed a small bridge over a river and the woman threw a plastic bag of trash over the railing into the river. (Where did she think that rubbish would go?)

So where does it go? It goes downstream, gets stuck on riverbanks, gets eaten by marine animals who mistake it for food. It blocks drains and causes floods and worse!

Bring your own shopping bag

When Dayu, an IALF Indonesian teacher of English taught in Australia, she was surprised at the supermarket when the cashier asked if she would like a shopping bag. She was even more surprised when she was asked to pay for it!

To reduce the use of plastic bags, Australian shoppers are encouraged to bring their own bags from home. If they don’t, they have to buy them.

Tap water safe to drink?

Dayu was also amazed when she was thirsty and asked for some water. Her Aussie friend gave her a glass and told her to get some water from the tap. Dayu thought she was joking! She found it really strange to just turn on the tap and actually drink the water!

In most places in Australia tap water is clean and drinkable.

Put it in the bin! Bin it!

Teachers and school children in Australia take rubbish disposal very seriously and students are punished if they drop rubbish carelessly in the school grounds.

Ana, another Indonesian teacher of English here at IALF Bali, noticed some differences about this during her time teaching in Australia.

I remember having a picnic in a park with a group of Australian and overseas students in Perth and being really embarrassed when one of the overseas students threw his lunch wrappers on the ground. There were lots of rubbish bins nearby. An Australian teacher told him to put it in the bin.
What happens to the rubbish at your school at lunch time? Or when you are on a school excursion?

Coloured Wheelie Bins

Another difference Ana noticed in Sydney was the different coloured rubbish bins on wheels (known as wheelie bins) which are provided for each household. People have to separate their rubbish and place it in the right bin. Red for recyclable rubbish like aluminium cans and glass, blue for paper rubbish and green for food scraps and organic waste. The wheelie bins are made from recycled plastic.

It took a while to get used to, but separating rubbish soon became automatic.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Victoria Sibi from Manado was part of the Indonesian team which competed at the International Conference of Young Scientists in St Petersburg, Russia in April, 2007. Here are some of Vicky’s observations about the clean waterways there.

In St Petersburg, all of the delegations had the chance to experience cultural excursions organized by the committee. We visited famous places like the State Hermitage Museum, Peterhof, St Isaac’s Cathedral, Marinsky Theatre, Tsarkoe Selo, Pavlovsk and the Cathedral of Resurrection.

As we toured the city I noticed there were many rivers. Wherever we went we could always see rivers, whether it was the large river in the middle of the city or the small rivers and canals. The large river in St Petersburg is the Neva and the small river, the Malaya. Now, the interesting thing which really impressed me was that along the river there was no garbage or domestic waste. You could see with your own eyes how really clean and clear the rivers were. There was no sign of people throwing rubbish in the rivers. When we mentioned how clean the rivers were, the tour guide told us how many years ago, Peter the Great ordered all the garbage polluting the rivers to be excavated. The clean rivers we now see have been like that ever since. Amazing!

The KGRE workplace environment:

a healthy environment and happy staff

We all know how important it is to create a clean, healthy environment outside our homes, schools and places of work. But did you realize that it is just as important to have a healthy environment inside too? A well-lit, well ventilated, clean working environment is best, whether in a factory, school or office.

The staff at KGRE are lucky to have a fabulous working environment. In 2005 we moved into a spacious office on the new IALF Bali campus. Then last year the office expanded into the room next door. Now everyone has their own desk. There is even enough space for storage and preparation of all the hundreds packages and souvenirs we send out to listeners and readers across Indonesia.

While KGRE staff downstairs were enjoying their working environment the technical staff upstairs at IALF Bali waited patiently for their new recording studio. In June 2007, a brand new recording studio was opened. Darmika, Gung De and Mahendra (see picture below) are very proud of their new studio – even if Kevin did pull the door handle off the door in the first week. So strong! So there’s no excuse for KGRE staff to stay at home now. We all love coming to work!

