Exploring conservation education and learning activities in Bajulmati Sea Turtle Conservation area

Abstract

Bajulmati Beach is one of the most well-known tourist destinations in the coastal area of the southern Malang Regency. It has several unique tourism destinations to visit. A community-based sea turtle conservation facility is one of them, which is managed by Bajulmati Sea Turtle Conservation (BSTC). This paper aims to describe the environmental conservation education and learning activities of BSTC. This is qualitative research conducted from primary data. Data collection was done using three methods, namely 1) in-depth interview with key informants, 2) focus group discussion (FGD) with LMDH, POKMASWAS, and BSTC, and 3) field survey. The result shows that BSTC has been consistently practicing some main environmental conservation actions in Bajulmati Beach. They are natural school (Sekolah Alam) twice a week, sea turtle’s hatchling nest protection, clutch relocations, post-hatchling care, baby sea turtle releases, and environmental conservation education for the locals and tourists. In general, education and learning activities are increasing the environmental knowledge of the targeted audience. Furthermore, it is slowly shaping a more positive environmental attitude towards the locals.