The traditional Banga is a mud or coconut-leaf house. Huts are normally small- made by the boy of the house that want some independance from his family. Often painted with fun: here we have the "white house".... 

Why us ?

Why becoming a Volunteer for Moidjio CRCAD?

 

In giving a little bit of yourself to this project we hope you'll find  that by the end of your experience you will have become a much richer person in many ways. You will be immersed in a spectacular environment that seems “too beautiful to be true” and be welcomed into a culture of incredible generosity and simplicity. You may find that you will learn not only about turtles, humpback whales, lemurs and corals, but about yourself.

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Your experience as a volunteer is not just about collecting data and writing reports.  Here at Moidjio, we would like you to arrive and become part of what's going on. We want you to become a brick in the  wall... whatever you are good at there is a role for everyone here and that is why the project is so interesting. As well as studying and gaining field experience with some of the most beautiful and impressive creatures on earth, you will be living in of one of the richest cultures in the world: with a huge mix of Indian, Malachi, African, Swahili and European-French influences.  

 

You will be welcomed into this friendly local community with open arms and become part of the diverse activities that the village offers. We also think that it is our duty to promote activities within the villages, to share our knowledge and bring children a greater chance of education. We will do this by  organising workshops dealing with the local environment, science and English language, which will hopefully provide more opportunities for young Comorians to enter higher education.

 

We are working for Comorian and Mad

agascan people,. We are their guests and we respect their beliefs and traditions. We do not try to teach a certain way of life, we are here to answer the people's needs.  We do  this by providing quality research on the environment and ecology  with the aim to assist sustainable development without any cultural clashes.

 

Moidjio's views on ecotourism/volunteering

 

Our approach integrates of ecotourism and cultural heritage tourism (travel directed toward experiencing local traditions, arts, and heritage while respecting the host community and its surrounding environment). Cultural heritage tourism underlines an important link to the community that we think should be part of all ecotourism products and tour packages. People travel to see how other people live, to experience their neighbourhoods, and to understand the natural environments that define their existence. Culture and heritage sum up a community’s beliefs and values, and the way of life that evolves as a result of living within a group and a defined geographic area. To develop ecotourism without considering local culture is to take the humanity out of ecotourism. In an ideal world, environmentalists, conservationists, and preservationists sould collaborate to develop an ecotourism experience in which everyone benefits. It is not only earth's wildlife and environment that are under threat- human cultures are also endangered, especially many indigenous cultures. The inclusion of the socio-cultural content of the ecotourism experience gives visitors a greater  understanding and appreciation.

 

Ecotourism can only be a positive force in sustaining the natural, historic, and cultural environment when visitors are properly educated.  The development of guidelines for educating visitors a bout environmentally fragile areas and cultural issues is paramount in any tour package. The education of employees, as well as volunteers, about these issues is an important way of decreasing negative environmental and social impacts. The tourist industry must be an active participant in the continuing dialogue over conservation of natural and cultural resources.

 

Moheli and Ecotourism

 

Moheli would like to develop itself by promoting ecotourism with  as a sustainable activity under the definition:

 

''Concept of development and planning of tourism in order to protect and preserve the environment in all its aspects and to respect the way of life of local residents'' (BSI/CEN definition published in 2001). This  sums up with the policies and aims of Moheli.

 

Moheli is young in terms of economic activity, inhabitants have no regular income, and those that are employed are rarely paid on time. The population is self-sufficient for primary needs, but aims to rise out of poverty and develop. Moheli's wants are simple: electricity, a water network, road improvements, education, and accessibility to doctors and medicine. Tourist activity has already contributed somewhat towards development on the island, for example in the Association for the Development of Itsamia (ADCI) (a village on Moheli). This village has been protecting turtles from poachers for their own ethical reasons. Now however its beach is one of the biggest nesting sites for green turtles in the world and Itsamia is the number 1 destination for the Moheli tourist.