A Symposium on Basic Education in Islamic Schools in Indonesia was held in July 2007 on the UIN campus in Ciputat, Jakarta. It was convened by the State Islamic University, Syarif Hidayatullah, Jakarta, in cooperation with the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The Symposium focussed on the joint MoNE/MoRA Grand Design for basic education and the role, challenges and opportunities for Islamic schools and the institutions that support them, in achieving the Grand Design. AusAID's LAPIS program (Learning Assistance Program for Islamic Schools) funded seven KGRE Champions and Radio Presenters to attend the Symposium. These people, amongst many others, are a very important part of the KGRE network. Those invited were KGRE Champions Suryadi from Madura, Saptari Wibowo from Medan, Fadhil from Mataram plus KGRE Radio Presenters Fathul Muin from Tuban, Amriyah Dewi from Nganjuk, Inah from Bima and Bowo Pranoto from Banyuwangi. Congratulations to all of them and thanks to LAPIS for its support. You can read what they had to say about the Symposium on the KGRE website.

Using natural resources

Many Australian homes, businesses and schools are now using solar panels to generate electricity and heat water. Rectangular panels on the roofes or poles absorb heat from the sun. Some schools are already using solar power for their cooling and heating needs.

The Australian Government is now providing up to $50,000 for every school to install solar hot water systems and rainwater tanks to improve water and energy efficiency. All Australian primary and secondary schools are eligible for funding. It is hoped that all schools will have these rainwater tanks within the next 4 years. Rain water which is collected in the tanks will be used for cleaning, washing, watering ovals and gardens, but not for drinking water.

The FUTURE

Solar Challenge

Most of the power produced around the world today uses non-renewable fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas. Once these fuels have been burnt they are finished. Oops, no fuel for cars or coal or oil for a electrical power plant? There are renewable energy sources like the sun (solar), wind and water which, some people believe, are better for the environment as they produce less pollution. Every year in Australia there is a car race for vehicles powered by the sun. This year is the 20th anniversary of the Panasonic World Solar Challenge. Cars race 3000 kilometers from Darwin to Adelaide. In 2007 it will take place between the 21st and the 28th of October. Schools, universities and corporations from around the world are invited to develop cars for the race. Maybe all our cars will run on solar power in the future.

Goodbye to 'hot' lights

In Australia incandescent bulbs will be completely phased out by 2010. They will be replaced with the more fuel-efficient, compact, fluorescent models. This type of light bulb uses around 20% less electricity to produce the same amount of light. “It’s a little thing but it’s a massive change,” the Australian Environment Minister said. The move could cut the country’s greenhouse gas emissions by 4 million tonnes by 2012. The decision will make Australia the first country in the world to ban the old-style light bulbs. The incandescent light bulb is based on a design invented in the 19th century by engineers including Thomas Edison and Joseph Swan.

Water Wars

Many countries share rivers. For example the Mekong river begins in China then flows through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and finally Vietnam. All of them use water from the river for food, water and transport. Imagine what would happen if one of the countries near the source of the river decided to build a dam. The supply of water would be cut off to the countries downstream. The tiny island state of Singapore buys more than half of its water from its neighbour Malaysia. If Malaysia decided not to deliver the water, then Singaporeans would be very thirsty! Experts around the world agree it is important all the countries carefully plan water-sharing schemes so that all countries have water. KGRE agrees – Good neighbours make good friends.

Windy Water

Until very recently, many parts of Australia has been in the grip of the worst drought in living memory. Many reservoirs supplying water to major cities and towns are still at alarmingly low levels. Water restrictions are widespread. Desalination plants are being constructed to provide much needed drinking water. Desalination removes the salt from seawater and processes it to make it suitable for drinking. This process needs a lot of energy. Because the plants are built near the sea they are often in areas which are windy. So to provide cheaper, more ecologically- friendly power wind farms are being built to provide the energy. Huge fans turn in the wind, moving a turbine which produces electrical power. Are there any of these huge fans here in Indonesia yet?

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